PAKISTAN: Christian community was attacked again on charges of blasphemy; Punjab government refuses to file case against members of Muslim mob

Dear Friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information of another attack on the Christian community in Punjab Province; members have been attacked with arms, some houses have been burned, and a Church has been ransacked by an enraged mob under the leadership of a local mosque leader. This attack has taken place under the very nose of the Chief Minister of Punjab, two months since the last such incident. 

The mob accused a Christian of burning pages of the Holy Quran. A ranking police officer, the deputy inspector general (DIG), was also injured when the mob attacked the police station by pelting stones, with the ultimate intention of burning alive the “blasphemer”. The government of Punjab again failed to arrest any of the attackers, including the mosque leader, who was continuously instigating the mob through mosque loudspeakers, urging the mob to burn alive the accused Christian and attack their property. 

About two months ago, on March 15, the Christian population of Youhanabad, Lahore, was attacked on charges of committing blasphemy. In that attack, 22 persons were killed and two Muslims ended up getting burned. The government, instead of arresting the attackers, arrested 15 Christians on charges of burning alive the two Muslims.

CASE NARRATIVE:

The AHRC has received the following information from Right For All Pakistan, CLAAS, Christians True Spirit (CTS), and media sources:

On 24 May 2015, a mob opened fire, threw missiles, and threatened to kill Christians in Dhup Sarri, Sanda area of Lahore, after Humayun Masih, 27, was accused of burning pages of the Holy Quran. The ransacking of churches and an open attack on the Christian community marked Sunday evening in Sandha.

According to Revered Riaz Arif of the St. Joseph Church in Sanda, a Christian man Humayun Masih, alias Faisal, was accused of burning the Holy Quran. On, Sunday afternoon, Humayun, who is mentally unstable and a drug addict was burning some newspapers that had printed on them holy verses. Some Muslims at the spot saw him doing this and caught him. 

The group took him to the Gulshan e Ravi Police Station for lodging an FIR. The Sanda police did not take the complaint seriously. Soon after, some religious leaders gathered, and, through local mosque loudspeakers, they instigated the local Muslims to burn alive the blasphemer. The angry mob blocked the road to protest against Christians, and demanding that the accused be burned alive. Between 5 and 6 p.m. the mob became violent and began attacking the area, opening fire, ransacking churches, burning houses, and threatening the residents. St. Joseph Church was also subjected to vandalism.

The situation in Dhup Sarri, Lahore, is very tense as gunshots are intermittently being fired and locals fearing for their lives are staying indoors or have fled to safety. According to media reports, the police stopped the mob from torching the church and the house of the accused, which led to violent clashes between the police and the mob. After the mob pelted the police with stones, two contingents of Punjab Rangers were sent to the area to restore peace. The police also resorted to baton-charge after Lahore DIG Operations, Dr. Haider Ashraf, suffered a head injury in the clashes. Five other police officials were also injured during the clashes. 

The accused is in the custody of police; but there are unconfirmed reports of his death. The police claim he is safe in custody. 

Two months ago, on 15 March 2015, a similar attack took place at Youhanabad, Lahore, in Punjab Province. An attack took place outside two churches, St. John’s Catholic Church and the Protestant Christ Church, which are located but 400 meters apart. It cost the lives of 22 persons, including five Muslims. Subsequently, an angry mob in retaliation killed and burned to death two Muslims who were suspected as terrorists by the mob. 

The Youhanabad neighborhood where the attack took place is home to more than 100,000 Christians. Residents of Youhanabad are still living under fear, as, according to reports, the police are still making arrests. Christian men and women keep watch throughout the night to prevent the police from illegally entering their homes and arresting them. Read more here.

The rise of religious intolerance in Pakistan has given birth to a society divided on religious, sectarian and ethnic lines. With political instability looming overhead, the masses continue to take law into their hands, which has resulted in chaos and anarchy. The absence of the Rule of law and good governance has yielded intolerance, dissonance and lawlessness.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Lahore is the capital of Punjab, the largest province of Pakistan, and one that is notorious for attacks on religious minorities, particularly attacks on Christians and Ahmadis (the declared non-Muslim sect), who are constantly threatened and intimidated by Muslim extremists supported by the government. However, not only in Punjab, across Pakistan the situation of religious minority groups deteriorates by the day. 

The government of Pakistan and all powerful Army claim that they have started military operations against terrorists; however the attacks on religious places of religious minority groups continues without relent along with targeted killings of individuals from minority groups. 

In the past two months, two Shia mosques were attacked and more than 80 persons killed and 130 were injured. On January 30, the Shia mosque at Shikarpur, Sindh province, was attacked, wherein 58 persons were killed and 60 injured. On February 14, in Peshawar, KPK Province, a Shia mosque was attacked where 26 were killed and 70 injured. In all these incidents, the sectarian groups linked with the Taliban have claimed responsibility. No one has been arrested and perpetrators are enjoying impunity while the police and army fail to stop such incidents.

The ongoing Army operation against terrorists, Zarb-e-Azb, has so far yielded no results. The terrorists strike at will wherever they please. Christians in Pakistan have borne the brunt of increasing radicalization and extremism of the society. In fact, Christians, Ahmadis, Hindus, and the Shia community have all been targeted for professing a faith other than that of Sunni Islam. The places of worships of these communities are susceptible to be targeted by the Taliban and yet, the State, knowing the dangers posed to these places, has offered no protection. The omnipresent terrorist faction has weakened the writ of the State; there is no semblance of rule of law in Pakistan today. The impunity for “jihadist” has made it impossible for minorities to enjoy rights on the same footing as that of the Muslim majority.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to following authorities calling them to stop the misuse of Blasphemy laws and punish those Muslim leaders who instigate the population through mosque loudspeakers to kill or burn alive the alleged blasphemer. 

Please urge the authorities to: 

a. Arrest and prosecute the local mosque leader from Dhup Sarri, Lahore, for instigating the Muslim population to kill the accused person; 

b. Stop the misuse of mosque loudspeakers, allowed their use according to prescribed regulations of the Loudspeaker Act; 

c. Protect the Christian population of Dhup Sarri, as the Muslim extremists are still roaming the streets with deadly arms. 

d. Provide the victim of the incident, Mr. Humanyun Masih, alias Faisal, with security and hospital treatment; 

e. Amend the blasphemy laws so that no group can misuse such laws.

The AHRC is writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of religion or belief calling for his intervention into this matter.

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