Crisis hotline for minorities on the table

Minister for Minorities Welfare, Shahbaz Bhatti Tuesday said the government is setting up a hotline for minorities.


June 15, 2010

ISLAMABAD: Minister for Minorities Welfare, Shahbaz Bhatti Tuesday said the government is setting up a hotline for an immediate response to any discrimination against minorities and address their problems.

"The government is committed to minorities’ welfare and the initiative is part of its policy to ensure maximum religious freedom for them," he said in the National Assembly during a speech on annual budget 2010-2011.

He also said the government is also ensuring grant of remission to jailed minorities members on eve of their festivals like remission granted to other prisoners.

"The government has also ensured religious freedom for minorities in the 18th amendment as well as celebration of minorities festivals at national and official level," he stated.

"We are committed to realise the dreams of the founder of Pakistan, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah to ensure equal rights for minorities," he said.

Bhatti also hinted at repealing certain anti-minorities laws and demanded from political parties to award tickets to minorities to contest on general seats. He said minority voters play an important role to elect representatives.

"We shall also not allow anybody to desecrate religious places of minorities," he added and demanded accountability of dictators who subverted the constitution and violated fundamental human rights.

COMMENTS (1)

muhammad amjad | 13 years ago | Reply well the hotline won't yield any significant results as after the fanfare and hoopla surrounding its launch has died down,no one will notice that it is the same intolerant,bigoted members of our society who will have the job of addressing and rectifying the concerns being raised in the calls to this helpline.Until we change the mentality and attitudes of our public towards other religions ,the minorities will continue to live as second class citizens in our country.
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