Numerous cases of the desecration of the Holy Quran have surfaced in recent time. The blame always lands on the Christian of Pakistan. The background of Christians residing in Pakistan is diverse. On top of that they contribute tirelessly to the major health care sector as nurses and to the education sector as teachers.
Under the reign of president Zia ul Haq, Islamisation started in Pakistan this meant the enforcement of Islamic penal code and high restrictions to the rights of non-Muslims. They could not even give evidence in court. This marginalized the Christian minority in Pakistan. It secluded Christians from every walk of life.
Separate electorates, separate representation and a very meager share of the basic human rights the national of a country is supposed to have, Amendments to law were made to suit the Muslims of the country and are still twisted to be against the Christians living in the country. Living examples of this are the hoards of blasphemy cases which surface everyday. There is no escape for a Christian of any other recognized minority in Pakistan.
Recently came the lifting of the ban on death penalty and innocent Christians like Aftab Bahadur Masih were hanged. The fear that resides in us now is that no one knows how many Christians will be hanged? How many will face death penalty as there are hundreds who are in jail and there is no way they can come out.
Even in the small thing in life for instance education and employment, Christians are barred at some point. Opportunities are less and even if a Christian manages to rise to a status he or she becomes a target in the eyes of many.
The question that arises over here is that are we living in the Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah created? Is everyone an equal citizen of this country? Constitutional changes are desperately needed and until this does not happen, there is no hope.
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