PAKISTAN: The federal government must intervene to stop the killings of Ahmadis

News / AHRC News

PAKISTAN: The federal government must intervene to stop the killings of Ahmadis

September 5, 2011

Another Ahmadi killed in hate crime against religious minorities

The religious minority group of Ahmadis is under constant threat of religious hate crimes and no serious efforts have been initiated by the government to provide protection the community.

In the latest incident a member of the Ahmadiyya community was murdered after receiving death threats from an extremist group who is allegedly patronized by the Punjab provincial government. Mr. Naseem Ahmad Butt, 55, was shot dead by four men as he lay sleeping inside his house in Muzaffar Colony, Faisalabad, Punjab province. According to his brother Khalid Pervez Butt, at about 1am, the attackers entered by climbing over the walls. “The boys were between 20 and 25 years old. Three of them kept a watch on the door as one kicked my brother. When he was awake, the killer said “You are Ahmadi and liable to be killed”, Khalid told daily The Express Tribune.

The attacker then shot Naseem in the chest while another bullet ruptured his kidney. A car and a bicycle were used in the attack, Khalid said. Naseem, was a worker at a power loom factory and leaves behind his widow, four daughters and a son. His first cousin, Naseer Butt, was also killed last year when he was passing through a crowded market place in the same Faisalabad city. Police have made no effort to trace his killers and the case has been declared as a blind murder.

In a hate campaign a band religious group is openly issuing pamphlets calling on citizens to kill people from the Ahmadiyya community. This should be done in the open and crowded market places as a Jihad (holy war). Killing, beating and punishing them would be rewarded by God.

The Asian Human Rights Commission has informed the authorities about the plan to target Ahmadis but no action whatsoever has been taken and this religious minority group has been left to the mercy of militant religious groups. Please see: PAKISTAN: Extremists openly plan to kill hundreds of Ahmadis–government turns a blind eye. In this instance the pamphlets were published by the All Pakistan Student Khatm-e-Nabowat Federation and were issued by the information department of Aalmi Majlis-e-Khatm-eNabowat Shafaat-e- Muhammadi with their phone numbers and email address.

In the hate crimes against the Ahmadiyya community more than 111 Ahmadis have been killed in target killings since 1984 when an ordinance against Ahmadis were issued by a military dictator. In May last year, more than 88 people were killed in the provincial capital Lahore when gunmen opened fire at two separate places of worship and, one year on, no progress has been made by investigators.

The government of President Asif Zadari must take immediate action to protect the Ahmadiyya community and bring to a halt the hate crimes being committed openly against them. There is no question as to the identities of the religious extremists who are calling for a Jihad against the Ahmadiyya community as they openly express their hate speeches from the public address systems of their mosques. The provincial government of the Punjab has been implicit in assisting the Jihad and makes no effort to conceal the fact that they openly support the extremist. Once again the government of President Zadari knowing that one of their provincial governments is openly supporting the Jihad against the Ahmadiyya community has done nothing.

The federal government must intervene with all haste to rein in the extremists and seriously question a provincial government that encourages violence against the people of Pakistan regardless of their religious faith or ethnicity.

Document ID: AHRC-STM-115-2011
URL: www.humanrights.asia/news/ahrc-news/AHRC-STM-115-2011

Pakistani terrorists threaten Ahmadi community

14/06/2011

Pakistani terrorists threaten Ahmadi community

Islamabad, June 14 (IANS) Pakistani terrorists have issued a hit-list of prominent businessmen from the Ahmadi community, saying those who ‘misguide’ the country would be punished with death.

Terrorists have begun distributing pamphlets that say they would start ‘target killings’ of prominent members of the Ahmadi community. The attacks would be launched in Faisalabad, the Daily Times reported.

The Ahmadiyya is an Islamic religious movement founded near the end of the 19th century, originating with the life and teachings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908). The followers of the Ahmadiyya sect are referred to as Ahmadis or Ahmadi Muslims.

Sources in law enforcement agencies said different terrorist outfits have joined hands against the Ahmadi community.

The outfits said the Ahmadis of the country were involved in conspiracies against Islam and Pakistan.

The pamphlets state that the act of killing an Ahmadi made an individual a ‘holy warrior’ and the person who would do so ‘would also be blessed by the Holy Prophet on the Day of Judgement’, according to the daily.

‘O Muslim brothers. There are some people among us who are misguiding us and their punishment is death,’ said one of the pamphlets, while another asked if there was anybody who had the courage to teach the Ahmadis a lesson.

