Shafaqna Pakistan | by Arsal Mir- The vision of communal harmony in Pakistan remains a distant dream as religious minorities continue to suffer under deep-rooted discrimination and violence. In an increasingly intolerant environment, the values of acceptance and empathy appear to have eroded, giving space to extremism and hate-fuelled actions.
The most recent and horrifying manifestation of this was the lynching of a 46-year-old Ahmadi man in Karachi’s Saddar area. According to the police, the attack was carried out by supporters of the far-right Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), who stormed a place of worship belonging to the Ahmadi community. While TLP has denied involvement, over 400 of its supporters were reportedly present outside the site during the attack.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) condemned the incident as a “failure of law and order,” underscoring the state’s inability—or unwillingness—to safeguard its most vulnerable citizens.
Data from the Centre for Social Justice paints a bleak picture of the situation. According to their Human Rights Observer report, the misuse of blasphemy laws, forced conversions, and religious bigotry are alarmingly on the rise. In 2024 alone, 344 blasphemy cases were registered. While 70% of the accused were Muslims, 14% were from the Ahmadi community, showing that no group is safe from weaponised religious laws.
Even more disturbing is the surge in forced conversions. Between 2021 and 2024, 421 cases were reported involving 282 Hindu girls and 137 Christians, with a staggering 71% of the victims being minors. Despite these violations, the government and the criminal justice system have been hesitant to act decisively, often backing down out of fear of provoking right-wing backlash.
The discrimination isn’t limited to violence and conversions—it infiltrates everyday life, even behind prison walls. Minority inmates face institutionalised bias, particularly in the denial of remission rights and legal aid. The report highlights that while provinces have the authority to update outdated prison laws, only Sindh has taken meaningful steps by introducing the Sindh Prisons and Corrections Services Act, 2019.
The rest of the country still operates under colonial-era laws such as the Prisons Act of 1894 and the Prisoners Act of 1900. This outdated framework, combined with systemic neglect, leaves minority prisoners uninformed of their rights and deprived of both formal and religious education while incarcerated.
Pakistan has for too long neglected its marginalised communities, despite being a signatory to international treaties like the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), ratified in 2010. This treaty explicitly states that all persons deprived of liberty should be treated with dignity and humanity. Yet, the continued failure to implement these principles reflects a wider indifference toward the rights of minorities.
An empowered and functional National Commission for Minorities Rights is urgently needed to bridge the gap between law enforcement and minority citizens.
The state must act before the situation spirals further. The denial of dignity—whether on the streets or in prisons—is not just a human rights issue; it is a national crisis. Without systemic reform, genuine political will, and societal introspection, the dream of communal harmony will remain just that—a dream.
Source: Shafaqna Pakistan
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