Ahmadis fear another attack after intimidation

Pakistan

Ahmadis fear another attack after intimidation

By Mudassir Raja
Published: November 11, 2011

Locals foresee outbreak of violence after banners against the community. PHOTO: REUTERS/FILE

RAWALPINDI: The residents of F block, Satellite Town fear for their safety after a number of banners cropped up, demanding that Ahmadis leave the area and terming the community’s activities “unconstitutional”.

The banners are anonymous, though their demands are clear: for Ahmadis to cease all acts of worship in F block.

The Ahmadi community now fears a recurrence of recent attacks on their community, such as in May 2010 in Lahore when 93 people were killed.

Sherjeel Mir, who leads the campaign against the minority, calls Ahmadis ‘Qadianis’ – a term with pejorative connotations. “The Qadianis, a few years ago, purchased a building in Satellite Town from their own people and set up a worship place, in addition to carrying out preaching in the residential areas, creating problems for neighbours”, he says.

Mir says that he has no objections to any community living in the area; his problem is with the congregation of religious groups. He adds that Ahmadis have put up barriers and posted private guards on the main road adjacent to the hospital. Mir, a businessman, even claims the Ahmadi community has snipers on the rooftop of the building, which he terms a “fortress”.

Alarmingly, he adds that if there are delays in dealing with the problem, there could be serious repercussions.

A number of Ahmadis, when interviewed, say they have done no wrong.

“The building was built after Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya purchased the land. Being a registered organisation, and under the relevant rules, they can carry out worship in the building”, said a senior member of Ahmadi community, who asked not to be identified.

The man added that moveable barriers and a few young security guards were arranged every Friday after last year’s attack in Lahore. The district administration granted permission for this.

“We have removed the barriers and young guards from the main road in front of our building after some people objected to our security measures”, he said.

The community member also justified shifting premises, as the community had previously gathered at a building near Committee Chowk on Benazir Bhutto Road.

He emphasised that his community had committed no unconstitutional or unlawful activities and pleaded for the hate campaign to stop so Ahmadis could feel safe living in the area.

Superintendent of Police for Rawal Town area Malik Matloob Ahmed ruled out any chance the law and order situation might turn sour.

Ahmed said he had referred both sides to contact either the town municipal administrator or the DCO to establish whether the building purchased by the Ahmadis was a residential building or a place of worship. The police will be in a better position to tackle the issue after the determination of the actual status of the building, he added. The SP also said the banners and hoardings against Ahmadis would be removed.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11th, 2011.

Copyrighted © 2011 The Express Tribune News Network
URL: http://tribune.com.pk/story/290063/ahmadis-fear...

Local govts ‘main actors’ in faith attacks

HEADLINES Tue, 07/27/2010 8:57 AM

Local govts ‘main actors’ in faith attacks

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The trend of employing violent means to suppress the religious freedom of minority groups is escalating, with local governments acting as the greatest violator, a report shows.

The research, carried out by the Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace, shows there were 28 attacks on Christian churches between January and July this year. The figure is higher than 2009’s year-end total of 18 cases and 2008’s 17 attacks.

According to Setara deputy chairman Bonar Tigor Naipospos, the trend was troublesome because it reflected a continuing trend of violations against the constitutional and human rights of certain citizens.

“It’s true that no congregation members were hospitalized from being beaten up. But isn’t intimidation, the banning of houses of worship, and the sealing of churches by government a form of violence?” The sealing of churches and the refusal to grant building permits top the list of major violations.

The forceful closure of churches, the burning of churches and obstruction of services are next, with three cases each.

As an example, Bekasi administration sealed the Filadelfia Batak Protestant church in January after protests from hard-line religious groups contested the absence of the church’s building permit. Church officials said they had obeyed all the government’s requirements.

A 2006 joint ministerial decree outlines requirements needed to build a house of worship, including obtaining signatures from congregations and residents living nearby, as well as approval from the local administration.

The research supports the finding that name local administrations, organizations and citizens as the main violators, with 12, 10 and five cases attributed to each.

“The puritan and radical Islamic movement is strong in West Java,” Bonar said. “Sixteen cases were seen in Jakarta’s satellite cities of Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi and even in Karawang.”

