ISLAMABAD: Anila Ali, Chair of the Pakistan IRF Roundtable, expressed grave concern at the rise in extremism in Pakistan.
Condemning the heinous attack committed against the Shia community in Peshawar on March 04, Anila Ali said the bombing was meant to yield maximum impact as it was committed on Friday, during prayers.
“As a Pakistani American, I am concerned at the escalation of hate and extremism by Islamists in Pakistan. Recently, two Christian pastors were attacked in a nearby church, and one was killed” Anila said.
She said it is time for Muslim faith leaders, the government of Pakistan, and civil society to speak up.
Silence is complicity, she added. Pakistanis cannot stay silent about the spread of hate and intolerance that is raging on the streets of Pakistan. “It is time for all of us to step and muffle voices of hatred. Not only have the Islamic extremists hijacked Islam, they have hijacked humanity from Pakistan”, said Anila Ali.
The Pakistani government has to play a more effective role in protecting its minorities, she said and added that the founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, assured the minorities: “You are free to go to your temples. You are free to go to your mosques or any other place of worship in the state of Pakistan”. And yet, Pakistan’s minorities feel more and more unsafe with each passing day, she added.
“We send prayers to the grieving families in Peshawar who are shocked and dismayed by the violation of their most sacred place- a house of worship”, she concluded.
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