Christian families in Akbarabad, Pakistan, are under the threat of losing their homes. A Pakistani politician, Raja Riaz, wants to evict them.

More than 60 families have lived on that land since 1960. The area belonged to the government, but Raja Riaz was able to prove it belonged to his ancestors and became the owner of the land. That time, the Christian families made an agreement with him. They had to pay in order to continue living there. Both parties agreed, and the families started the payment.

Many families have already paid a large amount of money, which is especially hard given that most of them are poor daily laborers. Despite the payments, the politician changed his mind and got an eviction order from the Supreme Court. Now he wants to keep the money already paid and evict the families living there.

Many Christian families decided to take to the streets and organize a protest. They also appealed to the chief minister of Punjab and to the prime minister of Pakistan.

A local Christian man said,

“We are very poor, we can’t build a new house, we have elderly parents and children, we can’t go anywhere else, and start our lives again.”

Mistreatment of Christians in Pakistan is not a rare phenomenon. They are usually poor and underpaid, working in jobs that are looked down upon.

Source: Asia News

Photo: CIMMYT