Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lahore (Fides Service) - In a country where Muslim fundamentalist groups are active, the local Catholic Church is tireless in its efforts to promote a culture of peace, the encounter of civilisations and social and interreligious harmony. In effect the Justice and Peace Commission of the Bishops of Pakistan promotes initiatives to increase inter-cultural and interreligious dialogue as well as to build a culture of respect for human life and the dignity of every human person, particularly among youth, with seminars of formation especially for students in schools and colleges.
One recent initiative undertaken by the Commission was a workshop held in Rawalpindi focussing on the principles of human rights and the system adopted by the United Nations Organisation of promoting respect for human rights.
The Commission watches with great concern the situation of minority groups in Pakistan, religious minorities in particular and the violence they suffer. Very often non-Muslims are denied rights sanctioned by the nation’s Constitution and are targeted by fanatics and members of fundamentalist religious groups. Not rarely Pakistan’s law on blasphemy is misused and it is easy for a Muslim with some petty grievance to accuse non-Muslim citizens falsely and have them arrested and imprisoned unjustly.
At present the Commission is promoting an awareness campaign to inform people about the abuse of the blasphemy law and to have it abolished. Recently in various parts of the country, protests were staged to contest the beating and arrest of Christians false charges of blasphemy.
Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha, President of the Pakistan Conference of Catholic Bishops, said, “the law is unjust and should be abrogated”. The government of Pakistan has said it is considering a revision of the law but Pakistan’s Christians fear that fundamentalist groups will fight any change in the blasphemy law.
(PA) (Agenzia Fides 7/9/2004 lines 31 words 322)
