Islamabad, April 28 (TNS): Archbishop of Pakistan, Dr. Joseph Arshad has called upon Christian community on Saturday to observe mourning day on this Sunday for all minorities and victims of religious intolerance in Pakistan.
Mourning day will be observed for the victims who were targeted due to religious intolerance in the past few months. Including the Quetta blasts at Memorial Church, the brutal murder of Suneel Masih at services hospital Lahore, incidents of target killings of Christians in Quetta and the most recent incident of Asma Yaqoob a Christian girl who was killed after she was burnt with acid, after refusing a marriage proposal of a Muslim man Rizwan Gujjar.
National Commission for Justice and Peace is deeply concerned about the recent wave of terrorism towards minorities in the country and advises the state to revisit its National Action Plan to counter-terrorism and intolerance in the society.
Arshad, Chairperson Emmanuel Yousuf National director NCJP and executive director NCJP Shane Chaudhary have demanded that the government must take serious notice and take steps to resolve this matter and also formulate an independent inquiry commission for investigation.
Chaudhary said that the federal government has recently launched a fatwa known as Paigham-e- Pakistan to counter terrorism, which has been approved and signed by 180 religious scholars of the country.
The narrative will be enforced by political party leaders and religious leaders unanimously.
Emmanuel Yousuf said that these heinous incidents are increasing day by day but the government and related authorities are taking no serious actions.He demanded that National Action Plan for Human rights should be implemented immediately.
His Excellency Arch Bishop, who is also the president of Pakistan Catholic Bishop’s Conference prayed for the souls of the deceased and for the families of the victims.
