Minority rights advocates present eight demands for Sindh

The Parliamentary Council for Human Rights and representatives of minority communities have presented an eight-point set of demands aimed at protecting minority rights in Sindh, Pakistan. During a media briefing, speakers including MNA Kamran Michael and Executive Director Shafiq Chaudhry argued that minority rights must be treated as fundamental citizenship rights rather than secondary interests.

The demands address several critical areas, including political participation, civil liberties, employment, education, and protection from violence. Specific calls include the enforcement of a five per cent employment quota, strict adherence to the minimum marriage age of 18, and effective legislation to prevent forced religious conversions. The speakers noted that the National Commission for Human Rights recorded 136 alleged cases of forced religious conversion in 2023, primarily involving Hindu women and girls in Sindh.

Additional demands involve educational reforms, such as removing discriminatory content from textbooks and including minority history in the curriculum. The group also called for the collection of religion-based data to monitor access to social services like healthcare and housing, and requested meaningful community participation in the restoration of religious sites and cemeteries.