KARACHI: In a bid to introduce a saner narrative amid widespread destruction levelled by extremist forces, an interfaith harmony conference was held on Tuesday where intellectuals belonging to different religious communities gathered to discuss the importance of tolerance in the public and political spheres.

Organised by Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Sardar Mohammed Yousaf, the purpose of the conference was to give religious minorities a space to feel at ease and express their beliefs, reservations and problems they faced.

It was a sight to behold with men and women sitting together, representing their religious communities, without fear or paranoia. This, in a country where religious commemorations are usually marked by a sense of fear of the unknown, was a welcome sight and must be mirrored in the day to day happenings of the country. And the responsibility lies squarely on the shoulders of the country’s leadership.

Though the conference would have benefitted from being more nuanced, it is definitely a positive step in the right direction, provided all the issues discussed and their potential solutions are implemented and followed-up on.

Chairman of the Karachi Parsi Anjuman Byram Avari shared that the Parsi faith was one of the oldest and other religions that came after have picked up influences from it. Appreciating the efforts of the organisers and participants for taking part in the interfaith conference, he added that “no matter how many such conferences you host and attend, you must educate the children of this nation to allow their intolerant outlook to change”.

Pir Syed Hamdani of the All Pakistan Ulema Council reiterated: “Islam is a religion of peace as it turned enemies into brothers and it not only preaches love among humans, but also expects the same treatment to be extended to all living beings.”

He added that such behaviour was a top-down order and must be openly propagated and practised by the country’s leaders for it to trickle down to the general public. “However, it seems that the heart of the politician is very different.”

Siddique-ul-Farooq, chairman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB), took an active part in the conference and spoke about how all religions have similar fundamental beliefs and all were trying to make their hereafter better. “Then why are we trying to make each others’ present life so difficult,” he questioned.

Mr Farooq played a positive role in highlighting the efforts of the present government in resolving issues faced by religious minorities, from the matter of forced conversions, the blasphemy law, as well as the destruction of temples and churches. However, he kept interjecting different speakers time and again, even though he had been given ample time to speak.

Despite time constraints, each speaker spoke at will and gave insight into the milieu they belonged to.

Prof Pascal Roberts, speaking on behalf of the archbishop of Karachi, shared concerns about the legacy we were leaving for our children. “We must not allow intolerance to thrive and instead should teach our children peace and acceptance of diversity in the way we think, the way we live as well as in the way we practice our different religion,” he said.

“Intolerance cannot be challenged by intolerance; instead we need love, respect and forgiveness. And for that, we need to make sure we extend the basic rights and freedoms to people belonging to different religions,” he added.

Dr Deepak Kuman, general secretary of the Pakistan Hindu Council, very firmly stated that “every human being is superior to any and every religion”. Citing examples of tolerance and acceptance from the lives of Shams of Tabriz and Rumi, he said all religious practiced empathy and forgiveness which is unfortunately lacking in Pakistan.

“Be it Muhammad [PBUH], Jesus, Ram, Krishna, Buddha or Guru Nanak; regardless of what religion these men brought forward, they all espoused the message of peace, love and tolerance.”

Advocate Kalpana Devi, the only female voice in the male-dominated panel, highlighted how a few lone extremist voices were creating discord between different religious groups. “We need to step beyond mere talk and do more to drown out the voices.”

Giving the example of the burning of a Hindu temple in Larkana last year, she said that such perpetrators “have no humanity, no nationality and certainly no religion”.

She also expressed the necessity of a positive exchange of histories, as well as teaching children about other religions to encourage a sense of respect and tolerance.

At the end, a declaration outlining the constitutional and social rights of all religious minorities was read out and signed by all the participants.

Though all the speakers were in agreement on the necessity of battling extremism from a united front, some did raise the issue of making such interfaith conferences more accessible to the common man. This, they believe, is important as the majority outside intellectual circles need to be overtly informed of the rights of religious community, especially in smaller towns, schools, colleges and universities.

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2015

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