Sunday, September 13, 2020
#Pakistan's stance on religious minorities exposes its hypocrisy
The condition of minorities is worsening in Pakistan and their numbers are declining by the day.
Minorities in Pakistan are severely charged on minor allegations, leading to punishments like the death penalty. Blasphemy laws, in most cases, are used to fulfill a personal vendetta.
Religious minorities are living a life under siege in Pakistan. The country's stance on them exposes its hypocrisy.
In February, Imran Khan issued a warning that anyone targeting the non-muslim population of Pakistan will be dealt with strictly. He declared that minorities are equal citizens of his country. However, his actions have fallen way short of his lofty words.
Since August 2018, after Imran Khan took power, at least 31 members of the minority community have been killed, 58 have been injured in targeted attacks and 25 blasphemy cases have been filed. At least seven places of worship for the minorities have also come under attack. The Shia Muslims, Christians, Ahmadis, Hindus and Sikhs make up the minority community in Pakistan. All of them, without exception, have been targeted under Imran Khan.
The Shias, specifically, the shia hazara community, continue to suffer violent attacks.According to one claim, at least 509 Shia Hazaras have been killed in violence since the 2012.Under Imran Khan, at least 24 members of this community were killed last year.In April last year, an attacker detonated a bomb at a vegetable market in Quetta. The target were the Hazaras.The Christian community in the country has been perpetual sufferers of violence and discrimination.Asia Bibi, a woman belonging to this community had spent almost a decade in prison on blasphemy charges before she was acquitted in 2018.But, she couldn't leave the prison for weeks because in Pakistan religious leaders are above the law.
When hardlines laid seige to major cities in Pakistan, Imran khan was helpless before the radicals.He couldn't ensure the safety of Asia Bibi and her five children in their own country and they had to be whisked out of Pakistan and took asylum in France.
The Ahmadiyya community represents less than one percent of Pakistan's population continue to be attacked. They boycott elections in protest.Nearly 90 percent of Ahmadis in Pakistan's Rabwah boycotted the election in 2018.So far, no leader has addressed their concerns. Their places of worship have been vandalised.There are laws that make it illegal for Ahmadi Muslims to recite the Quran. They are also not allowed to have Islamic inscriptions on headstones or even call their place of worship a mosque.
Under Imran Khan, nothing has changed. The Ahmadis remain doomed. They face constant attacks. In this year alone, a group stormed into a mosque. Local authorities could not do anything. So, the Ahmadis had to hand over their mosque to hardliners.
And there's no end to stories of the plight of Hindus and Sikhs in Pakistan.
According to the human rights commission of Pakistan, close to one thousand young Hindus and Christians are forced to convert to Islam every year.
Last year, a 19-year-old sikh girl was forced to convert to islam. She came back home after a 30-member committee of the Sikh community put pressure on the government.
Attacks on hindu temples are frequent. Last year, a large mob in Sindh vandalised a temple. This was after a Hindu principal was accused of blasphemy.
In the month of may, the Imran Khan government announced the formation of the national commission on minorities.
The cabinet decided to include the Ahmadis, only to drop them later. The Pakistani government faced a backlash, it had to keep the Ahmadis out.
So, Pakistan's minority commission has no representation from the Ahmadis. The minority group, that faces the most severe persecution in Pakistan. This case alone exposes Imran Khan's farce on minorities.
https://www.msn.com/en-in/news/other/pakistans-stance-on-religious-minorities-exposes-its-hypocrisy/ar-BB17PW2Q?fullscreen=true#image=1
Christian Activists Stage Hunger Strike Against Abuse of Pakistan’s Blasphemy Laws
According to the Union of Catholic Asian News (UCAN), Christian activists in Pakistan observed a day-long hunger strike to condemn the abuse of the country’s blasphemy laws. The demonstration came only a day after another Christian, Asif Pervaiz, was sentenced to death for allegedly sending blasphemous texts in 2013.
Shabbir Shafqat, Chairman of the National Christian Party, led a group of supporters in a hunger strike in front of the Karachi Press Club on September 9. The demonstration condemned both the abuse of the Pakistan’s blasphemy laws and the death sentence awarded to Asif Pervaiz.
“We strongly condemn the capital punishment awarded to Asif Pervaiz, who is being punished for refusing to convert to Islam,” Shafqat told UCAN. “There was no evidence to convict Asif. No proper investigation was carried out to establish the facts. Police simply acted on false accusations from the complainant.”
In Pakistan, false accusations of blasphemy are widespread and often motivated by personal vendettas or religious hatred. Accusations are highly inflammatory and have the potential to spark mob lynchings, vigilante murders, and mass protests.
Currently, 25 Christian are imprisoned on blasphemy charges in Pakistan, including Asif Pervaiz. These 25 Christians are defendants in 22 blasphemy cases represented at various levels of the judicial process in Pakistan.
