The Christians mourners were just coming home to observe funeral ceremony of Yousaf Masih who was gunned down by same ethnic Pashtun terrorist group on September 12, 2012.
Nasir Masih and Rafi Masih were killed after firing of Muslim attackers while Saleem Masih and 2 other were seriously injured and admitted to hospital.
Earlier Moughal Faisal Masih was killed by firing on August 28, 2012, by the attack of same gang of ethnic Pashtun militants.
Four Christians have been gunned down and 8 seriously injured from attacks on Essa Nagri which have been reported to police and Karachi administration but none of the culprit is arrested nor any security measure have been adopted by Sindh government.
Read following report of Pakistan Christian Post PCP to know facts about continuous killing of Christians of Essa Nagri:
Report conducted in August 2012:
Karachi Christians under threats of militants, Islamists and Drug dealers.
Mr. Liaquat Munawar Masih and Raja Yousaf Bhatti both Pakistani Christian leaders representing MASS, enter in PIB Colony Police Station Karachi to seek release of two Christian activists who were surprisingly detained when they brought two Muslim militants for arrest on intruding in Christian colony Essa Nagri at midnight on intentions of robbery. The Essa Nagri Christian youth have decided to take security of their area in their own hands after continuous robberies, firing and drug pushing by Muslim anti-social elements in collaboration with PIB Police Station officials but PIB Police detains Mr. Liaquat Munawar Masih and Mr. Raja Yousaf Bhatti also:
Is it not surprising justice with Liaquat Munawar and Raja Yousaf Bhatti? Compare it with Justice of Supreme Court of Pakistan in “Rinkle Kumari and others case of enforced conversion of Hindu girls to Islam” in which Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Choudhry ignores cries of Hindu girls in open court to unite with their parents but orders to send them in shelters. For two weeks of Hindu girls in shelter, parents were not allowed to visit them but Muslim husbands backed by one powerful Sindhi parliamentarian who enforcedly converted them to Islam after kidnapping were freely meeting them. They were threatening girls that if they voiced to go back to their Hindu families, they and their families shall be killed as blasphemer or apostate. What pity on Pakistani justice system? The honorable Chief Justice and other Justices on Bench of Supreme Court of Pakistan, not even bothered to record statement of Hindu girls in open court room in this hearing and orders to record statement with SCP Registrar in police custody. What can be statement of Hindu girls in police custody? Muslim police, Muslim Registrar of SCP, Muslim husbands, Muslim Justices and Islamic Republic of Pakistan: Migrate to India as Hindus have no justice even in apex court of Pakistan.
Let’s concentrate on justice of Supreme Court of Pakistan with PIB Police Station in Karachi; The Pashtun (The ethnic community speaking Pashtu language living in KPK province of Pakistan bordering Afghanistan) community leaders started gathering in PIB Colony Police Station early in morning to seek release of Muslim Pashtun armed robbers whom Essa Nagri Christian Youth security have nabbed at night. Suddenly, PIB Colony police officers orders release of Pashtun armed robbers and puts two Christians of Essa Nagri in lock up on charges of maltreating respectable Muslims. When Christian leaders Liaquat Munawar and Raja Yousaf Bhatti reached police station, police have given judgment that Christian shall pay Pakistani Rupees 1, 00,000 and 2 goats to Muslim intruders of Essa Nagri to get freedom. It must be noted that Pakistani Christians had never been insured justice from any Police Station, lower courts, session courts or higher courts of Pakistan. It is very important to analyze worsening law and order situation in Christian colonies of Karachi in light of changed ethnic communities’ presence in this metropolitan city, which is known as economic hub of Pakistan.
There are more than fifty Christian colonies in Metropolitan city of Karachi while Essa Nagri is biggest in population and area. The Christian laborers of Karachi Municipal Corporation were forced to settle in eastern outskirt of Karachi in 1960, when residential area like Slaughter House, Baghdadi, Sher Shah, Jut Lines, Kala Pul, Keamari, Peer Colony, Korangi, Baber Market Landhi, Kala Board Malir, Feather Colony, Drigh Colony, Lalo Kheet and Clifton where KMC Christian employees were living became over populated. In 1960,s, where Essa Nagri is now situated had one factory for production of Milk known as “Milk Scheme”, Vegetable Market “Sabzi Mandi” and one village “Baloch Goth” as neighborhoods. There was only one road leading to Karachi University used by Christians of Essa Nagri to reach their workplaces in city center which was taking hours due to non-transport routs. The Essa Nagri Christian employees had to walk more than a mile every morning to Jail Road, PIB Colony to catch bus to reach to work. There was no electricity, water and draining facilities in Essa Nagri and women had to walk to Milk Scheme to get drinking water on their heads in buckets and empty drums. There was only Major Kindia,s Farm, Aero Club and Karachi Seminary on way to Karachi University on only road near Essa Nagri.
After 1973, when Karachi Development Authority KDA, announced Gulshan-e-Iqal residential scheme, from Milk Scheme to Karachi University areas, the Essa Nagri became very valuable piece of land. The Muslim residents of Baloch Goath attempted to occupy land of Essa Nagri and attacked Christians on which 5 Christians were martyred.
Till 1970, Karachi was city of Sindhi,s, Baloch, Punjabi, Muhajar, Parsi, Anglo Indians, Memon and Kutchi speaking communities while Pashtun were not any sizeable community. The Jamat-e-Islami Pakistan and Pakistan peoples Party wiped away Pakistan Muslim League from Karachi city in national general elections of 1970, and took total control of city.
