Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08KARACHI586
2008-10-28 10:26:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Consulate Karachi
Cable title:  

RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN SINDH AND BALOCHISTAN PROVINCES

Tags:  SOCI PGOV PK 
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P 281026Z OCT 08
FM AMCONSUL KARACHI
TO SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0730
INFO AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 
AMCONSUL LAHORE PRIORITY 
AMCONSUL PESHAWAR PRIORITY 
CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L KARACHI 000586 


USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/28/2018
TAGS: SOCI PGOV PK
SUBJECT: RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN SINDH AND BALOCHISTAN PROVINCES

REF: KARACHI 531

Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY CONSUL GENERAL KAY ANSKE FOR REASONS 1.4 (b) AND (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L KARACHI 000586


USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/28/2018
TAGS: SOCI PGOV PK
SUBJECT: RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN SINDH AND BALOCHISTAN PROVINCES

REF: KARACHI 531

Classified By: CLASSIFIED BY CONSUL GENERAL KAY ANSKE FOR REASONS 1.4 (b) AND (d)


1. (C) Summary: With the exception of the Ahmadi sect,
most religious minorities in Sindh and Balochistan find the
provincial governments supportive - to varying degrees - and
do not report official discrimination. Urban communities
tend to be more tolerant of religious minorities than rural
areas, but minorities in rural areas in Balochistan have
tribal protection. Anti-blasphemy laws can and have been
used to attack certain members of religious sects. The
Ahmadis, an offshoot of mainstream Sunni Islam, have been
subject to violent pogroms with little police interference.
End summary.

Christians
--------------


2. (C) Based on population growth rates and data obtained
from the 1998 GOP census, Post estimates that there are
389,000 Christians in Sindh province and another 34,000 in
Balochistan, making Christianity the second largest
non-Muslim religious minority in both provinces. (Note:
Hindus are the largest non-Muslim religious minority. Some
NGO estimates indicate there are as many as 163,000
Christians in Balochistan. End note.) The provinces are
home to many Christian denominations including Anglicans,
Roman Catholics, and Seventh Day Adventists.


3. (C) Representatives of all three Christian denominations
have told the Consul General (CG) that they carefully abide
by government prohibitions on proselytizing. They also said
that while there is no officially sanctioned discrimination,
Pakistani society informally sanctions bias against other
religions. Pakistani laws, based on the Sharia, often
disadvantage members of other religions. For example, those
who marry a Muslim must convert to Islam as conversion to
Christianity by a Muslim is not allowed. Some Christian
leaders felt that the 2002 election reforms diluted their
legislative influence by eliminating special seats for
religious minorities. Under this system, religious
minorities could vote only for the religious minority
candidates. Currently, religious minorities have 10 reserved
seats in the National Assembly, but the new law allows all
religious minorities to vote for any legislators who will
represent their geographical area.


-- Anglicans


4. (C) Right Reverend Saddiq Daniel, Anglican Bishop of
Karachi, said that he did not believe state-sanctioned
discrimination against Christians existed. However, he
claimed that Christians sometimes had more difficulty than
Muslims in gaining admission to certain universities or in
obtaining jobs. He also noted more anti-Christian sentiment
in interior Sindh province than in Karachi. Forced
conversions, while they do occur, are not a major problem for
the Anglican Church. In Balochistan, Daniel said that while
church members enjoyed tribal protection, a local politician
was attempting to seize church property illegally. Of an
estimated 25,000 - 30,000 Anglicans in Sindh, around 3,000
live in Karachi. Another 1,000 reside in Balochistan, where
they have two houses of worship in the Quetta area.

-- Roman Catholics


5. (C) Roman Catholic Archbishop Everest Pinto, told the CG
that although there is no government bias against members of
his faith, anti-Christian sentiment has increased in the
Muslim community over the past few years. Nevertheless, he
was optimistic about the future and told the CG that
interfaith dialogue is improving. Pinto did opine that there
is more discrimination and less religious tolerance in
Balochistan. Many Catholic schools (an estimated 100 in
Sindh) are regarded as premier educational intuitions and
have large percentages or often substantial majorities of
non-Christian students. The Archdiocese publishes two
newspapers - one in English and the other in Urdu. According
to the Archbishop, there are an estimated 245,000 Roman
Catholics in Sindh - around 145,000 reside in the Karachi
area. Around 10,000 live in Balochistan.

-- Seventh Day Adventists


6. (C) According to church officials, the Seventh Day
Adventist denomination has 3,000 members, 28 churches, 48
congregations, and 10 schools - six secondary and four
elementary - in Sindh and Balochistan. A leading Adventist
official, Pastor Isaac Jalal, told the CG that members of his
faith have experienced discrimination in gaining admission to
universities, in particular, medical schools, and in finding
meaningful jobs. This bias is most pronounced in villages
and small towns, but does not appear to be officially
sanctioned by the government. However, Jalal characterized
Pakistan's blasphemy law as a "sword of Damocles" hanging
over the heads of the Christian community.