#Pakistan - The Roma of #Lahore
It might be long before the government can successfully develop an entire, modern city upon the Ravi. Till then, Lahore is most likely to continue to be home to over half a million gypsies, many of whom have based themselves in makeshift tents along the banks of the river. They are a politically and socially isolated community, with no status as citizens and, hence, no claims to basic benefits as well as utilities like electricity. They have no access to jobs and security, and their children can’t enroll in schools. This, despite a UN Commission on Human Rights report which calls on the countries of the world to “adopt all appropriate measures in order to eliminate any form of discrimination against the Roma (gypsies).”They are a politically and socially isolated community, with no status as citizens and, hence, no claims to basic utilities such as electricity.
They live way below poverty line. Their main ‘vocation’ is begging, though some also work as labourers on daily wages or sell cheap household items on city streets to earn a living. Rag-picking is another common activity.
The gypsies are known to have special, indigenous knowledge of medicinal herbs. Some of them famously keep snakes.
The gypsies of Lahore come from varied castes — Qalandar, Oudh, Musali, Jogi, Bazigar, Marasi, Koray and so on. The Qalandars and Marasis popularly indulge singing and dancing, while the Kenghars make mud toys.
These people usually occupy a place for a short period of time — a couple of months or years — before they move on. Some stay as briefly as for a few days. It is not yet clear as to what role will they be assigned, once the urban development project is set in motion.
Pizza corruption scandal risks dragging China into Pakistan’s domestic affairs
The ruling PTI party has suggested India is behind the claims, which are attracting a backlash and may again pull China into its ally’s domestic affairs.
A former army general who was last year put in charge of China’s belt and road projects in Pakistan has become embroiled in a corruption scandal, once again dragging Beijing into its close ally’s dirty domestic politics.Pakistan’s government and powerful military have worked hard to suppress the mainstream media’s coverage of allegations that retired lieutenant general Asim Saleem Bajwa’s family built a multimillion-dollar US-based business which grew in parallel to his ascent through the ranks. The allegations were made in a report published last month by the independent news website FactFocus, co-founded by renowned Pakistani investigative journalist Ahmad Noorani.
The report claims that Bajwa failed to declare his wife’s stake in the business – the single largest franchise holder for US pizza chain Papa John’s – when he submitted details of his wealth to Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Bajwa was obliged to make public details of his wealth and assets after being appointed the prime minister’s special assistant on information in April – a role he performs alongside his job as the chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) Authority.
The former military spokesman said he “strongly rebutted … a malicious propaganda story published on an unknown site, against me and my family”.
Khan’s ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party, responding to the allegations on Twitter, characterised the allegations as an attack on the CPEC Authority by “a dissident social media group sitting abroad … to further the Indian agenda”.
They paint it as a nefarious effort to undermine China and Pakistan
Previously, Khan was a self-described CPEC sceptic and while in opposition attacked the programme launched by his predecessor and political nemesis Nawaz Sharif as a debt trap, echoing US criticism of the Belt and Road Initiative.In its ruthless pursuit of corruption charges against Sharif and other opposition politicians, PTI politicians have not hesitated to attack CPEC projects.
In February last year, communications minister Murad Saeed accused Sharif and his ministers of siphoning US$420 million in funds for a motorway built by the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC).
Saeed alleged the CSCEC had been awarded an inflated US$2.94 billion contract for the motorway linking the cities of Multan and Sukkur.
Responding at the time, CSCEC said it felt “extremely shocked by the groundless allegations”.
The PTI’s anti-corruption rhetoric was later that month drastically curtailed, however, after Indian warplanes crossed into Pakistani airspace to attack a training camp for Kashmiri militants.
Pakistan became increasingly reliant on China’s diplomatic support during the subsequent escalation of tensions, which peaked in August last year after India revoked the semi-autonomous status of the part of Kashmir it administers.
During a visit by Khan to Beijing last October, Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to raise the Kashmir dispute at the United Nations Security Council. The decision was announced immediately before Xi flew to the Indian city of Chennai for an informal summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
. Bajwa was appointed CPEC Authority chairman soon afterwards, in response to China’s complaints about the slowed implementation of belt and road projects.
The tensions sparked by China’s unprecedented diplomatic intervention on behalf of all-weather ally Pakistan boiled over in June, when Chinese troops occupied previously Indian-held territory in Ladakh , a northern region of Kashmir adjoining Tibet.China’s diplomatic support to Pakistan has been made all the more crucial by the refusal of its other close ally, Saudi Arabia, to confront its major trading partner India.Riyadh’s refusal has stymied Islamabad’s attempts to persuade the 57-member Jeddah-based Organisation of Islamic Conference to censure New Delhi.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in an August 7 television appearance, threatened to form a breakaway Pan-Islamic platform with Muslim countries which have criticised India over Kashmir – a list comprising Saudi Arabia’s rivals Turkey and Iran, as well as Malaysia.
