ICC Note:

In Pakistan, working as a sweeper is considered the lowest and filthiest work an individuals could engage in. Because of this, Christians are often relegated to taking jobs as sweepers because of their low social statues. In fact, Christians are almost sought out to fill sweeping positions. This deep seeded discrimination has bled its way into a situation at a school in Faisalabad. There, a Christian man hired to be the school’s water man was ordered to be the school’s sweeper because he was not “fit” to serve water to the school’s majority Muslim student body. The Christian has complained of discrimination and an inquiry body has been formed to look into this instance of discrimination. 

2/16/2016 Pakistan (Express Tribune) – An inquiry committee has been formed by the district administration of Faisalabad to probe allegations of employment discrimination by a Christian waterman who says his school headmistress is forcing him to work as a sweeper because of his religion.

Qaisar Jahan, a waterman at Government MC Girls’ High School in Partap Nagar, told The Express Tribune he had been at the school since November 2015. “I was employed as waterman but the headmistress later told me that I cannot do this job because I am Christian”, Jahan said.

He said Naheed had told him to work as a sweeper if he wanted to keep his job at the school. “I told her I had not been hired as a sweeper and wanted to work as a waterman,” he said,

He said she then wrote a letter to the EDO’s office, saying he was insolent, lazy and disobedient. He said he had also written to the DCO’s office and had complained about her discriminatory attitude.

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