Minorities in Pakistan: A Recent Perspective
By Farhana Mohamed, MBA, PhD
Los Angeles, CA
With the Pakistani elections tentatively scheduled for February 2013, campaign momentum is picking up steam. While the contentious topics remain anemic economy, war on terror, public insecurity, incessant energy shortage, and deteriorating relations with the United States, special effort is being made by prominent political leaders to regain the trust of the almost invisible minority population of Pakistan.
According to statistics quoted by Fazle Karim Khan (A Geography of Pakistan (1991) Oxford University Press: Karachi), prior to Indo-Pak partition of 1947, there were 79% Muslims in the provinces that later became Pakistan. In the post-Partition Pakistan, due to huge cross-border movement, the Muslim population in Pakistan rose to 97% which stays almost the same (96.5%) even today. Christians and Hindus are the predominant minorities with majority residing in Punjab and in Sindh, respectively. Christians constitute 2.2% of the population of Punjab and Hindus form 6.4% of the Sindh population – with parts of interior Sindh having as much as 20% Hindu population.
On November 7, in Chak town Shikarpur, Sindh, indiscriminate killing of three Hindu doctors occurred in response to the alleged physical abuse of a young woman (belonging to the powerful Bhayo clan) at the hands of Hindu youths. However, this charge is being denied by the local Hindu community; in addition, none of the murder victims were related to the alleged assault suspect. These extrajudicial murders have resulted in a nationwide uproar and condemnation, especially by political parties, minorities, and civil society. President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani condemned the killings and assured the grieved families of the swift arrest of the suspects and providing justice. Local police chief was suspended and the Presidential Advisor on Minority Affairs Ramesh Lal was also rushed to the venue.
In November, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made a special visit to Shikarpur where he did not mince words in asserting: “Hindus are as much part of Pakistan as Muslims…..Don’t think about migrating to India… I tell the Hindu community today we are with you. We will ensure you get justice and the killers are arrested… You are very much Pakistanis and should remain here.” The former premier’s speech to the Hindu community was heavily quoted by prominent Indian and Indo-American press. On December 14, Imran Khan, chief of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, while addressing its minority workers, assured them of equal rights if PTI comes to power.
Earlier in January 2011, Governor of Punjab Salman Taseer was assassinated at Kohsar Market, Islamabad, due to multiple gunshot wounds inflicted by one of his elite security guards, Mumtaz Hussain Qadri. Governor Taseer was killed for his staunch support to Asia Bibi, a Christian, who was charged with violation of blasphemy laws, as well as his strong stance against misuse of blasphemy laws in overwhelmingly persecuting minorities. Minorities and even Muslims have felt threatened by the probable misuse of blasphemy laws by anyone eager to settle a score. Since early 1986, when these laws were first legislated during General Zia era, there have been few court convictions (about 30 per year) with no death penalty. However 50% of those convicted are minorities when latter are only 4% of the population, and 20 extrajudicial murders have also occurred of alleged violators of the blasphemy laws (Source: Wikipedia). Without building consensus with the stakeholders on this sensitive issue, unfortunately, Governor Taseer opted for taking extreme course of repealing the blasphemy laws; he frequently voiced his strong viewpoint on popular media. In March, Shahbaz Bhatti (a Christian), Federal Minister for Minorities, was also gunned down as he too wanted a revision of the blasphemy clauses of the Constitution. However both had the right, as do the secular and religious parties, to democratically voice their concern and not to be subjected to barbaric extrajudicial murders, which strictly go against the basic tenets of Islam.
In addition to the political sensitivity in addressing minority grievances, other positive incidents show minorities making some headway compared to serious setbacks since the 1980’s. For example, in December, Phool Wati and her family who are the legal owners of a temple in Peshawar won a Peshawar High Court verdict, which allows them to open the doors of the temple for worship the first time since 1950’s. Also, independent Pakistani popular media is playing a critical role in highlighting minority religious events as well as pressing their grievances. Not to mention, minorities are also getting more savvy and assertive in pressing their demands.
Some large Pakistani cities continue to be receptive to minority population such as Lahore and, especially Karachi. A recent book, “The Karachiwala” (Rumana Husain (2010) Jaal Press: Karachi) vividly describes Karachi as microcosm of the Indo-Pak subcontinent with families belonging to almost all ethnicities and religions co-existing since the early 19 th century.
However, a lot more needs to be done in regaining confidence of minorities as bona fide Pakistani citizens. It is also important to groom young minds to be understanding and tolerant about the existence of other religions, Muslim sects, and different ethnicities in Pakistan and underscoring the importance of coexisting peacefully. For instance, school history books should start including information about other cultures and religions in the subcontinent that coexisted since 3000 BC and how most Muslim conquerors, who invaded and ruled India from the eighth century to the 18 th century, never forcibly converted indigenous population to Islam but promoted a spirit of mutual coexistence.
Despite some recent improvements, present-day Pakistan needs to strive to be a nation which Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah envisioned. On August 11, 1947, addressing the first session of Pakistan’s Constituent Assembly held in Karachi (Stanley Wolpert (1984) Jinnah of Pakistan; Oxford University Press: New York), Jinnah remarked, “You are free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other place of worship in this state of Pakistan …….. We are starting with this fundamental principle that we are all citizens and equal citizens of one state.”
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