ASIA/PAKISTAN - Bishops: we ask for Bhatti to be proclaimed “martyr”

Multan (Agenzia Fides) – The Catholic Bishops Conference of Pakistan, which will meet for its General Assembly in Multan, Punjab, from 20 to 25 March, will examine the proposal to formally submit the request to the Holy See to declare the Catholic Minister Shahbaz Bhatti a “martyr”. Bishop Andrew Francis of Multan and President of the Episcopal Commission for Interreligious Dialogue in Pakistan spoke to Fides. According to the Bishop, who drafted the proposal to be voted on by the Episcopal Conference, “Bhatti is a man who gave his life for his crystalline faith in Jesus Christ. It is up to us, the Bishops, to tell his story and experience to the Church in Rome, to call for official recognition of his martyrdom.” (PA) (Agenzia Fides 5/3/2011)