Pakistan makes history by issuing a postage stamp in recognition a Christian’s service for the mainly Islamic country
By Dan Wooding, Founder of ASSIST News Service
PAKISTAN (ANS – April 27, 2016)
– The mainly Islamic nation of Pakistan has made history by issuing a
commemorative postage stamp of the Rs.10 denomination, in "recognition
of the services for Pakistan of Dewan Bahadur S.P. Singha,” a Christian.
“This
is a great news and honor for the Pakistani Christians and also Singha
family,” said Nasir Saeed director of CLAAS-UK. “It is the first time in
Pakistani history that any Pakistani Christian’s image has been
published on a postage stamp.”
Saeed,
Director of CLAAS-UK went on to say, “Although the recognition is a bit
late, as Mr Singha died in 1948, just a month after the death of Quaid e
Azam [the country's founder], it is never too late for him to be given
the respect and honor he deserves.”
He
added: “This decision of the Pakistani government is commendable. I am
sure it will not just raise Pakistani Christians' morale, and make them
proud, but it will go some way to restoring their trust in the
government. It also encourages and inspires them to continue working
hard to play a role in Pakistan’s security and prosperity, as their
ancestors did.”
According
to Nasir Saeed, Dewan Bahadur S.P. Singha was “an important personality
in Pakistan’s history.” He told ANS that Mr. Singha, the then speaker
of United Punjab, “played a vital role in the Pakistan’s movement.”
Being a speaker, he added, Mr. Singha used his decisive “casting vote”
in the Assembly of United Punjab in favour of Pakistan and supported the
Quaid-e-Azam's vision of a separate independent country, Pakistan.
Saeed
concluded by daying that Mr. Singha was “one of the Christian founders
of the Pakistan” and had done “great services” on behalf of the country
which, for many years, was “hardly recognised,” but now, by issuing a
postage stamp of Rs. 10, “the government has done a great job of
recognizing his services for Pakistan.”
About CLAAS:
The
Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement (CLAAS) is an
interdenominational organisation working for Christians who are being
persecuted because of their faith in Pakistan. CLAAS works for religious
freedom, to stop persecution of Christians in Pakistan because of
blasphemy and other discriminatory laws, raise awareness, disseminate
information and highlight the plight of Christians on an international
level. CLAAS provides free legal aid to victims of religious intolerance
in Pakistan, as well as shelter and financial support for the victims
and their families. Its UK website is: www.claas.org.uk.
For more information on this story, please contact Nasir Saeed at: info@claas.org.uk .
Photo
captions: 1) One of the postage stamps. 2) Dan and Norma Wooding with
their youngest son, Peter, at their home in Southern California.
About
the writer: Dan Wooding, 75, is an award-winning winning author,
broadcaster and journalist who was born in Nigeria of British missionary
parents, and is now living in Southern California with his wife Norma,
to whom he has been married for nearly 53 years. They have two sons,
Andrew and Peter, and six grandchildren who all live in the UK. Dan is
the founder and international director of ASSIST (Aid to Special Saints
in Strategic Times) and the ASSIST News Service (ANS), and is the author
of some 45 books. He also has a radio show and two TV shows, all based
in Southern California.
** You may republish this or any of our ANS stories with attribution to the ASSIST News Service (www.assistnews.net).
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