Ahmadi Muslim mosque desecrated by police

In another shocking incident police officers in Baghbanpura, District Gujranwala, removed the minarets of the Ahmadi Muslim mosque (see photo, below). The police arrived with machinery to demolish the minarets of the mosque on the afternoon of 7 December. They blocked the road leading to the mosque and switched off nearby lights to avoid attracting attention while carrying out the demolition.
Six months ago, opponents of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community demanded that the local police remove the minarets of the mosque.

To avoid damage to the mosque, the local Ahmadi Muslim community sought a compromise with the authorities and agreed to have the minarets covered up to quell anti-Ahmadi protesters. The minarets were accordingly covered up, but the police did not deem this sufficient and later came back and destroyed them all together. This is an act of blatant religious discrimination and vandalism of a place of worship.

Pakistan is a signatory of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which, under Article 18, guarantees the right to freedom of religion, and in particular guaranees everyone the right to “manifest his religion or belief in teaching,practice, worship and observance” .This arbitrary and discriminatory act of the police, acting on the authority of the local administration, clearly violates the human rights of the local Ahmadi Muslim community to live peacefully, worship and manifest their faith without hindrance or persecution. It is a further example of the ongoing state-sponsored persecution of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan.