ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan will chair a meeting of senior members of his cabinet and close aides today, Monday, to discuss a resolution passed by the European Parliament calling for a review of trade relations with Pakistan and ending its eligibility for the Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP) status.

The resolution has linked the review to Pakistan’s blasphemy laws, in particular the case of Shagufta Kausar and Shafqat Emmanuel, who have been on death row since 2014 for sending ‘blasphemous’ text messages — a charge they deny. It was overwhelmingly passed — 662 to 3 — with 26 not voting.

The text calls on the European Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS) to “immediately review Pakistan’s eligibility for GSP+ status in light of current events”. It also says there is “sufficient reason” to initiate a procedure for the temporary withdrawal of this status and the benefits that come with it. 

“The prime minister will hold consultations over the development with Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, his commerce adviser Abdul Razak Dawood, Minister for Religious Affairs Noor ul Haq Qadri, Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed and other ministers,” Geo News reported. “The meeting is expected to discuss the resolution and take important decisions on the European Parliament’s call to review Pakistan’s GSP Plus status.”

The EU resolution comes after demonstrations by the religious political party, Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), erupted in major cities on April 12 and quickly turned violent after TLP chief Saad Rizvi was arrested in Lahore for threatening the government with rallies if it did not expel the French envoy to Islamabad over cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) published in France last year. Six policemen were killed and over 800 injured, according to official figures, in protests that lasted a week. 

The government first said it would ban TLP over the violence. But as protests continued and became deadlier, ministers negotiated with the party and eventually acquiesced to its demand to halt criminal cases against, and release, hundreds of TLP supporters arrested during the riots. The government also called a parliamentary vote on expelling the French ambassador, fulfilling the religious group’s top demand. 

TLP has built a wide base of support in recent years, rallying around cases of blasphemy, which are punishable by death in Pakistan.

“The discourse in the European Parliament reflects a lack of understanding in the context of blasphemy laws and associated religious sensitivities in Pakistan – and the wider Muslim world,” the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement last week. “The unwarranted commentary about Pakistan’s judicial system and domestic laws are regrettable.”

“Pakistan has played an active role in promoting freedom of religion or belief, tolerance and inter-faith harmony,” the statement said. “At a time of rising Islamophobia and populism, the international community must exhibit a common resolve to fight xenophobia, intolerance and incitement to violence based on religion or belief and work together to strengthen peaceful co-existence.”