Pakistan has been in our news a lot lately.
We have heard about military action, political tension between our two governments, and of course, the killing of Osama bin Laden. We have not heard as much about persecution of Pakistani Christians, which is a very real threat in that majority Muslim country. A group in Albany which calls itself Hope for Pakistani Christians wants to bring religious persecution in Pakistan to our attention. They plan a rally in Albany tomorrow, between 11.00 am and 3:00 pm.
Through a friend, who is a member of the Pakistani community here in Albany, I have obtained the draft of a resolution to be presented at the rally tomorrow. It mentions the recent political assassinations of prominent Christian leaders in that country and calls for the government of Pakistan to address the grievances not only of the Christian people there, but those of other religious minorities whose rights are being violated.
We, the North American Christians, Church and Community Leaders, today, May 6th, 2011, unanimously resolve and strongly condemn the assasination of Pakistan Federal Minister for Minority Affairs, Mr. Shahbaz Bhatti, who throughout his life promoted the inter-faith harmony and tolerance among the religions and creeds. Mr. Bhatti was a bridge builder among the minorities and the marority of Pakistan. He believed that Pakistan came into existence with secular principles and every Pakistani has every right to practice his/her faith and creed. He wanted to restore the image of Pakistan while bringing positive and acceptable amendments (to) the "blasphemy law", which has created hatred, prejudice and discrimintation among the people of Pakistan in general and the minorities in particular.
Mr. Bhatti's assasinatin underlines the issue of protection of religious minorities, life and liberty. The government of Pakistan has to go beyond the rehetoric (that) minorities enjoy all the rights in the country, and take practical steps to curb extremism in Pakistan. We appeal to the United Nations, European Union Human Rights Commission, President of the United States, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (and the) Federal and Provincial Governments of Pakistan to take up the (cause) of innocent minorities. Moreover, we demand a special panel consisting of (the) leaders of all the religions, judges, and high level police officers, so that the rights and dignity of each minority should be restored.
We request the above-mentioned authorities to form a neutral panel for the thorough investigation of the assasination of Mr. Shabaz Bhattti and Mr. Salman Taseer, the Governor of Punjab, and Asia Bibi's death penalty, and to bring the culprits to book.
The resolution is signed by the several members of Hope for Pakistani Christians, including the president of the organization, Mr. Hubert George. The drafters of the resolution plan to forward it to the leaders of other Pakistani religious groups within the United States as well as prominent politicians here and in Pakistan.
The group intends to continue its work to bring the condition of religious minorites in Pakistan to our attention. We will let you know of further developments within the Pakistani Christian community in Albany as the movement grows.
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