Letter
Letter to Ambassador Karamat Concerning Attacks on Christian Churches in Pakistan, February 24, 2006
February 24, 2006
The Honorable Jehangir Karamat
Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
3517 International Court, NW
Washington, DC 20008
Dear Mr. Ambassador,
Just over four months ago I had occasion to write to you concerning the terrorist attacks against Christian churches and religious entities in the Punjab town of Sangla Hills, where a Catholic, a Presbyterian and a Salvation Army sanctuary were attacked, ransacked and burned. I am concerned that I did not receive a reply to my earlier letter that was sent in the name of the Catholic Bishops of the United States and I regret that I have occasion again to bring other serious incidents to your attention.
I write today to protest in the strongest terms possible the equally outrageous attacks by other Islamist fundamentalists in Sukkur, in the Province of Sindh, where on the 19th of this month upwards of five hundred persons destroyed the 120-year old St Mary’s Catholic church and St. Saviour’s church of the Church of Pakistan, as well as the house of the pastor of that church. Accounts of these events have noted that fire and police units were suspiciously delayed in responding to the fires, despite having been notified much earlier. Other attacks on Christian churches and schools have occurred this month in Peshawar and at Kawanlit in Punjab.
The President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Pakistan, Archbishop Lawrence John Saldanha, Archbishop of Lahore, has condemned the “violence against our defenseless community” which, he said, was growing “because the government has failed to adopt adequate countermeasures against incidents in the past… ”
I urge you, Mr. Ambassador, to convey to your government the deep sorrow and distress that many of the friends of Pakistan in our country feel about the seemingly unchecked attacks against the loyal and peaceful Christian minority, both Catholic and Protestant, in your great country.
With the fond hope that I may hear from you, and with assurances of my prayers for the well-being of the Pakistani people, I remain
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Bishop Thomas G. Wenski
Bishop of Orlando
Chairman, Committee on International Policy