Yesterday, a Shia Hazara community was targeted in Quetta by a known militant group, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. 28 men, including women and children lost their lives, while over 60 others got injured. A couple of months ago, the houses of Christian community in Lahore were targeted, burnt, all their possession and houses reduced to ashes. Three years ago, two mosques of Ahmadis in Lahore were attacked by Tehreek-e-Taliban, in which 86 Ahmadis lost their lives and over 150 were injured.
Three minorities of Pakistan - three major attacks, leaving a huge mark on the lives of all people of those attacks, regardless of whether they were directly affected by the attack or not.
Religious minorities have been a target of such attacks and persecution in Pakistan since decades. So I ask the majority (the Sunnis), I ask the extremists, and I ask all the people behind these attacks - does your faith tell you to kill people? Does it tell you to hurt people, to leave them grieving, just because they have a different belief than yours? That is not what Islam taught. Regardless of sect, no Islam teaches killing people. No Islam teaches any man to take life in his own hands, to pretend he's God and go around people.
Religious intolerance is becoming so common these days. Everywhere you go, you'll find someone mocking a religious minority over their faith, or telling them they aren't the real Muslims. Since when did we become masters in Islam, since when did we become religious scholars and decided who was following the real Islam? What if you (the extremists) are the ones who aren't following the real Islam? What if? What then? Because Islam has never taught hatred. Islam has always taught love. Tolerance. Patience.
Even if you don't believe the religious minorities to be Muslims, regardless of sect, do you not believe in human rights? Do you not believe that minorities need to be able to have freedom to practice their religion freely? If they're not intruding in your life, what gives you the right to interfere in theirs? And even if you are intruding, why don't you think about Humanity first of all? It is not okay, in any situation to kill people. It is not okay to kill them, torture them, rape their women and kidnap their children. It is for Allah to decide on the Judgement Day, who needs to be punished, who needs to be rewarded, and who will be going to Heaven or Hell. Allah. Not us.
These attacks, these killings, these "fatwas" need to stop. All of us, we need religious tolerance. We need to start accepting that people can have a belief that is different from ours. We need to accept them and respect them for their own beliefs. I've heard on countless times people saying that they shouldn't be going to houses of Christians, Hindus or Ahmadis, or eat their food because that would make them a non-Muslim and they would "rot in hell for eating the food of a kafir". For the love of God, people! I'm sure most of you wouldn't even recognize anyone's a Shia or a Christian, even if they stared at you and talked to you for hours. Why does faith have to get into every thing? It is something between you and Allah, not between you and people. And if it is between you and people, then your faith is very weak, and it needs to be strengthened.
You might mock me, you might ridicule me, you might think I'm crazy, you might even tell me I'm a Kafir (which according to your constitution, I already am), but I'm just a voice, trying to reach out to people, trying to tell them to be patient. To believe in their own faith, but respect others' faiths at the same time. To learn to live together. In harmony. In peace. I'm just a voice, but I want all of you to spread my message. Of peace. To tell everyone that peace and patience is the only thing that can save us, that can save Pakistan, that can someday save the world.
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