‘Disabled people not allowed to pray in congregation’

 

 

There are some others too who fail to let their voices heard despite all their efforts. But some have ears to hear them like the one who did this story on disabled people. This blog is for all those who are considered minority for any possible reason. But I, when mention minority, refer to their strengths and abilities. Highlighting their problems here show that how much we need them in the society as an integral part. It also shows how much we believe in their capabilities in contributing to this society in a productive way.

Let’s take our first step towards embracing those who hesitate in coming to us because of any handicap–physical, mental or social.

Below is the story:

Express Tribune by Sher Ali

KARACHI: There is a ban on wheelchairs inside mosques and disabled people are not allowed to pray in congregation, pointed out the Association of Physically Handicapped Adults (APHA) on World Disability Day.

“The mullahs, who shut their mosques to us, have no idea about religion,” said the association’s SM Nishat at a news conference on Friday.

According to APHA statistics, 10 per cent of the people in Pakistan are disabled in one way or the other. Out of these, 40 per cent of people are physically challenged and can barely live on the benefits offered by the state.

“We do not want pity or sympathetic looks from people. We are talented educated professionals,” said Dr Maimoona Bari, who runs her own clinic in North Nazimabad and is a member of the association’s executive committee. “We just want to be awarded our rights.”

“The two-per cent employment quota for the disabled is being given to [non-disabled] individuals and that is unfair,” complained APHA president Shariful Muzaffer. “Before they used to tell us that we aren’t educated enough but now when we prove our qualifications, they still offer the jobs to others.”

The Express Tribune contacted Sindh Minister for Social Welfare Nargis N D Khan for a confirmation but she insisted that the “quota is being fulfilled”. “We are hiring in all positions, such as coordinators and computer technicians, depending on the applicant’s ability and education,” she said.

Khan refused, however, to give an exact number of disabled people who have been hired during her tenure. “I don’t know the exact figure but we have issued advertisements and will be hiring soon,” she said.

The government also offers a 50-per cent discount to disabled people on airfare and railway tickets but members of the association claimed that the discount is either useless or not offered at all.

Syed Javed Qadeer of the APHA narrated his experience with the national airline, whose agent quoted an airfare higher than the regular, economy-class ticket. The agent said that the airline offers all its discounts on the business-class ticket.

“This made no sense to me because we can barely afford the economy ticket and now we have to pay more than the regular fare,” said Qadeer, who called the ticketing centre and received a confirmation that the 50-percent discount for disabled people and the 25-per cent discount for the attendant flying with them is only offered on the higher classes of both economy and business.

Another member of the executive committee, Shazia Yousaf, who has been working at NADRA for the past 10 years, complained that she receives pitiful looks every time she rides a bus but she doesn’t let it get to her. “What I do need is some help and for others to realise that they need to do their part as well,” she said.

“We need ramps for easy access into buildings, railings for support to climb stairs, lower footpaths to climb onto without help and buses friendly for handicapped people. This is not charity we are asking for, this is our right.”

Rally outside KPC

The Disabled Welfare Association organised a rally on Friday and walked from Karachi Press Club towards the Arts Council roundabout. The participants demanded more land for a training workshop for the disabled as the present 40-yard space was not enough.

The association’s president, Javaid Raees, said that the chief minister has been making promises for the past two years. Raees held negotiations with special advisers to the chief minister, M Waqar Mehdi and Rashid Rabbani, who were later joined by Pakistan Peoples Party Karachi chapter president Najmi Alam. Alam promised 25 government jobs for the disabled as well as a larger plot of land.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2010.

 

Mosque near ground zero, but no faith to be allowed in Pakistan

It looks as Pakistan has reached to that point where the country is shrinking its space for non-Muslims or those with a different notion of religion. We as a nation have allowed ourselves to set double standards and enjoy the invisible pride and dominnance which we feel being Muslims. On one hand we insist on having a Mosque near ground zero and on other hand we beat Christians for preaching their beliefs. Is this a fair game?

In this country, we have made lives of non-Muslims not less than a hell and every step we take leads to their further intimidation and persecution. This country is for everyone and people cannot be victimized for saying what they believe in. Looking at the fact that Christianity should be the most acceptable religion for Muslims, the whole persecution seems baseless. Muslims cherish the thought of seeing their Mosques in every nook and corner and Muslims ruling the world, but they loathe the idea of co existing with people of other religions in their own countries.

It is the generosity and extreme of tolerance of Christian/other countries that they let Islam and Muslims to exist in their countries openly and the same attitude is expected from Muslims for non-Muslims in their countries too. But it is happening otherwise. I request Pakistanis to exercise tolerance and make this country available for people from all religions. The strength of Islam lies in its existence with other religions and giving people a choice to embrace it. But through such torturous behaviour, we have made Islam fragile  and conveyed to the world that Islam is threatened by other religions. The time has come that we start watching what signals we send to the world as a nation.

