ISLAMABAD: The Christian minority in Pakistan is struggling due to relentless persecution and legal vulnerability, and the community, which comprises 1.6 per cent of the population, faces a society increasingly moving toward religious homogenisation, a report has said.
Pakistan is ranked at the eighth spot on Open Doors’ 2025 World Watch List of the most difficult countries in which to live as a Christian.
"In Pakistan, the weak - its tiny Christian minority - are struggling under the weight of relentless persecution and legal vulnerability," Greek lawyer and human rights advocate, Dimitra Staikou, said in an opinion piece in Geostrategic Media.
"The consequences of this marginalisation are not theoretical—they are brutal and immediate. On August 16, 2023, Jaranwala in Punjab became the site of the worst attack on Christians in Pakistan’s recent history. A mob destroyed 26 churches and 80 homes, accusing residents of blasphemy. Two years later, justice remains elusive. Not a single perpetrator has been convicted, while Christians seeking accountability face intimidation and threats from extremist groups," the report stated.
Blasphemy laws in Pakistan are being used as a tool of persecution. Though rarely leading to executions, even accusations lead to mob violence. On June 4, an anti-terrorism court in Faisalabad acquitted 10 suspects involved in the arson of a church and the looting of a Christian home. Despite the evidence, the police's inability resulted in these acquittals, a pattern expected to be followed in other cases. Meanwhile, Christian women and girls face increasing abductions, rape, and forced conversions, often with impunity for the people responsible for the crime. (IANS)
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