“Many male Shias participate in customary self-flagellation at some point in their lives in which blades attached to chains are struck on one’s back in a commemorative ritual. The practice leaves permanent scars, which can be easily identified. In the aforementioned video clip, among the frenzied chants of “Kafir, kafir, Shia kafir (Infidels, infidels, Shia are infidels)” and long live Sipah-e-Sahaba, Allaho Akbar, with buses burning in the background, Kalashnikovs discharging in rapid fire mode, an old man is seen being asked by a group of very calm terrorists to lift up the shirt off his back. The old man is heard reciting, not Qunoot, but a Quranic prayer designated for times of calamity, called Ayat-e-Karima: La illaha illa anta subhanaka inni kunto minaz-zalimeen (There is none worthy of Worship besides Allah, Allah is far exalted and above all weaknesses, Surely, I am from among the wrongdoers). The elderly man’s back is thoroughly inspected and he is asked by the terrorists to move on.”
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Mohammad Taqi speaks up against the growing violent bigotry the Shia community is receiving in Pakistan; especially after the Babusar massacre. “More vicious than the massacre at the Babusar Top was the muffled response of the Pakistani political leaders, rightwing intelligentsia and the military leadership.”
As someone who lives with a Shia family as tenants in Lahore, it is important to state that there are levels of bigotry and hate for the Shia from other sects. When it comes to Lahore or Islamabad or even cities like Sargodha, Chakwal, Multan, Faisalabad, etc, the Shia-Sunni/Other sect co-existence is harmonious in 8 out of 10 cases. Rarely do incidents of violent attack occur in terms of demographics in these areas. However, in the case of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa or Balochistan, these incidents become a lot more frequent and worse by degree.
A very interesting comparison of condemnations against terrorist attacks on Shias by PTI Chairman Imran Khan and President of Pakistan Asif Zardari was made here. Wherein Imran Khan exhibits a stronger and clearer stance on the killings. “The PTI chairman warned the government of its inefficient governance, which is resulting in these sectarian killings. He said the PTI will ensure that law and order is restored in the country and special attention is paid to creating ethnic and sectarian harmony.”
That said, Pakistani Sunni civilians in various cases have publicly denounced the killings while some, during the massacre, protected Shia civilians by refusing to identify as Sunni.