Pakistan: Discrimination and violence against Muslim minorities continues

Islamabad, March 21 (IANS) As Pakistan advocates against 'Islamophobia' abroad, the persistence of such conditions at home raises legitimate questions about the country's credibility. The recurring claims of Islamophobia by Islamabad on the global stage, a report has cited, call for closer scrutiny, not unquestioned approval.

According to a report in the European Times, the rhetoric of victimhood has become a diplomatic instrument, used to divert attention from Pakistan’s troubling record toward Muslim communities within and outside its borders.

“At the heart of the issue lies a contradiction that is increasingly difficult to ignore. A state that positions itself as a defender of Muslims worldwide continues to preside over systemic discrimination and violence against its own Muslim minorities. The persecution of Shia communities in Pakistan is neither incidental nor isolated. Sectarian attacks on Shia mosques, processions, and neighbourhoods have persisted for decades, often with inadequate accountability,” the report detailed.

“The situation of the Ahmadiyya community is even more stark. Constitutionally declared non-Muslim, Ahmadis face legal discrimination, social exclusion, and periodic mob violence. Their mosques are attacked, their religious practices criminalised, and even the simple act of self-identification as Muslim can lead to prosecution. These are not marginal failures. They are structural realities embedded within the state’s legal and political framework,” it mentioned.

The report noted that the contradiction reaches beyond Pakistan’s borders, with its military operations in Afghanistan, including those during Ramadan, resulting in civilian casualties in a neighbouring Muslim country.

“Whatever the stated security rationale, the optics and the human cost are difficult to reconcile with claims of religious solidarity. The idea of a unified Muslim ummah is frequently invoked in diplomatic rhetoric, yet it appears to be selectively applied when strategic interests are at stake,” it stated.

The pattern of “selective solidarity”, it said, is evident even in Pakistan's relations with major Muslim partners. Under the leadership of General Asim Munir, the report said, Pakistan has been hesitant to meet Saudi Arabia’s expectations despite longstanding security and defence understandings.

“At moments when Riyadh has sought support, Islamabad has invoked its commitments on the Afghan front and broader internal security pressures as justification for restraint. Yet this selective invocation of constraints contrasts sharply with Pakistan’s readiness to project itself as a champion of Muslim causes elsewhere. The Afghan war, frequently cited as a burden, has thus also become a convenient alibi, deployed when political or strategic costs of alignment are deemed too high," it stressed.

Highlighting Pakistan’s double standards, the report further said, “If Pakistan wishes to be taken seriously as a voice for Muslim communities globally, it must begin by addressing the conditions within its own borders. Credibility in international advocacy is built on consistency. Without it, even legitimate concerns risk being dismissed as opportunistic.”

--IANS

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