Secular Pakistan as the only viable option

The secularism debate has taken off in recent days. An increasingly diverse group of people drawn from almost all walks of life have begun to agitate for a secular state. The violence against religious minorities as well as sectarian minorities has convinced many people that secularism in Pakistan is the only option left.

Pakistan and the global blasphemy law

The miscreants who attacked a Hindu temple in Karachi to prove their religious bona fides have been charged under Section 295-A of the Pakistan Penal Code. It is about time. Now let us also consider the state of that forced minority the faithful love to hate, i.e. the Ahmedis. Who is going to bell the cat and charge the passport offices of the country under Section 295-A for routinely abusing this community?

The state, with deliberate and malicious intent, through words written describes the founder of the Ahmaddiya Jamaat as an ‘imposter’ and a ‘liar’. The state must realise that it cannot have it both ways. It cannot declare an entire community non-Muslim and then deny them the protections that are granted to other religions. If Ahmedis constitute a religious minority, then its founder falls squarely within the ambit and scope of Section 295-A. Ahmedis may be considered non-Muslim, but does that mean they are to be considered non-citizens as well?

Partition of Punjab II : Jinnah's so called Islamic pronouncements

Continuing from last week, we come to Jinnah’s so-called Islamic pronouncements, which matter, at best, is an incidental tangent from the main issue but since it was raised by Mr Shakil Chaudhry in his article (Daily Times, July 26, 2012) , it needs to be addressed. 

The claim that Jinnah was secular needs to be understood before it can be argued for or against. The claim that Jinnah was secular does not necessarily pre-suppose that all utterances of Jinnah the politician were consistently secular, especially when put against secularism as we understand it today. That Jinnah used the Islamic idiom on occasion is a fact and not necessarily an inconvenient fact for those who argue for Jinnah’s secular vision. Substance not form trumps rhetoric.

Question of faith: Legal Discrimination against minorities

Book recommendation: Muslims and Minorities
Jinnah Institute's report:

As part of the Jinnah Institute’s Open Democracy initiative, ‘A Question of Faith’: A Report on the Status of Religious Minorities in Pakistan’ is a research-based analysis of the same. It documents the deterioration in the political, economic and social status of members of these communities in the context of the rising tide of vigilante violence and religious extremism in the country.

Two critical questions are addressed by the findings of this report. First, will Pakistani continue to discriminate against its citizens and turn a blind eye to the spread of cultures of cruelty and vigilantism? Second, will the majority of Pakistanis continue to condone and collude in the discrimination and persecution of minorities? These questions have become particularly relevant over the past year which saw violent attacks against the Christian and Ahmadi communities; extremist protests against amendments to the controversial blasphemy laws; and a rise in the number of cases of blasphemy brought against members of minority communities. The brutal assassinations of two staunch advocates of minority rights Salman Tasseer, Governor of the Punjab and Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Minorities highlight the fact that urgent action is needed, and the recommendations of this report (pp. 7-10) need to be addressed.

Blogging for Minority Rights

Book recommendation: Minority Rights: Between Diversity and Community (Key Concepts)

(Comments at Pakistan's first Social Media Conference - Yasser Latif Hamdani, Advocate High Courts of Pakistan)

The need for social activism for minority rights in Pakistan.

·         A society that marginalizes groups of its citizens ultimately turns in on itself

·         Rising tide of extremism in Pakistan is directly linked to increased discrimination against minorities in Pakistan

·         Discrimination against minorities goes against the basic principle on which Pakistan was demanded: a permanent majority cannot by sheer numbers oppress and dominate a permanent minority.