Zubair Qureshi
President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to protection of the rights of minorities and provision of equal opportunities to them so that they could excel in every walk of life as enshrined in the Constitution of Pakistan.
Addressing a ceremony to mark the celebrations of Minorities’ Day at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, the president said, “Under the Constitution and under the onus of oath of my office, I have the duty to protect all rights of the minorities and provide all kinds of facilitation.”
A large number of the representatives of the minority community attended the ceremony and expressed their views on the occasion.
Some of the noted attendants included Archbishop Rawalpindi and Islamabad Dr Joseph Arshad, HaroonSarbDiyal representative of Hindu community, SardarGurpal Singh representative of Sikh community, DrSeemaFarzad representative of Bahai community and Member of the National Assembly (MNA) Isphandyar M. Bhandra representing the Parsi community.
While welcoming the guests, the president said that the objective behind the observance of Minorities’ Day at the official level was to acknowledge the valuable contributions made by the members of different communities living in Pakistan.
He stressed upon enhancement of job opportunities for the minorities in different government’s departments on merit basis besides increasing the existing jobs quota.
Lauding the role of the minorities in the national progress and prosperity, he said that they were the equal citizens of Pakistan and future builders of the nation.
Stressing upon the significance of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s vision, the president said they were required to fully emulate his message aimed at fostering unity, brotherhood and religious tolerance in society. The event arranged by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony was attended by members of parliament, ulema, religious leaders, members of the diplomatic corps, media and representatives from different minorities.
President Zardari said the people of Pakistan always felt the pains of suffering of humanity and for those lying lowly in society and accorded due respect and space to all the minorities living here because such a message of human consideration had been embedded in their religion and culture. He also recited a verse of famous Sindhi poet, Shah Abdul LatifBhittai, in this regard to emphasize his point of view.
While recollecting the events of Pakistan Movement, he said that his father in his youth took active part in the creation of Pakistan.
President Zardari, referring to the ongoing Israeli aggression in Gaza, said that atrocious and indiscriminate strikes were targeting all Palestinians and people from different faiths.
