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Pakistan: Islamic Seminary Declares Construction of New Places of Worship for Non-Muslims is Unlawful

July 10, 2020

Persecution of Christians in Pakistan: Christians of all faith traditions are threatened by this declaration. Pakistan’s small and courageous Orthodox Christian community is as vulnerable in the face of the belief stated by Jamia Ashrafia as are the rest of Pakistan’s Christians.

The ongoing denial of religious freedom to Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan is an issue of immense importance that continues to receive scant attention from the UN or international human rights organizations. Please pray that the Christian community in Pakistan will be able to endure this martyrdom and experience a resurrection, and that relief will come to this courageous and long-suffering Christian community.

For previous ChristianPersecution.com coverage of the persecution of Christians in Pakistan, see here.

“Islamic Seminary Declares Construction of New Places of Worship for Non-Muslims in Pakistan is Unlawful,” International Christian Concern, July 4, 2020:

07/04/2020 Pakistan (International Christian Concern) – On June 30, Jamia Ashrafia, an Islamic religious educational institution in Lahore, issued a declaration banning the construction of religious places for religious minorities, including Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, and other non-Muslim faith groups in Pakistan.

The declaration stated, “In Pakistan, an Islamic state, existing places of worship of non-Muslims could exist and could be maintained. However, according to Islamic law of Shaira [sic], renovation of ruined places of worship or construction of new is unlawful.

The decree has been issued following the start of construction of a Hindu temple in Islamabad. The groundbreaking ceremony for the temple took place on June 23.

On June 30, Justice Aamer Farroq of the Islamabad High Court rejected a plea of a stay order seeking to stop the construction of the temple.

Construction of a new temple in Islamabad is against the spirit of Islam. It is an insult to the state of Madina,” Speaker of the Punjab Assembly, Pervaiz Elahi, declaired [sic]. “We do not oppose the rights of religious minorities. They should renovate existing temples, however, construction of a new temple, particularly in Islamabad, is against Islam. This country came into being in the name of Islam. Such things should not be allowed.”…