BY : Christian Daily International/Morning Star News
LAHORE, Pakistan — In a rare show of Christian solidarity in Pakistan, victims of August 2023 Islamist attacks on Christians ended an unprecedented 17-day sit-in on Tuesday, after government assurances of justice.
Addressing the demonstrators, the convener of the Victims Committee of Jaranwala, Lala Robin Daniel, said the sit-in marked the first time in Pakistan’s history that Christians had staged such an extended protest for their rights.
The sit-in was also the first time that Christians, especially women, participated in the protests while fasting, leaving behind daily chores to ensure their voices were heard, he said. Daniel said the Christians of Jaranwala were forced to protest because their pleas for justice and compensation for losses had fallen on deaf ears.
“We were compelled to take the matters into our own hands because those who claim that they are advocating for us hold meetings in five-star hotels in Lahore and Faisalabad while remaining oblivious to the situation on the ground,” he said.
None of the supposed advocates have visited the homes of victims to check whether they have received the compensation money or to find out the status of their legal cases, Daniel said.
“These people clad in suits and robes have been holding ceremonial meetings with the government officials just for photo-ops and to make money in our names, which is why the government also did not take them seriously,” he said. “Our demand from day one is that the government should engage with us directly.”
The community leader said that when the government approached them for talks, three women victims were included in the negotiation committee along with other nominated representatives so that they could highlight the challenges they continued to face in their daily lives.
“We were summoned to Faisalabad, where seven or eight people from a federal government institution were present for a meeting with us,” Daniel said. “They told us that the government has taken notice of our demands and assured us that we will start seeing the results […]. They did not even ask us to end our protest, unlike the district administration, which has been pressuring us to call it off.”
The victims’ committee unanimously decided to suspend the sit-in in view of assurances by federal officials, along with consideration of torrential rains and flooding in the country.
“However, if we do not see any change in our situation, we will restart the protest with more vigor,” he warned.
A female protestor addressing the gathering said Christians of Jaranwala were disappointed by the government’s inaction against the perpetrators of violence.
“The state should know that we will not rest until we get justice,” she said, urging participants to keep praying and remain united in their struggle for their rights.
The protest, organized by the Victims Committee Jaranwala and the Minority Rights Movement Pakistan, began on Aug. 16 at Christian Colony in Jaranwala.
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