Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
John LonghurstMay 10, 2019
Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Catholic acquitted of blasphemy, listens during a 2010 news conference after her 2009 arrest. Pakistani authorities have freed Bibi, and she has flown to Canada to join her family at a secret address.(CNS photo/Asad Karim, Reuters)

WINNIPEG, Canada (RNS) — When he heard that Asia Bibi — the Pakistani Christian woman acquitted of blasphemy — was on her way to Canada, Nadeem Bhatti could hardly believe it.

“We had been told three or four times she was going to be leaving, but it never turned out,” said Bhatti, a friend of the family who last spoke to Bibi three days ago.

On Tuesday (May 7), Bibi, whose death sentence was overturned late last year, left Pakistan for her new home in this country.

The daughters, both in their late teens, arrived in Canada last December while Bibi and her husband, Ashiq Masih, remained behind in Pakistan awaiting permission to leave.

Bhatti said the ordeal has taken a toll on Bibi.

Now that the family is back together, they are asking for privacy and time for everyone to rest and heal, he said.

“They need time alone,” he said, adding “they have a very good support group to help them.”

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

“If (President Donald) Trump’s wishes come true, it could happen in the future that pastoral care in Greenland would be offered from some American diocese, which would mean I would lose my dream job here,” Father Tomaž Majcen said.
Chinese rescue workers stand at the site of a collapsed building in Mandalay, Myanmar, March 31, 2025, in the aftermath of a strong earthquake that struck three days earlier. People in Myanmar are in desperate need of humanitarian supplies and medical support as the death toll from the devastating earthquake that rocked central Myanmar continues to rise. (OSV News/Reuters)
“Hospitals are overwhelmed, and people are sleeping out on the streets, anywhere they can, in fields and playgrounds and religious compounds.”
Kevin ClarkeApril 02, 2025
As we enter into Holy Week, join America Media for a subscriber-only virtual event with James Martin, S.J., and ‘Jesuitical’ hosts Zac Davis and Ashley McKinless.
America StaffApril 01, 2025
“Having a sensory room in a place of worship is probably more important than anywhere else because everyone should feel welcome in their faith.”
Sean QuinnApril 01, 2025