Religious violence haunts Jaranwala one year after church burnings

A recent report by the Minorities Alliance Pakistan (MAP) painted a bleak picture of the Christian community in Jaranwala, historically known as the hometown of revolutionary Bhagat Singh.

A staggering 96% of the Christian population in the city still feels unsafe, one year after the devastating attack on August 16, 2023, during which 26 churches were set ablaze and hundreds of homes were destroyed by violent mobs.

According to the report, on August 15, 2023, blasphemous content, falsely attributed to a Christian resident of the Christian Colony, was spread in Jaranwala.

This incited religious leaders to issue calls from local mosques, urging people to gather and attack the Christian community. By the early hours of August 16, large mobs had formed, forcing Christian families to flee their homes in fear for their lives, leaving behind their possessions.

The violent mobs first attacked Christian Colony, destroying nearly every home before moving on to vandalize the Catholic Church and desecrate the Bibles within.

The mob then continued its rampage across villages within a 10-kilometre radius of Jaranwala, burning down any church or Christian-run institution they encountered. The report notes that while police attempted to control the situation, they were vastly outnumbered by the mobs.

Independent estimates by NGOs and government officials suggest the material damage from the incident is valued at approximately Rs450 million. Although the violence lasted for a day, the emotional and psychological trauma inflicted on the Christian community will persist for a lifetime, the report laments.

MAP conducted a survey, questioning 1,519 people from eight different areas of Jaranwala, including Christian Colony, Isa Nagri, and Chak No. 20. The results reveal deep concerns about religious intolerance and mistrust in government institutions. When asked whether Section 295B of Pakistan's penal code, which pertains to blasphemy laws, could be misused to settle personal scores, 93% of respondents agreed.

The same percentage identified religious intolerance as a major issue in society, while 47% rated the government's handling of the incident as poor.

Additionally, 61% of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the police's performance, and 56% lacked faith in the judiciary to deliver justice. Alarmingly, 97% of Christians surveyed believed such violent incidents could happen again in the future.

Despite the severity of the attack, only 22 First Information Reports (FIRs) were registered against the perpetrators, and while over 300 suspects were initially arrested, only 11 remain detained as of August 16, 2024, according to the MAP report.

MAP Chairman, Akmal Bhatti Advocate, urged the government to take concrete steps to rebuild the Christian community's trust, including providing immediate relief and support to the victims and addressing the root causes of religious intolerance through education and legal reforms. Bhatti emphasised that the Jaranwala incident is a crucial moment for Pakistan to reaffirm its commitment to equality, justice, and human rights for all its citizens, regardless of their faith.

The report concludes by calling for stronger law enforcement and reforms in the criminal justice system to prevent future occurrences of such violence and ensure that all citizens can live without fear.