Kuffarphobia in Pakistan & Bangladesh Discussions - The 4 Freedoms Library
2024-03-28T12:04:36Z
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The slow genocide of minorities in Pakistan - by Farahnaz Ispahani
tag:4freedoms.com,2021-05-25:3766518:Topic:272725
2021-05-25T15:33:50.180Z
Alan Lake
http://4freedoms.com/profile/AlanLake
<h1 class="headline" id="headline_1541159219186">Slow genocide of minorities in Pakistan: Farahnaz Ispahani</h1>
<p><span class="pos-rel dblock"><img alt="Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint" src="https://images.livemint.com/rf/Image-621x414/LiveMint/Period1/2016/01/20/Photos/farahnaz-compressor.jpg" title="Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint"></img></span> <br></br> Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint<br></br> <br></br> <span class="articleInfo pubtime"><em><span id="tmread_1541159219186">7 min read</span></em><span> </span><em>.</em><span> </span><span id="tBox_1541159219186">Updated: 19 Jan 2016, 03:39 PM IST …</span></span></p>
<h1 class="headline" id="headline_1541159219186">Slow genocide of minorities in Pakistan: Farahnaz Ispahani</h1>
<p><span class="pos-rel dblock"><img alt="Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint" src="https://images.livemint.com/rf/Image-621x414/LiveMint/Period1/2016/01/20/Photos/farahnaz-compressor.jpg" title="Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint"/></span><br/> Farahnaz Ispahani. Photo: Pradeep Gaur/Mint<br/> <br/> <span class="articleInfo pubtime"><em><span id="tmread_1541159219186">7 min read</span></em><span> </span><em>.</em><span> </span><span id="tBox_1541159219186">Updated: 19 Jan 2016, 03:39 PM IST </span></span><span class="articleInfo author"><strong><a href="https://www.livemint.com/Search/Link/Author/Elizabeth-Roche">Elizabeth Roche</a></strong></span></p>
<div class="contentSec"><div><div id="mainArea" class="mainArea"><div class="FirstEle"><p>From 23% in 1947, Pakistan’s minorities today constitute a mere 3-4% of the population, says Farahnaz Ispahani, media advisor to the president of Pakistan from 2008 to 2012 in her book Purifying the Land of the Pure: Pakistan’s Religious Minorities.</p>
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<div class="paywall"><p>She blames the successive Pakistan presidents and prime ministers for launching a slow genocide against minorities in the country to shore up their political base. She specifically blames Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, the Pak army general who was the country’s 6th president, for creating a militant group to target Shias, Ahmadis, Hindus and Christians. Edited excerpts from an interview:</p>
<p><b>Could you tell us something about the title of your book Purifying the Land of the Pure: Pakistan’s Religious Minorities?</b></p>
<p>Pakistan itself means pure land. The reason I chose it is because I have traced in my book, using historical archives, how Pakistan which set out to be a secular albeit Muslims majority state, ended up becoming what it is today. When Pakistan was being formed in 1947, Pakistan’s population of non-Muslims was 23%, today we are somewhere between 3%-4%. So there has been a purification of minorities.</p>
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<p>So my big question was where have they gone? What I have uncovered is quite devastating because it has not been one government or one man who has been culpable. It’s not only (former president) General Zia ul Haq. It has been from the time of Mr (Mohammed Ali) Jinnah, the Qaid-e-Azam of Pakistan, as he lay dying, already the political and bureaucratic wheels were moving towards a more Muslim state.</p>
<p>I am saying that for all religious minorities—Muslim and non-Muslim—there has been a purification. This is what I call drip drip genocide. Normally when people talk about genocide, they talk about Nazi Germany or they talk about Yugoslavia. In the case of Pakistan, this is slow genocide, this drip, drip, drip over 76 years.</p>
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<p><b>You refer to the Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) founder and ideologue Maulana Abul Ala Maududi in your book. Was this purification the handiwork of politicians only or did religious leaders and scholars also have a role?</b></p>
<p>Maulana Maududi did not support the formation of Pakistan; he did not think it would be Muslim enough. Mr. Jinnah, as he was dying, talked at length about Pakistan’s minorities and said no matter what someone’s faith was would not matter in Pakistan. But after he died what happened was, most of the people who were in leadership positions in Pakistan, in the Muslim League like our first prime minister Liaquat Ali Khan, were not from Pakistan. So they did not have natural constituencies as politicians.</p>
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<p>You have a man like Mr. Liaquat Ali Khan who himself was very secular in most ways. He becomes the man who brings about the resolution which went into every single constitution we ever had, which was very clear in that it said that Pakistan was a Muslim state. And that the Quran and Shariat and Sunnah (verbally transmitted teachings of the Prophet) are to be part and parcel of the state. It was the ugliest form of realpolitik.</p>
<p>What people like Liaquat and Chaudhury Mohammed Ali (fourth prime minister of Pakistan), etc., did was that they revived “Islam is in danger" as the glue to keep them in their positions. Mr. Maududi and his fellow clergymen therefore became of great value to the political leadership of Pakistan to justify their decisions, to keep them in power.</p>
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<p>And as you go on, when you have the first proper martial law in Pakistan when General Ayub (Khan) takes over, you see the nexus of the military with the mullahs and politicians who were acceptable to the military.</p>
<p><b>You have talked of the links between politics, religion and the military. How did militancy come to be linked with this?</b></p>
<p>The first well-known and well-organised terrorist militia that we know about that dealt with religious minorities was created by Zia-ul-Haq. It was called the Sipah-e-Sahaba and its sole job was to harass Shias. So, that is the first group that we see that is armed and trained and reasonably openly by the (Pakistani) government of that time.</p>
<p>Some of these groups—not all—in some seasons cross borders and in some seasons there are at home purifying the land of the pure, whether it is blowing up Ahmadi places of worship or Christian worshippers at mass or Shia imambargahs.</p>
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<p>So the state’s policy that goes back to the very beginning of mixing religion with politics and then religion, politics and the military together has resulted in a terrible situation not just from the point of view of Pakistan’s neighbours but for us Pakistanis as well. Over 60,000 Pakistanis have died due to attacks internally by terrorists.</p>
<p><b>Of all the politicians who have done their bit for the decimation of minorities, would you say that it was president Zia-ul-Haq who did the most damage?</b></p>
<p>Yes. Two things, he legalised Islamisation—whether it was bringing in the Hudood (ordinance in 1979 under which Sharia laws applied in cases of extramarital sex, theft and prohibition). From very little things like introducing prayer times in government buildings to very, very, very harsh laws of blasphemy. The other thing would be the birth of these jihadi groups in a very, very big way.</p>
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<p>He attempted to alter our culture—Pakistani diplomats’s wives could no longer wear saris—they were considered Hindu and un-Islamic. You could no longer say Khuda Hafiz; you had to say Allah Hafiz.</p>
<p>These small things have now percolated down and they have shaped an entire culture. So that’s what he did, the small things changing the way people thought, the laws which were then impossible to get around and then the Jihadi groups.</p>