One of the pamphlets was distributed by an extremist group that calls itself All Pakistan Students Khatam-e-Nabuwat Federation.

A few Ahmadis told the Daily Times they had been victims of constant persecution by terrorists for decades.

Asian Human Rights Commission Representative Baseer Naveed said it was a matter of serious concern that such pamphlets were being distributed.

Naveed said the government bothered to take steps only after people actually start getting murdered.

©Indo-Asian News Service
URL: http://news.in.msn.com/international/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5208767

Terrorists chalk out plan to target Ahmedis

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Terrorists chalk out plan to target Ahmedis

By Afnan Khan

LAHORE: Terrorists have chalked out a plan regarding target killings of prominent members of the Ahmedi community in the country, starting from Faisalabad, which is the second biggest industrial hub of the province and hometown of Punjab Law Minister, Rana Sanaullah.

Sources in the local law enforcement agencies also revealed that different terrorist organisations have joined together in the mission and they have initiated the campaign through distribution of pamphlets and organising conferences in local seminaries against the Ahmedis.

They also issued a list of prominent Ahmedi businessmen living in Faisalabad and surrounding areas by mentioning their names and addresses, saying that the Ahmedi citizens of the country were involved in conspiracies against Islam and Pakistan.

The pamphlets, containing hit-list of locals who have been working and living in the areas since generations, also state that the act of killing an Ahmedi made an individual a holy warrior and the person who would do so would also be blessed by the Holy Prophet (PBUH) on the Day of Judgment.

“O Muslim brothers. There are some people among us who are misguiding us and their punishment is death,” one of the pamphlets read, further asking if there was anybody who had the courage to teach the Ahmedis a lesson.

The distributed hate material urges people to wake up, become fearless holy warriors and start killing Ahmedis.

One of the pamphlets was distributed by an extremist group named All Pakistan Students Khatam-e-Nabuwat Federation. The hit-list of Ahmedi citizens not only contains names of 32 prominent businessmen but also comprises senior teachers and prominent doctors. Some of the local Ahmedis, while talking to told Daily Times, said, that they had remained a victim of constant persecution by the state and terrorists for decades but none of the previous incidents matched this newly organised campaign against them.

They added that they had informed the government and law enforcement authorities about the threats but to no avail. They said that the local Ahmedis are living under extreme tension after knowing about this campaign and there is no surety from any side, be it the government or any other concerned authority.

Asian Human Rights Commission Representative, Baseer Naveed, told Daily Times that it was a matter of serious concern that these pamphlets were being distributed openly in a city from where more than four ministers were in the cabinets of Punjab and the federal government. He said that the local Ahmedis had requested these ministers many a times in the past to help them, however, they turned a deaf ear to all their appeals.

He stated that a large number of Ahmedis as well as Christians had been living in Faisalabad and its neighbouring cities since the past many years, however, recently the killings, abductions and torture by extremists against these communities had increased under the very nose of the government.

Naveed added that it was a sorry state of affairs that our government had become so reckless that they would only bother to take any steps only when people sctually start getting murdered.

He said that it was astonishing that the Provincial Law Minister Rana Sanaullah and opposition leader in Punjab Assembly (PA), Raja Riaz, even though belonging to the same city, conveniently turned a blind eye to the entire situation. Sanaullah was also accused of having ties with a banned terrorist outfit in the area, whose operatives were also accused of planning, executing and leading the massacre of Christians in Gojra in 2009.

However, Punjab government spokesperson and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz Senator Pervaiz Rashid told Daily Times that he was not aware about the issue but will immediately ask the local law enforcers to probe and take action against these hate mongers.

He said that the Punjab government had a clear policy regarding protecting the rights of each and every citizen and they will not let these terrorists hijack the whole society. He said that these are the same people who were involved in bombing mosques, shrines and other religious places and their sole aim is to sabotage the country but the government will deal with these people through iron hands.

URL: www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011\06\14\story_14-6-2011_pg13_1

Textile City: Politicians turn blind eye to hate pamphlets

Pakistan Punjab

Textile City: Politicians turn blind eye to hate pamphlets

By Shamsul Islam
Published: June 13, 2011

Rights organisation fears mass target killings of Ahmadis in Faisalabad.

FAISALABAD: A rights organisation said it feared large-scale targeted killing of Ahmadis in Faisalabad after pamphlets labelling members of the Ahmadiyya community “Wajibul Qatl” (‘liable to be murdered’), and inciting people to publicly attack followers of the faith, were openly and widely circulated in Faisalabad.

