Source & Credit: The Washington Post
By Tazeen Ahmad | Potomac | June 4, 2010
The events that unfolded in Lahore, Pakistan, last week ["Militants attack mosques in Pakistan, killing at least 80," news story, May 29] are a frightening reminder of atrocities committed in the name of religion and of how vulnerable we all are to senseless acts that stem from intolerance and extremism.
In this case, unfortunately, the government of Pakistan is largely culpable. Over the years, the government has passed laws that blatantly violate basic human rights and has cultivated an atmosphere of discrimination, hostility and violence against certain groups. The victims of this tragedy are members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community.
For years the government of Pakistan has condoned the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims. Its laws, which declare that Ahmadi are non-Muslims and make it a criminal offense for them to act or say anything that can be deemed Islamic, have opened the door to religious intolerance and bigotry that can no longer be contained.
For Pakistan's leaders to commit to the fight against extremists and fanaticism, they must first get rid of the laws that promote religious intolerance and incite violence, and that make all religious minorities, Muslim or otherwise, perpetual targets.
-- Tazeen Ahmad, Potomac
Read original post here: Killings at Pakistani mosque stem from intolerance
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