Political motives, economic interests involving illegal extortion, and ideological clashes of “intolerant groups” refusing the presence of those with different religion mired most cases, he added.

“The local administration sees these groups as assets for local elections,” he said. “They bow to pressure from mass organizations that insist the churches’ presence and activities have caused unrest.”

Bonar said churches in Jakarta mainly faced trouble in renovating and expanding their buildings, which require building permits.

“They have to start over again by obtaining 60 signatures from residents living around the church and sometimes residents refuse to provide signatures,” he said.

Bonar urged the government to take legal action against violent groups as a deterrent for future cases.

However, the government has remained unresponsive to intolerant groups who violate the Constitution.

“We have a hesitant President. He is too busy maintaining his image,” he said. “It’s time to show a strong and definite leadership that would decide the political future of the country.”

The report recommends President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono review the 2006 joint ministerial decree and facilitate the establishment of houses of worship that have suffered rejections from local administrations and society.

A Catholic priest from the Indonesian Bishops Council, Father Beni Susetyo, said the problem lay in regional administrations’ inconsistency and lack of commitment to complying with regulations on the establishment of houses of worship.

“We are witnessing the politics of negligence, which makes people feel discrimination has taken place because the Constitution grants everyone the right to practice religions. If [local] administrations can be intimidated by those who commit violence, this country is doomed,” he said. (gzl)

URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/07/27/local-gov...-attacks.html

Religious minorities continue to suffer in many countries, UN expert says

--- UN News Center

Religious minorities continue to suffer in many countries, UN expert says

23 October 2008 — Religious minorities in different parts of the world continue to be persecuted and discriminated against based on their beliefs, with some living in “perpetual threat,” according to an independent United Nations expert, who added that the problem is prevalent across a wide range of countries.

“At national levels, I see that religious minorities continue to suffer, and the more despotic a regime, the more suffering of religious minorities,” Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on the freedom of religion or belief, said in an interview with the UN News Centre.

At the same time, she pointed out that violations of this basic human right – which manifest themselves in, among others, not being allowed to gather together for worship, desecration of religious sites, and being prevented from making pilgrimages – do not just occur in countries with certain types of political systems.

“One would have imagined that such incidents only take place in countries which have been unfortunately left behind, where political systems and social values have remained stunted,” she stated. “But these also take place in countries which have very good democratic credentials and which have progressed both socially and politically.”

In more multicultural and diverse societies, tensions can be expected to arise, she noted. “But the kind of animosity that one sees is inhuman. And the way we have received reports of how people kill each other in the name of religion and the manner in which that killing is done… shows the venom people have towards each other simply because of difference of religion or belief,” she added. “And I think that really is very frightening.”

One example of this is India, which, with its multitude of cultures, languages and religions, “oozes” diversity, she said, noting that the country is a vibrant democracy and has many people who are committed to secularism.

“And yet some of the worst forms of killings have taken place there,” said Ms. Jahangir, referring to the communal tensions and violence that the South Asian nation has witnessed over the years.

The Special Rapporteur added that violations are perpetrated not just by individuals or groups but also by States themselves.

“There are still States that heavily discriminate… that persecute religious minorities. And these minorities live in perpetual threat,” said Ms. Jahangir, who continues to receive reports of arrests, torture and intimidation by “States and their agents.”

The groups that she receives reports about include the Baha’is in Iran, Buddhists in Tibet and Ahmadis – a religious group that identifies itself as Muslim – in a number of countries.

An important related issue, and one which Ms. Jahangir highlighted yesterday in her speech to the General Assembly’s third committee (social, humanitarian and cultural), is the compulsory mentioning of one’s religion on official identity cards or passports, which she stressed carries a serious risk of abuse.

“I don’t think there is any reason to indicate religion on identity cards or passports,” she reiterated today. “But there can be a situation where, for the purposes of governance and for the purposes of giving affirmative action, like in India and Pakistan, people have to identify their religions, or for census purposes.

“Now that might be necessary, but it’s not necessary for them to always carry this passport or identity card that shows their religion,” she added.

URL : www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=28688&Cr=religion&Cr1