<p><b>How can this state of affairs be changed?</b></p>
<p>It has to be through political leadership, even though we saw in (Punjab governor) Salman (Taseer)’s case that in spite of everything when (his security guard) Mumtaz Qadri pumped his body full (in 2011) of bullets the other people stood there and watched. Later Qadri was garlanded and the judge who found him (Qadri) guilty, we had to send the judge and his entire family out of Pakistan. I was in government then. He’s never come back.</p>
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<p>This book is like a death sentence for me. Civil society at that time had no leadership. And the reaction was don’t even talk about it. Don’t even mention Asiya Bibi (Pakistani Christian found guilty of blasphemy and sentenced to death. Taseer opposed her punishment). Look at Salman, he was so foolish. There was no one willing to bury him. I had to find somebody, beg someone to read his last rites. And then, I had to get that person and their family out of Lahore.</p>
<p><b>So is this the worst for Pakistan and therefore can one say that change can only make things better?</b></p>
<p>I could never say something like that because its impossible to be so categorical. Pakistan is a functional state still and there is a lot of room for change. I hope things turn around. But I think a big part of it is that jihadi groups have to be dealt with. They can no longer be good jihadi groups and bad jihadi groups. There should be no jihadi groups. Countries can have militaries and countries can have diplomacy. Unless we move past this kind of a situation, the world is losing patience.</p>
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<p><b>Any point when this could be changed?</b></p>
<p>From the very start. Mr. Jinnah was still alive and they have the temerity to block his speech from the radio. That entire speech was about how important Pakistan’s religious minorities were and how absolutely vital it was for pluralism and to have a successful state for all citizens to have a place. Once you end up introducing a religious law it is almost impossible to amend it or to change it because they are seen as protecting Islam and feelings of Muslims.</p>
<p>In the book, I break this down into four stages – and I call stage one Muslimisation. This comes about between 1945 and 1951. There is a massive decline in Hindu and Sikh populations and therefore Pakistan became more Muslim demographically.</p>
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<p>Stage two is Islamic identity. This is where you see from 1958 onwards state-sponsored text books reject pluralism, paint religious minorities very negative, highlight and glorify Islamic history with no South Asian basis. So an attempt was made to forge a Pakistani identity purely on the basis of Islam.</p>
<p>The third stage is Islamisation. This is where legislation in an attempt to make the country’s laws more Islamic resulted in creating a legal framework against the minorities. It started in 1974 and continues up to 1988. This was all done in General Zia’s time.</p>
<p>Stage four is militant hostility towards the minorities, which is the stage at which we are and we have terrorism and organised violence.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.livemint.com/Politics/F4r3Tmf51k8Sm6DGjPRaEN/Slow-genocide-of-minorities-in-Pakistan-Farahnaz-Ispahani.html">https://www.livemint.com/Politics/F4r3Tmf51k8Sm6DGjPRaEN/Slow-genocide-of-minorities-in-Pakistan-Farahnaz-Ispahani.html</a></p>
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Pakistan: Failed State
tag:4freedoms.com,2014-04-04:3766518:Topic:146456
2014-04-04T18:02:08.226Z
Alan Lake
http://4freedoms.com/profile/AlanLake
<p>This is the <a href="http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/" target="_blank">TROP</a> data showing Islamic Terror attacks since 9/11, focusing on Israel, India and Pakistan. <br></br> <br></br> Consider how much news there is about islamic terrorism in Israel, compared with India, and even more so with Pakistan. The narrative pushed by muslims, the media and the leftist jew-haters, is that the terrorism in Israel (and the rest of the world) is because of the displacement of muslims by jews in the land…</p>
<p>This is the <a href="http://www.thereligionofpeace.com/" target="_blank">TROP</a> data showing Islamic Terror attacks since 9/11, focusing on Israel, India and Pakistan. <br/> <br/>
Consider how much news there is about islamic terrorism in Israel, compared with India, and even more so with Pakistan. The narrative pushed by muslims, the media and the leftist jew-haters, is that the terrorism in Israel (and the rest of the world) is because of the displacement of muslims by jews in the land of Israel. So what's the excuse for all the islamic terrorism in India and Pakistan? Pakistan is land that muslims have taken from Hindus/Sikhs/Buddists/Jains, and the amount of terrorism there is 6x greater than in Israel. There is something seriously wrong with Pakistan (and the muslims in India). There is effectively more islamic terrorism in Pakistan + India than in the rest of the world combined.</p>
<p>By any account, Pakistan is already a failed state, and once it goes, the crossover of terrorist focus to India will probably bring that country down as well. </p>
<p><a href="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/110491651?profile=original" target="_self"><img width="925" src="http://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/110491651?profile=RESIZE_1024x1024" width="925" class="align-full"/></a></p>
Asia Bibi
tag:4freedoms.com,2014-01-03:3766518:Topic:142681
2014-01-03T08:57:20.346Z
Kinana
http://4freedoms.com/profile/Kinana
<p>(We lost the original forum for Asia Bibi, so please continue here with whatever new news appears)</p>
<h1 class="article__heading">Pakistanis rally to demand death for Christian woman facing execution for blasphemy (PHOTOS)</h1>
<div class="article__date">Published time: 13 Oct, 2018 20:47Edited time: 14 Oct, 2018 10:27</div>
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<p>(We lost the original forum for Asia Bibi, so please continue here with whatever new news appears)</p>
<h1 class="article__heading">Pakistanis rally to demand death for Christian woman facing execution for blasphemy (PHOTOS)</h1>
<div class="article__date">Published time: 13 Oct, 2018 20:47Edited time: 14 Oct, 2018 10:27</div>
<div class="article__short-url"><div class="short-url"><a class="short-url__link" href="https://on.rt.com/9gfa">Get short URL</a></div>
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<div class="article__cover"><div class="media"><img class="media__item" src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2018.10/article/5bc25815dda4c8e6788b4617.jpg" alt="Pakistanis rally to demand death for Christian woman facing execution for blasphemy (PHOTOS)"/></div>
<div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom"><div class="media__title media__title_arcticle">Protesters are pictured in Lahore, Pakistan, on October 12, 2018. © AFP / Arif Ali</div>
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<div class="article__summary summary">Several thousand protesters hit the streets of Pakistan calling for the Christian woman accused of insulting Islam be put to death. Asia Bibi would become the first person executed for blasphemy if her appeal fails.</div>
<div class="article__text text"><p>The Pakistani city of Lahore was the center of Friday’s protests, which were organized by the anti-blasphemy party Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP). Demonstrations also took place in a number of other cities across the country, including Karachi and Rawalpindi.</p>
<div class="article__cover"><div class="media"><img class="media__item" src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2018.10/original/5bc257bbdda4c837768b4644.jpg"/><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom"><div class="media__title media__title_footer">Protesters are pictured in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on October 12, 2018. © AFP / Aamir Qureshi</div>