Khan had agreed to attend a Malaysia-hosted summit of these countries last year, but quickly changed his mind after Saudi Arabia conveyed its displeasure.
Qureshi’s recent outburst came after Saudi Arabia – apparently annoyed by Pakistan’s complaints – demanded the early repayment of most of a US$3.2 billion loan extended in October 2018 to help Khan’s newly-elected government weather a balance of payments crisis. Pakistan paid off US$1 billion of the Saudi loan recently with money urgently borrowed from China – which is widely expected to soon lend Islamabad another US$1 billion to settle matters with Riyadh.
In a TV interview on August 20, Khan denied there had been a breakdown in relations between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
But he also said: “China is our only friend which has remained politically steadfast with Pakistan during good and bad times. It should be clear that our future is connected with China,” Khan said. “China also needs Pakistan very much.” This quid pro quo was reflected in a statement issued by Pakistan’s ministry of foreign affairs after a round of “strategic talks” between Qureshi and Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing on August 21.
Appreciating China “for standing together with Pakistan in safeguarding its national security and sovereignty”, Islamabad reaffirmed its firm support to Beijing “on affairs concerning China’s core interests and issues of major concern, such as those related to Taiwan ,Xinjiang , Tibet and Hong Kong.
This apparent Pakistani endorsement of China’s mass detention of ethnic Uygur Muslims in so-called re-education camps is Islamabad’s first official stance on the controversy.
Previously, Khan feigned ignorance about the events in Xinjiang, although more recently he admitted it was a sensitive issue discussed with Pakistan’s Chinese friends behind closed doors.However, the momentous decision has barely received a mention in the Pakistani media, because of clear instructions from the government.The emergence of corruption allegations against Bajwa at this crucial diplomatic juncture in China-Pakistan relations threatens to create geopolitical complications for both.Although primarily a domestic issue, “when the head of CPEC’s operations in Pakistan is accused of such serious wrongdoing, then that’s a big problem for a giant connectivity project with sky-high strategic significance and very high stakes”, Kugelman said. ■
https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3100328/pakistans-pizza-corruption-scandal-risks-cheesing-top-ally-china
Pakistan: 14-year-old #Hindu girl forcefully converted and married to her abductor
A 14-year-old Hindu girl has been allegedly kidnapped and forcefully married in Pakistan by faking her actual age on the documents.
Parsha Kumari, a 14-year-old, was abducted from the Mori district of Khairpur in Sindh in Pakistan. The family had immediately filed a mission person report with the local police. However, the local police did not take any action.
Later, it was revealed that the minor was forced to convert and was later married off to Abdul Saboor, without consent.
Abdul Saboor faked Kumari's age on the affidavit, claiming that she is 18-years-old, making her an adult. However, the documents submitted by her parents, her date of birth mentioned is 15th September 2005, which makes Kumar 14 years old. She was a student of class IX.
The local media reported that an affidavit was presented from the girl’s side in which she claimed that her old name was Parsha Kumari and she has accepted Islam. However, Kumar's family believes she has been forced into converting and marrying Saboor, who is an adult.
Pakistan has also been in news for a sexual violence case where a woman was raped at gunpoint on Wednesday by two men before the eyes of her children after her vehicle ran out of fuel. The two men are also said to have stolen money and jewelry before fleeing the scene.
https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/pakistan-14-year-old-forcefully-converted-and-married-to-her-abductor-327201
#Pakistan #PPP - Govt should issue Watan cards to flood victims: Bilawal Bhutto
In Mirpur Khas, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto while talking to media said that the attention of the rulers of Islamabad was drawn to the damage caused by rains and floods. Distribution of rations will not solve the problems of the flood victims. The present government should provide Watan Card to the flood victims.
He said that he spent more time in Mirpur Khas, it is just the beginning, PPP MNAs, MPAs work hard on their own, there were losses in Mirpur Khas, Umerkot, Badin, Tharparkar, we have come to assess the losses in the affected areas, he added.
Bilawal Bhutto said that Asif Ali Zardari had given Watan cards to the victims in 2011. PPP cadres know how to protest for the right. He said that we will not allow the people of Sindh to be left destitute by the government.
Chairman PPP said that federal government did not give NFC shares to Sindh government, farmers of the country are worried due to rains, floods and locusts. This year, the Sindh government was given Rs200 billion less.
He said that small farmers should also be helped by declaring emergency. He said that poor farmers of the country could not bear huge loss and all should work together to solve the problems of the people.
Bilawal Bhutto said that PTI should compensate every farmer, Sindh government is trying to come up with a scheme for farmers, next time we will have political activities here, he added.
https://dunyanews.tv/en/Pakistan/563610-Govt-should-issue-Watan-cards-to-flood-victims-Bilawal-Bhutto