Religious harmony

This refers to the article ‘Government’s goals for religious harmony in Pakistan’ (Jan 17). Allama Tahir Ashrafi should have referred to any research before making the assertion that Pakistan is one of the world’s safest countries for minority groups. He highlighted what minority communities have been going through in India and completely ignored the facts that Pakistan also has similar issues to deal with. Pakistan’s religious and ethnic minority communities continue to face discrimination and violence with little to no action by the law-enforcement agencies to bring the perpetrators to justice.

The authorities should pass the law against forced conversions; establish a statutory national commission for minority communities; and adopt the policies on religious tolerance and protection of minority rights in accordance with the Action Plan for Human Rights, 2016. They should also take strict actions to deal with religious persecution and hate speech against minority communities as defined in the National Action Plan, 2014. They should also draft a curriculum that promotes religious tolerance.

Suneel Malik

Faisalabad