Saim and his father / via asianews.it
CV NEWS FEED // A 13-year-old Pakistani Christian boy was poisoned by a Muslim guard in the city of Lahore on April 13 for refusing to say Islamic prayers.
AsiaNews reported that the incident was only one of many attempts made by Muslims to forcibly convert Christians in Pakistan. The boy, Saim, reportedly was on his way to get a haircut when he encountered a Muslim security guard, Qadar Khan. Khan noticed that Saim wore a cross around his neck and stopped the boy.
Khan attempted to force Saim to recite an Islamic prayer, but the boy refused and told Khan that he was a Christian. AsiaNews reported that Khan forced Saim to ingest “a toxic substance,” but it is not known what poison was used or how deadly it was.
Saim’s parents found him unconscious several hours later. It is not known to what extent Saim was affected by the poison.
AsiaNews reported that Saim’s father registered the poisoning with the police, but with great difficulty.
“The officers registered the complaint only after several insistences and a copy of the document was not released to Saim’s family,” AsiaNews reported. “Furthermore, several parts of the story were not included in the complaint.”
AsiaNews added that Joseph Johnson, president of global organization Voice for Justice, called for a government investigation into the poisoning. Johnson also criticized the police for showing negligence in the case, adding that their indifference subjected Saim to further abuse.
According to Open Doors, Christians are a tiny minority in Muslim-dominated Pakistan, making up only 1.8% of the country’s population of 234 million. Seen as the “lower class,” Pakistani Christians are routinely subjected to persecution, discrimination, and abuse.
