An Infected Conversion
By Faiza Mirza
March 12, 2012
Festivals, whether
religious or cultural, have always fascinated me and being a devout advocate of
coexistence I enjoy celebrating Christmas, Eid, Navroz and Diwali with my
friends — an act which is unfortunately officially ‘extinct’ now.
The festival of Holi,
which remains one of my favourites, took place last week and I thoroughly
enjoyed the experience, however my celebrations were slightly overshadowed by
surreptitious glances that I received from strangers. Do I blame them to be
sceptical towards me? Have I given them any reason to treat me with such
paranoia? Perhaps we all know the correct answer.
The recent rise in
forced conversions, killings and kidnappings for ransom targeting non-Muslims,
specifically the Hindus of Pakistan, proves that intolerance and bigotry in our
society runs deeper than we’d care to admit.
Whether our society
has always alienated and harassed people who profess other religions or if this
is a ‘trend’, a recent ‘development’ which is haunting everyone, including
Muslims who demand peace and coexistence, are questions that can best be
answered by someone who has been living in Pakistan since the time of its
establishment.
Hari Motwani, former
Member Manager Committee of Pakistan Hindu Council said, “The situation was
never as bad as it has become. I remember the good old days when we were
invited to Qawwali evenings and Naat competitions. We participated in all
Muslim religious festivals and our sentiments were reciprocated wholeheartedly,
however now it is extremely difficult for us to trust anyone,”
“When your daughters
and sons are at stake, everything seems threatening,” added Motwani, whose own
nephew was kidnapped and has been missing for the past three months.
The endless horror
tales that I read and hear about people, who suffer from the ‘minority
syndrome’ in Pakistan, make me question who are the culprits behind these vicious
acts and most importantly what factors influence them to act in such an
inhumane way.
My religious knowledge
might not be ‘at par’ with the so-called advocates of faith but I do know
certainly that there is no compulsion in religion. Coercing and threatening
Hindus to accept Islam will most likely not land us a palatial mansion in
heaven. Kidnapping and killing them for ransom will never be justified and
above all ‘expunging’ them from the country will not ‘bless’ us in any way
whatsoever.
Hindus constitute
almost 2.5 per cent of the overall population of Pakistan and most Hindu
families have been living in the country before 1947’s partition. Raja
Assermal, a businessman of Sikh origin said, “My family has a 1000 years worth
of history in Pakistan. We identify with this country because this is our
homeland. Many Hindus have migrated but we will not change our ‘abode’ and will
continue to fight for our rights.”
Assermal claims that
Hindus are being targeted everywhere, however, the situation in Sindh is critical
and deteriorating with the passage of each day. Whilst narrating the abduction
and forced conversion of a 17-year-old Hindu girl, he demanded for their civil
rights and urged the authorities to protect them from the miscreants.
Intolerance and ubiquity
of the pseudo-religious clerics continue to tarnish young minds. Blaming
everything on the authorities, lack of true Islamic knowledge and illiteracy
will not change the situation. Measures taken in individual capacity can be
extremely motivating for people who face the brunt of being a non-Muslim in
Pakistan. In order to develop a society which is ethnically rich and civilised,
tolerance and accommodation of each other’s ideas play a predominant role.
A society which fails
to accept its own people is perhaps more vulnerable and prone to disintegrate.
Perhaps our own set of insecurities plays a vital role in considering other
people and factions inferior.
We consider ourselves
safe which is why most of us do not voice our condemnation toward such crimes,
however, our realm is as penetrable and susceptible to the dangers of bigotry.
Each targeted temple and attacked individual push us closer to the precipice of
doom.
It is time to take
measures to curb the hostilities toward Pakistani Hindus. It is time to
identify the culprits behind the terrifying abductions and forced conversions
of non-Muslims in Pakistan. It is indeed time to make amendments by making
individual efforts to save people professing other religions before it’s too
late.
“You are free; you are
free to go to your temples, you are free to go to your mosques or to any other
place of worship in this State of Pakistan,” is the most highlighted phrase of
one of the most significant speeches made by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah.
However, the question
is if Jinnah had been a witness to the barbarism which rules Pakistan now;
would he still dream of creating Pakistan?
The writer is a Reporter at Dawn.com
Source: The Dawn, Karachi
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