January 27, 2012
More than 560,000 people around the world have signed a petition asking the Pakistani government to release Asia Bibi, a Christian wife and mother falsely accused of blasphemy against Mohammed and sentenced to death, ASSIST News Service reports. Bibi has appealed the conviction to the Lahore High Court, but remains in jail pending the outcome of her appeal. If the High Court upholds the guilty verdict and death sentence, the case could be appealed to Pakistan's Supreme Court. The online petition, at CallForMercy.com, was launched by The Voice of the Martyrs after 150,000 Pakistani Christians started a petition calling for justice for Bibi and better protection of religious minorities in Pakistan. VOM is delivering petition signatures to the Pakistani Embassy in D.C., and the goal is to collect one million signatures asking for Bibi's release.
