For Paul Bhatti, security in Pakistan is a problem and the government is unable to manage the emergency
Islamabad (AsiaNews) - The killing of Christian provincial lawmaker in Baluchistan, the attack by extremists against the Karachi airport and the storming of a courthouse in Islamabad in March show the government's inability to address the problems of Pakistan, above all security, said Paul Bhatti, a former federal minister for National Harmony and leader of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA), who spoke to AsiaNews.
The current administration, led by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif 's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), took office in May 2013. Since then, it "has been unable to solve the problems of today's Pakistan," the Catholic politician and activist said.
For him, what is needed is a "common solution as soon as possible" so that "citizens are protected and guaranteed safety." Meanwhile, the recent wave of violence and the fundamentalist attack against Karachi International airport "are the responsibility of a State that is unable to govern."
Recently, the Christian community has been hit again by one more tragedy, with the murder of a member of the Baluchistan Provincial Assembly, in the south-west of the country. On Saturday, Handery Masieh was assassinated by one of his bodyguard in Quetta, the provincial capital.
A well-known and respected activist for human rights, for minorities and others, Masieh was gunned down, eyewitnesses said, whilst trying to protect his nephew from an attack. The assassin was a bodyguard who had worked for him for at least 13 years.
These "acts of violence," like the killing of a court judge in the capital, the deadly attack against the Karachi airport, and now the assassination of parliamentary Quetta, add up with "the government doing nothing to protect the victims," Bhatti explains.
For the APMA leader, the attacks against the Christian minority are happening amid the complete indifference of the government. In fact, the worst incidents against minorities always occur when the PML-N is in power, at the central and local levels, like in Lahore last year and Gojra in 2009.
The previous government, led by the Pakistan People's Party (PPP), tried to lead the country along "a secular path".
Conversely, current Prime Minister Sharif is the same one who tried to introduce Islamic law (sharia) in 1999 - foiled thanks to the initiative of Shahbaz Bhatti, Paul's brother, who was assassinated by Islamists in March 2011 - and supported the blasphemy laws in the 1980s.
It is difficult to "control the situation," admits Bhatti, but the government "is not exempt from responsibility". This is why he wants to see a common front, from the military to the political forces, "that is capable of leading the nation along a straight path."
What is needed is a new way to guarantee "peace and unity" and "put an end to the divisions."
"Pakistan has the sixth largest military force in the world," he said, "and it is not possible that it cannot control an extremist minority. The country has the means and the potential. What it needs is just and competent leadership."
With a population of more than 180 million people (97 per cent Muslim), Pakistan is the sixth most populous country in the world, the second largest Muslim nation after Indonesia.
About 80 per cent of Muslims are Sunni, whilst Shias are 20 per cent. Hindus are 1.85 per cent, followed by Christians (1.6 per cent) and Sikhs (0.04 per cent).
Violence against ethnic and religious minorities is commonplace across the country, with Shia Muslims and Christians as the main target, with things getting worse.
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20/03/2023 18:21
