Enlightened Moderation or Moderated Enlightenment?
http://thenews.jang.com.pk/updates.asp?id=22093
The News, Karachi, Pakistan
Wednesday, May 09, 2007, Rabi-us-sani 21, 1428 A.H.
Bill regarding death sentence to apostate sent to NA body
ISLAMABAD: National Assembly (NA) speaker sent Tuesday to NA standing
committee for law and justice a bill regarding giving the death
sentence to an apostate (murtadd).
This bill was forwarded by 31 MNAs related with religious parties
including Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Qazi Hussain Ahmed. The treasury
benches did not oppose the bill.
The suggested law regarding the punishment of deviant from Islam
(apostate) says that this law is applicable to people from 18-year old
boy and 16-year old girl.
This law admits of taubah (seeking forgiveness) and if the first-timer
apostate takes step back to Islam, the court may condone it. However,
if he commits apostasy for the second or third time, he would be
detained for two years even after his taubah. If the culprit falls
back to the apostasy for the fourth time, he should be given death
sentence at all and his taubah will not be accepted; however, the
woman will remain behind bars until she comes back to Islam.
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http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\05\09\story_9-5-2007_pg1_7
Daily Times, Lahore, Pakistan
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
Government fails to oppose death for apostasy draft
* MMA bill sent to standing committee
* Accused to lose right to property
ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday sent a bill called
Apostasy Act 2006 to the standing committee concerned for
consideration.
The MMA tabled the bill during Private Members' Day in the assembly.
The bill proposed sentencing to death male apostates and imprisonment
till penitence or death for female apostates. The government did not
oppose the bill and sent it to the standing committee concerned. If
passed, the bill will over-ride all other laws in force at present.
The bills's section 4 states that apostasy can be proved if the
accused confesses to the 'offence' in court or at least two adult
witnesses appear in court against the accused.
Section 5 states that the court should give a proven apostate at least
three days or a month at the maximum to return to Islam. If he
refuses, he should be awarded the death sentence.
Section 6 states that a pardoned apostate can face rigorous or simple
imprisonment, extendable to two years, if he commits the offence for
the second or third time. In case of the fourth commission he will be
liable to death sentence, it adds. Section 8 proposes suspending all
rights of the accused over property. If the accused is awarded death,
the part of the property, which he owned before committing the
offence, will be transferred to his Muslim heirs. It states that the
property rights of a female apostate will remain suspended till her
death or penitence. In case of her penitence, the rights will be
restored and after death, her property will be treated the same way as
adopted for male apostates.
Section 9 states that the apostates' right to guardianship over minors
will remain suspended till their death. staff report
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