Pakistan's Sindh province outlaws forced conversions

[Abdullah719]

Sindh becomes first province to pass law in response to criticism over protection of country's religious minorities.

A province in Pakistan has passed a new law, with provision for life sentence, against forced religious conversions following criticism over protection of minorities in the country.

The new bill, passed by legislators in Sindh on Thursday, mandates a 21-day period for adults to consider their decision to convert and forbids minors from choosing another religion of their free will.

"Forced conversion is an abhorrent and violent offence and an issue that has become prevalent across Sindh [that] must be eliminated by recognising the importance of tolerance, peace and respect for all religions and persons, irrespective of their religion," reads the bill, a copy which was obtained by Al Jazeera.

"It is necessary to criminalise forced conversions and provide protection for those who are victims of this abhorrent practice."

The Sindh Criminal Law (Protection of Minorities) Bill was proposed a year ago by Nand Kumar Goklani, a legislator of the Pakistan Muslim League - Functional, who belongs to the minority Hindu community.

Sindh's legislature is the first assembly in Pakistan to pass such a law.

"Every person has the right to practise their religion and beliefs," Goklani told Al Jazeera on Friday by phone from Karachi, the main city of Sindh.

"We must ensure that no one is forced to change their religion due to physical or mental pressure on them

"We now have a law to help stop this practice. It is a historical move."

Gorklani said the legislation calls for a minimum sentence of five years and maximum of life imprisonment for anyone found to be forcing people to convert.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/...tlaws-forced-conversions-161125053322877.html

 

[PakLFC]

Good news. Implementing it effectively is a different thing altogether. Those forcing Islam upon others will threaten their victims to say on camera that they became Muslim by choice. Pakistan is full of such people who use Islam as a means to extend their power.

 

[DW44]

And, almost as if on cue, we have this gem:

Stopping conversions of minorities is un-Islamic, claims Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan

SUKKUR: The secretary-general of Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan (JUP) – Noorani, Shah Ovais Noorani, has said that his party will not accept the recently adopted bill banning forced conversion because it is ‘against the spirit of Islam’. The bill, the first of its kind in Pakistan, was passed in the Sindh Assembly recently to promote religious freedom and protect the rights of minorities.

Addressing a press conference at Jamia Ghousia in Sukkur on Sunday, he said that any non-Muslim child who can differentiate between good and bad can embrace the religion of their choice, referring to a clause in the law that says conversions undertaken before the age of 18 will not be recognised. This clause has been added to safeguard the rights of children and prevent forcible conversions.

“Many Syeds and Pirs are sitting in the Sindh Assembly and I am confused how they have adopted such a bill,” wondered Noorani, who claimed he had contacted other religious parties to ‘carve out a strategy against the bill’. There are no representatives of the JUP in the Sindh Assembly.

Talking about the appointment of the new chief of army staff (COAS), Noorani said the whole nation is praying for the success of the new COAS and is ready to support him. He paid tribute to outgoing army chief Raheel Sharif and said he served with utmost professionalism and dignity. “Clash between different institutions is not good for national interest,” said the JUP leader. “The new COAS has to face many challenges, including successful completion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), increasing violations by India on the Line of Control, working boundary and others.”

He attributed stability in country’s economy to CPEC, which according to him, on completion will open avenues for jobless youth throughout the country. Besides this, he said the Gwadar Port will also prove a game-changer for Pakistanis, especially unemployed youth in Balochistan.

According to Noorani, the wrong policies of former military dictators Gen Ziaul Haq and Gen (Retd) Pervez Musharraf have caused considerable damage to the country. “Pakistan Peoples Party’s democratic government completed its tenure and the Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz government, too, will complete its tenure,” he added. “This is good for democracy and democratic institutions.”

It is ironic that the Council of Islamic Ideology is not given importance and instead parliament is passing many bills to fulfil the agenda of the West, he said. “Pakistan was created in the name of Islam and therefore any un-Islamic law will not be tolerated,” he warned.

 

[shaykh]

Hmmm...

This part is the crux which I imagine is what the Islamists take issue with:

The new bill, passed by legislators in Sindh on Thursday, mandates a 21-day period for adults to consider their decision to convert and forbids minors from choosing another religion of their free will.

Adults as a definition is a contentious one...so can a 14 year old consent or is he forced to convert?...for the Islamist this would be consent whilst to most others this would be force...

Forced conversions aren't Islamic but defining the age of consent is definitely an issue of contention...

 

[TalentSpotterPk]

Good move by PPP.

 

[syed abbas]

Excellent decision by PPP government.Very bold and courageous act when our society is becoming increasingly intolerant towards religious minorities.I wish if other political parties were as liberal as PPP.If the same law had been passed by KPK government,then everyone would have been praising Imran Khan and portraying him as next messiha.

 

[Saeed]

Great. Been a longtime since PPP did something good. Same thing needs to be done in KPK, Punjab and Baluchistan.

 

[Waseem]

Excellent decision by PPP government.Very bold and courageous act when our society is becoming increasingly intolerant towards religious minorities.I wish if other political parties were as liberal as PPP.If the same law had been passed by KPK government,then everyone would have been praising Imran Khan and portraying him as next messiha.

When you actually do something, people do appreciate and this is definitely worth the appreciation. At least you can't blame others for lack of appreciation of PPP as they were always known for such views but when they got the mandate to implement these in full force, they decided to spend all the time on personal wealth management.
Hopefully PPP can come out of shadows of Zardari soon.

 

[Saeed]

Excellent decision by PPP government.Very bold and courageous act when our society is becoming increasingly intolerant towards religious minorities.I wish if other political parties were as liberal as PPP.If the same law had been passed by KPK government,then everyone would have been praising Imran Khan and portraying him as next messiha.

Where was their Liberal views when they had the power? Their liberalism won't get them anywhere in a conservative society. Maybe this useless party should do something about education in Sindh. Education will be a bigger factor in reducing extremism then these laws ever will be.

 

[syed abbas]

[MENTION=52376]Saeed[/MENTION]
Extremism in Pakistan is due to policy of considering militant groups as strategic assets,not due to education only.And our security establishment,not PPP,has created this policy.

 

[Saeed]

[MENTION=52376]Saeed[/MENTION]
Extremism in Pakistan is due to policy of considering militant groups as strategic assets,not due to education only.And our security establishment,not PPP,has created this policy.

That's why I said it's a factor, I never said Education is the sole reason.