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<p>The rallies came after Pakistan's Supreme Court heard the final appeal of Bibi, a Christian laborer accused of blasphemy against the Prophet Mohammed in 2009 by Muslim women she was working with in a field.</p>
<p>According to Bibi's autobiography ‘Blasphemy: A Memoir: Sentenced to Death Over a Cup of Water’ the incident began when she went to retrieve a cup of water from a well during a hot day of fruit picking.</p>
<div class="article__cover"><div class="media"><img class="media__item" src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2018.10/original/5bc25526fc7e93254f8b45fd.jpg"/><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom"><div class="media__title media__title_footer">Protesters are pictured in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. © AFP / Aamir Qureshi</div>
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<p>When a Muslim woman nearby saw her doing so she shouted,<span> </span><em>“Don't drink that water, it's haram (forbidden)!”</em><span> </span>She then turned to the other women in the field, telling them that Bibi had dirtied the water in the well by drinking from their cup.</p>
<p><em>“Now the water is unclear and we can't drink it! Because of her!”</em><span> </span>the woman said. Several women called Bibi a<em><span> </span>“filthy Christian”</em><span> </span>and told her to convert to Islam.</p>
<div class="article__cover"><div class="media"><img class="media__item" src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2018.10/original/5bc255f0dda4c837768b4641.jpg"/><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom"><div class="media__title media__title_footer">Protesters are pictured in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on October 12, 2018. © AFP / Aamir Qureshi</div>
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<p><em>“I’m not going to convert. I believe in my religion and in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for the sins of mankind. What did your Prophet Mohammed ever do to save mankind? And why should it be me that converts instead of you?”</em><span> </span>Bibi said.</p>
<p>At that point, one woman spat on her while another shoved her. Days later, she was accused of blasphemy.</p>
<p>Friday’s protests came despite the court saying it had reached a judgment at a hearing on Monday, but that it would not be released immediately for <em>“reasons to be recorded later.”</em> It also said that it had ruled on a petition that would put Bibi on the no-fly list if released, but did not publish that judgment either.</p>
<div class="article__cover"><div class="media"><img class="media__item" src="https://cdni.rt.com/files/2018.10/original/5bc25697fc7e9361518b4621.jpg"/><div class="media__footer media__footer_bottom"><div class="media__title media__title_footer">Supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) party surround the party's leader during the protest in Lahore. © AFP / Arif Ali</div>
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<p>Bibi's case has prompted international calls for her release, with Pope Benedict XVI joining in the calls in 2010. Pope Francis met with Bibi's daughter in 2015.</p>
<p>Although Pakistan's law takes the accusation of blasphemy very seriously and people have been sentenced to death, no one has ever actually been executed.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.rt.com/news/441190-blasphemy-death-sentence-rally-pakistan/">https://www.rt.com/news/441190-blasphemy-death-sentence-rally-pakistan/</a></p>
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Pakistan’s Tyrannical Majority - NY Times
tag:4freedoms.com,2013-05-21:3766518:Topic:125362
2013-05-21T03:02:35.968Z
Alan Lake
http://4freedoms.com/profile/AlanLake
<p>By <span><span>MANAN AHMED ASIF</span></span></p>
<h6 class="dateline">Published: May 10, 2013</h6>
<div class="articleBody"><p>JUST after the stroke of midnight on Aug. 14, 1947, the Peshawar broadcast station of All India Radio crackled to life: “This is Pakistan Broadcasting Service.” Next came the words of the Urdu-language poet Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi: “Pakistan bananay walay, Pakistan Mubarak” — “Oh, maker of Pakistan, congratulations on Pakistan.”…</p>
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<p>By <span><span>MANAN AHMED ASIF</span></span></p>
<h6 class="dateline">Published: May 10, 2013</h6>
<div class="articleBody"><p>JUST after the stroke of midnight on Aug. 14, 1947, the Peshawar broadcast station of All India Radio crackled to life: “This is Pakistan Broadcasting Service.” Next came the words of the Urdu-language poet Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi: “Pakistan bananay walay, Pakistan Mubarak” — “Oh, maker of Pakistan, congratulations on Pakistan.”</p>
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<div class="articleInline runaroundLeft"><div class="inlineImage module"><div class="image"><span><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/11/opinion/pakistans-tyrannical-majority.html?_r=3&" target="_blank"><img src="http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2013/05/11/opinion/0511OPEDbuttignol/0511OPEDbuttignol-articleInline.jpg?width=190" width="190" class="align-right"/></a></span></div>
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<div class="articleBody"><p>On Saturday, Pakistanis will head to the polls to choose a new government; for the first time in 66 years, a democratically elected administration has completed its term. Given Pakistan’s tumultuous past, this is an impressive achievement, but it should not prevent citizens from asking the candidates vying for their votes: what kind of Pakistan have you made?</p>
<p>The makers of Pakistan were peasants and laborers. In 1940, they passed a resolution in Lahore to demand a separate homeland for Muslims and an end to British colonial occupation. In 1946, their votes brought a political party, the Muslim League, to power. They chose Muhammad Ali Jinnah, a modernist technocrat, as their leader.</p>
<p>Jinnah asked his party’s legislators to focus on the well-being of the “masses and the poor” and demanded that “every one of you, no matter to what community he belongs, no matter what relations he had with you in the past, no matter what is his color, caste or creed, is first, second and last a citizen of this State with equal rights, privileges and obligations.” Men like Muhammad Zafrulla Khan (an Ahmadi diplomat) and Raja Amir Ahmad Khan (a Shiite noble) had worked alongside Jinnah for decades to fulfill this dream of equality.</p>
<p>Yet the birth of Pakistan was not auspicious for minorities. The original claim of Pakistan — religious equality — was the first claim proved false. Muhammad Zafrulla Khan, though he became the first foreign minister, was hounded by religious conservatives, who branded him an apostate because of his Ahmadi faith. Ahmadis, followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908), consider themselves part of the Muslim tradition but have faced stern resistance from Sunni Muslims, who accused them of following a false prophet.</p>
<p>In 1974, Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto passed an amendment to the Pakistani Constitution declaring anyone who did not believe that Muhammad was the last prophet a non-Muslim. And in the 1980s, the military dictator Gen. Muhammad Zia ul-Haq passed punitive laws that defined the practice of the Ahmadi faith as a “blasphemous” criminal offense. Ahmadis are allowed to vote only for parliamentary seats reserved for non-Muslims, effectively disenfranchising them. Since they refuse to declare themselves non-Muslims, they don’t vote.</p>
