Question.
"Religious bigotry has always been an obstacle to progress in any democratic country." Discuss. (UPPSC 2019)
Answer.
Religious bigotry means prejudice or discrimination against people based on religious beliefs. Religious bigotry reflects in many ways in the country like prejudiced beliefs, hate speech, violence, exclusion, and discrimination.
Religious bigotry has been an obstacle to progress in many democratic countries like Pakistan.
The following ways Religious bigotry obstructs the progress of democratic countries;
Creating division and conflict within communities; Religious bigotry divides the population into religious lines and creates conflict among them. This makes it difficult to work together on development issues that affect everyone, and this leads to stagnation of development progress and other issues like poverty reduction.
Limiting the participation of certain groups in the democratic process; Religious bigotry obstructs to participate the certain group of people in government formation, which leads to exclusion of their voice in policymaking.
Violence and persecution; Religious bigotry leads to violence and persecution which disturb the law and order of the country, which leads to the creation of a negative environment for investors. The violence of discrimination also creates fear and distrust which can create social unrest and civil conflict.
Hamper scientific and cultural progress; Religious bigotry promotes unscientific behaviors and cultural insularity, which may limit progress in areas like technology, medicine, history, and arts.
To overcome religious bigotry, it is important to promote tolerance, compassion, respect, services, and inclusivity values in public; and public servants should ensure that all citizens have equal rights and opportunities regardless of their beliefs or religion.
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