August 12, 2002	Monday	Jamadi-us-Saani 2, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Aug 11: The All-Pakistan Minorities’ Alliance (APMA) on Sunday demanded resignation of interior minister Moinuddin Haider who, it said, had failed to maintain peace and safeguard lives in the country.

At a press conference in a local hotel, APMA chairman Shahbaz Bhatti said the interior minister was responsible for controlling the ongoing violence.

Similarly, he added, Rawalpindi police had failed to protect lives and shown that it was incapable of controlling crimes and violence against Christians. “How can we trust such a police system which has traditionally suffered from lethargy,” he deplored.

Some victims of Taxila tragedy were also present on the occasion. Some four people were shot dead in the terrorist attack at the Christian Hospital in Taxila on August 8.

The APMA chief said the government had not been successful in controlling anti-Christian violence and “the pro-Taliban and pro Al Qaeda militants involved in it”.

“It is height of callousness that terrorists attacked the Christian Hospital in Taxila at 7:45am, but no responsible military officer had reached the place by the evening,” he lamented.

The facts, he said, revealed that the network of extremists was very strong in Pakistan. “It seems that the government has failed to break this network and provide security to vulnerable areas,” he maintained.

The APMA asked the government to adopt the following measures to save Christians and other non-Muslim citizens of Pakistan:

The terrorists involved in the attack on Christian Hospital should be arrested forthwith and thoroughly investigated so that violent elements could be uprooted.

The culprits should not be killed in a so-called police encounter, otherwise the hidden hands behind them would never be revealed.