Newly elected parliamentarian Shahbaz Bhatti, who also leads the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA) advocacy group, told BosNewsLife that he made his appeal in an inaugural address to the National Assembly of Pakistan on Saturday, March 29. Bhatti represents the main Pakistan People’s Party of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, which won the February 18 election.
Quoting Pakistan’s founder, Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the politician said it was crucial to respect minorities in predominantly Islamic Pakistan, according to a transcript obtained by BosNewsLife. "We want a modern and democratic Pakistan in which every citizen of the state is treated as equal," said Bhatti, echoing concerns of Pakistani minorities who say they feel often regarded as second class citizen.
He also asked parliament to overturn "all discriminatory laws, including the blasphemy laws," under which Christians have been sentenced to prison for alleged anti-Islamic activities. Christian rights groups say however the laws have been misused to prosecute people, often in land or family disputes.
GOVERNMENT JOBS
In related legal measures, Bhatti demanded a five percent quota in all government jobs for minorities, especially for Christians. He told legislators he wants religious holidays, such as Easter and Christmas, to be observed nationwide, and that "religious festivals of Christians and all other minorities are treated with the same respect as Muslim festivals."
The politician said national and private media should be encouraged to promote values of non-Muslims, by airing religious programs of all groups, including Christians, and
to stop discriminating them. "Pakistani minorities have shed their blood to strengthen the foundation of our beloved Pakistan and should therefore be treated on the basis of equality and be given fundamental rights," he told parliament Saturday, March 29. "They also work for the prosperity and development of the country."
He asked legislators to allow a statute at the main entrance of National Assembly Conference Hall honoring Bhutto, who told BosNewsLife before she died that she wanted to reach out to all people of Pakistan, including Christians.
CHRISTIANS "CRY"
"I felt compelled to say all this because of the cry of Christians due to the escalating violence [against them] and discrimination," Bhatti explained to BosNewsLife in a telephone interview.
He suggested that anti-Christian violence may increase amid widespread anger among Muslims over the controversial anti-Islamic film ‘Fitna’ of Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders. "I appeal to Muslims to stay calm and react wisely. Pakistani Christians also strongly condemn ‘Fitna’ because Christ has taught us to love and respect others, regardless of their color, caste, creed" or religious background,” he added.
Christians make up less than three percent of Pakistan’s estimated 165 million people. (Read more from Jawad Mazhar and/or support his work via raysofdevelopment.org)
