Lahore: March 7, 2012. (PCP) Slum dwellers and homeless tenants of the provincial capital Wednesday took out a big rally condemning government decision to demolish Ittehad Colony located on Railway land near Seven Up Factory Gulberg 3. Convener World Minorities Alliance J Salik and leaders of Joint Action Committee of slum dwellers led the rally. Carrying placards inscribed with slogans in favor of their demands, protesters gathered at Ittehad Colony from where they marched to reach Railway Headquarters near Lahore Press Club. Addressing the rally outside the Railway Headquarters Convener World Minorities Alliance J Salik said decision to demolish Ittehad Colony was blatant violation of UN Charter of Human Rights, He said during 35 years of his struggle for rights of the oppressed; he reached the conclusion that the United Nations had become an ineffective world body having no authority to get its Charter implemented by member countries including Pakistan. He said the UN was never an independent world body, which required US visa to visit its Headquarters in New York. He demanded shifting of UN Headquarters to an independent territory where the world body should have powers to issue its own visa, passport, currency, and have its own airport. He said only an independent United Nations could help protect basic human rights including rights of the minorities. He demanded a reserved seat for minorities in the United Nations. He regretted that minorities were being denied their rights in Pakistan. He said selection of 10 minority members on reserved seats in the National and Provincial assemblies was violation of Article 226 of the Constitution, which he had challenged in the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He asked the audience to pray that the Supreme Court decision on his petition before the forthcoming general elections. Condemning the government decision to demolish Ittehad Colony, J Salik reminded Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani of fulfilling his commitment made on March 30, 2008; promising allotment of residential plots to slum dwellers and homeless tenants in urban and rural areas within 100 days. He regretted that over 1500 days had passed but Prime Minister had failed to honor his words. “If he is honest to his words, Prime Minister should allot residential plots to Ittehad Colony slum dwellers and all homeless tenants,” said J Salik. Referring to contracting of Solid Waste Management (SWM) and its staff by the Lahore City Government (LCG) to a Turkish private firm, J Salik said the decision makers had put at stake job security of 10,000 sanitary workers, most of them Christian. The decision he said was tantamount to violation of rights of minorities. He warned that if remedial steps were not taken immediately the World Minorities Alliance (WMA) would launch a movement against the LCG decision on national and international level. He also condemned the decision under which sanitary workers had been forced to wear yellow uniform. The decision, he observed was product of a sick mindset discriminating sanitary workers from other categories of workers, and was therefore against the universal norms of dignity of human labor. He said yellow color being symbol of hatred was not acceptable to sanitary workers. He demanded of authorities concerned to withdraw the decision otherwise WMA would launch a movement against it. He said the Capital Development Authority (CDA) had to withdraw a similar decision after WMA launched a movement against it in Islamabad. Participants of rally were carrying in their hands red roses, flags of all UN member countries and placard inscribed with slogans in favor of their demands. Slogans included: ‘Mr Prime Minister! Honor your words! Give residential plots to slum dwellers, homeless tenants!’, ‘We condemn contracting SWM jobs to Turkish firm’, ‘No to yellow uniform for sanitary workers. Yellow color is symbol of hatred’, ‘We want independent United Nations’, ‘UNO should have its own visa, passport; its own currency, airport’, ‘Selection of minority members in Parliament against Article 226’,’We want reserved seat for minorities in United Nations’, ’Only an independent United Nations can protect minority rights’ etc.