In a statement issued here on Saturday, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) said that “the government has been made fully aware of the threats to the Ahmadiyya community [and] the AHRC urges the government to take immediate action to prevent such killings and destruction of their industrial and commercial establishments.”

The statement bemoaned the insensitivity of elected representatives from the district to the precarious situation brewing in the city.

“The Ahmadiyya community has informed all members of national and provincial assemblies elected from Faisalabad and the local administration through the district commissioner of this serious threat but no one is taking action,” the statement said.

“It is astonishing that provincial law minister Rana Sanaullah, and leader of the opposition in Punjab Assembly Raja Riaz are both aware of the mass appeal to kill Ahmadis but both of them are turning a blind eye to the situation,” it added.

The politicians fear losing their right-wing vote bank by standing up for Ahmadiyya community, the statement said.

“It is alleged that Rana Sanaullah who belongs to Faisalabad, had previously supported the movement against Ahmadis by providing official support to Majlis-e-Khatm-e-Nabuwwat,” the statement added.

The AHRC said it has received information that a plan has been chalked out to kill the owners and family members of 36 commercial and industrial establishments belonging to Ahmadiyya community.

If target killings start, the government will be answerable not only to the Ahmadiyya community but also to citizens of Pakistan and the international community, the statement added.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 13th, 2011.

URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/187855/textile...pamphlets/

PAKISTAN: Extremists openly plan to kill hundreds of Ahmadis—government turns a blind eye

News / AHRC News

PAKISTAN: Extremists openly plan to kill hundreds of Ahmadis—government turns a blind eye

June 11, 2011

The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information from Faisalabad city of Punjab province, the second largest industrial and commercial city of the country that a plan has been chalked out to kill the owners and their family members of 36 commercial and industrial establishments belonging to Ahmadiyya community. The plan includes the people working in those establishments which means more than 150 persons are targeted. Doctors and other professionals are not exempt from this threat. For two weeks now pamphlets and advertisements have been distributed calling the citizens to kill people from the Ahmadis community. This should be done in the open and crowded market places as a Jihad (holy war). Killing, beating and punishing them would be rewarded by God. The pamphlets were published by the All Pakistan Student Khatm-e-Nabowat Federation and were issued by the information department of Aalmi Majlis-e-Khatm-eNabowat Shafaat-e- Muhammadi with their phone numbers and email address.

The Asian Human Rights Commission cannot reproduced here the copy of the pamphlet for security reasons as it bears the names of commercial and industrial establishments and the names of targeted persons. However, we reproduce below the English translation of the pamphlet which was written in the local language, Urdu.

• The original leaflet and its translation in English are available for download here: Leaflet of Ahmadis killing announcement (Urdu, English). For security reasons, the names of the Ahmadiyya community members who were targeted in the leaflet have been removed. The English translation is on page two.

These pamphlets are being distributed on a mass scale, openly in the city from where more than four ministers are in the cabinets of Punjab and federal governments. These ministers have failed to take action on this plan of killing people from a religious minority group because they fear these extremists as they themselves would also be declared supporters of Ahmadis or infidels. In Faisalabad and its neighboring cities a good number of Ahmadis and Christians have been residing for at least a century but for some decades now these minority community people have been killed and abducted by the extreme Muslim organizations to purify the ‘Muslim areas’.

The Ahmadiyya community has informed all the members of national and provincial assemblies elected from Faisalabad and the local administration through the Commissioner of the district of this serious threat but no one is taking action. Indeed, nothing will happen until the killings start. It is astonishing that the provincial law minister, Mr. Rana Sanaullah, and leader of the opposition in Punjab assembly, Mr. Raja Riaz, are from the same city and they both know about the mass appeal to kill the Ahmadis but both of them are turning a blind eye to the situation and be doing so show their unwillingness to go against the Muslim extremists as they would lose their constituencies of Muslim voters.

It is alleged that Mr. Rana Sanaullah, who also belongs to Faisalabad, had previously supported the movement against Ahmedis by providing every official support to Majlis-e-Khatm-e-Nabowat (the movement directly aimed at Ahmadis) in holding public meetings from the government funds.

The killing list prepared by Muslim extremists mention also mentions one industrial group from which three partners were killed in a target killing during the month of April 2011 in a span of one week. But even then the administration and ministers did not take note of such threats.

