News
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
Call for building culture of tolerance in countryStaff Report
LAHORE: Religious, ethnic, cultural and linguistic diversity should be recognised, respected and promoted in order to build a culture of tolerance in Pakistan, the Centre for Human Rights Education (CHRE) said in a press statement issued in connection with the International Day of Tolerance being marked across the globe today (Wednesday).
The International Day of Tolerance is observed on November 16 every year since 1996 to encourage people around the globe to respect and recognise the rights and beliefs of others.
The CHRE statement further said that Pakistan had become one of the worst victims of intolerance across the world and the country should mark this day in a fullfledge way in order to make way for a culture of tolerance and to put an end to the the violence sparked by class, colour and creed.
The statement said that over the last few decades, Pakistan’s public culture had been riddled with hard-line views and elements that did not allow tolerance for divergent views, especially in religious affairs and as a result the civil liberties including the freedom of conscience, expression and worship were threatened.
Brutal killings of the Shia community members in Quetta, target killings of Hindu doctors in Shikarpur, the assassination of former Punjab governor Salmaan Taseer and minister Shahbaz Bhatti and the killings of Christians in Gojra, are a few examples of the most recent events that showed the extent of degeneration the country had gone through since its creation.
The CHRE statement also demanded purging the educational curriculum from all religiously biased material, putting an end to hate speeches through loudspeakers and distribution of hate mongering literature.
The statement added that the discriminatory laws and policies and most importantly the silence of the state apparatus on such issues were the main contributing factors to the current intolerant atmosphere in the country.
Therefore, it added that urgent and concrete measures were required on part of the government, the state institutions and all other stakeholders for the promotion of tolerance and respect for diversity.
The CHRE strongly recommended dialogue and debate across the country on the issue of intolerance, warning the citizens about the disastrous effects of the menace. The centre also demanded inclusion of Human Rights Education in the school curriculum.
“All types of discrimination on the basis of religion, gender, caste and creed should be removed from constitution, laws and policies to ensure that people are treated equally,” the statement said.
It also appealed to the citizens to be watchful and reject elements that incited hatred and created rifts on various grounds for their vested interests.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk