Minorities put eight-point demands before Sindh

KARACHI:

The Parliamentary Council for Human Rights and representatives of minority communities on Thursday called for sweeping measures to protect minority rights in Sindh, demanding greater political representation, equal employment opportunities, curriculum reforms and stronger safeguards against forced religious conversions.

Speaking at a media briefing at a local hotel, MNA and former federal minister Kamran Michael, Parliamentary Council for Human Rights Executive Director Shafiq Chaudhry and other representatives said minority rights must be treated as fundamental citizenship rights rather than as a separate or secondary concern.

The speakers highlighted gaps in political participation, civil liberties, employment, education and social protection, while calling for stronger measures to protect minorities from violence, discrimination and coercion.

Citing data from the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), they said 136 alleged cases of forced religious conversion were recorded in 2023 on the basis of civil society reports, with most cases involving Hindu women and girls in Sindh.

They called for effective legislation against forced religious conversions and strict enforcement of the minimum marriage age of 18 years, along with the establishment of district-level mechanisms to protect minority communities.

The speakers also demanded transparent implementation of the five per cent employment quota for minorities, saying that merely allocating a quota was insufficient without effective monitoring and enforcement.