Pakistani Christians face aid discrimination

Pakistan
Thursday, 26 Aug, 2010

VATICAN CITY: Christians affected by the devastating floods in Pakistan face “systematic discrimination” in the distribution of aid, the news agency of a Vatican missionary body reported Thursday.

The Fides news agency, a branch of the Vatican's Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, said aid was handled either by Muslim relief organisations or by government officials close to fundamentalists.

Both discriminated against Christians and other minorities in distributing aid essential to survival, it said.

About 200,000 Christian refugees in the Punjab province and about 600,000 Christians and Hindus in the Sindh province are affected by the phenomenon, Fides said, citing NGO sources on the ground. the rest