Crackdown on Islamabad slums will displace Christians

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ISLAMABAD: March 22, 2014. (By Shamim Masih) Slum dweller of Islamabad live in poverty line, they lack of basic necessities of life like health, education and shelter. They live in houses made of mud and some of them are mixture of bricks and mud, around 10 percent of them live in houses made of cement and bricks. Many of the houses are made in a way they can be easily flooded with rain. Houses consist of a single room which fulfills the requirement of a bed room, kitchen and a dining room as well. The electricity supply is pathetic in the area, unavailability of purified water, open drainage system; clearly show that hygiene is maintained in the area at zero level. Capital Development Authority – CDA carried out a detailed survey of the capital to gather the data of the slums with and has decided to demolish at least a dozen slums in Islamabad but did not mention any resettlement plan or compensation for the helpless dwellers. According to the sources on the direction of CDA chairman, notices had been issued to the slum dwellers of sectors G-7/1, G-7/2, G-7/3, G-8/1, F-7/4 and F-6 to vacate their houses. CDA has asked for help from IESCO, SNGPL and FIA to help it carry out a grand operation against the dwellers in Islamabad. Sources informed that the slum dweller who reside in the slums of G-7/1, G-7/2, G-7/3, G-8/1, H-11/4, F-7/4 and F-6 have been warned through public notices as the slums would be demolished between March 24 and April 30, 2014. According to the notice, CDA would demolish all these structures and the dwellers would be responsible for any sort of risk involved. The leftist community of the capital city has announced this operation as an attack on the fundamental rights of thousands of working-class people who live in the capital’s slums. Nazir S Bhatti chief of Pakistan Christian Congress – PCC strongly condemned this action and determent to strongly resist of the CDA’s plan. He said that Christians are being singled out in part because of ethnic prejudice. While CDA Estate member Shaista Sohail said that the civic agency had been directed by the ministry of interior to clear the illegally occupied lands from the slum dwellers, particularly to lessen security risks. It is to be noted that the Islamabad High Court’s Justice Shoukat Aziz Siddique had directed CDA to clear the slum settlements from the capital with a month in order to ensure the security of the city. Basharat Khokhar, human rights activist visited CDA senior management and was assured by the CDA officials to provide foolproof security to Christian’s slum dwellers of the capital. Amir Ahmad Ali – member admin assured that CDA is not going to demolish any Christian katchi abadi in the capital. Interior minister Chaudhry Nisar has led the charge for a crackdown. He singled the katchi abadis out as possible militant havens soon after his party, the Pakistan Muslim League – PML- N came to power last summer. It is pertinent to mention here that most of the inhabitants in these slums are Christians who have lived in these slums in deplorable conditions for a long time. Shamim Masih – secretary information PCC said that the CDA has different policies for working class people living in the slums and those living in the superior sectors of the capital.

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"Trial of Pakistani Christian Nation" By Nazir S Bhatti

On demand of our readers, I have decided to release E-Book version of "Trial of Pakistani Christian Nation" on website of PCP which can also be viewed on website of Pakistan Christian Congress www.pakistanchristiancongress.org . You can read chapter wise by clicking tab on left handside of PDF format of E-Book.

nazirbhattipcc@aol.com , pakistanchristianpost@yahoo.com