Faisalabad: December 19, 2013. (PCP) The government must take steps for the promotion of social harmony and eradication of sectarianism, this was emphasized by the speakers during public outreach seminar entitled “Removing Discrimination and Barriers for the Respect of Human Rights” to mark international human rights day held at Faisalabad on December 10, 2013. The event was organized by the Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM) and joined by participants from different fields of life including human rights defenders, social workers, media persons, students and political activists. The executive director of the AWAM, Nazia Sardar said, “The government must take measures to tackle widespread discrimination and violence on the basis of religion and sects in Pakistan. The intolerance among the people of different beliefs exists, because people of one faith consider their religious teaching the best and based on truth, and criticize the teaching of other faiths, and consider people of other faiths their enemies and inferior.” “Dialogue is an effective tool to resolve conflicts arising within family, community and workplaces. The women are naturally polite and humble, therefore they can play their vital role to keep their families and neighbors close by intervening in any conflict situation peacefully and positively,” she added. The program director of the AWAM, Naseem Anthony said, “Human rights violations are occurring in different forms; therefore respect for human rights is imperative for solidarity and tolerance among the different communities, and creation of administration system and mechanism based on equality and justice.” A senior journalist, Sajid Aleem said, “The media particularly electronic media is a powerful medium for having large viewership and range. The media persons are opinion-makers, and can influence the thinking of people easily; therefore they must contribute their vital role to bring about attitudinal and behaviors change among people towards respecting diversity and human rights and avoiding promotion of material creating rifts on different grounds, resultantly leading to positive societal change.” The general secretary of the Awami workers party, Arif Ayaz said, “Sectarianism is a hindrance to peace and harmony. The religious leaders have promoted hatred and intolerance among the people on the grounds of faith and belief through hate speeches and material. An organized campaign is needed to remove discriminatory material and policies from the education system and curriculum, and take stand against elements promoting sectarianism and religious discrimination, because sectarianism causes terror and bloodshed in the society.” The director of the SHADOW, Anjum James Paul said, “The humans hailing from different communities, cultures and civilizations are creation of the God, and entitled to equal respect and rights. All the religions and prophets teach brotherhood and tolerance, therefore people should be concerned with the family members and neighbors, and treat them well as we want ourselves to be treated.” A political activist, Raja Shahbaz said, “The lack of tolerance and acceptance is the root cause behind violence in Pakistan, as people are killed on the basis of having diverse viewpoint, ideology and school of thought, because there is no respect for diversity and no space for difference of opinion in Pakistan.” “The people are reluctant to mix up with people from different faiths due to the mindset developed by the religious leaders. Such teachings in the mosques and seminaries have aroused the sense of hatred and prejudice among people. Therefore, curriculum being taught in the schools and seminaries must be revised to purge it from discriminatory material for the promotion of peace and social harmony,” he added. Iftikhar Ahmad (Senior Journalist) said, “Pakistan is facing several crises including sectarianism, poverty, unemployment and lack of resources. We need to make the government officials accountable through monitoring their performance for the good governance and human rights.”