Author:
Publication: Zenit.org
Date: February 27, 2008
URL: http://zenit.org/article-21912?l=english
[Note from the Hindu Vivek Kendra: Would it
not be reasonable to assume that the Hindus in Pakistan are faced with similar
threats?]
Calls on Government to Protect Right to Religious
Freedom
The president of Pakistan's episcopal conference
called on the government to protect Christians in the wake of increased violence
and pressure to convert to Islam.
In a statement coinciding with last week's
presidential elections, Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore described to
Aid to the Church in Need the growing "hatred and intolerance" of
militant groups whom, he said, were contravening Pakistan's constitution by
trying to force Christians to turn to Islam.
Archbishop Saldanha highlighted the case of
a young Catholic father of four who was kidnapped and threatened with death.
During his captivity, last month, the banker,
whom the archbishop referred to as Haroon, was ordered to phone his wife and
tell her that he would be killed if she dared to inform the police. He was
later able to escape.
His kidnappers are part of Jamaat-ul-Dawah,
which has been classified as a terrorist organization by the United Kingdom,
Pakistan and other countries.
Stressing how religious freedom is enshrined
in Pakistan's constitution, Archbishop Saldanha called on the government to
crack down on extremism.
He wrote: "Haroon's story illustrates
a new trend that underlines the difficulties and pressures of living in a
land where extremism is growing and there is little tolerance for people who
are non-Muslims.
"Especially Christians who live in remote
and isolated towns are vulnerable. Here the level of hatred and intolerance
is even more intense.
"Fortunately Haroon is an educated man
and strong in his Catholic faith. He was able to resist his attackers."
Forced marriages
In the message, Archbishop Saldanha went on
to describe the plight of Christian girls who are abducted and forced to marry
Muslim boys and change their religion.
These events follow warnings issued by Archbishop
Saldanha last May that Muslim extremists were now trying to force Christians
to convert by threatening violence.
In an interview with Aid to the Church in
Need, the archbishop highlighted a case where about 500 Christians had received
anonymous letters warning of violent retribution if a mass conversion to Islam
did not follow within 10 days.
At the time, Archbishop Saldanha said: "It
distresses us that Christians are threatened in an attempt to force them to
convert to Islam. This is something that has never happened before. We Christians
are citizens, just like everyone else, and wish to have the same rights."
Aid to the Church in Need provides over $850,000
annually to support Christians in Pakistan.
