ICC Note:
Another Christian prisoners in Pakistan, accused of being involved in the 2015 lynching of two Muslim men, has died under suspicious circumstances in prison. In 2015, 42 Christians were arrested by police following a riot in the Christian neighborhood of Youhanabad where two Muslims were killed. Many of these Christians were arrested and imprisoned with little to no evidence shown against them. Currently, these prisoners are still awaiting trial, but conditions in prison are so bad that two have already died. Will Pakistan continue to mistreat these Christian prisoners or will they improve their conditions as they await trial?
12/12/2017 Pakistan (Premier) – A Christian man accused of being involved in the lynching of two Muslim men believed to have been connected to the 2015 twin church bomb attack in Pakistan, has died while in jail.
Usman Masih, 29, died from a heart attack but an autopsy report revealed his body was covered in bruises and welts.
The British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) said the state of the body of the married father of two children created “suspicion”.
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the BPCA, said: “Negligence and violence has led to the death of a man believed to be totally innocent by the Christian community.
“The lesions on the victim corpses suggests foul play and a brutal ending.
“Pakistan has ratified the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, yet they persist with the most undignified and brutal incarceration of prisoners.”
Mr Masih was arrested with over 500 men after a large group of Christian’s sorrow turned to deadly rage, resulting in two Muslim men being killed in Lahore.
The Christian community of Youhanabad had been protesting the suicide bombing attack on two churches , which killed 15 people and injured 78 in Lahore as extremists continued to target Christians in the country.
BPCA said in a statement that all the arrested men were tortured and detained for over a year and a half before the majority were released without charge.
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