<p>Shiites have not fared much better. Raja Amir Ahmad left Pakistan, soon after 1947, fearing for the safety of his community. In the last five years, more than 1,000 Shiites, belonging to the Hazara community, have been targeted and killed in the city of Quetta. In February, when 84 Shiites were killed in a bombing attack, Quetta’s Hazaras refused to bury their murdered kin, demanding that the government ensure their safety. The corpses, wrapped in burial shrouds in coffins, were kept on the streets and mourned by thousands. This act of civic protest shook the nation, but it did little to prompt action from the state.</p>
<p>Today, tolerance is under siege from all directions. Even Imran Khan, the sports star turned politician — who enjoys a near-divine status among young, urban Pakistanis — has contributed to the marginalization of minorities. On May 4, he said at a rally that he did not regard Ahmadis as Muslims and would not campaign for their votes. Mr. Khan has based his campaign on a message of “change” reminiscent of President Obama’s in 2008. His statement on Ahmadis was therefore particularly damaging and chilling.</p>
<p>As a candidate marketing himself as a political outsider, he could have opened up a national conversation on equality of citizenship and reached out to all voters, including Ahmadis, Hindus and Christians. Instead he reaffirmed the political exclusion of minorities and legitimized intolerance in the eyes of his millions of idealistic young followers, who quickly echoed his dismissal in online networks.</p>
<p>Over the last five years, hundreds of Ahmadis have been targeted and killed in Pakistan’s cities. In 2010, 94 were killed in a terrorist attack in Lahore, and since then their burial grounds, mosques and homes have been under assault. There has been no response from the government, which still refuses to grant them equal status as citizens of Pakistan. Christian communities have also been targeted, and prominent Christian leaders, like Shahbaz Bhatti, the minister of minorities, have been assassinated. While the state has done little to punish these acts, various militant organizations have brazenly claimed credit for them.</p>
<p>The candidates campaigning in this election, rather than arguing for the rights of all Pakistanis, have further marginalized religious minorities and given license to those who attack them.</p>
<p>Despite the rise of satellite television and online media that have allowed mass participation in politics outside of old patronage networks, a new form of majoritarian tyranny has taken hold. It is built on the classic anxieties of the rising middle class: the fear of the other, the conspirator among us.</p>
<p>Today, the verses of another poet, Faiz Ahmed Faiz, who was imprisoned and exiled by Pakistan’s military dictators, seem more appropriate: “Chalay chalo kay woh manzil abhi nahin aaye” — “Keep on walking, for we are not at the destination yet.”</p>
<div class="authorIdentification"><p><a href="http://history.columbia.edu/faculty/Ahmed.html">Manan Ahmed Asif</a>, an assistant professor of history at Columbia, is the author of “Where the Wild Frontiers Are: Pakistan and the American Imagination.”</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/11/opinion/pakistans-tyrannical-majority.html?_r=3&">http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/11/opinion/pakistans-tyrannical-majority.html?_r=3&</a>;</p>
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Pakistan: Mob Burns Man to Death for Alleged ‘Blasphemy’ - ASSIST News Service
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-08-31:3766518:Topic:110873
2012-08-31T09:35:08.463Z
Dave
http://4freedoms.com/profile/DavePhillips
<p><a href="http://www.assistnews.net/STORIES/2012/s12070039.htm" target="_blank">http://www.assistnews.net/STORIES/2012/s12070039.htm</a></p>
<p>Another depressingly familiar atrocity from the religion of peace. People still believe Islam is nothing to worry about.</p>
<p><span>Friday, July 6, 2012</span> <br></br><br></br><b><font id="aeaoofnhgocdbnbeljkmbjdmhbcokfdb-mousedown" size="4">Pakistan Mob Burns Man to Death for Alleged ‘Blasphemy’</font></b><br></br><span>Another shocking extra judicial…</span></p>
<p><a href="http://www.assistnews.net/STORIES/2012/s12070039.htm" target="_blank">http://www.assistnews.net/STORIES/2012/s12070039.htm</a></p>
<p>Another depressingly familiar atrocity from the religion of peace. People still believe Islam is nothing to worry about.</p>
<p><span>Friday, July 6, 2012</span> <br/><br/><b><font size="4" id="aeaoofnhgocdbnbeljkmbjdmhbcokfdb-mousedown">Pakistan Mob Burns Man to Death for Alleged ‘Blasphemy’</font></b><br/><span>Another shocking extra judicial killing </span><br/><img border="0" src="http://www.assistnews.net/images2/banners/StoryBanner.gif" align="right" width="216" height="18"/><br/><span>By Dan Wooding and Xavier Patras William</span><br/><span>Special to ASSIST News Service</span></p>
<p><b><u><a href="http://www.assistnews.net/google_map.asp?place=BAHAWALPUR,%20PUNJAB,%20PAKISTAN" target="_blank">BAHAWALPUR, PUNJAB, PAKISTAN</a></u></b> <font size="2"><b>(ANS) </b>-- </font>In another shocking case of extra judicial killing in Pakistan, a man accused of blasphemy was killed by a mob outside a police station.</p>
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<tr><td><p align="center"><b><font face="Arial" size="2" color="#000080">A shocking picture of the man being burnt alive by the mob</font></b></p>
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<p>The unidentified man was burnt alive close to a police station on Tuesday evening (July 3, 2012), in the Chani Ghoth area of Bahawalpur in Punjab Province.</p>
<p>A mob broke into the police station and brought him outside and dragged him to the Chanighot Chakar (roundabout), where he had allegedly desecrated the Holy Quran, doused him in petrol (gasoline) and set him on fire.</p>
<p>According to a story by Shahzeb Jillani, BBC World Service South Asia Editor, witnesses said hundreds of people looked on as he screamed for help.</p>
<p>“Pakistan's controversial blasphemy law imposes the death penalty for insulting Islam, but it is rarely carried out,” said Jillani. “The area where the lynching took place is home to hundreds of madrassas - religious schools - run by radical Islamist or sectarian groups.</p>
<p>“Police said they detained the man after locals complained that he had desecrated the Koran. But before the allegation could be investigated, thousands of angry people surrounded the police station, police said.”</p>
<p>The Deputy Superintendent of Police for the Ahmedpur Bahawalpur District said, “The Chani Goth police station received a complaint that a person had burnt pages of the Quran, and the police arrested the person and brought him to the police station and put him in the lock up.”</p>
<p>ANS had learned that the trouble began when a group of religious leaders announced on loud speakers that the men had “committed blasphemy against Islam” which then resulted in the out-of-control mob gathering outside the police station and demanded that police had over the man.</p>
<p>They then blocked the main highway and broke down the gates of the police station and attacked the officers on duty, injuring the Station House Officer, Ghulam Mohiuddin Gajjar, along with his four guards.</p>
<p>“I also sustained a few injuries during the attack. Our 14-15 police officers were injured and were admitted in the hospital,” said the Station House Officer. “Before we could know details about the person who was arrested, the mob broke into the lockup and took out the prisoner, threw petrol [gasoline] on him and burnt him alive.</p>
<p>“They also torched the police vehicles in the police station, this continued for over two hours. The mob stood there until the man completely burnt to death.”</p>
<p>The police say that they believe that the man was “mentally unstable”, but so far have not been able to ascertain his identity.</p>
<p>DSP Naveed said, “We have registered the First Information Report (FIR) about the incident and will arrest the culprits soon. We are thankful to Allah that no policemen were killed in the attack.”</p>
<p>The charred body has been sent for autopsy and are awaiting the result and to try and learn the identity of the person who was killed. So far no one came forward to claim the body of the deceased.</p>
