Sikhs under siege

Angered by attacks on their places of worship and their texts, the country’s Sikh community this past week protested the destruction of holy texts and attacks on a place of worship in Mirpur, Sindh. The Sikh community, which numbers about 20,000 in the country, says such attacks have been becoming more and more common. Their protest before a heavily guarded parliament was intended to draw the attention of lawmakers to the issue, and succeeded with the chairman of the Senate ordering the interior ministry to submit a report on the issue. It should be noted that Sindh, once known for its religious harmony, has recently seen a series of incidents in which Hindu temples and other sites have been desecrated by mobs.

The situation is, of course, a highly unfortunate one. It once more spotlights the fate of religious minorities in the country and the lack of protection they receive. They deserve much more. The chief justice of Pakistan had observed just a short while ago that offences against all religions are blasphemy. This clear-cut interpretation of the law by the chief justice needs to be acted upon by all stakeholders. We simply cannot afford to have a country in which minority groups are persecuted and hunted down in this manner. As citizens, they enjoy equal rights under the Constitution. The state needs to take steps to ensure these rights can be granted to them in practice and the minorities are not pushed further into misery by incidents such as those cited by the protesting Sikhs.

The Sikhs have always been a peaceful minority in the country and have followed a policy of staying away from controversial issues. It seems though, despite this, the forces of extremism have come after them and pointed their weapons towards this group just as they have at others who slip lower and lower in status and safety within an increasingly uneven and unjust society.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 26^th, 2014.

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