7. (C) Religious fervor can often incite sectarian
violence. For example, a claim by a Christian convert to
Islam that a member of the Sukkur Catholic community had
insulted Islam incited rioters to burn a Roman Catholic
Church and an Anglican Church on February 19, 2006. (Note:
This was in the middle of the uproar against the Danish
cartoons. End note.) As a gesture of good will, the Sindh
provincial government allocated funding that has helped, at
least partially, rebuild the torched church buildings.

Hindus
--------------


8. (C) There are an estimated 2.6 million Hindus in Sindh
and 41,000 in Balochistan, making them the largest non-Muslim
religious minority in the two provinces. (Note: Some NGOs
estimate that Hindus comprise 2.2 percent of Balochistan's
population or over 184,000 people. End note.) Hindu leaders
stated that they were pleased with the 2002 election reforms,
which eliminated the separate minority electorate. Many
members of this community are well-educated and serve as
doctors, engineers and chartered accountants. There are also
many Hindus in the business community.


9. (C) However, community leaders have reported that
members of certain castes such as the Bheel and Kohli
(Untouchables) are forced to work as bonded agricultural
labor for big landholders in Sindh. These particular groups
of Hindus comprise one of the poorest and least educated
communities in the province. Post has heard that some
Untouchables were "sold" by at least one feudal landholder
and that they are occasionally held in private jails by their
employers. The case of Manu Baheel, whose nine family
members were kidnapped from Sanghar in 1998, is still pending
and their whereabouts are still unknown.


10. (C) Dr. Dawarkadas, a Hindu community leader in upper
Sindh, told the CG that kidnappings of Hindu business owners
for ransom have recently increased. He also cited forced
conversions to Islam of Hindu women. Dawarkadas said that
while government sanctioned discrimination was rare, members
of the Hindu community have lost government contracts for
reasons that were never made clear. In Balochistan, Hindu
leaders attributed their relative security to protection by
the tribes, but claimed little official support.

Parsis
--------------


11. (C) Members of the Parsi religious community have lived
in Pakistan since the early nineteenth century. Currently
there are only about 2,000 Parsis now living in Pakistan with
1,600 of those residing in Karachi. In the past, many
members of the community have migrated to the U.S., Canada,
and Australia. About 60 percent of the Parsi population now
living in Karachi is over 60 years of age. Highly literate,
they are widely respected for their philanthropic works.


12. (C) Byram Avari, a Parsi community leader, told Post
that his religious community did not experience official
discrimination. He noted that most Parsis enjoy an above
average wage and are highly sought by employers due to their
overall education levels.

Sikhs
--------------


13. (C) Around 1,000 Sikhs live in Karachi, with an
estimated 3,000 living throughout Sindh province. There are
only around 2,000 Sikhs living in Balochistan. Sikh leaders
bristle about the Hindu contention that their sect should be
included with the Hindus in official reports. One Sikh
leader, Sardar Hira Singh, declared that Sikhs have not
experienced discrimination in obtaining university admission,
but are discriminated against by prospective employers.


14. (C) Particularly rankling to Karachi's Sikh community
is an ongoing 15 year court battle with Hindus over the
community's only temple (gurdwara) in Karachi. Singh
complained that the temple has been shuttered and members of
his community now have to use makeshift sites for worship.
He accused Hindu members in both the national and provincial
assemblies of exerting undue influence in favor of their
communities in this battle. For lack of a separate cemetery,
Sikhs are forced to inter their deceased in a Hindu graveyard.

Baha'is
--------------


15. (C) Baha'is have lived in Sindh since before the 1947
partition. They established temples in Karachi, Hyderabad
and other cities as early as 1932. There are currently
around 500 Baha,is in Karachi and around 2,000 in Sindh.
Another 1,000 are believed to live in Balochistan. Farshid
Rohani, a Baha'i leader, stated that his religion has not
faced discrimination in Sindh province and Baha'is have
practiced their religion freely in both rural and urban areas
of the province.


16. (C) A 1981 amendment to the Pakistani constitution
recognized Baha'is as a non-Muslim minority. This provision
meant that they experienced no difficulties in registering
for National Identity Cards or obtaining passports. Most of
Karachi's Baha'i community is educated and many hold jobs in
private and government offices. Others are small business
owners with a concentration in bakeries, restaurants, and
general stores. In rural Sindh, Bahai,s tend to be
land-holding farmers. The Baha'i leader said that members of
his religion have not had problems with gaining admission
into universities. The community shares the National
Assembly reserved seat for minorities with the Parsis.

