In more than forty years at the bar I have learned that the most dangerous hour for a Christian accused of blasphemy is not the day of judgment. It is the first evening, when the rumour is fresh, the crowd is forming, and no court has yet seen a single word of evidence. An accusation under sections 295 or 298 of the Pakistan Penal Code becomes a sentence before the trial. Our duty as Christian lawyers in Pakistan is to reach the accused before the mob does.
I write this for pastors, family members and young Pakistani Christian lawyers who may one day receive that telephone call. These are the steps I follow as a Senior Advocate High Court. They are not a guarantee, but they matter.
The first 48 hours
- Move the accused to safety at once. Do not wait for the police to arrive. A relative’s home in another town is better than the accused person’s own street.
- Find a lawyer before the FIR is registered, or as soon as you learn of it. Once an FIR exists, the wording of the complaint shapes everything that follows, and an advocate can ask the police to record the true facts and the names of witnesses.
- Move the family too. Wives, children and elderly parents are often the target when the accused cannot be found. Arrange for them to stay with the church or with relatives.
- Preserve evidence. Telephone messages, photographs of the scene, the names of those who first raised the allegation, and any dispute over property, wages or a marriage that may lie behind it.
- Approach the court. Depending on the case, the advocate will challenge the FIR, apply for pre-arrest or post-arrest bail, and ask the court for the protection of the accused and the witnesses.
Why the lawyer must come first
Many families spend the first two days pleading with the complainant or the local elders. It rarely works, and it often makes the crowd larger. A lawyer who is known at the district court and who fears God more than men can speak to the police in a language they must answer. He can also make sure that the accused surrenders, if surrender becomes necessary, into judicial custody rather than into a crowd.
Christian Lawyers Alliance Pakistan (CLAP) does not charge a persecuted Christian for this work. Our members in Lahore and across Punjab have stood in blasphemy cases at every stage, from the first night onward. If you are a church leader, keep the number of a CLAP advocate in your telephone. Details are at clap.com.pk.
I say this without anger. Most of these accusations begin with a quarrel that has nothing to do with faith. We pray for the accuser as well as the accused, but prayer and law go together, and in the first 48 hours the law must move quickly.
— Founding Patron in Chief Advocate Soba Sorya, Senior Advocate High Court, Christian Lawyers Alliance Pakistan (CLAP)
