Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Islamabad (Agenzia Fides) – A government reshuffle is approaching in Pakistan: while negotiations are buzzing between political leaders, the government led by Prime Minister Gilani, the Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP), will suffer a drastic reduction of ministries, and among those eliminated will be the Ministry for Religious Minorities, currently led by the Catholic Minister Shahbaz Bhatti. The Ministry, sources in Pakistan tell Fides, is likely to become a department of the Ministry for Religious Affairs.
Fears are circulating among the Christian minorities: “The elimination of the Ministry will result in serious damages to the rights of religious minorities. There will be no one to question the legitimacy of the blasphemy law. It is a step backwards for human rights,” notes Fides' sources in the Christian community.
In an interview with Fides, Peter Jacob, Secretary of the Commission for Justice and Peace considers other aspects of the matter: “It must be said that this Ministry has always been, for the Government, a sort of alibi and a decoy. Looking at recent years, there has been little action taken by the Government and no concrete results in favour of religious minorities, to eliminate discrimination. We would like all members of the Government to clarify the issue of human rights of all citizens. For this reason we hope that the Ministry for Minorities will be absorbed by the Ministry for Human Rights.”
Even Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha of Lahore and President of the Episcopal Conference of Pakistan, told Fides: “That there is or there is not a Ministry for Minorities, our position toward the government is unchanged: we ask the government to respect the rights and fundamental freedoms of religious minorities, including Christians. It is urgent to work to reduce social discrimination and to promote the socio-economic development of our communities. We will continue to call for the abolition of the blasphemy law, even though we see that now, after the protests and events of recent months, the situation has come to a halt.”
For more than a week, among other things, on the website of the Government of Pakistan (http://www.pakistan.gov.pk) the link to the website of the Ministry for Minorities has been inaccessible. This prevents us from seeing all the activities promoted by the Ministry headed by Bhatti. On 4 February, the Minister met the U.S. Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, in Washington who reiterated U.S. support for the promotion of human rights and religious freedom in Pakistan.
According to Fides' sources, the repeated appeals and protests by the international community are among the reasons that have led to the desire to abolish the Ministry for Minorities. Pakistani politics “intends, in this way, to reaffirm its independence and hostility towards every form of external interference.” The Government reshuffle sheds light on the weakness of the Pakistan Peoples' Party, forced to ally with Islamic parties that are heavily influencing their activities. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 7/2/2011)
