Lahore: A Public Forum was held at Lahore Press Club on National Minority Day, under the auspices of Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan and Minority Rights Movement, has called to end religious bigotry, discrimination, religiously motivated violence and ensure equal citizenship and protection of religious minorities in Pakistan. 

The Open Forum was attended and addressed by prominent religious, social and political personalities including Mr. Samson Salamat (Chairman, Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan),  Saeeda Diep (Chairperson, Centre for Peace & Secular Studies), Lala Robin Daniel (Chairman Minority Rights Movement), Safdar Chaudhary (Chairman, Rah-e-Nijat Ministry), Kathrine Sapna Karamat (Executive Director CTS), Rev. Javed Gill (Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Pakistan), Rev. Amjad Niamat (Chairman Human Rights & Interfaith Commission, Presbyterian Church of Pakistan), Rev. Obaid Khokhar (General Secretary, NCCP), Rev. Fr. William Basharat (Capuchin Friar), Bishop Naeem Parshad (Grace Assemblies of Pakistan), Saleem Bhatti (Deputy Information Secretary, PPP Punjab), Tariq Siraj Chaudhary (Chairman, TTN), Imran Afique Athwal (President Minority Wing, PPP Central Punjab), Sabina Malik (Goodwill Ambassador, Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan) while Aqsa Zainab Advocate was the host of the event.

The speakers expressed serious concerns over the deteriorating situation of the rights of religious minorities who are living an insecure and unsafe life, due to the allegations of blasphemy frequently leveled against innocent people to settle personal vendetta, for political and personal gains, which often result in mob violence and extrajudicial killings. Also, the forced religious conversions and the incidents of religious discrimination. In particular, the concerns were raised over the delay in providing justice to the victims of Jaranwala tragedy, court’s validation of Maria Shahbaz’s child marriage & her religious conversion and the state machinery’s failure in recovering Priya Kumari who remains in the illegal detention of the abductors. 

Speaking at the Open Forum, Mr. Samson Salamat said "National Minority Day must go beyond symbolism. Government functionaries should stop misleading the public through lip-service and by denying the grim and dismal reality faced by religious minorities. They continue to face religious discrimination and bias in their daily lives, and are compelled to live in fear due to the consistent misuse of blasphemy laws, abductions, and forced conversions of their minor girls."

Today, once again we urge the government and state institutions to stop ignoring the problems of religious minorities. Pakistan needs a constitutional package and real reforms to ensure equality, safety, dignity, and justice for all citizens, Mr. Samson Salamat added”

 The Public Forum tabled the following observations, demands and recommendations: 

A) The vision of the Founder of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, cannot be fulfilled without ensuring equal citizenship rights for all Pakistanis, without any discrimination based on religion, caste, or creed.  Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan therefore demands that all discriminatory articles be removed from the Constitution of Pakistan and replaced with provisions that guarantee equality, protection, and participation of religious minorities in every sphere of national life.

B) Similar to the denial of justice in Shanti Nagar, Gojra, Joseph Colony, lynching of Christian couple Shama & Shahzad, the victims of the Jaranwala Tragedy are still awaiting justice. It has been 3 years since 16 August 2023, when an angry mob, following a blasphemy allegation, set fire to and vandalized 26 churches and dozens of Christian homes in Jaranwala. Despite the scale of destruction and the promises made at the time by the authorities and government functionaries, survivors continue to face delays in legal proceedings, inadequate compensation, and a lack of accountability for the perpetrators and enablers of the violence.This continued impunity sends a dangerous message, that attacks on religious minorities can occur without consequence.

Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan calls for the immediate expedited trial of all the accused, full rehabilitation and compensation for victims, and concrete safeguards to prevent such mob violence in the future. Justice delayed is justice denied; The state must ensure that Jaranwala does not become another Shanti Nagar or Gojra in Pakistan’s history of unresolved minority rights violations.

Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan also suggests a “Grand Dialogue” in the parliament to look at the negative impact of the misuse of blasphemy laws and to discuss the strategies to control the consistent incidents of fake blasphemy allegations, mob-violence, lynching and attacks on religious minorities. 

C) The review petition in the Constitutional Court regarding the case of minor Christian girl Maria Shahbaz must be processed on a priority basis. The Court’s current verdict risks emboldening perpetrators and weakening legal protections against forced conversions and child marriage. In light of these serious implications, the implementation of the verdict should be suspended immediately until a comprehensive review is completed.

In addition, Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan also reiterates its demand for the immediate and safe recovery of Priya Kumari, a minor girl who was kidnapped from Rohri, Sukkur in 2019 and has not been recovered yet despite consistent cries of the family and the civil society. Alongside the Maria Shahbaz case, Jaranwala tragedy, this case highlights the growing vulnerability of minority children and the need for immediate state action and protective legislation. Furthermore, there is an urgent need for comprehensive legislation to criminalize forced religious conversions of minority girls and boys, particularly from Christian, Hindu, and other communities. The repeated rejection of pro-minority legislation has left these communities feeling deeply saddened and disappointed, as their voices are seemingly ignored. It's time for the government to listen and act, enacting laws that protect vulnerable minorities from forced conversions and safeguard their rights.

D) The proportional representation system for religious minorities, in place since 2002, has failed to give minorities a real voice in the National and Provincial Assemblies. Its extension to Punjab’s local government is even more concerning. There is a strong apprehension that the ruling elite will use this system to appoint thousands of hand-picked individuals, leading to greater political and social marginalization, horse-trading, and centralized, undemocratic decision-making at the local level.

Rwadari Tehreek Pakistan strongly recommends a complete review of the current system of proportional representation and urges the government to replace it with a scheme that restores the democratic right of minority voters to directly elect their own representatives to the National Assembly, Provincial Assemblies, and local government bodies.

The Open Forum concluded with a collective call for the government, parliament, judiciary, law-enforcement institutions and civil society to work together to create an environment in which religious minorities can live with equality, dignity, security and freedom.

The participants emphasized that National Minority Day should not merely commemorate the contributions of religious minorities to Pakistan but should also reaffirm the state's commitment to protecting their fundamental rights and ensuring equal citizenship.