KARACHI, Dec 31: Human Rights Commission of Pakistan chairperson Zohra Yousuf has expressed concern over growing problems faced by the religious minorities in the country.

She was speaking at a press conference held at the Karachi Press Club on Friday to present a report of the ‘HRCP working group on communities vulnerable because of their beliefs’.She said the growing threats to the minorities had compounded due to the official failure to take measures to address them.

Targeted killings and kidnappings for ransom, violence and intimidation on account of faith had shaken the confidence of the religious minorities in the state’s ability to effectively protect them. Members of the Hindu and Hazara communities in Balochistan, in particular, had felt compelled to seek sanctuary abroad, she observed.

She said that raising one’s voice for the rights of non-Muslims had become increasingly dangerous. No headway was made in apprehending Shahbaz Bhatti’s killers. The government had not taken any action on earlier promises of revising or repealing laws misused by radical elements to victimise and persecute the minorities, she added.

The authorities remained passive spectators in the face of hate speech against religious minority communities, she said, adding that this had emboldened promoters of hate speech and instigators of violence and contributed to scaring those advocating their rights into silence.

She said that despite the pressing need, adequate measures had not been taken to promote tolerance and reassure the minority communities that their concerns would be addressed.

An effective forum to ensure protection for the minorities from intimidation and discrimination was missing. The national commission for the minorities was eyewash, the HRCP chairperson said.

She said steps to ensure that there were no forced conversions remained missing despite calls from minority communities.

She said that despite reservations by the religious minority communities, action had not been taken to ensure their effective representation in parliament.

Parliamentarians from minority communities were nominated by the heads of political parties and were not accountable or answerable to the communities they claimed to represent, she said.

Reservation of four seats for the minorities in the senate was a welcome step but how these seats would be filled would not inspire confidence, she added.

She regretted that official efforts to expedite codification of the Hindu personal law had been missing despite demands from the community.

The press conference was also attended by HRCP vice chairperson Amarnath and council member Ronald D’Souza. —PPI