LAHORE: Senior leadership of Pakistan’s church has urged the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government to address the issues facing religious minorities to project Pakistan’s image in the world, as the country celebrates its 74th Independence Day on Saturday.
In his message on the occasion, Church of Pakistan Moderator and President Bishop Dr Azad Marshall congratulated the nation on the independence and called for a cohesive and unified approach in dealing with the internal and external challenges facing Pakistan.
“Today, we are celebrating the 74th Independence Day of our beloved homeland. We are grateful to our founding fathers, especially Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, who envisioned a separate homeland for Muslims as well as religious minorities where they could practice their faiths freely and live in peace.
“It’s unfortunate that we abandoned Jinnah’s ideals and vision for a pluralistic Pakistan where there would be no religious discrimination and all citizens would be equal in the eyes of the State,” he said.
Bishop Marshall said that religious minorities were an integral part of Pakistani society but sadly they were being gradually alienated from the national mainstream due to certain vested interests.
“It’s a historical fact that Pakistan’s religious minorities, particularly Christians, have played an important role in nation-building as well as in the country’s defence. But today our hearts grieve when we look at the challenges facing our communities and the government’s indifferent attitude to addressing them,” he added.
The senior church leader said that they were particularly concerned by the rise in “exploitation” of minority girls, “misuse” of the blasphemy laws and growing intolerance towards other faiths in society.
“I urge the government to address these challenges on priority and also consider our genuine demands for the return of our educational institutions, particularly Peshawar’s Edwardes College, as well as our concerns over the contents of the Single National Curriculum, which we believe is a violation of the constitutional guarantee given to minority students.
“Edwardes College is the pride of Pakistan’s Christian community and its nationalisation has furthered the sense of alienation and deprivation in our people. I hope the government will consider our demands in the larger interest of the country because such matters bring a bad name to our beloved homeland,” he said.
Bishop Marshall said that Christians were patriotic Pakistanis and were always at the beck and call of the country’s leadership to serve their homeland.
“No other community can serve Pakistan’s interests in the western world better than Pakistani Christians. We have always projected Pakistan’s image abroad and will continue to advocate for our country, but our voices will get more weight when the State cooperates with us in resolving the issues facing our people,” he said.
