Ongoing investigations in the case of "Maria Goretti of Pakistan": pain is not for sale

ASIA/PAKISTAN -

Faisalabad (Agenzia Fides) - The local Catholic community already calls her "Maria Goretti of Pakistan" and remembers her as a "martyr of faith". While the Church of Faisalabad is still shaken by the murder of an 18-year-old Catholic Mariah Manisha, who was killed by a Muslim for refusing the forced conversion and the Islamic marriage, some local Muslim leaders are trying to "buy the silence" of the victim's family. As sources of Fides report, the Muslim leaders intend to apply the Islamic mechanism of the "diyat", the so-called "blood money" provided by the Sharia: thanks to an adequate "financial compensation", the family of the victim forgives the murderer , and this paves the way for his release, putting an end to the affair, without any legal punishment.
The Muslim Mohammad Arif Gujjar, who killed her on November 27, 2011, belongs to a wealthy family, in contact with high profile political figures in Punjab and influential Islamic religious leaders. While the murderer was arrested and indignation continues, elderly Muslim leaders are visiting the family to give their condolences but also to offer money in return for "silence". Mariah's parents, Razia Bibi and her father Manisha Masih, who live in the village of Samundari and have five other children, are outraged by these proposals.
Mgr. Khalid Rashid Asi, general Vicar of Faisalabad and President of the Diocesan Commission for the youth, explains to Fides: "We are closely following and with emotion this story. We are waiting for the final conclusions of the police investigation. Then, as local Church, we will examine the case and all the testimonies, considering whether to bring Mariah to the attention of the Episcopal Conference, as a martyr of faith".
In another delicate case, Martha Bibi, a Christian woman, a victim of false accusations of blasphemy, was released on bail on payment of 100,000 rupees, thanks to the Ngo LEAD (Legal Evangelical Association Development). The woman, who lived in the village of Kot Nanak Singh in Punjab, is accused of insulting the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad in January 2011. The trial is still underway in Lahore.
Haroon Barkat Masih, Director of the Christian Ngo "Masihi Foundation", which deals with the case of Asia Bibi, told Fides: "The two main tools to attack Christians in Pakistan are precisely the blasphemy law on the one hand, the 'diyat' on the other. First the faithful are killed or put in prison on false charges, then they try to buy the silence of the families, to set the criminals at liberty". (PA) (Agenzia Fides 07/12/2011)

 

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