Pakistani Christians stage U.N. protest

NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (UPI) -- Pakistani Christians in New York demonstrated in front of the United Nations against the recent anti-Christian violence in Pakistan in which seven died.

Protest leaders Wednesday condemned last week's violence in Gojra district in the Punjab Province in which a Muslim mob, irate over alleged desecration of the Koran, attacked a Christian neighborhood. The Christians have denied the allegations.

Besides seven Christians, three Muslims died in police firing to disperse the mob.

The U.N. protest leaders urged the Pakistani government to institute special measures to protect minorities in the country, the state-run Associated Press of Pakistan news agency reported. They called for the repeal of Pakistan's stringent blasphemy law, which can result in death for those insulting Islam.

In a memorandum to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the protesters representing the Pakistan Christian Association in North America and the Christian Community in New York called for greater security for Christians and the release of those detained under the blasphemy law.

The Pakistan Christian Post reported Canadians of Pakistani origin held a similar demonstration in front of the Islamic Foundation Center in Toronto, while Pakistani Christians in London held a day of mourning for those killed.

The Catholic Leader reported Pope Benedict XVI deplored the killings of Christians and encouraged the minority community not be deterred by the attacks in efforts to help build a society that is marked by mutual respect among all its members.