It will be quite harsh to pin-point one out of a million and put all the blame on it but there are some who should definitely not be ignored. Specially those who are presenting the story with the intention to provoke.
Most of the news sources who report half of the stories (the case with all the news channels in Pakistan at least, bar a couple) have the intent to degrade one (individual or group) involved. It may include hiding some facts, only mentioning what one did wrong and not pointing out what the other did wrong.
Works wonders when it’s done for you or for someone you favor but surely pisses you off as hell if it’s done against you or against someone you favor. But that is not fair. If it’s not okay to use a tactic against you, it’s not okay to use a tactic for you.
Another thing that should be taken under notice is that you should not spread ‘news’ that you aren’t completely sure of; news that you don’t have enough proof of. Recently, there have been a number of Muslim-Christian clashes – two, to be exact.
One in Faisalabad, where a pastor and his brother were killed while leaving court for allegedly distributing blasphemous handouts. Second in Karachi, where a Christian student nurse was abducted by a Muslim doctor and thrown away.
Frankly, the second is not a case of a Christian-Muslim clash. Religion is just being pushed into it forcefully. Unfortunately, it is a case of the more influential man being the guilty party. We have had similar cases before where rape victims have even cashed in on the attention they were getting (hint: Mukhtaran Mai).
The one in Faisalabad was a matter that should’ve been dealt in court and killing them was wrong. And of course, there were rumors and retaliation to follow with people living among us, acting like one of us fueling such differences wherever possible.
One such example, is the claim by the Pakistan Christian Post. I don’t know the authenticity of the website but they are definitely making sure that the events make a turn for the worse. How do I know about their mis-reporting you may ask? Well, here’s a detailed report of the events as the unfolded that evening by the Tribune.
You will notice the unnecessary exaggeration and the spices added to the story by the Pakistan Christian Post to fuel the Christian minority where it hurts and kick-start a reaction that will cause further chaos in the same country we live in. Extremist Christians and Muslims aside, those who don’t want to be a part of the violence.
It’s not like Pakistan is doing so well already and one or two imperfections won’t hurt. Lets have a Christian-Muslim clash this week, our efficient government will sort things out in no time.
Protest for your right all you want but please do not fuel religious clashes. Violence is not the answer to anything. It goes for both Muslims and Christians. The more civilized people obviously know that but unfortunately we live in a country where people are either not civilized or unfamiliar with the concept of logical, realistic and objective thinking (more like ‘thinking in general’).