Faisalabad: September 22, 2010. (PCP) On 20th September 2010, Association of Women for Awareness and Motivation (AWAM) organized a seminar to mark international day of peace on the theme “Peace Building in Pakistan: Prospects, Efforts and Challenges” in collaboration with Liaison for Enforcement of Human Rights (LEHR). More than 110 Muslim and Christian participants from different schools of thought joined the seminar held at John Joseph Hall in Faisalabad. The speakers of the seminar included; Naseem Anthony (Executive Secretary-AWAM), Shazia George (Coordinator-AWAM), Suneel Malik (Executive Secretary-Peace and Human Development-PHD), Father Khalid Rasheed Asi, Nazia Sardar, Mumtaz Kousar and Afsheen Patras.
Naseem Anthony said, “It is pertinent for peace building that non-violent ways like dialogue and reconciliation rather than violent ways must be adopted to deal with the conflicts in order to build a humane, just and peaceful society.”
Father Khalid Rasheed Asi said, “There will be no religious or sectarian clash in Pakistan if people practice their own faith and respect other faiths.”
Shazia George said, “Justice is the base for building peace in the society, and social justice can only create a balanced society therefore people’s access to justice should be ensured regardless of their social status.”
Suneel Malik said, “Conflicts only arise when people do not bear the viewpoint of others, therefore there is a need to establish atmosphere of peace and respect despite religious, sectarian and ethnic differences, because survival of humanity lies in tolerance, solidarity and harmony, not in war.”
Nazia Sardar said, “We need to promote the concepts of human rights, peace and inter-faith harmony among different communities for building positive and constructive society.”
The speakers called upon the government that appropriate measures should be adopted to stop target killings and extra judicial killings; concrete steps must be taken to control inflation and subsidies on food items must be provided for relief to the poor; all political parties should adopt policy of negotiation despite political differences in order to secure the democratic system in the country; discrimination in the laws and constitution against women and religious minorities should be removed and class division must be eliminated by ensuring equal human rights for citizens regardless of any discrimination; stern action must be taken to bring an end to provocation through loud speakers, ban extremist outfits and seize the hate mongering literature in order to build the culture of peace in Pakistan; curriculum must be made free from all kinds of discrimination, prejudice and hatred, and material based on peace, human rights, tolerance and harmony should be included in the syllabus in order to create sense of respect for all human beings among students.
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