Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz in Islamabad and urged him to "to repeal the discriminatory blasphemy laws and Hudood Ordinances which have been widely abused," a human rights group said Friday, September 9.
UK-based Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) told BosNewsLife that British Labor MP David Drew and CSW officials handed over a letter urging him to "to do more to protect religious minorities in Pakistan", amid concern about violence and torture of Christians accused of "blasphemy" against the Koran and Muslims.
Prime Minister Aziz did not make promises to change the legislation, but was quoted as saying that, in general, "the single most important thing we can do today is to promote inter-faith harmony. If we all work hard at this, the world will be a better place."
The September 3 meeting came shortly after thousands of Pakistani believers reportedly gathered in front of Pakistan’s parliament in Islamabad to pray and protest against persecution, including the killing of prominent Roman Catholic layman Derick Cyprian, a former government minister for minorities, who was found, strangled on the outskirts of the eastern city of Lahore, August 9. His murder has been linked to Cyprian’s efforts as minister to amend Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy laws.
VAGUE STATUTES
Human rights watchers and church officials say vague statutes have been misused by Muslim extremists to sentence Christian and other minorities to years of imprisonment without bail and threaten them with execution, until the "false charges" are overturned.
The delegation told the prime minister that "the abuse of such laws creates a poor image for your country … Their repeal would send a strong signal to the international community that Pakistan is truly a place of ‘enlightened moderation’ and the rule of law," CSW said in a statement.
While they expressed "appreciation for Pakistan’s co-operation with the United Kingdom in the fight against terrorism," and recent electoral reforms, they stressed that the authorities will have to improve democratic rights during elections.
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
"Local government elections are still conducted using separate voting lists, which cause confusion for candidates, voters and polling staff," the group said. In the letter, the delegation urged the government "to ensure that elections are organized using a single voter list for Muslims and non-Muslims alike," amid concern that Christians have no say in politics.
The group also urged the Pakistani Government to increase the number of reserved seats for minorities in the National Assembly, and to introduce minority seats in the Senate. Delegates also met with the Minister for Religious and Minority Affairs, Muhammad Ijaz Ul Haq, the son of the former leader of Pakistan, General Zia Ul Haq, who introduced the blasphemy laws.
"If President [General Pervez] Musharraf truly means what he says," about reforming the system "then there is no better way to demonstrate it than by repealing the blasphemy laws, increasing minority reserved seats and restoring joint voting lists. We urge the international community, including Her Majesty’s Government, the European Union, the United States and the United Nations to continue to raise these issues regularly with the Pakistani Government," CSW said after the talks.
"SIGNIFICANT VISIT"
However in remarks obtained by BosNewsLife Drew said it was still "a significant visit in which we were able to meet directly with the country’s leaders and appeal for change. We need now to re-double our efforts and work with reformists in Pakistan, and our own governments, to make that change a reality."
CSW’s National Director Stuart Windsor agreed. "This has been the most important visit we have made to Pakistan. We were truly able to give the persecuted religious minorities a voice at a high level, and we now aim to build on this in the future. We urge the international community to put the repeal of the blasphemy laws in Pakistan higher up the agenda."
Christians comprise less than 3 percent of Pakistan’s 160-million strong, mainly Muslim, population, according to official figures. (With Stefan J. Bos, BosNewsLife Research and reports from Pakistan).
