Muslims apologize over June 17th violence
by Sheraz Khurram Khan
July 6, 2007
FAISALABAD, PAKISTAN (ANS) -- A compromise has been brokered between Christian and Muslim residents of 248 RB, a village in the Pakistan province of Punjab, some 20 miles from Faisalabad city, following the violence of June 17th. The Muslim residents of the village had attacked the Christian residents on both June 16 and 17 in a bid to stop them from staging an evangelistic convention that was slated for June 17.
A Muslim mob comprising of some 41 men had launched attack on Christians leaving 8 of them, including two women, injured. The incident sparked fear among the Christian residents forcing them to flee the village to places of safety.
Eleven days after the June 17 violence, a compromise was reached between the Christians and Muslims in presence of Superintendent of Police on June 28, Thursday. The Superintendent of Police formed a committee comprising Christians and Muslims including village headman, Basit Hameed, Nazim, Badar Munir, Christian member District Council, Hubkook Rashid Gill and former Christian Tehsil (administrative division) member, Shahid Arif.
A Christian man, Farhad Sarosh, who had filed Police First Information Report (FIR) against the Muslim side told Zimran Ilias, an activist of Rays of Development (ROD) that when the matter was taken to the concerned Superintendent of Police he ordered that the comments made by the Station House Officer Dijkot Police Station accusing the Christians of filing the Police First Information Report against the Muslim residents "with a view to go abroad" be struck out from the FIR.
Faizur Rehman, a Muslim man who was thought to be behind the June 17 violence tendered apology to the Christians, Farhad further told ROD.
ANS learnt that the Muslim side in an affidavit said that they apologized over the incident.
"We apologize for disruption. We will not create any problems in future. If Muslims come up with any case with an intention to implicate the Christians it would be considered as fake", Farhad quoted the affidavit as saying.
He further disclosed that the Muslim side held out assurance that June 17 violence would not be repeated and the Christians should feel free to go the their place of worship.
ANS further learnt that the Muslim residents pledged cooperation in staging the evangelistic convention which was supposed to be organized on June 17.
In reply to a ROD activist's question Farhad said that the date for the event was yet to be decided.
He said calm had returned to the village as the Christians, who had fled following June 17, violence had returned to their homes. He added that the injured Christians were now stable.
ROD told ANS that the Christian residents did not place any demands for brokering compromise with the Muslim residents. A lone Muslim house in the lane opposite to the Salvation Army Church was described by the Christian residents on June 23, Saturday as one of the reasons triggering Muslim violence on June 17. The Christians also surrendered their claim to the Muslim house that was sold by a Christian man Iqbal Masih to a Muslim man named Faizur Rehman.
Talking to ANS the Chairman of ROD, Ferhan Mazher, said that he was happy to learn that peace had returned to the village. He appealed to the prospective believers to help install roof of the Salvation Army Church. ROD account number: 13849901 Habib Bank Limited Satellite Town Branch Sargodha, Pakistan.
© 2007 ASSIST News Service, used with permission.