Ahmadis
--------------


17. (C) The Punjab-based Ahmadis are a branch of Islam
established in 1880 by Ghulam Ahmed of Qadiyan, who declared
himself a prophet. As Ahmed's declaration ran contrary to
mainstream Islamic beliefs, he was almost immediately
declared a heretic and his followers banned because they do
not recognize Mohammad as the last Prophet. Since then,
Ahmadis have been violently persecuted. In 1974, the
National Assembly officially categorized Ahmadis as a
non-Muslim minority. Pakistani law makes it illegal for
Ahmadis to call themselves Muslims, to adopt or use Islamic
terminology, or to publish translations of the Holy Quran.

18. (C) There are about 56,000 Ahmadis or Qadiyanis living
in Sindh, mostly in the urban areas. Balochistan has
approximately 13,000, although some NGOs put them at a much
higher percentage of the total population with numbers
approaching 48,000. They are discriminated against in all
facets of life, including university admission and
employment. Various Muslim clerics have issued decrees
(fatwas) against the Ahmadis.


19. (C) In June 2008, an Ahmadi community in the city of
Kotri (a suburb of Hyderabad),Sindh was attacked by an angry
mob. Ahmadi leaders claimed that their homes were attacked
and looted in the presence of local police, who took no
action to protect them. The day after the attacks, the
district government lodged charges against six Ahmedis. In
the same month, Badin District authorities (interior Sindh)
forced the Ahmadi community there to sell its place of
worship, after receiving a complaint from Sunni clerics about
the facility. On September 8, Abdul Siddiqui, a U.S. citizen
physician and a leader in the Ahmadi community, was shot to
death while working in his hospital in Mirpurkhas in what
appears to have been a religiously motivated attack (reftel).

Muslims
--------------

-- Shi,as


20. (C) Post estimates that there are between 6.8 to 8
million Shi,as in Sindh province, concentrated in the urban
centers. Another 400,000 ) 500,000 are believed to live in
Balochistan, mainly in cities. While GOP policy does not
discriminate against Shi,as, leaders of Sunni militant
jihadi organizations have encouraged pogroms against them in
the past. Shi,a leaders and mosques, particularly in
Karachi, have been attacked by Sunni suicide bombers and
Shi,as have retaliated by assassinating prominent Sunni
clerics, fueling the cycle of violence. Two particularly
virulent Sunni organizations, Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and
Sipah-i-Sahaba, reportedly have adopted the murder of Shi,as
as a tenet of their organizations.

-- Ismailis


21. (C) The Shi,a Imami Ismaili Muslims (Ismailis) are an
branch of the Shi,as that is led by the Aga Khan. They have
had a presence in Sindh since the 16th century. An Ismaili
leader, Pyar Ali, a member of the Aga Khan Council of
Pakistan, estimated that around 49,000 members of his sect
live in Sindh. There are only around 700 in Balochistan.
They are concentrated in urban areas, with the majority
living in Karachi. Community leaders said that they do not
face discrimination from the provincial or federal
governments. Perhaps because of their extensive charity work
and community outreach, they appear to have escaped much of
the violence perpetrated against mainstream Shi,as by Sunni
militants.

-- Bohras


22. (C) The Bohras are a Shi,a sect with roots in Yemen
and India. There are around 45,000 Bohras in Sindh - most
live in Karachi and Hyderabad - and another 200 in
Balochistan. They are well-educated and many are
professionals. The sect observes a different religious
calendar from other Islamic sects, which some consider a
slight to Islam. A generally reserved community, Bohras have
their own mosques. Community leaders told Post that members
of their sect do not usually face discrimination in finding
jobs or seats at universities. They have not been the target
of sectarian violence.

-- Zikris


23. (C) Predominantly concentrated in Makran and Lasbela
districts of Balochistan, with pockets located in Sindh,
mainly in the Karachi area, Zikris are an offshoot of Sunni
Islam. Most Zikris are poor peasants or nomads, and largely
uneducated. They differ from mainstream Islamic beliefs in
their observance of prayer. As a result, some Sunni
fundamentalist groups regard them as heretics and have
demanded that the GOP cease recognizing them as Muslims. The
exact number of Zikris is unknown, but Post roughly estimates
that 100,000 to 200,000 live in Sindh and Balochistan
provinces.

-- Sufis


24. (C) Sindh is known as the cradle of Sufism, an offshoot
of mainstream Islam. Barelvi Sunnis are the main adherents
to the Sufi movement in Sindh. Barelvis represent almost
sixty percent (around 23 million people) of the population in
Sindh. The anniversaries of death of prominent Sufis, such
as poets, are revered, and Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai and Lal
Shahbaz Qalandar, are officially recognized. Sufis believe
in universal love through poetry and dance, and pilgrimages
to the mausoleums of Sufi poets and saints. Given the sheer
number of adherents to Sufism and its general acceptance
among Sunnis, Sufis have not experienced significant
discrimination from the GOP or in society in general.

Anske