LAHORE: Participants at a three-day National Consultative Workshop on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) urged the government to strengthen legal protections for religious minorities and implement its international human rights commitments, saying the reforms were vital for retaining the European Union’s GSP+ trade status and promoting equal citizenship.

The workshop, organised by the Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM), brought together academics, parliamentarians, civil society representatives, journalists, human rights activists and minority community members.

The participants called for stronger safeguards against religious hate, mob violence and discrimination, while discussions also focused on the protection of minority women and children, institutional reforms and digital safety for human rights defenders.

Punjab lawmakers Ijaz Alam Augustine and Qudsia Zia Batool said political space for religious minorities was gradually expanding but stressed that sustained engagement between legislators and civil society was essential. They pledged to present the workshop’s recommendations before the Pakistan Muslim League (N)’s central decisionmaking committee.

Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) Director Farah Zia said constitutional and governance challenges continued to undermine equal citizenship, while academics maintained that legal reforms would remain ineffective without political will and meaningful inclusion of minorities in national life.

Former parliamentarian Aasiya Nasir and AWAM Executive Director Sonia Javed highlighted the continued failure to effectively address forced religious conversions and child marriages involving minority girls.

Participants urged the government to translate its commitments under the Fourth Cycle of the Universal Periodic Review into concrete legal and institutional reforms, strengthen protections for religious minorities, curb hate speech and mob violence, and promote a national narrative based on equality and inclusion.

Published in Dawn, July 20th, 2026