In-focus

Pakistan

Scared Rimsha fears for life

Dunya News

In her first-ever interview since being released on bail, Rimsha Masih she fears for her life.

Im scared, she told CNN by phone. Im afraid of anyone who might kill us.Rimsha spoke in short sentences -- often answering yes or no in a shy and nervous voice.She would not reveal where she was because she was speaking from her hideout.In Pakistan, suspects accused of blasphemy often face vigilante justice, with some cases even resulting in murder.We asked her if she ever burned pages of the Quran. No, no, she replied instantly.Were you falsely accused? Yes, she said.However, Rimsha wouldnt answer questions about what exactly happened on August 16 this year.Pakistani investigators said Rimshas neighbor accused her of burning pages of the Quran to use as cooking fuel.The young man accused the teenager of blasphemy, shouted in protest, and attracted an angry mob, police said.But Rimshas lawyers denied she desecrated the Muslim holy book in this way. They said the neighbor wanted to settle a personal score with Rimsha because the two didnt get along.The lawyers told CNN this may have been because he liked her but she didnt like him back.Within minutes hundreds of residents from this poor Islamabad neighborhood surrounded the terrified girl, witnesses said.There are conflicting accounts about what happened next. Some neighbors said Rimsha was beaten, while others claimed she frantically raced back home and locked herself inside.The police eventually arrived and took Rimsha into custodyHer case made international headlines and sparked outrage among rights groups who have long accused the Pakistani government of allowing the countrys controversial blasphemy laws to be used to settle scores and persecute religious minorities.We respect the Quran just like we respect the Bible.Rimshas father -- a Christian house painter who earns a few dollars a day -- said no one in his family would dare dishonor the Quran.We respect the Quran just like we respect the Bible, said Mizrak Mashi. We couldnt imagine committing blasphemy let alone doing it. Our children would never do this either.Last week, under growing pressure from rights groups who were outraged that a juvenile had spent more than three weeks in jail, a judge finally approved Rimshas request to be released on bail.Her case is still pending but she seemed to gain fresh support earlier this month when police arrested a Muslim cleric and accused him of planting torn pages of the Quran in Rimshas bag in an apparent attempt to bolster evidence against her.Meanwhile, a family spokesman said aid groups from the U.S., Italy and Canada have already offered to give Rimsha and her family a home outside Pakistan.But Rimsha said, for now, she doesnt want to go anywhere other than back to life as she knew it, away from the spotlight.I love Pakistan, Masih said. I wont ever leave my country.