Pakistani Christian girl falsely accused of blasphemy 'in Toronto'

A Pakistani Christian girl who was falsely accused of blasphemy has fled to Canada with her family, a Christian organisation says. Reports indicate she is now living in Toronto.

Rimsha Masih, 14, was charged with blasphemy in 2012 for allegedly burning pages of the Koran the Muslim holy book. A neighbour claimed she had burned pages of the Koran. Rimsha, was arrested in a Christian area of the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, after a furious crowd demanded she be punished. Rimsha Masih – who is only 14-years-old and said to have learning difficulties–spent 25 days in an adult maximum security prison before being freed on bail.

Framed?

Police believe Rimsha may have been framed by a local Muslim cleric who desecrated the Koran himself and then tried to make it look as if the girl did it.

Although she was acquitted, supporters say her family decided to live in hiding after continued death threats.

Secret Journey to Canada

The family made the secret journey to Canada just weeks ago – arriving at an undisclosed location in Toronto, according to Peter Bhatti, who runs a Christian organization that is helping them settle in Canada.

Bhatti says that Masih, her parents plus her brother and sister had to leave Pakistan in order to have safe, secure lives.

'Free'

Bhatti said the girl and her family have been granted special permission by the federal government to live in Canada and that they are all relieved and happy. He said the 14-year-old is thriving in her new home.

"She is doing wonderful. She is studying in school, every day, she going to school, she is learning, she is starting talking more," he told CBC's Laura Lynch.

Still, Bhatti refuses to say exactly where she is, citing worries that she could still be a target for extremists.

Officials in Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s office have refused to comment on Masih’s case, citing privacy concerns.

The case attracted widespread international concern.

Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws

Critics have accused Pakistani courts of using the country's harsh blasphemy laws to target members of minority religions, including Christians. But there seems little chance of any change in the law, the BBC correspondent says.

Pakistan’s blasphemy laws were expanded in 1980. A clause was added to the law, making derogatory remarks against Islamic personages an offence, carrying a maximum punishment of 3 years in jail. In 1982, another clause prescribed life imprisonment for "wilful" desecration of the Koran, the Muslim holy book. In 1986, a separate clause was inserted to punish blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad and the penalty recommended was "death, or imprisonment for life."

12 Christians Sentenced to Death

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) reports that, since 1988, around 1,000

cases have been lodged for desecration of the Koran, while nearly 50 cases have been lodged for blasphemy against the Prophet Muhammad. Pakistan’s lower courts have handed down hundreds of convictions, but nearly all of them have been reversed by the higher courts due to lack of evidence, errors in due process or obvious wrongful motives on the part of the complainants. Hundreds of Christians are among the accused - at least 12 Christians were given the death sentence for blaspheming against the Prophet Muhammad.

At least two prominent Pakistani politicians who had campaigned for changes in blasphemy laws have been killed in recent years.

Edited from news reports by the BBC and CBC