Persecution of Religious Minorities: Pakistan

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Thursday 11th February 2016 Westminster Hall

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

It is a pleasure to speak on this issue, and I thank the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden (Siobhain McDonagh) for bringing it to Westminster Hall. She has given us an opportunity to participate in a debate on a matter that is close to our hearts and that we wish to express our opinions on. I declare an interest as the chair of the all-party parliamentary group on international freedom of religion or belief, and of the APPG on Pakistan minorities. Both groups were started last year and, as an indication of the need for them, the APPG on international freedom of religion or belief has almost 70 members and the APPG on Pakistan minorities has about 20 to 25 members. That indicates the importance of the debate.

We have heard many representations recently. The APPG on international freedom of religion or belief held an inquiry on Pakistan, which illustrated clearly the discrimination against some of the people who are here in the Public Gallery and others whom we represent. The level of discrimination against religious organisations and individuals in Pakistan, such as Ahmadis, Christians, Shi’as, Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs and Jews, is immense. That was clear to me and to everyone involved in the inquiry. We hope that the final statement on that inquiry will be made by the end of February or the beginning of March.

The state of religious freedom in Pakistan has clearly become completely inconsistent with Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s founding vision to make Pakistan a home for all religions and all religious minorities. It is probably pertinent and helpful to hear a few words from his address to the Constituent Assembly in August 1947, when he said:

“You are free; you are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or to any other places of worship in the state of Pakistan. You may belong to any religion, caste or creed”.

What a difference between his speech in August 1947 and the realities of February 2016. The wording of the motion tabled by the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden asks us to consider the Ahmadiyyas, and other Members have illustrated the issues for them well.

The clear discrimination against the Ahmadiyyas and Pakistan’s blasphemy laws have fostered a climate of religiously motivated violence and persecution focused on those people, who we know well and who the hon. Member for Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Margaret Ferrier) referred to as a gentle people, which they are. They reach out to all religions, as we from all religions should all be doing.

Attacks have taken place on the Ahmadiyyas in recent times. On 27 July 2014 a mob of more than 100 people attacked them, setting fire to their homes, and as a result a woman and her two granddaughters died of smoke inhalation and another women suffered a miscarriage. Police said that they had the names of 420 people, as the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden said, and that charges would be brought against them. Twenty were named, but since then nothing has happened. Therefore people can understand the frustration we feel on behalf of those in Pakistan. The Minister will know that I believe that sometimes we have to be the voice of the voiceless, who need us to speak on their behalf.

From my encounters of what Christians and other minorities experience in Pakistan, we know that the freedoms that Muhammad Ali Jinnah spoke of are not the reality today. There are many cases of church bombings, mob attacks on Christian communities and rape against women and girls, which the hon. Member for Congleton (Fiona Bruce) illustrated clearly. Can we begin to imagine the horror for those people? There have even been attempts at forced conversion and marriage at ages as early as 12 to 14, when it is impossible to take it in.

I am privileged to be the Member for Strangford, where we have good relationships between those of all religious views. We always have had that, even through the worst times of the troubles. We have a mosque in Newtownards, and whenever there has been a focus on the people there in in my constituency, I have made it my business to go and speak to them to reassure them. I met them on a Friday when they were having their service to ensure that they knew their Member of Parliament was going to speak for them, as he should do.

In Pakistan, regardless of which minority faith an individual belongs to, all are subject to similar practices of discrimination or persecution. That is a fact in Pakistan today. The much maligned blasphemy laws have been used as a vehicle for egregious violations of religious freedom against all minorities. The United States commission on international religious freedom says of those laws:

“They inappropriately position governments as arbiters of truth or religious rightness, empowering officials to enforce particular views”.

The Government in Pakistan clearly use that for their own ends. The laws also embolden extremists to commit violent acts against perceived blasphemers. We have seen illustrations in films of people in high positions in some religions violently and aggressively speaking out against other religions. That cannot be allowed to continue. False accusations of blasphemy have served as a pretext to incite violence and permit lynch mobs.

