Police illegally detained three Christians on false charges of alcohol possession in Sialkot last week. The men – garment factory workers Atif Masih, Kamran Masih and Naveed Gill – said they had objected to their boss demanding they work on Sundays. Factory owner Rana Ejaz promptly accused them of selling alcohol, which is forbidden to Muslims in Pakistan and illegal to sell without a permit. On May 4 the station house officer of Paka Garah, Sialkot, arrested the three Christians even though Ejaz had filed neither a First Information Report nor registered a written complaint, the Christians said. “We went to the factory for work at 9 a.m. on May 4, and at around 11 a.m. we were arrested by the SHO (station house officer),” Atif Masih said. “We were severely beaten and asked to give a false statement that we sold alcohol.” Authorities released them after three days when local human rights groups charged that they had been illegally detained. Full Story