Blasphemy is a catalyst for progress. Let’s celebrate it.
International Blasphemy Day, 30 September, was created “to remind the world that religion should never again be beyond open and honest discussion”. It was established after the publication in 2005 of 12 cartoons depicting Islam’s prophet Muhammad by the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten led to worldwide riots. The founders wanted to “dismantle the wall which exists between religion and criticism”. The wall, however, remains very much intact. Earlier this month, police in southern Pakistan shot dead Shah Nawaz, a doctor accused of insulting Muhammad and sharing blasphemous content on social media. The police officers involved were reportedly applauded and showered with rose petals by local residents. Under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, anyone found guilty of insulting Islam or Islamic religious figures can be sentenced to death. But those accused are often subjected to mob lynching or extra-judicial killing before their cases get to trial. Shah Nawaz was the second blasphemy suspect in Pakistan to be shot dead by police in the space of a week. Pakistan is just one of around 70 countries that still have blasphemy …
