Pakistan: In a first, Punjab Police take down offensive anti-Ahmadi poster in Lahore

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Under the National Action Plan, police officials have the authority to take action against reported instances of hate speech and hate crime.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | Int'l Desk
Source/Credit: Daily Dawn | Pakistan
By Imran Gabol | December 11, 2015

LAHORE: A hateful poster targeting a minority group was taken down from outside a mobile shop in Hafeez Center after a photo of the pamphlet ignited a social media storm on Thursday.

Police said the issue was brought to the Gulberg Police's attention by "several people concerned by the nature of its contents". SHO Yousuf Butt took action against the complaint, and requested the shop owner to take the poster down from a store in the city's largest electronics market.

Under the National Action Plan, police officials have the authority to take action against reported instances of hate speech and hate crime, he said.

On Wednesday night, a photograph of the notice, which used profane language against the Ahmadi community and called for a ban on their entry into the shop, went viral on social media.

One of the tweets also tagged ISPR DG Maj Gen Asim Bajwa, demanding authorities to take action.

The original tweet itself had over 150 shares, with people expressing outrage and demanding action against what was called a "shameless" act of hate.

SHO Butt explained that an arrest cannot be made without an official complaint.

"We cannot take action against the shop owner," Butt told Dawn.com, "No official complaint has been registered."

Growing intolerance

Ahmadis were declared non-Muslims by the Pakistani government in 1974. Growing intolerance towards the community has resulted in a series of hate crimes and blasphemy accusations. Many Ahmadis have been arrested under Pakistan's controversial blasphemy laws for reading the Holy Quran, holding religious celebrations and having Quranic verses on rings or wedding cards.

Four years ago, 86 Ahmadis were killed in two simultaneous attacks in Lahore. Last month, an enraged mob torched a place of worship in Jhelum after allegations of “desecration of the Holy Quran”.


Read original post here: Police take down offensive anti-minority poster in Lahore after outrage


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