Pakistan: Ahmadiyya

(asked on 2nd December 2020) - View Source

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart on the (a) inclusion of Ahmadi Muslims on the single electoral list and (b) importance of universal suffrage.


Answered by
Nigel Adams Portrait
Nigel Adams
This question was answered on 8th December 2020

The UK remains deeply concerned by reports of discrimination and violence against religious communities in Pakistan, including against the Ahmadiyya Muslim community. Discrimination and intolerance based on religion or belief can take many forms, including restricted constitutional rights. Elections are the key test of a functioning democracy, allowing citizens to choose how they are governed and by whom. The UK believes that no one should be excluded because of their religion or belief.

We regularly raise human rights as a concern in our dialogue with the Government of Pakistan at a senior level. Most recently, the Minister of State for South Asia and Minister responsible for Human Rights, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, raised our concerns about the reports of discrimination and violence against the Ahmadiyya Muslim community with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister, Dr Shireen Mazari, on 16 November.

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