WASHINGTON: Political leaders, activists and religious figures on Tuesday voiced hope for greater tolerance as they mourned slain Pakistan minister for minorities’ affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, at a tribute organized by a Washington-based group on the 10th anniversary of his killing.
Bhatti, a member of Pakistan’s small Christian community who sought reforms to blasphemy laws that critics say are frequently tools of persecution, was shot at least 25 times as he left his mother’s house on March 2, 2011.
Militant group Tehrik-e-Taliban claimed responsibility for the killing of Bhatti, who had faced particular backlash for defending Asia Bibi, a Christian villager sentenced to death on blasphemy allegations.
Bibi, who finally succeeded in 2019 in resettling in Canada, told a virtual commemorative event that she had given up hope after hearing about Bhatti’s death — two months after the assassination of another critic of blasphemy laws, Punjab’s governor Salman Taseer.
Bhatti “helped many poor people like me who were oppressed and helpless,” Bibi said in a video message for the event, organized by the Religious Freedom Institute.
“I want to appeal to the prime minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, that he should protect people like Shahbaz Bhatti because you need people like him to protect Christians and others.”
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau praised Bhatti for the “unwavering stance he took against injustice,” saying: “We will never forget his sacrifice and his enduring message of hope and religious freedom.”
Cardinal Joseph Coutts, who recently retired as the archbishop of Karachi, voiced concern that extremism has festered in Pakistani society in the decade since Bhatti’s killing.
“Ten years later, we remember you, we pray for you and we pray that what you wanted to change, we may be able to change and have a fair and just country to live in,” he said.
Calls to protect minorities 10 years after Pakistan minister slain
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Calls to protect minorities 10 years after Pakistan minister slain
- Minority affairs minister Shahbaz Bhatti was shot at least 25 times as he left his mother’s house on March 2, 2011
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau praised Bhatti for the “unwavering stance he took against injustice”
Sri Lanka players ask to leave Pakistan after bombing, board says no
- Sri Lanka are playing three ODIs followed by T20 tri-nation series in Pakistan this month
- Suicide bombing in Islamabad on Tuesday made Sri Lankan players fear for security
Some Sri Lanka cricketers requested to return home from their Pakistan tour on Wednesday for safety reasons after a suicide bombing in Islamabad, but their board issued a stern directive to stay put or face consequences.
Sri Lanka are touring Pakistan, playing three one-day internationals followed by a Twenty20 tri-series along with Zimbabwe this month. Sri Lanka are scheduled to play Pakistan in the second ODI on Thursday in Rawalpindi.
But the bombing, which killed 12 people in Pakistan's capital Islamabad, made several Sri Lankan players ask to go home, the Sri Lanka Cricket board said in a statement. Rawalpindi and Islamabad are twin cities hardly 20 km (12 miles) apart.
"SLC immediately engaged with the players and assured them that all such concerns are being duly addressed in close coordination with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and the relevant authorities to ensure the safety and well-being of every member of the touring party," the SLC said.
'CONTINUE WITH TOUR'
"In this context, SLC has instructed all players, support staff and team management to continue with the tour as scheduled," SLC added.
Any player who returns despite the directive will be replaced immediately to avoid disrupting the tour, it said.
If anyone does that, however, "a formal review will be conducted to assess their actions, and an appropriate decision will be made upon the conclusion of the review."
SLC did not respond to a question on the number of players and staff who requested to return home.
Pakistan had been struggling to convince sports teams to visit the country after gunmen attacked a bus carrying touring Sri Lanka cricket players in the city of Lahore in 2009.
At least six players were injured, and visits by international teams came to a halt as Pakistan played their "home" matches in the United Arab Emirates.
But security has improved since then in major urban centers and test cricket returned when Sri Lanka toured in 2019.
In this series, Pakistan won the first ODI, which was also held in Rawalpindi, by six runs on Tuesday.
