Another accused in Bhatti murder case set free

RAWALPINDI:
A trial court in Rawalpindi on Saturday exonerated yet another suspect who was arrested for his role in the murder of former minister for minorities Shahbaz Bhatti.
The accused, Ziaur Rehman, withdrew his bail plea from the court of Special Judge anti-terrorism court II, Rana Masood Akhtar, after an SHO Industrial Area police said he was no longer wanted in the case due to lack of evidence.
Rehman, along with former suspect Abid Malik, was suspected by the family of the deceased minister in the case. The family cited business disputes as their reason for suspicion. Police had already exonerated Malik from the case in February, after finding no evidence against him.
Earlier, when police had arrested Malik from Lahore Airport, Zia managed to escape arrest. Similarly, last June, the trial court released a man arrested who was arrested on suspicion of involvement in the murder case after the police could not bring any evidence against him.
Hafiz Nazar Muhammad was arrested last June for making threatening calls to the minorities MPA from Sargodha, but police did not manage to find any evidence against him.
At the scene of Bhatti’s murder in 2011, Islamabad police had recovered a leaflet left there, presumably by the attackers, who claimed they killed the minorities minister for raising his voice against blasphemy laws in the country.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 6^th, 2012.

Minority MPs to protest rights violations in parliament

ISLAMABAD / PESHAWAR:
Lawmakers representing minorities have decided to take a firm stance and lodge a protest in parliament against what they say is the government’s lax attitude towards protecting their rights.
“We are all set to record protest in parliament if the government does not safeguard the places of worship of minorities, particularly the Hindu community,” Minister of National Harmony Dr Paul Bhatti told The Express Tribune on Sunday. “Minorities in Pakistan are in deep trouble,” he added.
“The government should be committed to safeguarding the places of worship of the minorities in the country and all possible steps should be taken for the care and maintenance of these places,” said Bhatti. Lawmakers from Sindh have already conveyed their concerns to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani over the enforced marriages of girls from the Hindu community in the province. Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) MNA Dr Azra Fazl has also raised the issue in the National Assembly, saying that Hindu girls were being forced to live in madrassas in Sindh.
Taking notice of the protest of members of the Hindu community in front of the National Press Club in Islamabad on Friday for the repossession of their temple in Narowal district, the minister said that no one should be allowed to occupy minorities’ places of worship. He also directed the authorities concerned to take up the matter and resolve it at the earliest.
“Interfaith harmony can only be achieved through interfaith relationship … we should have interactions to understand each other’s point of views,” Bhatti told The Express Tribune.
Peshawar’s minorities
Meanwhile, All Pakistan Hindu Rights Movement Chairperson Haroon Sarb Diyal emphasised the same message of interfaith harmony on Sunday. Diyal, who is also a member of the World Minority Parliament, visited Peshawar in an effort to promote interfaith harmony between the Muslim and Hindu communities residing in the provincial metropolis. He also met Syed Muhammad Sabtain Gilani, son of well known religious figure the late Maulvi Jee and provincial Ameer of Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (Noorani).
Talking to The Express Tribune, Haroon said: “We are Pakistanis irrespective of our different religions and cultural backgrounds and I believe that we should work together for the peace, welfare and prosperity of the both communities and Pakistan, which is our only true identity”. Speaking on the occasion, Sabtain Gilani said that being a majority group, it is the responsibility of the Muslim community in the country to protect the lives and property of minorities.
A total of 1,225 Hindu and 500 Sikh families reside in Peshawar, according to a survey conducted by the National Peace Committee for Interfaith Harmony.
The survey revealed there are around 47,000 Hindus, 5,000 Sikhs and 125,000 Christians in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Demolition of CARITAS Property Pakistan.

LAHORE: The National Commission of Justice and Peace (NCPJ) has accused the Punjab government of illegally demolishing a welfare centre allegedly without a notice.
The centre, Gosha-e-Aman, on Allama Iqbal Road, Garhi Shahu, was a property of the Catholic Church. Father Emmanuel Yousuf Mani, the NCPJ national director, told a press conference at the Lahore Press Club on Tuesday that the demolished compound was home to three families and worth billions of rupees. He said the property was registered as the Lahore Charitable Association and was managed by CARITAS Pakistan.
Father Emmanuel said litigation concerning the property was in court, and a stay order had been issued against its demolition.
Father Emmanuel told The Express Tribune that he found District Coordination Officer Ahad Khan Cheema with policemen and demolition machines when he went to the centre in the morning. He said they demolished the building despite his efforts to stop them. The Christian community representatives said that the DCO informed them that the property had been transferred to the government. They said the property was a Catholic Church property and could not be transferred without permission.
Tariq Zaman, a staff officer at the district coordination office, told The Express Tribune that the land was declared state land by the district collector in 2007. Since then, he said, the government representative had several times notified the owners of the centre. Zaman said if the Catholic Church claimed that they owned the land, then they should present papers and court orders to explain their position to the government. The Christian community have announced a protest today.