Pakistan

Some of the world’s most widely-known cases of anti-Christian pressure and violence have arisen in Pakistan, a country whose founder promoted religious freedom. Asia Bibi’s case prompted international condemnation of Pakistan’s anti-blasphemy laws but there are still dozens of Christians and others on death row for blasphemy. Meanwhile, several churches and Christian colonies have been attacked by Islamists in recent years, leading to the loss of many lives. Although Christians are around 2% of the population, they make up about 80% of the workforce dealing with waste management (sewerage and street-cleaning). World Watch Monitor’s journalism brought changes in employment legislation in Punjab for such ‘sweepers’ in September 2015. `

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Pakistan’s blasphemy laws

March 14, 2017 Blasphemy, Islamic extremism, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, Religious freedom

What the laws say Chapter XV of Pakistan’s Penal Code, titled “Of Offences Relating to Religion,” contains six sections. Four of them outlaw a number of acts, ranging from tresspassing on places of worship to “malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings,” with penalties ranging from one to 10 years […]

Six years on, justice thwarted in case of Pakistan’s murdered Shahbaz Bhatti

March 3, 2017 Asia Bibi, Blasphemy, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Pakistan Peoples Party, Paul Bhatti, Rawalpindi, Shahbaz Bhatti, Taliban

The memorial to Shahbaz Bhatti, which marks the location of his assassination. Islamabad, Pakistan.

Six years on, justice for the murdered Pakistani Christian federal cabinet member Shahbaz Bhatti remains elusive, as does the social equality for which he gave his life. The Christian community says the Pakistani political leadership is not doing enough to ask the police and the judiciary to ensure his killers […]

Pakistan court bans Valentine’s Day celebrations

February 13, 2017 Islamabad, Islamic extremism, Pakistan

Pakistan’s Islamabad High Court has prohibited St Valentine’s Day celebrations in public spaces and government offices across the country “with immediate effect,” reports Dawn. Print and electronic media have also been warned to stop Valentine’s Day promotions. The orders came after a petition was submitted by Abdul Waheed, a member […]

Pakistani boy refused bail in Kaaba ‘blasphemy’ case

February 13, 2017 Blasphemy, Islamic extremism, Kasur, Lahore, Nabeel Masih, Nadeem Masih, Sweepers

UPDATE (13 Feb, 2017): A Pakistani Christian boy accused of blasphemy for “liking” and “sharing” a Facebook post which “defamed and disrespected” the Kaaba in Mecca – the building at the centre of Islam’s most sacred mosque – has been refused bail. Lawyers for Nabeel Masih, 16, argued that he […]

Pakistani Christians ‘attacked’ as land dispute escalates

February 10, 2017 Caste, Gojra, Joseph Colony, Lahore, Minorities, Narowal, Pakistan, Punjab, Rimsha Masih

More than 200 men, some armed with sticks, suddenly gathered on Wednesday morning (8 Feb) beside the Alba Presbyterian Church in Sankhatra, 115km north of Lahore, intent on building a boundary wall. “Children were going to school and men were leaving for work when this large number stormed into the […]

Pakistan law amendments help protect Christians

February 9, 2017 Children, Marriage, Minorities, Pakistan, Terrorism

Forced conversions, mob violence and sectarianism will no longer go unpunished after Pakistan’s National Assembly passed a bill on 6 February amending some of its criminal laws. The amended law on forced marriage for minority religious groups now applies to minors as well as women, with the punishment more severe […]

Pakistani Christian accused of blasphemy out on bail after three years in prison

February 3, 2017 Adnan Prince, Blasphemy, Jamaat-ud-Dawa, Lahore, Lashkar-e-Taiba

The Voice Society UPDATE (3 Feb 2017) After spending more than three years in jail, a Christian accused of blasphemy, and facing the death penalty, was granted bail by the Supreme Court in Lahore on 1 Feb. Adnan Prince has been imprisoned in Lahore’s district jail since November 2013 after […]

Pakistan court acquits all suspects in 2013 arson of Christian neighbourhood

January 31, 2017 Blasphemy, Gojra, Joseph Colony, Lahore, Punjab, Sawan Masih, Sweepers

A Pakistani anti-terrorism court on Saturday (28 Jan) acquitted every one of the more than 100 suspects accused of ransacking, looting and then burning a Christian neighbourhood in Lahore in March 2013. Pakistani Christians gather outside the Joseph Colony in Lahore on 10 March 2013, the day after more than […]

Pakistan PM premature in saying country will soon be ‘minority-friendly’

January 31, 2017 Blasphemy, Jamaat-e-Islami, Minorities, Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan Peoples Party, Punjab, Sindh

Pakistan’s Prime Minister has said “the day is not far off when Pakistan will internationally be known as a minority-friendly country”. Pakistani Christians hold candles at a rally in Lahore on 29 March, 2016, after a terrorist attack claimed the lives of more than 70 people celebrating Easter. Meanwhile, a […]

Historic roots of treatment of Pakistan’s religious minorities as ‘second-class’

January 31, 2017 Minorities, Sweepers

The problems for religious minorities in Pakistan date back to its formation. When the British left the Indian subcontinent, it was divided between Pakistan and India. Partition led to millions crossing borders: Muslims to Pakistan and Hindus and Sikhs crossing over to India. Hence, over time, India became thought of […]

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