<p>This incident has raised fears amongst the minority population of Pakistan of more extra judicial killing for those accused of blasphemy, or those who help the blasphemy-accused.</p>
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<tr><td><p align="center"><b><font face="Arial" size="2" color="#000080">He paid for this with his life. Salman Taseer pictured with Asia Bibi.</font></b></p>
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<p>Among those who have been killed in this is the former Governor Punjab Salman Taseer who was assassinated by his own bodyguard for taking a stand for Asia Bibi, the Christian woman accused of blasphemy. She now says that she also fears for her life after this incident.</p>
<p>The Masihi Foundation Pakistan and Life for All Pakistan have both strongly condemned the incident.</p>
<p>In a statement, they said, “Religion should be kept separate from the state affairs, and burning a man alive is an inhuman act. The police has failed to take action against the people responsible and the law was abused by the mob.</p>
<p>“There is no justification for this barbaric act. The authorities must act and take action against such lawlessness. No one is above the law, and there is no justification in killing a human being. It is for the judicial system to decide whether a person is guilty or not.”</p>
<p>The statement added, “It is time to put an end of the law of the jungle. Laws are made to protect men from other men, not to protect God from humans. We urge the Chief Justice to take notice of the incident and take action against the people involved in the incident. He must ensure the rule of the law in the Country.”</p>
<p>The Bahawalpur Catholic Diocese has also condemned the incident. Father Zafar Samuel from Bahawalpur said, “This is a sad incident and we condemn it. This is an inhuman act. There is a strong need to spread awareness regarding blasphemy and the laws associated with it. These naive people have no idea what it’s all about.”</p>
<p>The Bishop of Rawalpindi/Islamabad, Rufin Anthony, said, “We strongly condemn the attack on the police station and the loss of a human life. The law enforcing agencies must act and ensure the rule of the law. Taking the law in one’s own hands is against the law. It is time for some changes in the legislation, so that it will protect innocent lives and ensure the safety of the people accused and under trial.</p>
<p>“How much more blood do we have to have shed for the authorities to realize that it is time to act.”</p>
<p>According to media reports, Pakistan, President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday expressed “profound grief and shock” over the burning of the man. Expressing shock, the president directed the adviser on interior to conduct an inquiry into the unfortunate incident and immediately submit the report to him.</p>
<p id="">He said that no one should be allowed to take law into in his own hand no matter what the crime is. He also directed the authorities concerned to dispense justice in the case according to the law.</p>
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<p><br/>Xavier Patras William is an international journalist and human rights activist. He is the Regional Director of “Life for All” in Islamabad, Pakistan, which is an organization is working for human rights and the education of the Christians in Pakistan. The head office of “Life for All” is in Lahore, Pakistan and its regional office is located in Islamabad. Xavier can be reached at:<a href="https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&to=xave_william@yahoo.com" target="_blank">xave_william@yahoo.com</a><br/><br/><br/> </p>
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Pakistani Christian boy, 11, tortured, mutilated, burnt
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-08-27:3766518:Topic:110937
2012-08-27T12:45:25.454Z
Mishe
http://4freedoms.com/profile/Dangereuse
<p><a href="http://rt.com/news/boy-torture-pakistan-christian-440/" target="_blank">Repost from RT</a><br></br><br></br> <br></br> Human Liberation Commission of Pakistan activists shout slogans during a protest against alleged anti-Christian violence (AFP Photo/Arif Ali)<br></br><br></br>With the hysteria over the arrest of a Christian girl with Down’s syndrome on a charge of blasphemy yet to blow over, the brutally tortured body of an 11-year-old Christian boy has been found in Pakistan’s Punjab…</p>
<p><a href="http://rt.com/news/boy-torture-pakistan-christian-440/" target="_blank">Repost from RT</a><br/><br/> <br/> Human Liberation Commission of Pakistan activists shout slogans during a protest against alleged anti-Christian violence (AFP Photo/Arif Ali)<br/><br/>With the hysteria over the arrest of a Christian girl with Down’s syndrome on a charge of blasphemy yet to blow over, the brutally tortured body of an 11-year-old Christian boy has been found in Pakistan’s Punjab province.<br/><br/>The body of Samuel Yaqoob, was discovered with his lips and nose cut off, his stomach removed and his legs mutilated. According to police the body was later burned and could hardly be recognized. <br/><br/>Relatives identified the corpse from a distinctive mark on the boy’s forehead.<br/><br/>Yaqoob, a resident of the Christian Colony of Faisalabad, had been missing since August 20, last seen on his way to a local market. His mutilated remains were found on Eid-Ul-Fitr holiday, which marks the end of the month-long Muslim fast of Ramadan.<br/><br/>Detectives are investigating whether accusations of blasphemy had previously been filed against the minor. Yaquub was believed to be an orphan, but The Telegraph reports that his mother was quoted in the local press denying any allegations were made.<br/><br/>"We neither received any phone call for ransom nor were we told that Samuel had committed blasphemy," she said.<br/><br/>When a Christian group is suspected of transgressing the blasphemy laws, the consequences can be brutal, reports the World Public Forum NGO.<br/><br/>The death of the 11-year-old comes a week after a young Christian girl with Down’s syndrome was charged with blasphemy after reportedly burning pages of a Koran.<br/><br/>Rifta Masih was beaten by local Muslims after they witnessed her allegedly torching pages of the sacred book when cooking. Several hundred Christians have fled their homes following the incident in fear of violence after local mosques reported the alleged incident over loudspeakers, and hundreds of Muslims taken to the streets.<br/><br/>In Pakistan, those accused of blasphemy are subject to instant imprisonment and most are denied bail to prevent mob violence. As a rule, the accused are placed in solitary confinement for their own protection against harassment from inmates or guards. <br/><br/>Those that have been acquitted from the charges, often leave the country, one of the strictest enforcers of Sharia law in the world, reports the Washington Post. In Pakistan, slandering Islam or its holy book is punishable by death. <br/><br/>There have been no executions for blasphemy, though Asia Bibi, a mother of five and a Christian, was sentenced to death two years ago. Bibi has not been executed as of yet, and may be pardoned of her death sentence.<br/><br/>Christian minister Shahbaz Bhatti and Pakistani government politician Salmaan Taseer were both assassinated for opposing the blasphemy laws in connection with Bibi’s case.<br/><br/>Last month, a man accused of desecrating a Koran was dragged from a police station by a mob and beaten to death.<br/><br/>According to Human Rights Watch researcher Ali Dyan Hasan, "The [country’s blasphemy] law creates this legal infrastructure which is then used in various informal ways to intimidate, coerce, harass and persecute."</p>
Kill Me Here
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-05-24:3766518:Topic:102652
2012-05-24T12:31:08.723Z
shiva
http://4freedoms.com/profile/shiva
<p><span class="articolo_dossier">Hindu girl tells Supreme Court she would rather die than convert to Islam</span><br></br><span class="autore">by Jibran Khan</span></p>
