Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lahore (Fides Service) - Pakistani Christians are shocked and frightened after two days of anti-Christian violence in Punjab. On 12 November at 10.30 in the morning at Sangla Hill, about 70 km west of Lahore, a large gang of Muslims began to set fire to a whole chain of buildings Holy Spirit Catholic church, two Protestant churches, a convent, St Anthony’s Catholic school, a girls boarding school and one priests’ house.
Christians are angry but determined to react peacefully. The Christian community has organised peaceful street protests and prayers all over the country for a National Day of Protest and Prayer on 17 November.
“The attack was obviously planned because the criminals arrived in special buses”, said Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha, of Lahore President and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan. Some 1,500 men took part in the raid said to be retaliation for reported (unfounded) Christian acts of profanation against the Koran.
At least 450 families of Catholics and other Christians have fled Sangla Hill to stay with relations elsewhere. “They are strangers or refugees in their own country”, said Bishop Joseph Coutts of Faisalabad who made a two day visit to Sangla Hill during which he met the parish priest of the gutted Holy Spirit church and the Sisters of the adjacent torched convent. The nuns “lost everything but are miraculously still alive” the Bishop said.
The local Christians have denounced the police force for immobility. Despite warnings of the attack, they did nothing to stop the mob as it set fire to buildings. The police arrested about 90 people and announced that order had been restored. Eyewitnesses say local Muslim leaders encouraged the vandals on the basis of false reports that Christians had burned copies of the Koran.
On Sunday 13 November since the churches were in ruins Christians gathered for an open air ecumenical service. Archbishop Saldanha, present at the Sunday service urged the participants to be faithful to the Gospel teaching and not meet violence with violence.
Pakistani Christians have called on the government to guarantee protection and announced for 17 November a national Day of Protest and Prayer with street rallies all over the country. As a sign of protest Christian churches and institutes will remain closed on 17 November.
Various human rights associations have criticised the attack in Sangla Hill, and called for an immediate withdrawal of the so called blasphemy law according to which a person can be put in prison or even put to death is found guilty of offending the name of the Prophet Mahommet. The law “is like a sword hanging over the head of religious minorities”, said Peter Jacob, head of the Pakistani Catholic Bishops’ justice and peace commission and he recalled the numerous Christian organisations working to help mainly Muslim earthquake victims in Kashmir. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 14/11/2005 righe 32 parole 324)
