Pope urges Pakistan BL repeal

VATICAN CITY: Pope Benedict XVI has called on Pakistan to repeal its blasphemy laws, which can carry a death sentence for insulting the Prophet Muhammad (SAWW).

According to him the laws served as a pretext for acts of injustice and violence against religious minorities.

The Pope referred to Pakistani governor Salman Taseer, whose assassination last week was blamed on his support for changes to the blasphemy laws.

Earlier, prime minister had ruled out changing the country's controversial blasphemy law that has been linked to the killing of Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab, who was a fierce critic of the law.

Yousuf Raza Gilani told reporters in the capital, Islamabad, that he has no intention of amending the law, which calls for the death penalty for anyone who insults the Prophet Muhammad.

Gilani made the announcement on Sunday after speaking to the leader of one of the country's largest religious parties.

"I spoke to Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman on the phone. He asked whether we are making any amendments to the law," Gilani said.

"I have said it categorically before, and then the minister of religious affairs also gave a clarification that the government has no such intention."

His comments came just hours after tens of thousands of people turned out for a rally organised by Pakistan's religious parties in Karachi on Sunday.

Speakers at the rally warned the government against making any changes to the law, while others condoned the murder of Punjab governor Taseer.

Qari Ahsaan, from the banned group Jamaat ud Dawa, addressed the rally from a stage, saying: "We can't compromise on the blasphemy law. It's a divine law and nobody can change it.

"Our belief in the sanctity of our prophet is firm and uncompromising and we cannot tolerate anyone who blasphemes. Whoever blasphemes will face the same fate as Salman Taseer."

Taseer was killed in the capital, Islamabad, last Tuesday over his views in favour of the blasphemy law's amendment. That liberal stance offended the country's increasingly powerful conservative religious base.

Meanwhile, the hunt for Taseer's replacement as Punjab governor continued, with media reporting that a new appointment could be announced later on Monday.

Sardar Latif Khosa, Pakistan's former attorney general and a member of parliament, is the front-runner for the job.