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Christians work for democracy in Pakistan

by Daniel Blake
Posted: Thursday, November 29, 2007, 9:17 (GMT)
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Compass Direct have also reported on Christian lawyer Khalil Tahir whose home in Faisalabad was raided by police on 6 November. Tahir is known for defending blasphemy suspects.

He told Compass, "I am in hiding because they are raiding my home." His wife and children, who were present at the first raid, have left their home to avoid the raids by the police.

According to Compass, dozens of Christian activists from the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance have been arrested after staging a protest against emergency rule in Lahore on 13 November.

The rise in Islamic extremism has impacted the lives of Christians in Pakistan. On 16 November three Christians were killed in the crossfire of a fight between government and extremist forces in Swat Valley.

The three of them, known only as Waheed, Gulzar and Raja, were killed as they returned home on the road to Mingora from their work as office and home cleaners in Kabler.

Although their funerals were on 18 November, it was not possible for a priest or pastor to attend as all the roads were blocked and there are currently no clergymen in Swat valley to minister. There are around 70 Christian families in the area.

The three men were buried in a small graveyard under a bridge, one local Christian told Compass: "They all have small children, and the ladies are uneducated and have no work. We went to buy them some food, but we need special prayer for them."

Swat valley became extremely volatile when Muslim cleric Maulana Fazlulla declared war on the government in July. Since then his forces have closed girls' schools, bombed CD shops and forced women to cover themselves totally in public. They have also threatened Christians who have refused to convert to Islam.

The population of Pakistan is around 165 million, of which approximately two per cent are Christian.



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