Pakistan is an Islamic republic where Islam is the state religion. However, the Constitution of Pakistan allows freedom of religion and states that all citizens shall have the right to profess, practice, and propagate their religion. While Islam dominates Pakistani culture and society, religious minorities such as Christians are allowed to practice their faith.
What is the Status of Religious Freedom in Pakistan?
The Constitution of Pakistan establishes Islam as the state religion but allows religious minorities to practice, profess, and propagate their religion. Article 20 states: “Subject to law, public order and morality, every citizen shall have the right to profess and propagate his religion.” However, in practice, Christians and other religious minorities face discrimination, exclusion, and persecution in Pakistan.
Constitutional Protections
On paper, the Constitution provides religious freedom protections for minorities. Article 20 guarantees freedom to profess religion and safeguards places of worship. Article 36 prohibits discrimination based on religion. These provisions allow Christians and other non-Muslims to practice their faith in Pakistan.
Anti-Blasphemy Laws
However, Pakistan’s anti-blasphemy laws are often abused to persecute religious minorities. Insulting Islam or the Prophet Muhammad carries severe punishments like life imprisonment or the death penalty. These controversial laws have been disproportionately used against Christians and other minorities in Pakistan.
Religious Violence and Discrimination
While legal protections exist, social hostility and religiously motivated violence against Christians occur. Churches and Christian settlements have suffered mob violence and terrorist attacks from extremist groups. Christians face economic and social discrimination, exclusion from government jobs and underrepresentation in politics.
What Percentage of Pakistan’s Population is Christian?
Christians make up about 1.6% of Pakistan’s total population of over 200 million people, according to Pakistan’s last census taken in 1998. The Christian community in Pakistan numbers approximately 2.5-3.5 million people.
Here is a table showing the religious demographics of Pakistan’s population according to the 1998 census:
| Religion | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Muslim | 96.28% |
| Hindu | 1.60% |
| Christian | 1.59% |
| Ahmadiyya | 0.22% |
| Other | 0.07% |
Christians form the largest non-Muslim minority population in Pakistan. Most Christians reside in the Punjab province, with urban Christian communities in Lahore, Faisalabad, Karachi, and Rawalpindi.
Are Christians Allowed to Build Churches in Pakistan?
Yes, Christians are legally allowed to build churches in Pakistan. The constitution grants religious minorities the right to establish places of worship. However, in practice, it is difficult for Christians to construct new churches or expand existing ones due to social hostility and legal hurdles.
Social Hostility
Attempts to build churches often face mob violence and protests from Muslim groups accusing Christians of proselytizing. In 2016, mobs attacked Christian neighborhoods in Lahore over allegations of a new church construction. Social hostility makes it politically and religiously difficult for Christians to build visible places of worship in Pakistan.
Legal Barriers
Christians must obtain special permits from local authorities to construct new churches, which are often denied or delayed under community pressures. Local officials exploit building codes and land use laws to block church construction. Bureaucracy and red tape make legal approval extremely challenging for Pakistani Christians wishing to build churches.
Attacks on Churches
Extremist groups have carried out terrorist attacks targeting Pakistani churches. In 2013, suicide bombings at a Peshawar church killed over 80 Christians. In 2016, Lahore’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal park bombing killed over 70 Christians celebrating Easter. Security threats create risks for worshippers gathering at Pakistani churches.
Are Christians Allowed to Celebrate Christmas in Pakistan?
Yes, Christians are allowed to celebrate Christmas in Pakistan. December 25 is a public holiday recognized as Christmas Day across Pakistan. Christmas traditions like decorating homes, exchanging gifts, attending church services, and holding festive celebrations are commonly observed by Pakistani Christians.
Public Holiday
Christmas Day on December 25 is an officially designated public and national holiday in Pakistan. Government offices, post offices, banks and most businesses are closed on this day. Christians and many Muslims take the holiday off work to celebrate.
Religious Services
Churches hold special Christmas Eve and Christmas Day services attended by Pakistani Christians. Midnight mass on Christmas Eve is an important tradition. Churches are decked with lights and nativity scenes.
