March, 19 2005	Saturday	08 Safar 1426

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LAHORE, March 18: The recently published ‘Human Rights Monitor — 2005’ by the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP) gives a detailed account of the situation of religious minorities in Pakistan in 2004. Focussing on increasing bias in certain segments of society, the report is a comment on the government’s rhetoric of equality which it says is unsubstantiated by actions. Even though the Constitution provides security and freedom to people belonging to ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities, the state seldom invokes those articles in case of violations. In the absence of strict adherence to constitutional guarantees, a distrust in government institutions becomes inevitable. This is felt more strongly by minorities and the under privileged. Attack on minorities’ places of worship, instances of forced conversions, discriminatory laws used as weapons for political leverage and evictions of minorities indicate the state’s failure to ensure not only human rights but implement legislation for effective governance.

In the statistics provided by the NCJP, the total number of conversions in 2004 were 116.

The NCJP records that 762 non-Muslims were forcibly converted to Islam between 1999 and 2004. Based on an article published in a national daily, the NCJP wrote in its report that the Kalash people were the latest victims of the drive.

In 2004 the government’s decision to introduce the system of machine readable passport to meet international standards started an unnecessary confrontation between Muslims and non-Muslims. The new system did not include a column revealing a person’s religion. Leaders of various religious parties turned it into a major issue of contention, demanding that the column be included.

Discriminatory legislation against minorities manifests itself in more ways than intolerance shown by bigots. A majority of non- Muslims feel that the Constitution itself has discriminatory clauses against minorities. Condemning the preferential treatment given to Muslims by only allowing them to become head of state, the NCJP suggests that the policy of exclusivism should be abandoned by the government. Ignoring the heterogeneous structure of society, the constitutional condition of being a Muslim to head Pakistan, makes many non-Muslims feel marginalized despite their contributions to this country in many fields.

With high expectations from the Musharraf government to abolish laws repugnant to minorities, especially the blasphemy law, used primarily as a tool of vengeance against Muslims and non-Muslims, the year 2004 saw no change to resolve the issue. Data collected by the NCJP shows that among the 280 blasphemy cases registered from 1987 to August 2004, at least 151 or 54 per cent were constituted by Muslims against Muslims, 59 cases were registered against Ahmadis, 65 per cent against Christians and five against Hindus.

In a majority of blasphemy cases under trial constituted during 2004, the accused and complainants were Muslims. The case against one Mehdi Hassan, booked under Section 295-B, PPC for allegedly setting a copy of the Holy Quran on fire on August 28, 2001, at Shera Kot, Lahore, points out the negative potential of blasphemy laws. The complainant, Zubair, reportedly involved Mehdi Hassan in a case of blasphemy to deprive him of his share in property. Till last year, Mehdi Hassan’s application for bail was pending in the court.

In 2004, 14 cases registered under blasphemy laws were against Muslims, against Ahmadis and two against Christians.