Like everywhere in the world, the Christian community in Pakistan is also set to celebrate their annual religious festival of Easter Sunday on April 17, marking special services and other festivities.
Easter Sunday is one of the most festive events among Christians worldwide which commemorates Jesus Christ’s resurrection from death, according to the Bible. The followers of Christ believe Jesus was resurrected in Jerusalem 2,000 years ago.
Just like any other festival, Easter Sunday also precedes special preparations by people from different age groups including men, women and children.
The people living in different parts of the country make special arrangements to celebrate the day.
Read more: PM, ministers felicitate Christian community on Christmas
The Christians celebrating the festival in Pakistan receive heartfelt greetings from their countrymen which manifest a great atmosphere of good religious and cultural harmony in the country.
Special services are hosted at different places across the country where the believers attend prayers for salvation, and for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan.
All provincial police departments make special security arrangements to provide security cover to the minority communities during their festivals or special prayers.
The minorities in Pakistan are free to practice their religion as there are around 2,652 churches in the country – 1 church per 664 Christians, comparing one mosque per 2,249 Muslims in the UK.
The state of Pakistan has constantly been taking administrative and legislative measures to protect the minorities’ rights to provide them with a safe and free environment, without any discrimination.
Also read: Christian community an essential part of our social fabric: AJK president
The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has recently been reconstituted. The newly-constituted NCM has increased the membership of minority communities. Moreover, Chela Ram Kewlani, has been appointed as Chairman of the Commission.
The government has allocated a 5% job quota for minorities in all federal government services, in addition to the open merit.
In Pakistan, 10 religious festivals of minorities including Christmas and Easter for Christians are celebrated at the official level, to promote understanding and harmony among all segments of society.
The human rights ministry has also prepared a Christian Marriage and Divorce draft bill which would be introduced in the parliament after final deliberation.
Minorities are provided with equal rights to education, jobs and business opportunities. Four reserved seats in the Senate of Pakistan, 10 in the National Assembly and reserved seats in all provincial assemblies have been allocated for the minorities.
In total, 23 seats have been allocated for the minorities in the provincial assemblies including three each in Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, eight in Punjab and nine in Sindh.
The government has announced public holidays for minorities on their exclusive festivals, however, Christmas is declared as a general public holiday.
In order to mainstream the minorities through Minorities Welfare Fund, Small Development Schemes are carried out for the repair and maintenance of the worship places of minorities.
The financial assistance is extended to the poor segments of minorities while scholarships are also granted to the students from minorities on a merit basis.
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