ICC Note:

The Pakistani Supreme Court has set the date in which they will hear the final appeal of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman on death row for allegedly committing blasphemy. In 2009, Bibi was accused of committing blasphemy by Muslim coworkers who were upset that she, a Christian, had used a “Muslim water bowl”. Pakistan’s blasphemy law is highly criticized because of its widespread abuse. Many claim it is used to settle personal scores and incite religious hatred against the country’s minority communities. Will Pakistan finally do the right thing and let Bibi go? 

10/06/2016 Pakistan (Dawn) – The accused in the country’s most infamous blasphemy case has been granted a fresh chance to escape the gallows after the Supreme Court confirmed Friday it will hear Asia Bibi’s appeal against her execution next week.

Bibi, a Christian mother of five, has been on death row since 2010 in what some activists have called a battle for Pakistan’s soul as the state walks a sharp line between upholding human rights and appeasing populist hardliners.

“The Supreme Court of Pakistan under the chair of Justice Saqib Nisar will hear Asia Bibi’s appeal against her death sentence on Thursday, October 13 in the Supreme Court of Pakistan, Islamabad,” her lawyer Saif-ul-Mulook told AFP.

The court confirmed Friday that the date had been set.

Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in Pakistan. Anyone even accused of insulting Islam risks a violent and bloody death at the hands of vigilantes.

Rights groups complain the controversial legislation is often abused to carry out personal vendettas, mainly against minority Christians.

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