Daily Times

The US on 2^nd of December, 2022 put Pakistan on the violators of religious freedom list. Pakistan was placed on the list by President Trump in the year 2018 which was continued in the year 2020 and up till now. Pakistan’s Foreign Office condemned this step and reminded the US administration of the real perpetrators of such dastardly acts. India our neighbor has committed perpetual religious intolerance not only in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir but all across the swath of Indian territory. Muslims especially are subjected to the worst treatment in this regard. Ever since Prime Minister Modi came to power the Hindutva ideology has gripped India so intensively that it has damaged the very fabric of Indian secularism. Now that PM Modi is vying for 3^rd term this growing insecurity for the minorities in India especially for the Muslims is looming large. It is important to highlight that The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) for the year 2023 was held recently, a process through which all UN Member States are provided the opportunity to review the human rights records of all other Member States. The UPR provides a platform for the international audience to understand where Pakistan stands in the protection of human rights especially minorities and where India is numbered for gross human rights violations.

In Pakistan, religious freedom and the protection of the rights of minorities are enshrined in the constitution and protected by a number of legislative, policy, and administrative measures. Let us have a look at the statistics and measures that have been adopted by the government of Pakistan to ensure the protection of minorities in the country. Minorities are provided with equal rights to education, jobs and business opportunities in the country. For example, they have reserved seats and senior positions in parliament, judiciary, bureaucracy and armed forces. They have been allotted four reserved seats in the Senate of Pakistan, and ten in the National Assembly, and have been provided proportionate reserved seats in all provincial assemblies.

Pakistan has reconstituted National Commission for Minorities (NCM) with Mr. Chela Ram Kewlani, a member of the minority community appointed as Chairman of the Commission. The NCM has increased membership of minority communities, who are new in the majority. Another significant step is the allocation of a 5% job quota for minorities in all federal government services, in addition to open merit. On the directions of NCM, the implementation status of job quotas is strictly observed by provincial governments, federal ministries/ divisions, FPSC, and Islamabad. There are some welfare measures also undertaken for the minorities such as an Endowment Fund for minorities in KP, minority students’ scholarship rates doubled, and the provision of vocational education for children of Hindus and Sikhs at government expenses. Likewise, the initiation of the Baba Guru Nanak Scholarship for deserving talented students from the Hindu and Sikh communities is another step for the education of minorities. These measures have helped minority communities to compete with their Muslim counterparts.

Pakistan is often blamed for forced conversions, however, the statistics prove otherwise. For instance, a total of 1169 conversion cases occurred since 2019 including Hindus (88%), Christians (9%), Sikhs (less than 1%) and Qadianis (2%). Among 1169 conversions individual conversions are only 17%, while 83% are family/ collective conversions. Less than 1% are forced conversion cases in which girls are given back to their parent’s custody. This is an elaborate mechanism that obviates chances of the forced conversions. It is important to mention that minorities in Pakistan are free to practice religion. There are 2652 Churches (1 Church per 664 Christians), 732 Temples (1 Temple per 2734 Hindus) and 167 Gurdwaras (1 Gurdwara per 55 Sikhs) exist, however in the UK, there is one mosque for 2249 Muslims.

Minorities are facilitated to observe their religious days with full impunity, rather state patronage is ensured for them. This is evident from the declaration and celebration of minorities’ day, to recognize the contribution of religious minorities towards nation-building. Also, there are public holidays for the minorities on their festivals of Holi, Diwali, Easter, and Christmas. Ten religious functions of minorities are celebrated at the official level. These include Christmas and Easter for Christians, Holi and Diwali for Hindus, Baisakhi and Birthday of Guru Nanak for Sikhs, Nauroze of Zoroastrian, Eid-e-Ridvan for Bahai’s, Festival of Lights for Buddhist community and Chilam Joshi for Kalash people. Moreover, there are “District Interfaith Harmony Committees” throughout the country, which organize regular conferences to promote interfaith culture. Evacuee Trust Properties Board (ETPB) ensures the maintenance of religious places of minorities.

Religious Tourism has been promoted through the opening of the historical Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib Corridor, Shewala Teja Mandir and Gurdwara Choa Sahib, Jhelum filling up of Amer Kund (holy water) at Katas Raj temple, printing, and distribution of books and other promotional material on Sikh & Hindu Heritage in Pakistan through Foreign Missions for promotion of religious tourism. More so, a delegation of Korean Buddhist monks led by the President of the Jogya Order, Won Haeng the biggest denomination of Buddhists in the Republic of Korea, visited Pakistan to promote religious tourism. Special emphasis is laid on the security of minorities during their ceremonies and events. All provincial police departments provide security to minority communities on their festivals or special prayers. The state machinery acts very promptly whenever any untoward incident occurs that involves minorities. Take for example 117 suspected including 7 main instigators who set ablaze at the Hindu temple were arrested within 2-3 days of occurrence. 12 police officials were dismissed and 92 police officials were suspended for negligence in duties to protect the mob at the Hindu temple in Teri. The Chief Justice of Pakistan took SuoMoto’s notice of the issue, while the Federal and KP governments announced funds for the reconstruction of the temple.

Pakistan is often blamed for the misuse of the Blasphemy Law against minorities. Here again, the statistics paint a different picture. Since 2005, 56 individuals have been convicted of blasphemy offenses which include 45 Muslims, 7 Christians, 2 Hindus, and 2 Qadianis (Muslims 80%, minorities 20%).  Minorities convicted of blasphemy are given fair trials and rights of appeal in higher Judiciary. The acquittal of 5 Christians including Asia Bibi, Shagufta Kausar and Shafqat Emaneul by higher Judiciary are case in point.

It has become more of a misnomer that Pakistan is not safe for minorities, yet the fact sheet reveals otherwise. On the contrary Indian government is involved in blatant violation of minority rights and religious freedom yet it has been able to get scot-free. This is sheer discrimination by the world and is nothing else than subscribing to the famous Urdu adage “A bad name is worse than bad deeds.”

The writer is a Communication Strategist at the Institute of Regional Studies and can be reached at reema.asim81@gmail.com