In the recent years when the government of Shahbaz Sharif came to power in Punjab province the Ahmadis and Christians were targeted and many were killed, their houses were burnt and many were booked under the Blasphemy laws including their women and children. On May 28, 2010, over 88 Ahmadis were killed in two gun and bomb attacks at Ahmadi places of worship in the Garhi Shahu and Model Town areas in Lahore. Investigations were launched and arrests were made but little has come out of the investigations. During 2010, 99 members of the community were killed and 64 Ahmadis were charged with blasphemy.

After the distribution of the lists of the Ahmadis to be killed it is clear that in the coming days there would be target killings of Ahmadis at a large scale level. Now that the government has been made fully aware of the threats to the Ahmadis community the AHRC urges the government to take immediate action to prevent such killings and the destruction of their industrial and commercial establishments. Once the killings start it will be too late and the government will not be able to use the excuse that they had not time to prepare. The government will be answerable, not only to the Ahmadiyya community but also the citizens of Pakistan and the international community. Action must be taken against any person or group openly declaring their nefarious designs of mass killings.

In the past it was also observed that in the case of Aasia Bibi, a Christian lady booked in Blasphemy laws, the Muslim fundamentalists were openly announcing the killing of those persons who are providing support to those accused of blasphemy. Huge rewards were offered to persons who killed these people But the government in pursuit of its appeasement policies towards the extremists have ignored the announcements and the result were the murders of former governor of Punjab, Mr. Salman Taseer, and former federal minister of minorities, Mr. Shabaz Bhatti. Therefore the time is ripe for the government to maintain the rule of law and prosecute all those who want to kill the members of religious minority group of Ahmadiyya by provoking the ordinary Muslims of Pakistan.

Document ID: AHRC-STM-077-2011
URL: www.humanrights.asia/news/ahrc-news/AHRC-STM-077-2011

Targeting minorities: No friend to Ahmadis in Faisalabad

Pakistan Punjab

Targeting minorities: No friend to Ahmadis in Faisalabad

By Shamsul Islam
Published: June 9, 2011

Pamphlets calling them liable to be murdered and inciting people to kill them being openly distributed.

FAISALABAD: Pamphlets labelling members of the Ahmadiyya community “Wajibul Qatl” (‘liable to be murdered’), and inciting people to publicly attack followers of the faith, are being openly and widely circulated in Punjab’s textile industry hub Faisalabad, The Express Tribune has learnt.

Even more startling is the fact that the pamphlet contains a list of names of Ahmadi industrialists, doctors and businesses. The first name is that of a cloth house, three owners of which were gunned down in a brazen attack last year.

The pamphlets bear the name of the All-Pakistan Students Khatm-e-Nubuwat Federation and are being handed out at all main shopping plazas and important commercial centres of the city.

The pamphlet says: “To shoot such people is an act of jihad and to kill such people is an act of sawab.”

Reacting sharply over distribution of such literature, Umoor-e-Aama Jama’at Ahmadiyya, Faisalabad, has said that the propaganda campaign being carried out unhindered by some fanatic religious groups under patronage of law-enforcing agencies and the provincial government.

The jama’at has also blamed the Punjab government for ignoring myriad protests lodged by the province’s Ahmadiyya community. It says that such religious fanatics are being encouraged by inaction on the part of government agencies.

The jama’at’s secretary Mahmood Ahmad, in an email addressed to the province’s home secretary and police chief, and Faisalabad’s regional police officer, has written: “We have time and again approached police authorities against hate literature but nothing has been done so far. This collapse of law and order can be traced to the cowardice, inefficiency and incompetence of law enforcement agencies.”

Ahmad points out that it is easy to trace the pamphlet’s source as even its publisher’s mobile number is brazenly given in print. This also shows the publisher’s disdain towards Pakistan’s laws and agencies enforcing them.

“Our mouths have been taped shut. Our hands have been tied. I am writing this in the hope that somewhere somehow this letter finds its way to a patriotic police or other official who takes a fearless stand for the sake of Pakistan,” the email says.

Corroborating the view expressed by Ahmad, police officials seemed reluctant to take the matter seriously.

City police chief Rai Tahir Hussain also said he had no information about the pamphlets.

Faisalabad DSP Mian Khalid also pleaded ignorance on the matter, and said that the Kotwali SHO would have the information.

When contacted, SHO Malik Muhammad Shahid said that since no complaint has been made, there was no question of taking action.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 9th, 2011.

URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/185179/targeting...in-faisalabad/