Christian Archives - Dissent Today

Christian Woman Accuses Her Employer Of Torturing Her For Trying To Leave Job In Sialkot

News Desk — Mon, 29 May 2023 08:28:29 +0000

A Christian househelp has accused her employer of beating her and confining her for a week after she tried to leave her job due to pregnancy in Sialkot, Punjab.

Asma Gulfam, a 28-year-old mother of 4 children, claimed that her employers with whom she was working for the last five years accused her of theft a few days after she had informed them that she would be leaving her job due to pregnancy, reported a media outlet.

She claimed that her employer Huda Adnan and her husband dragged her to a room where she was beaten up by them and four police officers. She claimed that the employers and police officers confined her illegally for eight days and repeatedly tortured her.

Gulfam has also accused the police of not registering First Information Report (FIR) over the incident against her employers, in fact, she claimed, that the police have registered a complaint against her for stealing.

Earlier, a 15-year-old Christian boy and his 18-year-old friend, also from the Christian community, were arrested in Lahore under the blasphemy law on a complaint filed by a police officer.

According to the complaint filed by police constable Zahid Sohail at the Race Course Police Station, 15-year-old Christian boy Simon Nadeem, and his friend 18-year-old Adil Babar allegedly insulted the Holy Prophet (PBUH). He claimed that he heard the boys “committing blasphemy” while playing when he was on his way to a mosque.

18-year-old Adil Babar’s father Babar Masih refuted the police constable’s claims, saying that the police officer had a quarrel with the boys in the afternoon, Voicepk reported.

Babar Masih said that in the evening the police carried out a raid and arrested the two boys on blasphemy charges, with constable Zahid Sohail as a complainant.

News Desk

dissenttoday.net

The post Christian Woman Accuses Her Employer Of Torturing Her For Trying To Leave Job In Sialkot appeared first on Dissent Today.

Minor Christian Girl Abducted From Home In Okara, Family Fears Forced Conversion

News Desk — Mon, 08 May 2023 11:09:15 +0000

Three men abducted a 13-year-old Christian girl from her home in Okara, Punjab, according to the girl’s family, who fears she would be forcibly converted to Islam.

Three men broke into the house of the victim, identified as Sehar, and kidnapped her at gunpoint in the presence of the family.

The family tried to resist but it was in vain.

A First Information Report has been registered and police have been searching for the girl, reported PakChristianNews.

The family has alleged that the girl was kidnapped by Muslim men, who they fear, would convert the minor girl to Islam.

The family has claimed that one of the men involved in the kidnapping also forcefully converted their underage son to Islam.

Forced conversions of underage girls from religious minorities is a severe issue in Pakistan and human rights defenders have continuously urged the authorities to take strict measures to curtail this practice.

Earlier, the United Nations had also urged Pakistan to curtail the practice of forced marriages of young girls from religious minorities to Muslim men. The United Nations had also called on Pakistani authorities to adopt and implement legislation in this regard.

In a statement, the UN had “expressed alarm” that young girls from religious minorities are kidnapped, trafficked, forcibly converted to Islam, and forced to marry men. The statement called on Pakistani authorities to curb this practice and uphold international human rights law.

News Desk

dissenttoday.net

The post Minor Christian Girl Abducted From Home In Okara, Family Fears Forced Conversion appeared first on Dissent Today.

Islamic State Claims Responsibility For Murder Of Christian, Sikh Men In Peshawar

News Desk — Tue, 04 Apr 2023 07:10:24 +0000

The Islamic State – Khorasan (IS-K) has claimed responsibility for the killing of two men belonging to the minority Sikh and Christian communities in Peshawar last week.

Dyal Singh was gunned down in the Garhi Ata Mohammad area on the outskirts of Peshawar. The 35-year-old Sikh shopkeeper was killed when an unidentified motorcyclist opened indiscriminate fire on him.

The assailant parked his motorcycle outside Singh’s shop and fired two shots from a pistol, killing Dyal on the spot.

A day later, a member of the Christian community, Kashif Masih, was shot dead in Banaras Abad Academy Town. Armed men opened fire on him while he was on his way home.

According to Voicepk.net, IS-K claimed responsibility for both attacks.

Earlier, a Hindu doctor was shot dead in Karachi’s Garden area after his vehicle was attacked by unknown assailants, in what has been described by the police as a case of targeted killing.

Dr Beerbal Ginani recently retired as Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s (KMC) medical and health services director.

Earlier, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) issued the Human Rights Observer 2023, an annual fact sheet, detailing abuses against religious minorities in Pakistan. The reported covered five key issues impacting religious minorities, including discrimination in the education system, the prevalence of forced faith conversions, abuse of blasphemy laws, the establishment of the National Commission for Minorities, and jail remissions for minority prisoners.

The report noted an increase in the content against minorities in textbooks and curricula.

News Desk

dissenttoday.net

The post Islamic State Claims Responsibility For Murder Of Christian, Sikh Men In Peshawar appeared first on Dissent Today.

Documentary On Forced Conversion Of Faisalabad Christian Girl Barred From Screening At Local Festival

News Desk — Sat, 11 Mar 2023 09:59:48 +0000

Pakistan’s Central Board of Film Censors in Islamabad (CBFC) has barred a short documentary based on child marriage and the forced conversion of a Christian girl from Faisalabad to Islam, from screening at a local festival, deeming it “propaganda”.

The filmmakers shared the news on their Instagram handle and said the documentary, titled My Mother’s Daughter, is based on true events and follows the story of an underage Christian girl who was abducted from Faisalabad by a middle-aged man and then was forcibly married to him after being converted to Islam.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mariam (@mariamster)

The filmmakers also said to ensure the authenticity of the case, they spent months verifying the case and also went to court hearings with the survivor.

The censor board has rejected the film, calling it “propaganda that is trying to highlight wrong values that go against the culture in Pakistan”.

The filmmakers also shared statistics regarding forced conversions and said that “up to 1,000 young girls are forcefully converted every year” and added that calling the documentary “propaganda” is a gross injustice to their plight and stories.

News Desk

dissenttoday.net

The post Documentary On Forced Conversion Of Faisalabad Christian Girl Barred From Screening At Local Festival appeared first on Dissent Today.

Man Throws Acid On Christian Woman Over Marriage Refusal, Conversion To Islam In Karachi

News Desk — Fri, 10 Feb 2023 08:48:59 +0000

A man in Karachi threw acid on a Christian woman after she refused to convert to Islam and marry him.

According to media reports, the 19-year-old suffered 20 per cent burns in the attack.

The family of the girl had previously registered a police complaint against the attacker, who is their neighbour, for harassing the girl and forcing her into marriage.

The police arrested the man after the incident.

Pakistan often ranks among the worst countries for women and has a history of discrimination against women from religious minorities. The incidents of forced conversions of underage Hindu girls and subsequent marriages are common in Sindh.

News Desk

dissenttoday.net

The post Man Throws Acid On Christian Woman Over Marriage Refusal, Conversion To Islam In Karachi appeared first on Dissent Today.