The Department of International Relations of the University of Karachi in collaboration with the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony organized a national conference on “bridging beliefs: interfaith harmony in Pakistan”, at the KU Chinese Teachers Memorial Auditorium on Tuesday. The conference called to promote the interfaith harmony culture in the country and emphasizes the importance of interfaith harmony, tolerance, love, dialogue, acceptance, and respect for all religions and faiths.
Caretaker Federal Minister for Religious and Interfaith Harmony Aneeq Ahmed, in his address as the chief guest said that every person in the country condemned the incident of Jaranwala Town in Faisalabad district which was reported in August 2023. He recalled that our scholars opened the doors of mosques for the Christian community and that gave a positive message to the world.
The minister asked the audience to play their role in promoting interfaith harmony culture in their social circle so that conspiracies against our motherland can be foiled on every platform. This is the first program arranged by the Ministry at any educational institution, he added. The federal minister stressed the importance of refraining from using the term ‘minority’ for other religions, asserting that citizens of all faiths are equal in Pakistan. Recalling Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s words, he reiterated the principle of freedom for churches, mosques, and temples in Pakistan. The speakers of the conference urged that it would play a key part in developing a society that will not allow intolerance at any level. They shared that diversity is beauty and we need to find unity in this diversity. They mentioned that respect, acceptance, and tolerance are the way forward for Pakistan.
