The founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah wanted Pakistan to be a moderate secular state. The Constitution of Pakistan provides for fundamental rights which include freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press and the right to bear arms.
I belong to Christian community of Pakistan. We are about 1.5 % of the population of our beloved homeland Pakistan. Our state law mandates that any “blasphemies” of the Quran are to be met with punishment. On July 28, 1994, Amnesty International urged Pakistan’s Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to change the law because it was being used to terrorise religious minorities. She tried, but was unsuccessful. However, she modified the laws to make them more moderate. Her changes were reversed by the Nawaz Sharif administration which was backed by religio-political parties.
The current government should do the best and follow Benazir Bhutto’s vision in this regard. It is very sad that Christian community’s Christmas celebrations were overshadowed by power outages. This is one example of discriminatory act against the minorities in Pakistan. On the occasion of Muslims’ rituals, the system is set into order; no loadshedding at all. Why are the minorities of Pakistan treated as second class citizens of Pakistan? Why this discrimination? Are we not Pakistanis? I believe the parliament is supreme of all institutions, but we have no proper representation in the parliament which is why minorities are deprived of their rights. Would any of the members of parliament care to respond my letter?
AMEEN KHOKHAR
Islamabad
