Christian leaders in Pakistan called out for a concrete action against forced conversions happening in the country, reports say.
The International Christian Concern (ICC) reported that Pakistan Christian leaders have called out on the need to take action against the forced conversions and the abductions being done on Hindi and Christian minors.
Last March, Christianity Daily reported that a 13-year-old Christian girl from Lahore, Pakistan was kidnapped and forced to convert to Islam so she can also illegally marry a Muslim man. The child's parents filed a case for statutory rape and illegal marriage in the Lahore High Court to recover their daughter, who remains with the Muslim man. Pakistan is said to rank fourth in the world for having the most abduction cases.
The ICC cited a report by Asia News that reveal the lack of support for minority rights.
"In our country, we have laws, commissions and a constitution that supports minority rights, but, unfortunately, some religious and political parties have become an obstacle to implementing them," Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace Activist Mariyam Kashif said during an interview with Asia News.
Asia News said the Archdiocese of Karachi conducted a seminar on the topic last Friday to create awareness among the Korangi district families that the church is beside them on the issue of forced conversions and of the abduction of minors for marital purposes. The outlet pointed out that the lack of support for minors has been going on since 2017 amid penalties indicated in the Pakistan Code on a three-to-seven year imprisonment capped with a fine of $3,200 for forced marriages.
ICC added that Christian leaders have raised the need to enact laws that will combat and criminalize forced conversions and abductions, as well as, to raise the marrying age to 18. The said laws are hoped to preserve Christians and Hindus in Pakistan.
Currently, ICC said Pakistan's laws criminalize abduction, underage sexual intercourse, and forced marriage but its implementation is often dependent on the religion of the plaintiffs.
"However, when the issue of religion is introduced into these cases, courts often side with the abductors, accepting forged marriage and conversion certificates," ICC disclosed.
Persecution for religious minorities such as Christians, Sikhs, and Hindus, continue in Pakistan where blasphemy laws are used to impose "harsh punishments" on them and serves as a means to discriminate them.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan announced last May that he wanted their blasphemy laws to be globally passed. ICC said Khan's call to expand the blasphemy laws come after the radical political party Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan have called for the government to expel a French ambassador who allegedly depicted the Prophet Muhammad as a cartoon. A case on the blasphemy law involved Christian nurses who were charged with it after allegedly scratching post-its that featured verses from the Quran.
Pakistan was recently reported to ally with the Chinese Communist Party's propaganda as it vowed to engage in a crackdown on the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, an alleged "Uyghur terrorist" group that no longer exists.
