11/07/2018 Pakistan (International Christian Concern) – Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister has said that he will help Asia Bibi, a Christian woman recently acquitted of committing blasphemy, leave Pakistan because of the risk to her life and the lives of her family. In 2010, Bibi was sentenced to death under Pakistan’s notorious blasphemy laws on flimsy evidence.
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini told members of the Italian media, “I want women and children whose lives are at risk to be able to have a secure future, in our country or in other Western countries, so I will do everything humanly possible to guarantee that (for Bibi).”
On October 31, Pakistan’s Supreme Court acquitted Bibi and rendered her death sentence null and void. Upset by this decision, Pakistan’s hardliners took to the streets to demand a review of the court’s decision and for Bibi to not be allowed to leave the country. Last Friday, after three days of protest, Pakistan’s government agreed to not oppose the demands of the hardliners sparking new concerns for Bibi’s safety.
According to sources reached by CNN, Bibi remains in a Pakistani jail that has been converted into a safe house by Pakistan’s army and intelligence services. Over the weekend, Bibi’s husband filmed and released a desperate plea for help to get Bibi and her family out of Pakistan.
For interviews with William Stark, ICC’s Regional Manager, please contact Olivia Miller, Communications Coordinator: press@persecution.org.
