Christians protest Jaranwala rampage
Members of the Christian community held a protest demonstration outside the Rawalpindi Press Club against the Jaranwala incident.
The protesters demanded immediate repairs and restoration of the burnt churches and houses.
The demonstration was held on the call of the United Church Council in the garrison city.
The protesters were carrying placards and banners in their hands with slogans written against the horrific incident of violence against the minority community.
The protesters demanded that an independent investigation be conducted into the attack and that those responsible should be arrested immediately.
The protestors alleged that despite intimation, the Faisalabad police did not take timely action against the agitators. On August 16, a charged mob, incited over the loudspeakers of a local mosque, stormed the neighbourhood ransacking and torching at least 19 churches and over 80 residences besides terrorising members of the Christian community.
Christians make up around two per cent of the population and occupy one of the lowest rungs in Pakistani society.
More than 5,000 live in the Christian quarter in Jaranwala, most of them sanitary workers on meagre wages who occupy cramped homes shared by up to 18 relatives.
As panic spread across the neighbourhood, Muslims also rushed to the streets to warn and shelter their neighbours.
Accused of standing by as silent spectators as a mob of 5,000 to 6,000 persons armed with petrol, push carts and batons spread terror and panic in the town all day, the Punjab Police arrested at least 145 suspected rioters, including two prime suspects, out of the 1,470 persons booked in five FIRs.
The looting, burning and ransacking of Christian homes and places of worship has sparked a nationwide outrage.
The incident has deeply saddened and embarrassed the entire nation.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 20th, 2023.