The Shi’a community has experienced a number of attacks as well, one of which left 20 people dead and dozens injured on 13 February 2015. Its mosques have been attacked by militant groups, with a disregard for human life that is of serious concern. More recently, the killing of some 40 Shi’a Muslims in Karachi in May 2015 marked a new low in sectarian violence that has left Pakistan’s religious minorities fearing for their lives. There have been many other attacks on churches and mosques across Pakistan, one of which left 60 people dead. The Pakistani authorities must bring to justice the perpetrators of violence committed in the name of religion in those and many previous attacks through fair trials and without recourse to the death penalty—in other words, they must make the perpetrators accountable under the law, which they unfortunately have not been up to now.

The British Pakistani Christian Association estimates that about 50% of blasphemy charges are against religious minorities. Given the population size, that means minorities are 10 times more likely to be targeted with blasphemy charges. That is the reality. Pakistan’s National Commission for Justice and Peace estimates that out of 1,060 blasphemy cases over the past 25 years, 450 have been against Muslims, 457 against Ahmadis, 132 against Christians and 21 against Hindus. That clearly illustrates the focus of persecution against religious minorities in Pakistan through blasphemy laws.

Although Pakistan is yet to execute anyone charged with blasphemy, mob violence often ensues against the accused. Their families, local communities and lawyers are also targeted. All too often, the blasphemy laws have been used as an instrument for revenge in personal vendettas, property disputes, political rivalries, marital disputes and religious differences. Religion is often used in personal vendettas—“We’ll get them because it suits our circumstances.” It is used for people’s own ends; how can we ever let that happen?

As the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan highlights, other state bodies such as the police are fearful, prejudiced and often—I say this with real respect—incompetent in cases of blasphemy. The police fail to investigate cases properly or follow correct procedures. Incidents have occurred where those accused of blasphemy have been killed by the police or prison guards. Where can we be safe if we are not safe from our attackers in prison, and if we are not safe from the police? That is the reality of life in Pakistan today. That is why this Westminster Hall debate is so important, and why we are so grateful to the hon. Member for Mitcham and Morden for securing it and giving us the chance to speak on this issue.

I would like to make some comments about the persecution of Christians in Pakistan. The hon. Member for Congleton outlined some examples, and I would like to add to them. There was the case of the Christian road sweeper from Lahore who was sentenced to death by hanging after accusations of blasphemy following an argument among friends. He has not been hanged but has been fined 200,000 rupees. There was the case of the woman sentenced to death on 8 November 2010 under section 295C of Pakistan’s penal code for allegedly insulting the Prophet Mohammed during an argument with a Muslim lady. A price was put on her head.

There was the case of attacks on churches in Lahore that left 14 people killed and another 70 injured. There was the attack on a church in Peshawar, where some 80 people were killed. All those things are added to our other concerns, such as the fact that young Christian and Hindu girls are forced into marriage at the earliest age. There was also the case of the late Punjab governor, Salmaan Taseer, who was killed by his own official police guard for criticising blasphemy laws. The killer was revered by thousands around Pakistan. What is wrong when that can happen?

With the rise of mobile communication technology, individuals’ photographs can be easily obtained and shared with affiliate extremist groups where perceived blasphemers are suspected to have fled, so there is often no safe haven whatever within Pakistan. Pakistan’s continuing refusal to reform or repeal the blasphemy laws creates an environment of persistent vulnerability for minority communities, placing all members of such communities in real risk.

One of the most brutal spates of violence, to which the hon. Member for Congleton referred, was against a Pakistani couple on 14 November 2014. Shama Bibi and Shahzad Masih were lynched and burned to death in a brick kiln by a crowd of some 1,200, who were incited to violence by a false rumour—and it was false—that they had committed blasphemy by burning pages of the Koran. Although there were some arrests, most of the mob got away, and there is a strong suspicion that those who were arrested and charged will be acquitted free of charge, as is usually the case. The couple’s children were left orphans and watched the butchery and horror of what happened to their parents.

That is the reality for Christians and other minorities in Pakistan. Discrimination and persecution are at times facilitated by the inaction of police and are sometimes even instigated by them. There is discrimination in education, in employment, in health, in politics and at every level of society. As a Christian, I find it particularly worrying that Pakistan is currently ranked sixth on Open Doors’ world watch list of the worst persecutors of Christians. Its score of 79 out of 100 gives it a classification of “extreme persecution”. That is not a score we would want to have.

