Pakistani Activists Hold Joint Memorial Service to Remember Slain Pakistani Christians

We as Pakistani Christians remember our martyrs... - Basharat Khokhar, human rights activist

Photo courtesy: Shamim Masih

(ISLAMABAD) - The courageous person who sacrifices his life for values of religion or the rights of people in their community secures a very unique respect and honors of a “Hero” in society and becomes part of history. The generations pay tribute to sacrifices of martyrs and celebrate their anniversaries to remember them.

Martyr Feroz Masih, who was killed by Karachi Police firing in front of the Governor's House on Feb 13, 1997, Bishop John Joseph, was mysteriously murdered by secret agencies of Pakistan on May 6, 1998 in Sahewal city of Punjab province of Pakistan.

Martyr Nawaz Masih and Martyr James Masih were not bishops or high profile Christian leaders but common laymen who had love for the Christian nation in Pakistan.

Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minority Minister, was assassinated on March 2, 2011, in Capital city Islamabad.

In recognition to their struggle for Pakistani Christians, religious leadership and human rights activist held a joint memorial service to remember the slain Pakistani Christians on 23rd February, 2013.

Basharat Khokhar, a human rights activist, said whenever a nation is in crisis their martyrs become a ray of hope and successes to launch a new campaign that successfully resolves issues, but nation which forget their martyrs have always faced failure as history records. We as Pakistani Christians remember our martyrs, he added.

About Shamim Masih

"I am Christian rights activist and freelancer Pakistani journalist specializing in writing about Christians rights for the different papers in the world. My aim is to create a peaceful environment in the society and to help eliminate Christian persecution through my writing as I bring the plight of these brave people under the spotlight of the whole world."

Shamim Masih was born in Sheikhopura's village and raised in Gujranwala, a city in Pakistan's Punjab province. He earned his Bachelors Degree from the University of the Punjab, Lahore majoring in English, Economics and Statistics; he also received a Masters Degree in Business Administration.

As a freelance writer and author, Shamim has written for different papers in the world; his expertise is in writing articles highlighting different social issues. He has served as freelance chief reporter and column writer in “Minority Times” in Islamabad, and a number of Shamim's articles have been published in local papers as well.

You can write to Shamim at this address: shamimpakistan@gmail.com