KARACHI: Aneeq Ahmed Friday, the Caretaker Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, emphasized the importance of educating the public, especially the younger generation, about harmony and peaceful coexistence.
In association with Dawood University of Engineering and Technology (DUET) Karachi, the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony arranged the seminar, “Bridging Beliefs: Interfaith Harmony in Pakistan.”
In order to realize the goal of creating an open and well-rounded society, the minister stated that the younger generation was our future and the messengers of Islam’s message of Husn-e-Akhlaq (moral perfection). She hoped that they would disseminate this message further over the world. He claimed that because all faiths are connected in some way, they all contain the same divine message ingrained in their ideologies.
While the Quran recounts that every human being is a member of Allah’s family, Islam accords humans a dignified standing, calling them “Naib of the Allah” on earth. “How can one claim to have love for Allah when his heart has been occupied with feelings of prejudice, enmity, and hatred to other humans even if they belong to a different religion?” asked Aneeq Ahmed in his inquiry.
He went on to say that the Islamic system of governance requires that every citizen receive justice and that non-Muslim citizens must have complete freedom within an Islamic state. He also said that treating a non-Muslim citizen unfairly in an Islamic state is seen as more oppressive than treating a Muslim citizen unfairly, and that the government must also ensure the safety of its citizens.
The federal minister said that all citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs, must independently play their part in the development of their nation and that non-Muslim communities were living in safer and better environments in Pakistan while non-Muslims were given security by the government.
