ACN UK lodges asylum petition for Maira Shahbaz
Aid to the Church in Need UK has handed in a petition to the British Government. The petition signed by 12,000 people calls on the British Government to grant asylum to 14-year-old Maira Shahbaz and her family. Maira is a Pakistani Catholic who was abducted and forced to marry her kidnapper. She has now escaped but her life is in danger.
By ACN Staff
Maira Shahbaz. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
In April 2020, a 14-year-old Catholic girl called Maira Shahbaz was abducted by several armed men. As is the case with many such kidnappings of Christian girls in Pakistan, she was married to one of her abductors and forced to sign a statement that she had converted to Islam. Her parents brought a case to court, which ruled she was legally married. In August, Maira managed to escape and rubbished claims that she had converted to Islam and that she had been married voluntarily. After Maira’s escape, her “husband” claimed that she had committed apostasy from Islam. In Pakistan this is a life-threatening accusation to make. Maira and her family are now under serious threat of attack. Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) have heard reports of death threats being made against Maira and her family, and of groups going door to door in the area they live demanding to know where the Catholic family are.
Fiona Bruce MP. (Credit: Aid to the Church in Need)
In response to this ACN in the UK have lodged a petition with the UK Government to grant Maira and her family asylum in the UK. The petition was signed by 12,000 people. The petition calls on Prime Minister Boris Johnson to grant Maira and her family asylum, due to threat to their lives. The petition was presented to Fiona Bruce the Conservative MP for Congleton, Cheshire, and the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief. Boris Johnson’s government has previously pledged their commitment to freedom of religion. This is the perfect opportunity for the UK Government to show the seriousness of that commitment. After receiving the petition Fiona Bruce MP said:
“Maira’s situation, and that of her family, is a tragic one and hearts goes out to her – as demonstrated by the thousands upon thousands of people who have signed Maira’s petition which I have received today. I am immediately drawing it to the attention of the Home Secretary for her urgent consideration.”
Supporters of persecuted Christians have made statements after the government received the petition. ACN UK’s National Director Neville Kyrke-Smith issued the following statement:
“It is urgent that the Prime Minister acts to save the lives of Maira and her family. They are in grave danger. We have a duty of conscience to act…Sadly, there is no place in Pakistan where Maira will be safe and be able to live without the fear of being recaptured at any moment. The profound hostility and suspicion towards Christians in the country, her return to Christianity subsequent to her forcible conversion, and the deeply held belief by the majority of Muslims in Pakistan that apostasy is punishable by death exacerbate Ms Shabhaz’s plight, rendering her extremely vulnerable.”
Bishop Philip Mounstephen of the Anglican Diocese of Truro also issued a statement in support of the asylum application. Bishop Mounstephen had in 2019, carried out a review for the British Government on the issue of Christian persecution. The Anglican bishop said the following in relation to ACN’s petition:
“Tragic cases like that of Maira Shahbaz are a test case for the UK Government’s commitment to put freedom and religion front and centre in its foreign policy. I urge the Government to recognise how Maira’s rights have been potentially fatally compromised and offer her asylum.”
Archbishop Angaelos, Coptic Orthodox Archbishop of London, issued the following statement:
“Over the past years we have seen numerous examples of religious intolerance leading to the vilification and active persecution of communities and individuals. It is my feeling that Maira Shahbaz is in such a position at the moment. In line with Britain’s generous policy of providing refuge and safety to those most vulnerable, I hope that Maira and her family will be afforded the opportunity of living in the safety that we would all expect for ourselves.”