understood and is protected within the Constitution as well. Indeed, discrimination based on ethnic, religious, political and other basis is prohibited within the Constitution of Pakistan however, a domestic law targeting racial, ethnic and religious discrimination will be an effective tool in combating the grave issues that Pakistan’s ethnic, religious and sectarian minorities face. Moreover, this will facilitate greater recognition of the significant issues of racial, ethnic, religious, and sectarian discrimination within the country. The Committee further highlighted the issue of racist hate speech and hate crimes including harassment, attacks and killings of persons belonging to ethnic or religious groups including Hazaras, Christians, Dalits and Ahmadis and the lack of investigation and prosecution that follows. It also highlighted the need to regulate the curriculum being taught at Madrasas which has the potential to incite hatred against specific groups and called on the state to take immediate measures to counter the violence faced by minority communities. The Committee also noted the misuse of blasphemy laws in the country, which are frequently employed to incite violence against minority groups. A pervasive sense of lawlessness regarding minority rights prevails in Pakistan, where vigilante mob justice is often resorted to, primarily due to the lack of trust in institutions and the fairness and swiftness of the justice process. This situation is further aggravated by the severe lack of education and the socio-economic frustrations that many, especially the youth, experience in Pakistan today. While the state has taken some steps to deal with increasing religious and ethnic violence. Since the 18th Amendment, various subjects have been transferred from the federal government to the provincial governments which include human rights and minority affairs. Pursuant to this distinct departments have been established at provincial level to ensure that the rights of minority communities can be recognized through targeted law and policy interventions and are subsequently enforced as well. In its State Report 2022, Pakistan highlights various laws that have been promulgated to curb religious, ethnic and sectarian intolerance. The National Action Plan on Human Rights 2014 has been introduced and various educational and awareness raising campaigns have been spearheaded by the Ministry of Human Rights and provincial human rights departments. Moreover, provincial vigilance committees have also been set up at district and provincial levels which are mandated to report any unlawful activity being carried out with respect to incitement of violence. Further, the State report notes that a policy for Madrasa Reform is being developed under the National Action Plan on Human Rights. This policy is based on three components and includes registration of Madaris, curriculum reform and audit of madrassa finances. However, status of the introduction of this policy and its subsequent implementation remains shrouded in ambiguity. 8