Author: Editor

Friendship and togetherness was the theme for an event in Ilford Town Centre from 23d April – 28th April 2018. ‘Stronger Together’ were words written on a banner during a week of community cohesion – one the likes of which Redbridge has never seen before. The event was put on by the British Pakistani Christian Association and groups such as Ilford High Road Baptist Church, Albayan Welfare Centre and Vishnu Hindu Parishad collaborated to share conversations with local people on faith and diversity. The event was the brainchild of Wilson Chowdhry who last year held a peace vigil after a…

Three weeks have passed since the lynching of Christian man Sunil Saleem Masih by medical staff and security at Services Hospital in Sialkot, but thus far no action has been taken by authorities. A full account of the lynching can be  read in the Pakistani daily newspaper Tribune (click here) On 12th April 2018 Additional Session Court  Judge, Mr. Yasser Nadim, was presiding over the trial of Sunil Saleem’s murderers in Sialkot High court.  He allowed an adjournment as the police investigation called for more time. Police officers told the court that their Forensic unit were trying to obtain footage…

Despite brave efforts and 138Km of arduous travel for medical attention, Asma Yasoob succumbed to the injuries she incurred when a Muslim friend of the family doused her with acid and set her on fire. Asma passed away on Sunday 22 April at approximately 10:00 pm in the evening. Pretending to be her brother, Rizwan Gujjar called Asma to the gate of her workplace, a bridal saloon where she worked as a beautician and was helping a bride and her family prepare for their special day.  In the very moment she realized the man at the gate was not her…

A 25 year old Christian woman in Sialkot, Pakistan who spurned the advances of a Muslim man named Rizwan Gujjar (30 yrs) was the target of a heinous acid attack that has left her disfigured and fighting for her life. Asma Yacoob has been employed as a  beautician for the last two years and was making a good living due to her expert knowledge and fantastic styling technique. Her brother Nabeel Yaqoob (23 yrs) worked as a panaflex-maker (banner print-worker) and met Rizwan Gujjar there, over a period of time they became very good friends and Rizwan would often visit…

Pakistani Christians again were left in a quandary by the ‘European Union Special Envoy on Human Rights outside the EU’ after having heir hopes raised and then dashed by a resolution that linked continued favoured tariff-free trade status, to Asia Bibi’s release and meeting the 27 UN human rights conditions originally set prior to acceptance on the scheme. BPCA is embarrassed that we believed this report that appeared on Special Envoy Jan Figel’s official website (click here) and praised Europe for their efforts in tackling Pakistan’s poor human rights record (click here), which seem to be rather an engagement in real politick at…

Christians across Pakistan are facing up to a life of persecution rising to unprecedented levels after a church was set ablaze in Shadara on Sunday 15th April 2018 at approximately 2:30pm.  Perceptions of minority safety across the country have dipped dramatically after three terrorist attacks in Quetta have resulted in dozens of deaths and even more severe injuries. One of the attacks occurred on the same Sunday after 2 individuals were killed and 3 others wounded in a drive-by shooting involving masked men on motorcycles (click here). Parishioners of Gospel of Jesus Mission Pentecostal Church had finished their service successfully on Sunday…

A Christian School girl of Pakistani origins gave up her Easter holidays to champion the rights of thousands of Pakistani Christian girls who are at risk of rape, kidnap and forced Islamic marriage every year in Pakistan. Hannah Chowdhry, who volunteers for the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) organised a meeting with UKIP MEP Nathan Gill to discuss concerns about persecution of minorities in Pakistan, after the Welsh MEP and Welsh Assembly Member responded to a regular email correspondence sent out by BPCA. Mr Nathan Gill was moved by the plight of Pakistani Christians and created a small video which…

Three terrorist on two motorbikes sped into Essa Nagri Road, Quetta, on Sunday 15th April at 6pm (2pm GMT), firing at will and killing people in the streets, in an area heavily populated with Christians. Though no terrorist group has yet officially declared responsibility for the attack, evidence would suggest that this recent violence was religiously motivated, as witnesses have report that the Islamist bikers chanted the jihadist slogan “Allah Ahukbar”. The attack is believed to have been premeditated and conducted in order to frighten Christians away from worshipping God by targeting them on Sunday when many go to church.…

On Easter Monday a terrorist gun-attack by men on motorcycles which took place in the city of Quetta resulted in four members of the same family being killed, whilst on their way to an Easter celebration in a park. The incident happened at 6:30 pm as the family of Pervaiz Masih (50 yrs), a professional rickshaw driver, were travelling to an Easter family and funfair – a commonly held practice by believers across Pakistan. This Easter was very special for Parvaiz’s family as his wife Shama had invited her three brothers from Lahore who were visiting Quetta for the first…

BPCA Chairman Wilson Chowdhry was invited to the office of South Asian Democratic Forum based in central Brussels (click here), to help them with a policy brief they are writing about the persecution of Christian minorities in Pakistan. During the meeting Mr Chowdhry shared updates on the current situation in Pakistan that included reports of a rise in membership to IS by large swathes of Pakistani citizens that has seen a prolific increase in terrorist attacks in recent years. Mr Chowdhry explained to several officers including Susan Guarda, Professor Siegfried Wolf and Stephan Lampe that although discrimination and persecution has always…