Pakistan’s top civil and military leadership on Sunday vowed to protect the rights and religious freedoms of minorities, urging all segments of the society to work for promoting interfaith harmony, the spirit of love, tolerance, brotherhood and unity.

In 2009, Pakistan declared August 11 as the National Minorities Day to honour the historic speech made by its founder M A Jinnah who on August 11, 1947, promised to protect their rights.

President Asif Ali Zardari in his message said that minorities in Pakistan enjoy all political, economic and social rights which have been guaranteed by the Constitution, according to state-run Radio Pakistan.

“We reaffirm our commitment to the promise made by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, on 11th August 1947, to the country’s minorities to protect their rights and religious freedoms,” Zardari said, adding the government was taking several steps for the political, social and economic empowerment of minorities.

The president urged all segments of the society to educate the people about their rights and work to promote interfaith harmony, the spirit of love, tolerance, brotherhood and unity to make Pakistan a strong country.

Zardari expressed confidence that the minorities of Pakistan would continue to play a positive role towards the country’s development.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to minorities for their outstanding role in the country’s development and prosperity.

“The purpose of celebrating the day is to express solidarity with the minorities living in Pakistan and to acknowledge their services for the state of Pakistan,” he said.

The prime minister said that “our minority community played a key role in the Pakistan movement and since the creation of Pakistan, has been contributing immensely to nation-building”.

Alluding to Jinnah’s historic speech, Sharif said that complete religious freedom has been given to minorities. He expressed commitment to protect the rights of minorities and their overall development and prosperity.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, and the services chiefs acknowledged the indispensable contributions of minorities to the nation’s progress, prosperity, and rich cultural heritage.

According to an army statement, the army leadership, extending warm felicitations to the minority communities of the country, said, “This occasion serves as a poignant reminder of the diversity, inclusivity and harmonious coexistence that are the hallmarks of our great nation.”

The army said minority communities are an integral and vital part of the social fabric of the country and their rights and freedoms are sacrosanct as enshrined in the Constitution and Islam.

According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics in 2021, there are 96.47 per cent Muslims in the country, followed by 2.14 per cent Hindus, 1.27 per cent Christians, 0.09 per cent Ahmadi Muslims and 0.02 per cent others. The minorities are often at the receiving end due to violence by extremist groups.