A local newspaper reports that the federal government has asked the Punjab authorities to take action against the Center for Social Justice, “guilty” of denouncing abuses of the blasphemy law and forced conversions. The Human Rights Council must rule on the situation in the country in January of next year. The solidarity of Pakistani civil society: “The government should respond to the issues raised instead of denying them.”
Lahore () – Civil society in Lahore is alarmed by a story published by the Pakistani newspaper Daily Jang News, according to which the federal Ministry of the Interior has asked the Punjab government to take action against the Center for Social Justice, a observatory run by Peter Jacob, Christian activist and jurist. The Center reportedly sent a report to the UN Human Rights Council on violations of religious freedom in relation to issues such as blasphemy laws and forced conversions, and the Islamabad government has described it as “a collection of news false”.
At its 42nd session, the Human Rights Council is preparing to conduct its fourth review of the situation in Pakistan, as part of the regular reviews scheduled for each signatory country. On other occasions, the Center for Social Justice had submitted its own documentation on the subject to the UN body, according to the procedures established for civil society organizations.
In a joint note released yesterday, 37 associations from Lahore gathered in the Joint Action Committee for People’s Rights defended the Center for Social Justice, denying the accusation of spreading false information. “The content of the aforementioned report -they affirm- reflects a verifiable situation on the ground with regard to religious freedom. These are issues widely discussed in the courts, in parliamentary bodies and in the country’s information media”.
The government – the note continues – should constructively consider these recommendations, to help solve long-standing problems that are a real source of embarrassment for the country.” The fourth review of Pakistan by the Human Rights Council is scheduled for January 2023 and the government has until October 2022 to present its report It can respond to the issues raised or even act to resolve them, but if violence in the name of religion continues, the government will be held accountable in all the competent offices.
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