Below is the story:

PUNJAB: Five young men severely assaulted a pastor in Punjab, Pakistan for preaching, a Christian human rights group said. According to International Christian Concern (ICC), Emmanuel Beshir, pastor of Holy City Pentecostal Church, was returning from preaching in Bahmani Wala village at 9 PM when five young men stopped him.

They asked, “Why do you preach that Jesus Christ is Lord and nobody can get salvation without Jesus Christ?” The pastor replied, “We will never stop preaching about the Lord Jesus Christ, and we will tell about him to all the nations.”

Then the men assaulted him with wooden rods, breaking his right hand and multiple ribs. Pastor Beshir is receiving medical treatment at Farooq Hospital in Lahore city, according to ICC.
Christians have been targeted before in Bahamani Wala village. On June 30, 2009, more than 600 Muslims attacked Christians in the village after falsely accusing them of blasphemy. The attackers destroyed the Christian homes and looted their property.

“We are deeply concerned by the attack against Pastor Beshir. The right to freedom of religion, including the right to share one’s faith, is an internationally recognized principle of human rights,” said Jonathan Racho, ICC’s Regional Manager for South Asia. “Unfortunately Christian minorities face attacks and even death when sharing their faith in Islamic countries. We urge Pakistan to protect Christian minorities from such attacks.”

 

Only Muslims can drink water outside the Mosques??

The base of all religions is more or less same–humanity, love for mankind. Not a single teaching could hint at maltreatment, injustice, and violence. But today’s world just talks more about religion, but forgets the major chunk of what it teaches. The recent incident in Memon Goth, Sindh, where 60 Hindu men, women and children were forced to flee their homes, has hurt me deeply. Their current situation forced them to live in a cattle pen in order to save their lives, but what so terrible they have done? Their only crime is that a Hindu boy drank water from a cooler placed outside the Mosque. The whole idea of such coolers is to satiate thirst of people regardless of their gender, creed, class and religion. And the concept of “sawab” is a motivation factor for people to arrange some comforts. Imagining a boy working on a farm in this heat who just drank some water and it invited the wrath of tribesmen who attacked the Hindus, and injured some of them.

What is the life of non-Muslims here when on every small action they meet such fate. Such tragic incidents address the most important issue of tolerance. Why this society has chosen an extreme path which only brings misery for those who are not “one of them”. The rise in intolerance needs to be countered and the role of religious leaders in such cases becomes crucial. They need to educate the society on what Quran and Islam say on such issues. Feeding non Muslims is something quite appreciable in Islam and those who try to test people with food and water have no right to claim that they belong to any religion. This is insanity and the time has come to implement zero tolerance for all the religious extremism.

Below is the story:

The News

As many as 60 Hindu men, women and children were forced into abandoning their homes in Memon Goth and taking refuge in a cattle pen all because of a boy from their community who drank water from a cooler placed outside a mosque, police officials and community members told The News.

These hapless people ran away from the wrath of some of the influential tribesmen of the area who got so enraged by the incident, which took place last week, that they beat up the members of the Hindu community and forced them into evicting their quarters.

“All hell broke loose when my son, Dinesh, who looked after chickens in a farm, drank water from a cooler outside a mosque. Upon seeing him do that, the people of the area started beating him up.

“Later, around 150 tribesmen attacked us, injuring seven of our people — Samo, Mohan, Hero, Chanu, Sadu, Heera, and Guddi — who were taken to the Jinnah Hospital,” said Meerumal, a resident of the area.

One of the injured, Heera, while showing this correspondent his wounds, said that another 400 families of the area, located in the vicinity of Malir, were also being threatened to leave the area.

“Our people are even scared of going out of their houses. We are also putting up with living in the filthy pen because we cannot go home for fear of being killed,” he said.

The SHO of the Memon Goth police station, commenting on the issue, said, “A trivial incident led to riots between the people of the area. Since both the communities happened to be illiterate, the matter just flared up.”

However, he dismissed the claims of lack of security to the Hindu community in the area and said that they could go back to their homes anytime they wanted to.

Meanwhile, Minister for Minority Affairs Dr Mohan Lal assured the Hindu community of full government protection.

“I have directed the DPO and the SHO to ensure that these people go back to their houses safely,” he said.

The minister said that the culprits would be dealt with severely. Abdul Hai, of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, said that these people, who belonged to the Bheels caste, had been living in the area for several years.

“They are former bonded laborers. Now they earn a meager sum of Rs4,000 to Rs5,000 monthly as watchmen at the farms. Some of them also work for the tribesmen.

“The government must help them in moving back to their homes in order to instill confidence in other families and prevent them from packing their bags too,” he said.

Memon Goth