Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rawalpindi (Agenzia Fides) - The whole world has been following with bated breath the story of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl hit by the Taliban, then moved to London and now in healthy condition. As Fides learns, today Christians in Pakistan and many civil society organizations present to the world the case of Kashmala Munawar, a 13-year-old Christian seriously injured while she was praying in the church of All Saints in Peshawar, when a suicide bomber caused the massacre of 22 September. Kashmala was just exercising her right to freedom of religion, praying to the God she believes in. A first-year high school student, Kashmala was taken to the public hospital for emergency care, where doctors found multiple shrapnel in her legs and she underwent surgery. Following the injuries, an infection in her right leg caused the amputation. Kashmala was transferred to a hospital in the Anglican Diocese of Peshawar, she is still in strong need for medical treatment and specialist care for her leg. Currently the NGO "World Vision in Progress" is supporting the expenses for Kashmala’s medical treatment and for other victims of the massacre.
As reported to Fides, the Christian community of Peshawar asks: "For how long and why is an NGO having to treat Kashmala? Where is justice? Why are the government of the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the federal government totally ignoring the victims of the massacre? Why does the international community not offer an intervention for this child?". According to local sources, the specialist care in a European hospital could help Kashmala fully recover and also think about the possibility of a prosthesis for her leg, in order to help her return to live her daily life. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 21/10/2013)
