Christian Laborer’s Death In Pakistan Sparks Poisoning Probe Calls Amid Blasphemy Tensions (Worthy News Investigation)

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

LAHORE/RAIWIND (Worthy News) – Christians and rights campaigners in Pakistan have demanded “a transparent investigation” into the death of a Christian brick kiln worker allegedly poisoned by a Muslim resident in the country’s east, while another Christian laborer was killed in a separate case.

The victim, Salamat Masih, a father of six from Raiwind near the city of Lahore in Pakistan’s Punjab province, died after being given contaminated water following allegations that “he had stolen a mobile phone,” Christian sources said.

In remarks shared with Worthy News, family members called the accusations “false” and claimed a local resident lured Masih to orchards behind his home on April 27 before offering him “poisoned water.”

Masih’s condition reportedly deteriorated rapidly afterward.

He was initially taken to Indus Hospital and later transferred to Jinnah Hospital in nearby Lahore, Pakistan’s second-largest city and the capital of Punjab province, where he died the following morning, Worthy News learned.

FAMILY DEMANDS JUSTICE

Relatives said Masih indicated before his death that he believed he had been poisoned.

The family has urged authorities to conduct “a swift and transparent investigation” and demanded that those responsible be brought to justice. A suspect was later detained and publicly identified as Muhammad Sajad, Christian sources told Worthy News on Friday. It was not immediately clear when a trial would begin.

Pastor Imran Amanat of advocacy group LEAD Ministries condemned the incident and asked law enforcement authorities “to ensure justice in accordance with Pakistani law.”

He told Worthy News it was time for “stronger protections for low-income labor communities,” particularly Christians working in Pakistan’s brick kiln sector, where laborers often face poverty, debt bondage, and discrimination.

Salamat Masih was among the latest known Christian laborers working in Pakistan’s brick kiln sector under conditions that investigators and rights activists described as inhumane.

MODERN-DAY SLAVERY

Estimates vary, but rights groups and researchers say between 3.5 million and 5 million people work in Pakistan’s brick kilns, many trapped in forms of bonded or debt labor often described as modern-day slavery.

“White smokestacks mar an otherwise cloudless desert sky, their toxic fumes serving not only as a by-product of the more than 20,000 brick kilns that exist across Pakistan, but also as a sinister warning” to laborers trapped there, noted charity Christian Aid Mission.

The group said entire families often work seven days a week under scorching heat, with children helping parents mold bricks before firing them in underground kilns reaching temperatures of 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, or nearly 1,100 degrees Celsius.

Older siblings often carry toddlers on their hips while working, “symbolizing yet another generation trapped in the same labor cycle,” according to witnesses cited by the charity.

Rights activists say Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan remain vulnerable in these and other rural labor settings where access to legal protection and formal justice systems is often limited.

ANOTHER CHRISTIAN KILLED

The reported poisoning death came amid renewed fears within Pakistan’s Christian community after another Christian man was shot dead April 29 in the city of Faisalabad in Punjab province in what residents described as a suspected attack by Muslim extremists.

The victim, identified as Shahzad Masih, was a father of two and the sole breadwinner for his family, relatives said.

Family members and local residents said unidentified attackers had previously assaulted Shahzad before he was later shot in the head in Faisalabad’s Ghulam Muhammad Abad area.

Residents described the killing as a targeted attack and demanded a transparent investigation and swift arrests.

The bereaved family appealed to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and law enforcement authorities to take immediate notice of the case, arrest the suspects, and ensure strict punishment under the law.

Relatives also called for protection and support for Shahzad Masih’s family, who they said were left without their primary source of income.

Pastor Amanat condemned the murder and urged authorities to ensure justice for the victim’s family.

BLASPHEMY LAW CONCERNS

The latest killings of Christians came amid broader tensions surrounding Pakistan’s controversial blasphemy laws, which human rights organizations say are frequently misused to target minorities and settle personal disputes.

Separately, activists and social media campaigners have raised concerns about Islamic preacher Abdul Waris Gill, formerly known as Waris Masih, who says he converted from Christianity to Islam after previously serving as a Christian pastor.

Campaigners linked to the online movement “Stop Blasphemy Business” accuse Gill of using inflammatory rhetoric against people accused under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws.

Human rights advocates claim hundreds of mainly young Pakistanis remain imprisoned under disputed blasphemy allegations, including Christians and Muslims accused because of religious interpretations differing from mainstream views.

Pakistan’s blasphemy laws carry severe penalties, including possible death sentences for insulting Islam or the Prophet Muhammad, though critics say accusations are often difficult to verify and can inflame mob violence.

FUNDING QUESTIONS RAISED

Activists have also questioned the financing of projects allegedly linked to Gill, including a reported “Muslim Complex” development project and fundraising campaigns through the Huqooq-un-Naas Foundation.

Campaigners say large religious conferences connected to the preacher have also been held at Lahore’s upscale Faletti’s Hotel.

Pakistani authorities have not publicly responded to the specific allegations, and no formal criminal charges related to those claims have been announced.

However, rights groups, including Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, have repeatedly expressed concern over the misuse of blasphemy accusations and the safety of those accused under the laws.

CHRISTIANS UNDER PRESSURE

Open Doors ranks Pakistan eighth on its annual World Watch List of nations where Christians face the most persecution.

The advocacy group says many of Pakistan’s roughly 5 million Christians “are exposed to many challenges, from everyday discrimination to the threat of deadly violence.”

“Increasingly, Pakistan’s notorious blasphemy laws are used to intimidate Christians and other religious minorities,” Open Doors said in comments monitored by Worthy News.

“Often, they are used to target believers during unrelated feuds, such as disputes over land. Even an accusation can provoke mob violence against victims, as well as their families and the wider Christian community,” the group added.

GROWING CHURCH

Open Doors said weak government institutions and “the growing influence of extreme Islamic groups” leave Christians with limited legal protection in the Islamic nation.

Most Christians in Pakistan “descend from an ‘untouchable’ caste of sweepers and continue to face institutionalized discrimination,” the group noted.

“Many live in poverty, trapped in a cycle of bonded labor that entrenches their position on the margins of Pakistani society,” Open Doors added.

Despite the reported pressures, Christianity continues to spread in the Islamic nation of more than 250 million people.

However, Open Doors stressed that Christians from Muslim backgrounds can face severe repercussions for converting to the Christian faith, including pressure from relatives and radical Islamic groups that view conversion as “a shameful act of betrayal.”

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