Pakistan: Christians Fight to Remain on Land
Aug 29 2006
Postings >> Pakistan

Christians in a village near Lahore are fighting for the right to remain on land where they have built their homes and their church.

Believers in Momin Pura Theki say that they have been attacked and their church set alight by associates of a local Muslim man who is challenging their right to remain there.

Three Christian men received serious injuries on August 7 when a gang brandishing knives and other weapons attacked the church and some of the villagers. Five days later, the church and two Christian homes were set alight. A man named as Bashir Masih, who tried to resist the assault, was abducted.

About 55 Christian families moved to Momin Pura Theki, then an area of wasteland some 20 miles from Lahore, when flooding along the Ravi River forced them to flee their former homes in 1988. While they admit they have no legal entitlement to the land, they insist their Muslim opponent has no claim either.

Yet, this Muslim has being pursuing ownership of the land through the courts since 2000 -- the year Christians started to build a church. He had also appealed unsuccessfully for the court to ban the church construction -- but was reportedly jailed for six months after producing fake documents before a judge.

The Christian villagers are now appealing for the authorities to grant them land rights. 'It is government property but, since we have been living here for so many years, we appeal to the authorities that it be given to us,' one man told ASSIST News Service.

RI partner Centre for Legal Aid Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS) reportedly intervened after Christian villagers protested that local police had failed to take the matter seriously. Joseph Francis, National Director of CLAAS, ensured that a case has now been registered.

• Pray for villagers in Momin Pura Theki who have endured years of violence and intimidation. Pray that they would be granted a safe home -- and allowed to live in peace.
• Thank God for CLAAS' help for villagers. It is committed to defending the rights of Pakistan's religious minorities, which would otherwise be trampled under foot.