15 September 2020
The appeal court hearing for Pakistani couple, Shafqat Emmanuel and Shagufta Kausar, against their “blasphemy” conviction scheduled for 11 September was adjourned because one of the two panel judges failed to appear. A new date has yet to be set for the hearing.
The married couple, who have four children, have endured six years in prison on death row after being convicted in April 2014 of sending “blasphemous” text messages to two Muslims. They are illiterate and say they were incapable of sending the messages.
Aasia Bibi’s lawyer, Saif-ul-Mulook, took up the case of Shafqat, who is disabled, and his wife Shagufta in May 2019.
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