08/21/2019 Pakistan (International Christian Concern) – In a letter presented to Prime Minister Khan, leaders from Pakistan’s Christian, Hindu, Sikh, and other minority faiths have demanded to be treated equally in Pakistan. The letter presented ten resolutions the Pakistani government could take up in order to start giving equality to the country’s minorities.

“We are faithful to our beloved homeland, Pakistan,” Fr. Saleh Diego, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Karachi, told Agenzia Fides. “We have lived in this land for centuries, well before the creation of Pakistan, and we are serving with honesty and dedication for the good of Pakistan.”

Among the ten resolutions presented to the prime minister, minority leaders have called on the government to establish a federal ministry for religious minorities, protect houses of worship belonging to minority communities, and pass legislation to prevent religious discrimination in employment, education, and society.

“At the time of the founding of Pakistan, Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah assured the equal rights, freedom, and justice for religious minorities in Pakistan,” Majida Rizvi, the first female High Court Judge in Pakistan, told Fides. “Members of religious minorities have contributed to the foundation and development of Pakistan; they have proven to be true citizens.”

Pakistan currently ranks among the world’s most religiously intolerant nations. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has designated Pakistan a “Country of Particular Concern” due to its violations of religious freedom. Will Pakistan now take note of the demands of minority communities?

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