Family Celebrations
Christmas celebrations typically revolve around family gatherings. Christians decorate Christmas trees, exchange gifts, hold feasts and parties wearing festive attire. Carol singing and Santa Claus are popular among Pakistani Christians.
Commercialization
Bazaars, shopping malls and stores sell Christmas paraphernalia and decorations in major Pakistani cities. Streets and markets are lit up in many cities. Commercial aspects make Christmas celebrations more visible across the country.
Are Pakistani Christians Treated Equally?
Christians face both legal discrimination and social prejudice in Pakistan that hinders equal treatment compared to Muslims. Issues faced include bias in education, underrepresentation in government, economic marginalization, accusations of blasphemy, and violent attacks.
Educational Discrimination
Pakistani public school curricula foster an Islamic environment with compulsory Quranic studies. Religious minorities like Christians struggle with open prejudice and discrimination in government schools. Christian students are forced to study Islamic studies.
Economic Marginalization
Christians usually belong to lower income groups and face economic marginalization due to educational discrimination. Most Christians work low-level jobs due to lack of equal opportunities. Economic inequality exists along religious lines.
Political Underrepresentation
Christians lack adequate political representation with only 4 reserve seats in Parliament, despite being the largest minority. No Christian has ever held a prestigious government position like Prime Minister or President.
False Blasphemy Claims
Pakistan’s harsh blasphemy laws are exploited to settle personal disputes and target minorities like Christians. There are cases where Christians are falsely accused of blasphemy by Muslim neighbors or mobs calling for their deaths.
Religious Violence
Mob violence, riots and terrorist attacks by extremist outfits targeting Christian settlements and churches have occurred, spreading fear and insecurity. Christians’ lives, homes and places of worship are under threat.
Are Christians Allowed to Preach in Pakistan?
By law, Christians have the right “to profess, practice and propagate” their religion under Pakistan’s Constitution. However, preaching Christianity publicly faces widespread opposition and Can carry major risks due to hostility towards proselytization.
Constitutional Protections
Article 20 of Pakistan’s Constitution allows Christians to “profess, practice and propagate” their faith. So Christians are legally granted religious freedom to preach and spread teachings of Christianity within reasonable restrictions.
Blasphemy Laws
However, Pakistan’s blasphemy laws prohibit insulting Islam, the Quran or Prophet Muhammad. These laws are vaguely defined and carry death penalty or life imprisonment. Accusations of blasphemy can arise over Christian preaching.
Public Opposition
Public preaching by Christians often faces mass opposition and protests by Muslim groups who view it as unacceptable proselytization in the Islamic Republic. Societal intolerance leads to tension and unrest over open Christian preaching.
Violent Backlash
Preaching Christianity has resulted in violent attacks by Muslim mobs on Christians and their neighborhoods. In 1997, a Christian tribe in Chak village was massacred after accusations of proselytization arose over Christian preaching.
Restrictions on Foreign Clergy
Pakistan has expelled or denied visas to foreign Christian missionaries and clergy due to concerns over proselytizing activity and maintaining religious harmony. Local churches rely on Pakistani priests and pastors for preaching.
Conclusion
In summary, while Christianity is a minority religion in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, it is legally permissible. The Constitution enshrines religious freedom for minorities and allows Christians to practice their faith, build churches and celebrate religious holidays with some restrictions. However, Christians face substantial discrimination and hostility in Pakistani society on the basis of religion, making true equality a challenge.
Christian religious activities like open preaching face opposition due to prevalent Islamic norms and intolerance of proselytization. Christians routinely experience prejudice, exclusion, false accusations and violence that shows how religious minorities are subjected to abuse at the hands of both society and blasphemy laws in Pakistan.
While constitutional protections exist on paper, the reality for Pakistani Christians reflects economic, social and political marginalization along religious lines. There are open contradictions between Pakistan’s secular guarantees of religious freedom and the pressures of Islamic fundamentalism that hamper Christians’ equal rights in practice.