The USCIRF has consistently deemed Pakistan a country of particular concern, which again underlines this issue. According to Aid to the Church in Need, Christians in Pakistan find themselves at the centre of a “crisis”, suffering

“some of the bloodiest persecution in the country’s history”

and facing ever more calls to abandon their faith, discrimination at work and at home and attacks on their livelihood. In practice, without the right to freely express their religion in words or actions, some Christians feel the Government are failing to provide Christians with the right to be Pakistani.

I conclude by asking the Minister three questions. What support are the UK Government providing Pakistani authorities to ensure the protection of religious minorities across Pakistan? Will the UK Government put pressure on the Pakistani authorities to reform the blasphemy laws as a matter of urgency, to provide effective safeguards against their abuse, and to investigate and prosecute for attacks on religious minorities in a thorough and transparent manner?

We in this House are charged with being the voice for the voiceless. We must speak out for those who have no voice and cannot speak for themselves. Today, this House has done that, and we look forward to the Minister’s response.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Ellwood]

I met the governor of Punjab—he happens to be the brother of the Prime Minister of Pakistan, so he has access to the powerbase—prior to meeting the APPG, so I did not specifically raise the plight of the Ahmadiyya community, but I did raise other matters. The plan is that I will visit the country in the near future. I, the Foreign Secretary and others have taken many opportunities to raise these issues and the plight of other minorities in Pakistan.

Our high commissioners are being changed over, and this morning I met Tom Drew, our next high commissioner, who is about to depart for Islamabad, and we discussed these very issues. He is aware of the concern and of the fact that this debate is happening today. We have also raised the issue with the Pakistani high commissioner in London, and I assure the hon. Lady that the next time I meet the Chief Minister of Punjab I will raise it with him, too.

[Jim Shannon]

I understand that the Minister’s voice is under some pressure; we can appreciate that. I just gently say to him that there will be a report from the all-party group on international freedom of religion or belief, which will be the Pakistan inquiry. It might be helpful for him to receive a copy. If he is happy with that, when we get a chance we will ensure that he receives a copy of the report—the inquiry was chaired by Lord Alton of the other place—as it might be helpful when it comes to presenting the case on behalf of all those religious minorities in Pakistan.

[Mr Ellwood]

I will be very grateful to receive that; I thank the hon. Gentleman very much indeed for the offer.

In addition to the conversations that I have already mentioned, in August last year the Foreign Secretary expressed our concerns about religious freedom and the misuse of the blasphemy laws in Pakistan. The misuse of those laws is at the core of what we are discussing here. Our concern is that sometimes judges are not willing to enforce these blasphemy laws because of concerns about their own safety. We need to encourage and further advance greater maturity of the justice system in Pakistan.

I have also impressed on the Pakistani high commissioner to the UK, Syed Abbas, the importance not only of respecting the rights of religious minorities in Pakistan but the importance of the Ahmadiyya, Shi’a, Hazara and Christian communities, many of which we have referred to in debates here in Westminster Hall and in the main Chamber.

We also work through the European Union to promote human rights overseas. For example, the EU preferential market access scheme has helped to incentivise progress on human rights in Pakistan. This has led to the creation of a cell to help with the implementation of international human rights obligations. Also, Pakistan has submitted overdue UN treaty reports and re-established a Government ministry specifically to lead on human rights. That is a very important and welcome development. This progress is encouraging, but we cannot be complacent. We recognise the need to maintain the pressure on the Government of Pakistan to honour their commitments to human rights, and we will continue to do that.

I turn now to some of the other matters that have been raised this afternoon. First, there is the issue of international aid. Aid is provided not on a national basis but on a federal basis, so we discuss these matters with the various chief ministers in Pakistan. As hon. Members know, the Foreign Office does not lead on aid, but I promise hon. Members that I will meet the relevant Minister in the Department for International Development to make sure that we can see that aid is being properly distributed in Pakistan.

Hon. Members will be aware that we have a proud legacy of making sure that aid goes to vulnerable people and is not somehow tied up in conditionality. The problem with placing conditions on the aid that we give is that we can end up denying it to the very vulnerable people whom we want to support. So we need to look at cognitive measures that will enhance and encourage change, but also recognise that the DFID contribution to Pakistan is immense. Indeed, I think that it is one of the highest aid contributions in the world.