<p><br></br><span class="sottotitolo">Seized by an influential Muslim, with the "political cover" of an elected official, 19 year old Rinkel Kumari launches a desperate appeal to the courts. “Justice is denied Hindus in Pakistan” and therefore asks to" kill me here "in the courtroom. The family, after reporting to police, forced to…</span></p>
<p><span class="articolo_dossier">Hindu girl tells Supreme Court she would rather die than convert to Islam</span><br/><span class="autore">by Jibran Khan</span></p>
<p><br/><span class="sottotitolo">Seized by an influential Muslim, with the "political cover" of an elected official, 19 year old Rinkel Kumari launches a desperate appeal to the courts. “Justice is denied Hindus in Pakistan” and therefore asks to" kill me here "in the courtroom. The family, after reporting to police, forced to leave the village in Sindh. Each year there are 300 forced marriages and conversions </span></p>
<p><span class="sottotitolo"><br/></span></p>
<p><span class="sottotitolo">Islamabad (AsiaNews) - "In Pakistan there is justice only for Muslims, justice is denied Hindus. Kill me here, now, in court. But do not send me back to the Darul-Aman [Koranic school] ... kill me". This is the desperate, heartbreaking outburst of Rinkel Kumari, a Hindu girl aged 19, who has entrusted her heartfelt appeal to the judges of the Supreme Court in Islamabad. Her story is similar to that of many other young women and girls belonging to religious minorities - Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Ahmadis - kidnapped by extremist groups or individuals, most of the time lords or local mafia, which convert them by force and then marry them . And that is what the girl said on 26 March, before the judges of the capital's court.</span></p>
<p><a href="http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Hindu-girl-tells-Supreme-Court-she-would-rather-die-than-convert-to-Islam-24358.html" target="_blank">Full Story</a></p>
Pakistan: Islamic Fascism Disguised as a Nation
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-03-31:3766518:Topic:98325
2012-03-31T09:23:59.169Z
Joe
http://4freedoms.com/profile/38DD
<p>Thanks to Antony for posting this. </p>
<p>I've been mulling over this very issue for the past year or so. One of our community disguises himself as a muslim, and attends mosques and muslim conferences. In discussing his experiences doing this, he'd concluded that there was something significantly different between Pakistanis and other muslims. "Paranoid and unstable" were his words. Having lived many years in both Pakistani and Bangladeshi areas, and having personally known muslims from…</p>
<p>Thanks to Antony for posting this. </p>
<p>I've been mulling over this very issue for the past year or so. One of our community disguises himself as a muslim, and attends mosques and muslim conferences. In discussing his experiences doing this, he'd concluded that there was something significantly different between Pakistanis and other muslims. "Paranoid and unstable" were his words. Having lived many years in both Pakistani and Bangladeshi areas, and having personally known muslims from north Africa, Turkey, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, I too recognised that Pakistanis in Britain seemed to be far more hostile to non-muslims, than the other muslims I'd met. I hadn't seen this articulated in the media, but going off this information I've been doing historical research on Pakistan.</p>
<p>Why should we have known since the 1940s that there was something wrong with Pakistan? The muslims in India were not content to live in a secular state where the majority would be non-muslims. They wanted their own islamic state, and they named it "the land of the pure" - meaning that the Indians and Buddhists who used to be their neighbours were dirty (pigs and dogs, presumably). Having begun life as an islamic state, Pakistan has proceeded to make life difficult for all those indigenous people of that territory who were christian or hindu. <span>In 1951, Hindus constituted 22 percent of the Pakistani population; b</span><span>y 1998 the proportion of Hindus was down to around 1.7 percent. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_Hinduism_in_Pakistan#Persecution">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decline_of_Hinduism_in_Pakistan#Persecution</a> Pakistan has conducted a programme of ethnic cleansing over 50 years, with almost total success. Calling itself "the land of the pure" should have been an alarm bell concerning their intentions. They equalled Hitler's ambition of making Germany juden-rein, only the west hasn't done anything about a state where the entire population are born into a islamic-nazi ideology.</span></p>
<p>The article belos is a useful signpost, and the topic needs further investigation.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.rediff.com/news/report/govt-of-pakistan-is-the-fountainhead-of-radical-islam/20120328.htm">http://www.rediff.com/news/report/govt-of-pakistan-is-the-fountainhead-of-radical-islam/20120328.htm</a></p>
<hr/><h1>'Govt of Pakistan is the fountainhead of radical Islam'</h1>
<div class="sm1 grey1">March 28, 2012 02:51 IST</div>
<p><b><font face="Arial" size="2"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"/>The government of Pakistan has been providing weapons and resources to radical Muslim elements, who use them against Americans, says US Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, who declares he was once Pakistan's best friend. Aziz Haniffa reports</font></b></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">US Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, acknowledged that he was once Pakistan's best friend in Congress and an acerbic critic of India [ <a href="http://search.rediff.com/imgsrch/default.php?MT=india" target="_blank"><span class="sm1">Images</span></a> ], but in a cathartic confession at the National Press Club on Tuesday accused the government of Pakistan as being the fountainhead of radical Islam.</font></p>
<div id="ad_in_arti"><a href="http://ads.rediff.com/5c/usnews.rediff.com/news-article.htm/1569859976/x16/default/empty.gif/314a38363530393278556b4142325439" target="_top"><img src="http://imads.rediff.com/0/default/empty.gif" width="1" height="1" alt="" border="0"/></a></div>
<p><strong><font face="Arial" size="2">Rohrabacher, who was meeting with journalists to explain the bill he introduced in Congress calling for the independence of Baluchistan from Pakistan, said, "I was Pakistan's best friend in Congress when I was elected back in 1988."</font></strong></p>
<p><strong><font face="Arial" size="2">"I have been involved with Pakistan and with the Inter-Services Intelligence and with the government of Pakistan during the Reagan years, and I was also, of course, deeply involved with the mujahideen during their struggle against the Soviet occupation," he recalled.</font></strong></p>
<p><strong><font face="Arial" size="2">But Rohrabacher confessed, "During that time, I was operating under false pretences," and then correcting himself, said, "I was not operating -- they were. But I had no idea that the Pakistanis were so much personally involved in promoting radical Islam and did not support the democratic principles that I thought were binding us during the Cold War."</font></strong></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">"In fact," he said, "at that time, when we should have known, when the United States provided assistance to the mujahhedin, a lion's share of it were channeled by the ISI into Hekmatyar Gulbuddin and to <strong>the worst, most radical, tyrannical form of Islam</strong>. And there was no excuse for that."</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Rohrabacher said, "So <strong>people like myself, spent a lot of time lying to ourselves while just ignoring this that was clearly contrary to the interests of freedom and liberty</strong> and in the interests of the people of the United States. And, it wasn't until I started to question whether or not we should be lying to ourselves, people were saying, you can't do anything to correct the situation with the Pakistani government -- with that regime -- because it might help radical Islam."</font></p>
