Pakistan 'blasphemy' law used against kids

May 17, 2011
 by Staff/Compass Direct

ISTANBUL (BP)--Pakistan's notorious "blasphemy" laws can put even children at risk, and Christians say the days when they could teach their offspring pat answers to protect them from accusations of disparaging Islam or its prophet seem to have passed.

A 30-year-old Pakistani woman who grew up in Lahore said her Christian parents taught her formula answers to keep from falling prey to accusations under the blasphemy statutes, such as "I am a Christian, I can only tell you about Him." But even then, before militant Islamists began influencing Pakistani society as they have in recent years, schoolchildren were taught not to discuss religion, she said.

"We knew never to get into religious discussions with others," she said. "We had them at home -- our parents would put us through the drill of asking us tough questions to see how we answered. Only now I realize that was practice for school." the rest

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