JARANWALA, a small town near Lahore, has shot into prominence, but for the wrong reasons. What happened there on Aug 16, 2023 represents another low in our history of communal intolerance, with local community leaders and law-enforcement authorities appearing totally helpless in preventing the mob from targeting dozens of Christian families, their houses and churches. For a country whose teeming majority adheres to the faith of Islam — the religion of peace — the incident has put all Pakistanis to shame.
Sadly, this was not an isolated occurrence, nor was it the first time that Christians were targeted in our country. In July 2009, a mob attacked houses belonging to Christians in Kasur, and a month later in Gojra. In 2010, Aasia Bibi was sentenced to death for blasphemy and remained in prison for eight years before her acquittal, and in 2012, the trial of another Christian, Rimsha Masih, made headlines. In 2013, a suicide bombing at a church in Peshawar killed more than 100 people, while at least 75 Christians were killed in 2016 when they were celebrating Easter at a park in Lahore. Extremists have targeted other non-Muslims as well.