<p><strong><font face="Arial" size="2">He said it was analogous to those who argued before World War II that it would be counterproductive to take on Adolf Hitler, because it would lead to the Germans becoming more radicalised.</font></strong></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">"Well, we know now -- <strong>anybody who's been honest with themselves now -- should have known that the government of Pakistan is radical Islam,</strong>" he said.</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Rohrabacher, who is chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, asserted that "the government of Pakistan has been providing weapons and resources to radical Muslim elements, who again use them against Americans<b>.</b> Here we are now, Pakistan has been our friend all these years we thought, now we find out that they were really our enemy."</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Thus, he argued that "now is the time for a reassessment because of this -- what's America's position is going to be in South Asia, and that's when we started paying attention to the Baluchis because the Baluchi people are an oppressed population, just as the Kurds have been an oppressed population and they have a right to their own country and the United States should be on their side."</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2"><strong>He reiterated that "Pakistan has now proven itself to be an enemy of the United States and an enemy of freedom</strong>, rather than a friend and so, we are moving forward to try to restructure and not only recognise that the people of Baluchistan have a right, but to restructure America's positioning in South Asia."</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Continuing his invective against Islamabad, Rohrabacher said, "The government of Pakistan and their murderous policies toward any Baluchi that sticks his or head up and asks for their right, coupled with their support for terrorism, which has resulted in the death of many Americans and many other people who are victims of radical Islam, it is time for a change. It is time for us to make sure that we side with the right people and oppose those people like the government of Pakistan who are committing these evil deeds."</font></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Rohrabacher, then in a mea culpa vis-à-vis India, acknowledged that "during that time period, when I was the best friend to Pakistan, I was probably not too friendly with the Indians."</font></p>
<p><strong><font face="Arial" size="2">He said it now "behooves the United States today to understand that the Cold War is over and we can no longer lie to ourselves about the horrible crimes that are being committed by Pakistan in their support for terrorism as well as their oppression of other peoples like the Baluchis."</font></strong></p>
<p><font face="Arial" size="2">Rohrabacher thus reiterated that "<strong>we should position ourselves so that we have a much closer relationship with India, considering that India is not being engaged in these types of activities</strong> and the Cold War is over -- there is no longer a Soviet Union."</font></p>
Pakistan acid-attack doc wins Oscar, inspires debate
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-02-29:3766518:Topic:96751
2012-02-29T14:23:54.850Z
Joe
http://4freedoms.com/profile/38DD
<p>I wonder if they invited the poor women who's lives have been blighted to walk down the red carpet. Somehow, I think not.</p>
<p><br></br><a href="http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/">http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/…</a></p>
<hr></hr><h1 class="post-title"></h1>
<p>I wonder if they invited the poor women who's lives have been blighted to walk down the red carpet. Somehow, I think not.</p>
<p><br/><a href="http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/">http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/</a></p>
<hr/><h1 class="post-title"><a href="http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/" rel="bookmark" title="Permanent Link to Pakistan acid-attack doc wins Oscar, inspires debate">Pakistan acid-attack doc wins Oscar, inspires debate</a></h1>
<div class="meta"><a href="http://bikyamasr.com/author/admin-2/" title="Posts by Sajjad Malik" rel="author">Sajjad Malik</a> | 29 February 2012 | <a href="http://bikyamasr.com/59572/pakistan-acid-attack-doc-wins-oscar-inspires-debate/#disqus_thread" rel="bookmark" title="Comments for Pakistan acid-attack doc wins Oscar, inspires debate">0 Comments</a></div>
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<div id="attachment_54164" class="wp-caption alignleft"><a href="http://cdn.bikyamasr.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/oscar-statue.jpg" rel="wp-prettyPhoto[g59572]"><img class="size-medium wp-image-54164" title="oscar statue" src="http://cdn.bikyamasr.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/oscar-statue-165x300.jpg" alt="" width="165" height="300"/></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Oscar statue</p>
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<p>CAIRO (dpa) – The joy with which Pakistan’s first Academy Award was received this week quickly made way for debate on the subject of the film: acid attacks that leave hundreds badly disfigured every year.</p>
<p>Saving Face captures the stories of two women who survived attacks in which acid was thrown in their faces, and the cosmetic surgeon who has returned to Pakistan to help them.</p>
<p>The 52-minute documentary co-directed by Pakistani filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy and Daniel Junge from the United States won the Oscar for best short documentary.</p>
<p>There were celebrations all around in Pakistan following the announcement from the glitzy awards ceremony in Los Angeles. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani promised a “high civil award” for Obaid-Chinoy.</p>
<p>But a day later, as activists and the media took advantage of the Hollywood triumph to cast the spotlight on one of the worst aspects of Pakistani society, the euphoria had subsided.</p>
<p><strong>At least 3,017 acid attacks were reported between 1999 and 2011, according to data compiled by the non-profit Acid Survivors Foundation. In 2002 alone, 496 cases were reported.</strong></p>
<p><strong>Most of the victims are women, who in majority of cases suffer at hands of male perpetrators. The acid leaves them disfigured for life due to lack of medical facilities and social security.</strong></p>
<p>“Although the award is a matter of personal and national pride, its content is matter of national shame,” The News newspaper said in an editorial.</p>
<p>“What is more important is that (Obaid-)Chinoy’s effort holds up a mirror to us for critical self-examination.”</p>
<p>Women’s rights activist Marvi Memon described the award as a “big achievement” for the filmmaker and the country.</p>
<p>“The entire documentary is based on the crime of acid attacks and it will help proper implementation of laws to curb this evil,” Memon said.</p>
<p><strong>The use of acid as a weapon has deep roots in Pakistan society.</strong> But it is only in the last decade that the government has relaxed restrictions on media, resulting in coverage of such social issues.</p>
<p>The motives for acid attacks range from family disputes to land occupancy issues, but rejection of marriage proposal appears to be behind most attacks.</p>
<p>Mussrat Misbah, based in the eastern city of Lahore, is a beauty therapist who runs Smile Again, an organization to help victims.</p>
<p>“We usually find women are attacked with acid when they or their parents refuse to marry them to someone who has made a proposal, which angers them, as rejection by a woman or her relatives is considered an insult,” she said.</p>
