Hard-Line Muslim Rally Demands Anti-Blasphemy Laws in Bangladesh

Hundreds of thousands of members of Hifazat-e-Islam rallied in Bangladesh's capital on Saturday to demand the authorities to enact anti-blasphemy laws to punish those who insult Islam. The hard-line Muslim group listed 13 demands including reinstating “absolute trust and faith in the Almighty Allah” in the nation’s Constitution, which is largely secular, and passing a law entailing capital punishment for maligning Allah, Islam and its Prophet Muhammad. Hifazat-e-Islam also demands banning “all foreign culture, including free mixing of men and women.” Prior to the rally, the group has singled out bloggers who were seeking capital punishment for those found guilty of war crimes during the nation's 1971 war of independence against Parkistan. These bloggers who were accused of atheists by Hifazat-e-Islam, also want a ban on Jamaat-e-Islami, the country's largest Islamic Party and an important partner of main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party led by former PM Khaleda Zia. Top Jamaat-e-Islami leaders are accused of crimes against humanity during the 1971 war, and two senior party leaders were convicted this year by a special tribunal. Hifazat-e-Islam said its rally was nonpolitical and not aligned with the opposition, but former PM Zia’s party backed the demonstration. The rally came amid bitter political rivalry between the current PM Sheikh Hasina's government and the opposition led by Ms. Zia. Read more at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/07/world/asia/rally-demands-anti-blasphemy-laws-in-bangladesh.html?ref=asia&_r=0. By Yen Do.