In yet another attack on religious minorities in Pakistan, a church was vandalised and set ablaze in Faisalabad district in Pakistan, according to Lahore-based Bishop Azad Marshall.
Following the allegations of blasphemy, the mob vandalised and destroyed a Church in Punjab province’s Faisalabad district.
Bishop Marshall posted on X, “Words fail me as I write this. We, Bishops, Priests and lay people are deeply pained and distressed at the Jaranwala incident in the Faisalabad District in Pakistan.”
Words fail me as I write this. We, Bishops, Priests and lay people are deeply pained and distressed at the Jaranwala incident in the Faisalabad District in Pakistan. A church building is being burnt as I type this message. Bibles have been desecrated and Christians have been… pic.twitter.com/xruE83NPXL
— Archbishop Dr Azad Marshall (@BishopAzadM) August 16, 2023
“A church building is being burnt as I type this message. Bibles have been desecrated and Christians have been tortured and harassed having been falsely accused of violating the Holy Quran,” he added.
Bishop Marshall stated that he is crying out for justice and action to take place against those who had attacked them. He demanded the safety of citizens and asked to assure them that their lives are valuable in their own homeland that has just celebrated independence and freedom.
Although Pakistan was founded in 1947 with the intention of creating a tolerant and egalitarian country, religious communities have continued to face discrimination.
Last month, Naveed Walter, the President of Human Rights Focus Pakistan said that the population of minorities in Pakistan has come down to 3 per cent from 23 per cent since its independence in 1947.
“There were multiple reasons behind this. One of the main reasons was when Pakistan was declared an Islamic country. In 1973, when the constitution was established, in Article 2 it was stated that Islam shall be a state religion. In Article 41 (2) it was declared that the President shall always be a Muslim always. Article 91 restated that the Prime Minister shall be a Muslim always. There were multiple amendments in the constitution in the 1980s when the dictator Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq made the amendments in the constitution as per the Sharia law”, said Naveed Walter.
The human rights activist said that the blasphemy law was introduced in the country to target religious minorities. A large number of people have been killed and many languished in jail across Pakistan since its introduction.
Even in June, a local court in Bahawalpur sent shockwaves across Pakistan after sentencing a 22-year-old Christian youth, Noman Masih, to death on blasphemy charges, BNN Network reported.
The verdict has sparked strong reactions from various human rights activists and organisations.
It is to be noted that, many girls belonging to minority community have been abducted and converted to Islam, especially in Sindh province, home to most Pakistani Hindus. Extortionists and criminal gangs engaging in kidnapping for ransom prey on the wealthiest among them, particularly those in business.
Hatred is instilled in society due to the inappropriate representation of minorities in curricula and school textbooks, and youngsters are denied the right to study the religion of their choice.
Women and girls face double discrimination through religious intolerance, most notably through forced conversion and marriages. Perpetrators of faith-based violence do not fear retribution because there is widespread impunity for such crimes, which promotes the commission of additional atrocities. The judiciary officials involved in prosecuting these offences cannot work because their safety is not adequately protected.
The Pakistani Government have failed to ensure equality, dignity, the rule of law, and the protection of human rights for all Pakistanis, making them liable for grave violations of international human rights law, including the two International Covenants on Civil and Political Rights and Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, as well as the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
This pattern of systemic discrimination has created a social atmosphere in which religious and political violence has spread throughout the country, courtesy of a tiny handful of extremist individuals. Authorities have also failed to adequately confront such violence, as evidenced by the failure to respond to terrorists seeking jizya (protection money) from Sikhs in FATA. While Article 22 of Pakistan’s Constitution states that no one is compelled to study a religion other than their own, the reality is quite different. The Government has increased the prominence of Islamic references in topics other than Islamiyat (Islamic studies) in primary and secondary schools, particularly in English and Urdu textbooks and literature.
The targets are usually minority young Hindu girls because they want to stop the Hindu population in Pakistan and fasten the growth of the Muslim population. The Government should form a commission to look into reports of kidnapping and forced conversions. The involvement of religious clerics in the latter practice must be halted immediately.
