Fallout from bombings: Protesters vent out anger on Lahore streets

Rangers called in after clashes between police, protesters

QUETTA/ PESHAWAR/ ISLAMABAD/ LAHORE:

Violent protests and riots continued for a second day in Lahore on Monday as anger boiled over the previous day’s bombing of two churches that left 17 people dead and 80 others injured. Hundreds of protesters smashed property and vehicles and clashed with riot police in different neighbourhoods of the city.

Elsewhere in the country, members of the beleaguered Christian community staged peaceful protests against the bombings at Christ Church and Saint John’s Church in Youhanabad.

In the aftermath of the blasts, two suspected militants were lynched by a mob that also confronted the police, vandalised vehicles and ransacked two terminals of the Metro bus service. Frayed tempers could not cool down on Monday when protesters again rampaged through the streets in the presence of riot police.

Police fired water cannon, lobbed tear gas canisters and used batons in an effort to smash the unruly crowds in different parts of the city, including Ferozepur Road, Multan Road, Chungi Amar Sindhu, Bund Road and Ring Road. The paramilitary Rangers were later called in to restore order.



In Youhanabad, which is home to over 100,000 Christians, a violent mob pelted a car with stones, prompting the driver, a woman, to step on the accelerator in an attempt to flee. In the process, however, the driver ran over several protesters.

Medics at the Lahore General Hospital confirmed that two of them died while 11 others were treated for injuries.

Riot police managed to rescue the woman and her children from the mob. Angry protesters also misbehaved with DIG Dr Haider Ashraf who visited the site to pacify the protesters. A senior police official said the protesters blocked roads, threw stones at vehicles, while aerial firing was also witnessed in Youhanabad.

Some protesters were armed with sticks and iron rods, while others carried giant crosses. Rights activist Peter Jacob said that the government has failed to stop the ‘genocide of minorities’ in the country.

“We are on the roads to get justice, we want protection,” said Maqbool Bhatti, a 50-year-old government employee who criticised the authorities for failing to take adequate security measures to safeguard Christians. “The blood of our people will not go in vain, we will take revenge,” shouted protester Simon Paul. “Enough is enough. We will not sit idle this time,” another angry protester Emmanuel Masih said.

Protesters also blocked the Motorway, leaving motorists in a state of confusion. Traffic snarls were seen along the Motorway at different locations. Protesters also set up roadblocks on Bund Road, suspending traffic for several hours on the busy artery.

Christian volunteers, meanwhile, established their own security checkpoints, tying ropes across the roads leading into Youhanabad and patting down worshippers who had come to offer prayers for the dead ahead of funerals planned for Tuesday. Some carried placards with slogans such as “Why do you kill us?”, “Stop killing Christians,” and “Let us live”.

Pastor Sarfaraz said that tempers were still running high, though community leaders were requesting them to stay calm. “Such anger is natural since these people have lost their loved ones in the twin blasts,” he said.

Archbishop Sebastian Shaw said the Catholic Church condemned the terrorist attacks on the Youhanabad churches and demanded strong action against the perpetrators.

The Christian community also staged protests in Karachi and some other urban centres of Sindh. Scores of community members gathered outside the Karachi Press Club to express solidarity with the victims of the Lahore church bombings.

“In June 2014, the Supreme Court had ordered the federal government to form a task force to protect places of worship,” Rev Father Saleh Diego, the director of the National Commission for Justice and Peace, said in his address to the protesters. “This was never done.” According to him, the terrorists were able to attack the churches because the government had failed to implement the court’s order.

“Had the government formed the task force, this attack would have never taken place,” said Father Diego, who was joined at the protest by heads of the Catholic and Protestant churches in Karachi - Archbishop Joseph Coutts, and Bishop Sadiq Daniel. The National Students Federation, meanwhile, held a candlelight vigil and protest in the Essa Nagri neighbourhood of the metropolis.

Demonstrations and rallies were staged in different towns and cities of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Protesters urged the government to investigate the Lahore church bombings on a war footing.

A delegation of civil society and minorities’ representatives left for Lahore to offer condolences to the families of victims. The 20-member delegation comprises Adviser to the CM on Minority Affairs Sardar Soran Singh, All Pakistan Hindu Rights Movement Chairman Haroon Sarbdiyal and Churches of Pakistan Secretary Asif Nawaz. While talking to The Express Tribune, Singh said the people of K-P stand in solidarity with those who lost their loved ones in the brazen bombings.

Rallies and vigils were organised in Quetta and other parts of Balochistan. Condolence references were also held in churches across the province. The largest condolence reference was held in the Methodist Church of Quetta in which hundreds of community members participated. Some angry protestors also blocked Zarghoon Road for vehicular traffic for hours.

In the federal capital, several small rallies converged at the National Press Club under the banner of the United Council of Churches of Islamabad and Rawalpindi. Addressing the protesters, Pastor Samson Sohail said the whole country was suffering due to religious extremism and the Christian community must unite in such times.

Bishop Khalid Pervaiz said the sense of insecurity was growing within minority groups in the wake of the Lahore attacks.


Published in The Express Tribune, March 17^th, 2015.