Human rights activists in Pakistan are urging authorities to postpone the population census until next year, a measure they say could improve the minority count.
In a communication sent to the government, Center for Social Justice (CSJ) chairman Wajahat Masood and executive director Peter Jacob recommended holding the census in April 2023.
“It will allow for proper preparation; removal of the culture of secrecy in gathering and compiling the census data; an early awareness campaign on registration; use of alternative means of verification; confidence building to release comprehensive and segregated provisional census results to avoid misunderstandings caused by a delay in announcement of the final census results,” the CSJ stated in a Feb. 1 press release.
The CSJ has been engaging in research and public awareness concerning the sixth population census in general and data on religious minorities in particular since official data of the 2017 census showed a decline in the Christian population.
Christians make up 1.27 percent of Pakistan’s population of 207.68 million, according to data released last year. They were 1.59 percent of the population as per the 1998 census.
“The data showed an overall growth of about 60 percent from 1998 to 2017. The growth of the Christian population was only 25.71 percent, while Hindu growth was 70 percent and the scheduled caste population increased exponentially by 157.58 percent,” stated the CSJ.
The authorities should engage local civil society organizations and volunteers to assist enumerators
“The Qadiani/Ahmadi population declined by 64.28 percent, ‘Other religions’ declined by 60 percent. The Christian population declined significantly by 0.32 percent in the aggregate figure. The overall minority population fell from 3.73 percent in 1998 to 3.53 percent in 2017.”
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Statistics has started preparations to hold Pakistan’s first-ever digital population census this August. The Ministry of Planning, Development and Special Initiatives asked the Finance Division for a 5-billion-rupee fund last month.
“The authorities should engage local civil society organizations and volunteers to assist enumerators. They should release data relating to religious minorities, transgender people and persons with disabilities along with the provisional census results to avoid any misunderstandings caused by delays in the announcement of final census results,” said Jacob.
“They should ensure that all religious communities such as Sikhs, Buddhists, Kalash, Jews, Parsi, Baha’i are counted and presented separately rather than accumulatively as ‘others’ (segregated data, including the social indicators).”
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For decades, church leaders have been demanding an increase in seats for religious minorities from 10 to 14 in the 342-seat national assembly as per the census. The national parliament currently has four Christian and six Hindu members.
Naeem Yousaf Gill, executive director of the Catholic bishops’ National Commission for Justice and Peace, blamed Christians for the undercount.
“Our youth generally ignores registering computerized national identity cards. Hindu leaders are popular in political circles but we are more concerned with home mushroom churches,” he told UCA News.
“There is no unity. Our leaders have failed in building relationships with the electoral majority. Christians are present around the country but Hindus are only concentrated in two provinces, Sindh and Punjab. Still, they are being prioritized in government bodies.”
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