From 1970 to 1980, Pakistan came under mas-migration of population from villages to cities and Karachi was most popular for new settlers where job opportunities were in abundance. When Pashtun, Hazara and Punjabi were moving to Karachi, the Parsi, Jews and Anglo Indian religious communities were migrating to other countries. The Karachi was divided in four districts, East, West, Central and South districts. The Pashtun settled in outskirts of Karachi East, Karachi West and Karachi Central districts alongside National Highway leading to Hyderabad, Super Highway, an outlet to interior Sindh and RCD Highway to Quetta, Balochistan.
When we discuss Pashtun as nation, we can divide it in two parts but all will agree on one that Pashtun are a very religious and undoubtedly Islam loving people. The other part divides in economic means in which Pashtun are very famous for hard labor to earn their livings and saving for rainy days. To present a very important segment of Pashtu speaking community, I must note one very important experience of my life: There was one Pashtun in our friends circle in Karachi, who was very rich and used to ride luxury imported cars in 1970,s when life was very simple in Karachi. We came to know later that our Pashtun friend is drug smuggler, when Khan Adbul Quoom Khan, then Interior Minister of Pakistan, who was ethnic Pashtun, gave publically amnesty to that friend in drug smuggling cases. When after years, I met this Pashtun friend in a party, he told me that he just came from Saudi Arabia after performing “Hajj”. As a fun, I asked him “What you prayed during Hajj?” he very bluntly replied “I prayed to Allaha that bless my drug smuggling business”. To write this incident, I meant to explain that large segment of Pashtun community never takes arms and drug smuggling as social crime in Pakistan. I can write very confidently that drugs and arms entered in Karachi as Pashtun entered in Karachi. Everyone is fully aware in Pakistan that from centuries illegal arm and drug manufacturing factories are operational in Tribal Areas bordering Afghanistan where total population is ethnic Pashtun. I always admire those Pashtuns who mend shoes, vendor Tea stalls, work as construction labor, factory worker, Teacher and social activists who are true face of Pashtun.
The Christian colonies were easy target for Pashtun drug pushers to turn them in dens and they did it in collaboration with Karachi police. Essa Nagri, Slaughter House, Kemari and Azam Basti were their prime targets where thousands of Christians were residing. The drug was brought in very wicked way in Christian colonies; like, police will pick any Christian in any petty crime and torture him in Police Station then will force him to become drug pusher in his area for his release; I met dozens of Christian drug pushers in different Karachi Christian colonies; who said that police have registered numerous fake cases of possession of illegal arms which can take them to anti-terrorism courts if they not sell drugs provided to them by Muslims Pashtun drug dealers in Karachi. It does not mean that Christian take drugs in Christian colonies because I have seen flocks of Muslim drug addicts in streets of these Christian colonies that take drugs openly and commit crime in locality to purchase drugs. The Baloch, Muhajar and Sindhi criminals also joined profitable drugs and arms smuggling in Karachi after 1971.
Let us view the political scenario of Karachi and its impact of life on Christians in different Christian colonies. The Pakistan Peoples Party PPP was first choice of Christians in Karachi after 1973, when Jamat-e-Islami JI, a Muslim religious party neither accepted membership of Christians nor have any right for them in its manifesto. In 1985, when Separate Electorate was given to religious minorities in Pakistan, the Christians in Karachi elected their representatives with their votes and Christian leadership took control of safety and security issues of Christian colonies.
The situation in Christian colonies in Karachi became serious in 1991-1992, when Christian and Hindu members of Sindh assembly were issued permits to open liquor shops in Karachi; there was fear among Muslims who were prohibited to consume liquor started buying it openly from these new outlets. In 1977, government prohibited consumption of liquor to Muslims but opened a back door with issuing liquor permits to non-Muslims on religious grounds. The Muslims walked in darken lanes of Christian colonies to buy liquor from Christians who were permitted to consume but not to sell it. The Christians homes were raided by police and then arrested Christians were given drugs to sell from their homes.
In 1988, national general elections, MQM emerged as a political force in Sindh and wiped away presence of Jamat-e-Islami from Karachi; there were only two political forces in Karachi now; The MQM had secular stance like PPP which made Christians to coexist in peace in Karachi.
On other hand Christian had own elected representatives with their votes in parliament under separate electorate which minimized interference of Muslims in Christian colonies.
On December 24, 1979, Russian armed forces entered in Afghanistan to support its secular government which forced millions of Afghan refugees in Pakistan; These Afghan refugees moved very slowly and steadily from refugee camps to Karachi and settled on outskirts of city. Till 1992, the Afghan refugee’s population became in millions in Karachi. These Pashtu speaking Afghan refugees paid high bribe to get Pakistani Identity cards and Passport with reference to addressees from Tribal belt of Pakistan called FATA.
In 2000, when Joint Electorate was imposed and right of Christian voters to elect their representatives in parliament was snatched, the Christian vote bank became very attractive for Muslim political groups. There were new political forces in Karachi after 2008 elections, like MQM, PPP but Pashtun Party ANP started showing its muscles also. After 2000, the element of political oppression also entered in Christian colonies following drugs to victimized Christian social and religious workers.
The Afghan Refugees (Now as Pakistani nationals) or (Now as Pakistani ethnic Pashtun) formed land mafia, drug mafia and arm mafia in Karachi which made them very influential and powerful.
As Essa Nagri is in city center now and is very valuable piece of land which Pashtun land mafia wants to grab and such attacks and killing of Christians is to terrorize them to leave their properties.