PESHAWAR: Representatives of different political parties and minority communities have agreed to jointly raise voice for the minorities’ rights and asked the government to give representation to minorities on the bodies formed for solution of issues pertaining to non-Muslims in the country.

The demand was raised during the ‘panel discussion with political parties on religious freedoms and human rights’, organised by South Asia Partnership Pakistan (SAP-PK) here at a local hotel on Wednesday.

The members of different non-Muslim communities demanded of all the mainstream political parties to make rights and freedom of expression as part of their parties’ manifesto to ensure equal rights to the people irrespective of their religion, creed and belief.

Besides a large number of people belonging to Sikh and Hindu communities, representatives of different political parties also participated in the meeting. The event was part of the series of activities regarding minorities’ rights.

Minorities want representation in govt commission for their rights

Those who spoke on the occasion include Sardar Charan Jeet Singh of Sikh community, All Pakistan Hindu Rights Movement (APHRM) chairman Haroon Sarb Diyal, Abdul Jalil Jan of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, National Party (NP) provincial president Mukhtar Bacha, Bushra Gohar of Awami National Party, Tariq Khan of Qaumi Watan Party, provincial general secretary of PML-N Rehmat Salam Khattak and women leaders of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf and Pakistan Peoples Party.

Ms Shahida Shah from SAP-PK gave the details about the minorities’ rights and issues being faced by people in the country.

Rejecting the commission formed at government level for minorities’ rights, the participants, particularly non-Muslims, said that there was no representation of minorities in the commission and as such it could not solve their problems.

The minorities’ people, they said, had been facing various problems in government departments, including education and health. They claimed that the land properties and holy places of minorities had been occupied and the five per cent allocated quota in jobs was also not given to them.

The speakers said that though the Constitution guaranteed equal rights to the citizens, the laws were not being implemented. The minorities’ leaders demanded representation in the national and provincial assemblies on general seats. They also demanded a separate electoral process in the upcoming elections whereby minorities could elect their own candidates through ballot instead of their selection on reserved seats.

They announced support for religious freedom and giving constitutional rights to non-Muslim communities. They said that both the minorities and Muslims were affected by terrorism, adding that the menace of terrorism had earned a bad name for Pakistan in the comity of nations. The participants highlighted the issues being faced by non-Muslim communities, particularly relating to quota in parliament, jobs, education and health sectors, etc.

The panelists strongly supported demands of the minorities to give them all due rights, especially freedom of expression to non-Muslims living in tribal and settled areas so that they could perform their obligations freely.

They urged the federal and provincial governments to make amendments to the laws relating to inheritance and marriage with consultation of minorities’ representatives. They also called for giving possession right of property of non-Muslims in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Leaders of the political parties agreed that they would put suggestions of the religious minorities before the leadership of their respective parties to raise voice for minorities’ rights at the highest level.

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2014