AT long last, and with one resounding voice, the representatives of the Pakistani people have spoken for the minorities of this country. In so doing, they may have taken a historic step towards a course correction for Pakistan`s future. On Tuesday, the National Assembly passed a resolution demanding that the views of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah about the status of minorities in Pakistan, as articulated in his famous speech of Aug 11, 1947, be `regarded as a road map` in the years ahead. Moved by Kamran Michael, minister for ports and shipping, the resolution referred to Mr Jinnah`s speech as `a beacon of light`. Portions of that address, which were suppressed by some of the right-wing governments that followed, were recalled in the assembly including the unequivocal assurance by the nation`s founder: `You may belong to any caste or creed that has nothing to do with the business of the state.` The resolution also reiterated the minorities` status as equal citizens.

In countries with a different past, the resolution may read like an assertion of the obvious; in Pakistan it is difficult to overplay its significance, both from the point of view of content and timing. After independence, contrary to Mr Jinnah`s words, the state lost little time in recasting faith specifically the faith of the majority as its raison d`être, and later, as the cornerstone of its foreign policy.

A triumphalist narrative, especially from the `80s onwards, was deliberately nurtured through means both subtle and overt, and the minds of entire generations poisoned for short-sighted objectives.

The fallout within the country has been devastating, as witnessed in the lynching of blasphemy suspects, sectarian killings, the sacking of localities with minority populations, and the bombing of religious processions and places of worship, etc. Although religious extremism has disproportionately affected minority communities, it has over time morphed into the bedrock of a vast terrorist network that the state is now battling to destroy. Efforts are being made to rein in some of the more reactionary elements in society. The parliamentarians, to their credit, have taken the cue to push through the much-needed endorsement of Jinnah`s speech from 68 years ago. The lack of opposition by members of religious parties in the assembly to what was clearly promotion of a secular point of view -unthinkable even a year ago indicates that they too have picked up on the prevailing mood.

Nevertheless, for Aug 11, 2015 to be a defining moment, the resolution must form the basis for action. Politicians and the establishment need to take a far more categorical stand against religious extremists of all shades. For enduring change, school curricula should be purged of divisive, prejudiced material, the country`s pluralistic heritage celebrated, and the blasphemy law revisited. Only then perhaps will the words spoken by the founder of this nation so many years ago have any meaning.