The prime minister talked a lot of sense while in Karachi to celebrate the Hindu festival of Holi. Not so much his comments on the ‘cultural fashion’ choices of the country’s diverse population, though these, too, are to be welcomed. But, rather, in his warning that if people wish to see a prosperous Pakistan, they must first think as Pakistanis.
Yet to put it bluntly: talk is cheap. Which may explain why we’ve heard it all before.
The question remains: what has this or previous governments done to promote peace through pluralistic harmony? Admittedly, the Sindh Assembly last year passed the Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities Bill) 2015. Though the governor has yet to sign off on it.
Such protective moves are positives and must be recognised as such. Yet their introduction does little to address the largest elephant in the room. Namely, the existence of ‘anti-minority’ laws enshrined in Pakistan’s constitution.
No government has been prepared to walk the walk when it comes to tackling this. Indeed, the burden has fallen time and again to civil society.
The latter has largely stepped up to the challenge. But there is only so much it can do when confronted with a complacent state. In the immediate aftermath of the twin attack on Ahmadi places of worship in Lahore back in 2010, there were the usual cries for peace and tolerance from the government. Civil society had arranged candlelit protests under the banner, “One nation, One people”. This show of solidarity served a short-term purpose — focusing the international spotlight on the many voices inside Pakistan that preach peace. Yet this does not do away with the question of how Pakistan can ever hope to be home to one people when the constitution effectively legitimises the institutionalised persecution of a minority group?
When Malala was shot by the Taliban, the government and media rallied round her, feting her as the “bravest girl in the world”. And it was right to do so, though such moves conveniently circumvented notions of state responsibility. But regardless of this, the battle lines were clear. The enemy had identified both itself and its agenda. This is in stark contrast to the case of Rimshah Masih, the poor and illiterate Christian girl who was arrested on false charges of blasphemy. She fell victim not to a militant agenda but to the routine misuse of Pakistan’s state-sanctioned blasphemy laws. The time to hesitate is through, Mr Sharif. What will it be? *