<p>Last year, the government adopted stricter legislation that imposes a 14-year sentence and a minimum fine of 1 million rupees (11,100 dollars), after growing activism over lack of law enforcement forced lawmakers to act.</p>
<p>Memon said Obaid-Chinoy’s film could help ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice.</p>
<p>“Now there will be more pressure on the government to implement the new laws and we hope convictions for people involved in it will begin soon.”</p>
'Torture Cells' where Christian girls are raped and confined
tag:4freedoms.com,2012-01-19:3766518:Topic:93798
2012-01-19T10:11:21.128Z
Kinana
http://4freedoms.com/profile/Kinana
<p><b>SOS Pakistan: The Vatican raises the alarm over the Christian situation</b></p>
<p><a href="http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/11769/"><b>http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/11769/</b></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pakistan</p>
<p><b>First the Pontifical Mission Societies, then Vatican Radio. The Pope also reminded diplomats that the situation is getting very serious</b></p>
<p>Giacomo Galeazzi<b><br></br> vatican…</b></p>
<p><b>SOS Pakistan: The Vatican raises the alarm over the Christian situation</b></p>
<p><a href="http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/11769/"><b>http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/homepage/world-news/detail/articolo/11769/</b></a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Pakistan</p>
<p><b>First the Pontifical Mission Societies, then Vatican Radio. The Pope also reminded diplomats that the situation is getting very serious</b></p>
<p>Giacomo Galeazzi<b><br/> vatican city</b></p>
<p>In his message to the 180 accredited ambassadors at the Roman Curia, which commemorated the martyrdom of the Catholic Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Religious Minorities (killed on 2 March of last year for his opposition to the blasphemy law and his defense of Asia Bibi, a Christian woman sentenced to death for this reason), Benedict XVI openly voiced his concern. <b>Now the Holy See comes more to the point, drawing international attention to religious persecution in the Muslim-majority country, denouncing the rape and torture of Christian children, extortion of families, abuse and violence that take place in silence - and in the terror of the victims.</b></p>
<p>Through its media channels, the Vatican denounced the violence and abuses that are taking place in the Christian communities of some suburban neighborhoods in Karachi, the largest city in <b>southern Pakistan and capital of Sindh province. Michael Javed, Catholic parliamentarian active in Sindh, spoke out for the religious minority subjected to cruel persecution, and, through Vatican Radio and Fides news agency, issued a dramatic warning: for months, Christians in the Essa Nagri, Ayub Goth, and Bhittaiabad neighborhoods</b> have been the victims of unspeakable violence perpetrated by members of political movements with strong Islamic and ethnic connotations, such as the Pashtuns. Christian families are living through an ordeal, but “people do not report abuse, for fear of retaliation.” Just last month, Javed told Fides, “We recorded 15 cases of rape.”</p>
<p>In Essa Nagri there are genuine “torture cells” where girls - and Christian girls - are raped and confined. “They demand a ransom of up to 100,000 rupees for them, and if the families cannot pay, the little girls are tortured beyond recognition.” As a result of such violence, many families have chosen to leave Karachi over the last six months. “The purpose of such violence is to eliminate Christian presence in the area, a sort of ethnic cleansing: we are considered slaves, unworthy to tread on Pakistani soil.” In another reported case, a brothel was opened near a Catholic church in Ayub Goth, and “Christian girls from poor families are being forced into prostitution.” The authorities, though informed, have not acted yet. Javed made a desperate appeal to the world “to stop the oppression of our community.” <b>Fides contacted Fr. Victor John, a Franciscan from the diocese of Karachi, pastor at Essa Nagri (where 700 Christian families are living, 300 of them Catholic) and pastor for the area of</b> <b>Ayub Goth (with about 300 Christian families): “These are very poor neighborhoods, infested with crime and lawlessness. Violence and torture are committed by members of Islamic political parties who blackmail people for political consensus, but also by militants who are hostile to the faithful. Drug trafficking is rife in the area and the police remain complacent.</b></p>
<p>“They lack schools and social services and, in this atmosphere of poverty, violence reigns.” Meanwhile, blasphemy laws are spreading, imposing death sentences or life imprisonment for displaying lack of respect for the <b>Prophet Muhammad and the Quran. “The Church,” Michael Javed continues, “is present in the schools with a drug rehabilitation center, with the work of the Sisters of Mother Teresa and the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. We provide our services particularly to children and young people, trying to help them, to educate them to avoid becoming involved in crime.” </b>Pakistan's Conference of Bishops complains that the 2.5 million Christians in the country are increasingly exposed to violence and intimidation by people “whose mentality is focusing progressively on an extreme form of Islam.” And, they add: “Our people fear for the future - people perceive themselves as second rate citizens. We cannot speak. We feel oppressed and repressed.” Accusing the government of having failed to effectively oppose fundamentalism, the Pakistani bishops warn that the situation is now “precarious.” Increased security measures have been implemented in Christian buildings. The Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Lahore is under police surveillance, with video cameras, concrete barriers, sandbags, and walls. Before 1986, there were no allegations of blasphemy in Pakistan. In addition, about 1,000 cases have occurred over a period of 20 years, while 70 people, accused only of blasphemy, have been victims of extrajudicial executions. <b>Recently, an American commission on religious freedom published a report showing how children in Pakistani schools are indoctrinated into intolerance towards minorities. The results were supported by the Director of the Dominican Center in Lahore, who demanded an urgent reform of the education system in Pakistan.</b></p>
<p>The government study, published by the Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIFR), revealed that public schools in Pakistan and Islamic religious schools (known as “madrassas”) negatively depict religious minorities and reinforce prejudices, fomenting acts of discrimination and possible violence against these communities. According to the report, a significant minority of the thousands of religious schools or madrassas continue to inculcate ideological indoctrination and to incite <b>those who take part in the religious-inspired violence in Pakistan and in other countries. The Holy See, on the one hand, asks the government for urgent action to stop the false accusations of blasphemy, the hate speech, and impunity for acts of violence against religious minorities; while on the other hand, it urges the government to invest resources and energy in improving interfaith relations and promote a genuine and comprehensive reform of the education system in the country.</b> Religious freedom in Pakistan is conditioned “by the dark shadows of Islamic extremism,” but also by the intolerance, lawlessness, and impunity growing in the country. And it is not just the Vatican that is speaking out in defense of religious minorities in Pakistan. Even the latest report published by the NGO “Christian Solidarity Worldwide” (CSW) describes the “grave situation in Pakistan.” The NGO reports that religious violence does not spare Sufi sanctuaries and the “Ahmadi” group, considered a sect of Islam: all minorities are struggling to seek justice and respect for their fundamental rights. </p>