Wilson is greeted by MP Luisa Capitanio Santolini, President of the Parliamentary Friends of Pakistan
Chairman of the British Pakistani Christian Association, Wilson Chowdhry, addressed an Italian conference at the parliament building in Rome on Monday
19th October 2015. Mr Chowdhry described the cultural genocide waged against Christians in Pakistan drawing on the attacks to Shama and Shahzad, a
couple burned alive in a brick kiln after false allegations of blasphemy, and the long term incarceration of Asia Bibi under the same draconian laws.
The event which was organised by the ‘Association of Pakistani Christians in Italy’ and ‘Umanitaria Padana,’ brought together church leaders from many
persecuted nations including: Patriarch of Antioch of the Melkite,
Gregory III Laham, of the Greek Melkite Catholic Church, Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans,
Raphael Louis 1st Sako of the Catholic Chaldea, Ignatius Ephrem Joseph III Younan,
Patriarch of Antioch and all the East of the Syrians for
the Syriac Catholic Church, Archimandrite Tovma Khachatryan, Head of the Armenian
Apostolic Church of Italy, Bishop of Djibouti, Giorgio Bertin, and Bishop of Faisalabad, Joseph Arshad.
Many key Italian Parliamentarians were present including: Senator Maurizio Gasparri, Vice president of the Italian Senate, MP Luisa Capitanio
Santolini, President of the Parliamentary Friends of Pakistan, a group she created after meeting with Shahbaz Bhatti, MP Marco Rondini, MP Paola Binetti,
MP Eugenia Roccella, and several NGOs.
The event entitled “Genocide of Christians and Jihad Form the Orient in the West,” was concluded by Professor Mobeen Shahid of the Vatican University,
who brought together all the discussions.
At the end of the meeting Wilson was permitted to speak to Parliamentarians during which time he called for an amendment to the existing risk profile of
Pak-Christians held by the Italian Home Office and Foreign Office. Wilson described the ‘Special Status’ afforded to Pak-Christians by the governments
of Canada and Holland, decisions in which the BPCA were extremely influential. Wilson offered to send copies of all the BPCA reports in such decision
making process to all the MPs at the meeting and presented each participating MP with a copy of the BPCA’s 2013 report titled ‘The Targeting of Minority
Others in Pakistan.’
Mr Chowdhry also explained how a conversation with Lord Alton of Liverpool had led to his visiting Thailand to meet the thousands of Pak-Christian asylum
seekers living destitute and in trepidation of arrest and brutal incarceration in the Thai ‘Immigration Detention Centre’ (IDC) or infamous ‘Central
Jail’ where they are treated like rapists and murderers.
He explained that Lord Alton had used our latest report to trigger a Home Office review of their existing policy, which merely states that Pakistani Christians
face severe discrimination as opposed to persecution. Mr Chowdhry also advised that the UNHCR have now revised their figure on the number of
Pak-Christians in Thailand from 4,600 to 11,900: a figure so large that it clearly illustrates a far more serious concern than previously accepted
by the west.
After the conference a 40 minute mass was held at the Chapel of Italian Parliament ‘Santa Maria della Concezione.’ The mass was delivered in Italian
and Aramaic – the language spoken by Jesus Christ.
Wilson Chowdhry, Chairmn of the BPCA, said:
“This was a well organised event that brought together Parliamentarians, Christian Clergy and the NGOs challeginging for protection of Christian minorities.
It was a chance to bring to the fore a debate on the plight of Christians in the Middle-East whilst highlighting the ramifications of insouciance
including the concern of Jihad in the west. MPs in attendance will be more informed about Christian persecution and I hope they respond to the highlighted
risk to Christians with vigour and determination to bring change.”
He added:
“I am grateful for this chance to illustrate the mistakes made by the west in defining a lower than fair risk profile for Pakistani Christians. I
will be emailing copies of all published reports on Pak-Christian persecution to the Italian Foreign Office, Home Office and MPs Luisa Capitanio Paola
Benetti, Eugenia Rocella and Marco Rondini via Professor Mobeen Shahid and hope that it results in a similar flurry of activity as we have seen in
Britain in recent weeks, which led to a review of their Home Office policy statement on Pak-Christian persecution. 11,900 asylum seekers in Thailand
alone is a figure that expresses the need for stronger focus on the humanitarian crises unfolding in the region.”
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Wilson presented each MP with a copy of the BPCA’s 2013 report entitled ‘The Targeting of Minority Others in Pakistan.’
