Daily Times

Pakistani minorities under the leadership of Federal Minister for Human Rights Kamran Michael are planning to celebrate Minorities’ Day on August 11. The former government of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had declared August 11 as the minorities’ day; however, some minority groups choose to observe August 11 as a black day to register their protest over the abuse of minority rights. Following the footsteps of the PPP government the present PML-N government has also announced to dedicate August 11 as the minorities day.

On August 11, 1947, the founder of the nation Muhammad Ali Jinnah had announced freedom for the minorities living in the new-born Pakistan. But it is very unfortunate that after 69 years, Pakistan is ranked sixth on the list of the countries where Christians are most persecuted, according to the World Watch List 2016.

The survey conducted by Open Doors, an organisation working to help persecuted Christians and churches worldwide, highlights the top 50 countries where it is most difficult to live as Christians. The report found that Pakistan’s blasphemy laws continue to be abused to settle personal scores, particularly against minorities, including Christians. “A Christian couple was thrown into the brick kiln where they worked and burned to death after being accused of blasphemy, orphaning their four children. Two churches in Lahore were bombed, killing 25 people and wounding dozens. An estimated 700 Christian girls and women are abducted every year and often then raped and forcibly married to Muslims,” the report added.

The list ranks North Korea as the most oppressive place in the world to live as a Christian. It adds that in 2015, the persecution grew most rapidly in Sub-Saharan Africa, while in the Middle East and Pakistan violence increased the migration of the Christian population from the region. The index measures the degrees of freedom that Christians have to express their faith in various spheres — private, family, community, national and church life — while also measuring levels of violence.

The European Parliament Intergroup on Freedom of Religion or Belief and Religious Tolerance has released its annual report for 2015, showing serious concerns over the minorities’ situation in Pakistan, especially the issues pertaining to the country’s blasphemy laws. Giving reference of the assassinated Punjab governor, Salmaan Taseer, and the PPP minister of minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, for raising their voice against the blasphemy laws in Pakistan, especially in the Asia Bibi case, the report expressed its appreciation of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, which in a positive development has expressed its concerns about the widespread misuse of the blasphemy laws. The court issued a detailed judgment warning against false blasphemy accusations, stating that in Islam a false accusation can be as serious as blasphemy itself, but unfortunately, highlighting the need to have reforms to the blasphemy laws in public is still dangerous in Pakistan.

The report further stated that terrorist groups like Taliban have continued to severely persecute religious minorities, especially the Christian community, considering it an agent of the west and in revenge of the western intervention such as US drone strikes in Pakistan. The report also gave the reference of blasts and firing in churches in Youhanabad and Iqbal Park on the eve of Easter celebrations.

Earlier, hundreds of houses of Christians in Gojra and Joseph Colony, Lahore, were set ablaze. And twin blasts in a Peshawar church killed at least 80, and injuring hundred people.

The report further disclosed that due to religious persecution, around 11,000 Christians are seeking asylum in Thailand. A Hindu parliamentarian claimed that 5,000 Hindus emigrate from Pakistan every year due to discriminatory treatment, forced conversions and fears of their safety. The report stated that in the months of April and May 2016, it was also reported that as many as 18 Christian girls were kidnapped and forcefully converted in just the Punjab province.

Due to religious persecution thousands of Christian families are looking for their future in Thailand. It is pertinent to mention that European countries do not encourage Pakistani Christian visitors; even these countries adopt a stricter policy when they find the applicant is a Christian. Recently, the World Youth Day 2016 was held in Poland, and reportedly, there were more than 6,000 applicants, but the Polish embassy rejected maximum visa applications on flimsy grounds, and granted only 400-500 visas to Pakistani Christians. The strange part of the story is that even journalists’ visa applications were denied without any cogent reasons. The officials in the EU countries on the condition of anonymity said that visa officers had orders from the “higher level” to reject the maximum number of visas from people who were Christian. It means that the poor Pakistani Christians face the same treatment even from the so-called liberal countries.

The writer is a blogger and a human rights activist