Pakistan's Blasphemy Laws and the Role of Forensic Psychiatrists

Humans have been persecuted for the crime of blasphemy since biblical times. Today, about one quarter of the world's countries and territories, most of them Muslim-majority nations, still have anti-blasphemy laws. Pakistan is among the countries where blasphemy is punishable by death. In many instances, the accused are killed by mobs before legal proceedings even begin. Often, it is people with mental illness and members of religious minorities who end up being accused of blasphemy. A psychiatric evaluation can be beneficial in informing the court about symptoms of mental illness in the context of a blasphemy accusation. Psychiatrists can also provide crucial information to the courts and the general public about trauma, persecution, and safety in asylum cases where the asylum seeker is fleeing persecution after being accused of blasphemy in Pakistan or another country that criminalizes blasphemy.