In April Wilson Chowdhry Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association (BPCA) met with Councillor Morris Johns, secretary to the All Parliamentary
Party Group (APPG) for Pakistani Minorities. The meeting was triggered after Wilson Chowdhry was invited to speak at an evidence hearing session
on Pakistan by Lord Alton, Vice Chairman of the APPG for International Freedom.(click here)
Impressed with the contents of Wilson’s talk Mr Johns requested a meeting to discuss how the APPG for Pakistani Minorities and the BPCA might work
together to further the aims of both groups in tandem. Earlier in the year Wilson was also invited to speak at a memorial for Shahbaz by the Pakistani
Minority APPG (click here)
The APPG for Pakistani Minorities was formed on 24th November 2015, to raise awareness about persecution of religious minorities in Pakistan. The
group is chaired by MP Jim Shannon a Democratic Union politician form Northern Ireland. Current aims for the group include:
1. To improve the lives of the stranded Pakistani refugees in Thailand by negotiating with the Thai Government officials.
2. To bring to the attention of the UN, the human rights violations of the refugees from the Pakistani minorities background in Thailand.
3. To Contact the Provincial Government of Punjab and Sindh provinces, to draw attention to the increasing numbers of Christian/Hindu girls who are
abducted, raped and forced to marry their kidnappers.
4. To improve the chances of obtaining asylum in the UK by the asylum seekers from the Pakistani minorities background.
5. To use the UK aid as a leverage to improve the ratio of Christian/Hindu girls in full time education
6. To assist in implementing the 5% minorities quota in employment, in Pakistan.
7. To use the UK aid as an instrument to reduce the hate material in the schools text books.
8. Keep the MPs up to date with the latest developments in Pakistan.
9. Bring to the attention of the UK Parliament and the Government, any atrocities committed against the minorities in Pakistan.
During the meeting Wilson Chowdhry has committed to partnering with the group to highlight the prevailing persecution in Pakistan and advocate for
improvement in the poor human rights records for minorities there.
Councilor Morris Johns is willing to help any Pakistani Christian asylum seeker with their asylum interview, free of charge. As an interpreter, he has wide experience of sitting at those interviews. Please contact us for his telephone number.
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association, said:
“Meeting with Morris Johns was refreshing. As a group we have always desired wider partnerships and have worked with a number of Christian groups in promoting the persecution of Pakistan’s Christians. We have also partnered with broader faith groups to challenge for better human rights for all Pakistani Minorities. We now hope that a link with the APPG for Pakistani Minorities will help influence the UK government’s positioning towards Pakistan. Pakistan is the UK’s largest recipient of foreign aid which is a sizeabe £445 million, this places them in a strong position to lever change.”
Wilson Chowdhry speaking at the All Parliamentary Party Group for Pakistani Minorities memorial for Shahbaz Bhatti.