Ailia Zehra

Condemned to Death for Blasphemy in Pakistan, She Lives a Life of Poverty in Exile

In 2010, Asia Bibi became the first woman in Pakistan to be sentenced to death under the country's controversial blasphemy laws, in a case that sparked global outrage. After eight years on death row, she escaped to Canada in 2019 following her acquittal. She tells New Lines how she has since lived a life of poverty in exile.