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| India-Pakistan |
| All unite against religious violence |
| 2012-09-01 |
| [Dawn] ISLAMABAD, Aug 30: In a rare show of unity, religious scholars and liberals here on Thursday jointly called for government action against sectarian violence, warning that, if left unchecked, the menace can imperil the country. They sounded the warning at two seminars held by the Jinnah Institute and the Organisation of Research and Education in the wake of killings and persecution in the name of religion across the country. Allama Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi of the All Pakistain Ulema Council, who addressed at both seminars, accused Interior Minister Rehman Malik Pak politician, Interior Minister under the Gilani government. Malik is a former Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) intelligence officer who rose to head the FIA during Benazir Bhutto's second tenure. Malik was tossed from his FIA job in 1998 after documenting the breath-taking corruption of the Sharif family. By unhappy coincidence Nawaz Sharif became PM at just that moment and Malik moved to London one step ahead of the button men. He had to give up the interior ministry job because he held dual Brit citizenship. of failing to provide protection to 350 Christian families who felt threatened after a little girl of the community was branded a blasphemer, and distributed a compilation of Fatwas by the leading schools of thought that declared killing of unarmed members of any religion or sect un-Islamic. And security analyst Imtiaz Gul plainly declared that "until the society bury the culture of protecting and patronising the groups spreading sectarian hatred, we will not be able to end faith-based violence in Pakistain." Columnist Nadir Hassan noted that sectarian violence has long been treated as a law and order issue while it is one of political identity. There is a need to address weaknesses in the system of law enforcement, he said. Defence analyst Ayesha Siddiqa, expanding the point, said "the State's capacity to manage policing and public prosecution in an effective way was a key issue in Shia killings". She stressed that civil society in Pakistain needs to engage with Islamic jurisprudence and discourse and find inherent messages of peace and pluralism in order to change public mindset on the issue of sectarianism, violence, terrorism and militancy. Although critical of the interior minister, Allama Ashrafi felt that those trying to implicate the Christian girl in blasphemy case were conspiring to strengthen the cause of the anti-blasphemy law campaigners. "It is strange that in the presence of all political parties and leaders, President Zardari and PM Raja Pervez Ashraf, the uprooted 350 Christian families are living in fear of some vested interests who were eying their properties," he said. Allama Ashrafi criticised unnamed religious figures "who are threateningly opposing bail to the poor tossed in the clink Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up! Christian girl and thereby trying to deny her fair trial". "Pakistain is threatened by violence in the name of religion," he said. Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... women wing president Fauzia Kasuri said that her party is to hold a seminar next month to discuss inter-faith harmony. PML-N chairman Raja Zafarul Haq said the minorities in Pakistain enjoyed equal rights with others "but things flare up out of proportion when western elements indulge in negative statements". Minorities' representative Akram Masih Gil agreed with him to the extent that the minorities are "living in safety like other citizens" but stressed that peace and interfaith harmony could only be achieved when all segments of society respect each other's religious sentiments. Leaders of the Jamaat-e-Islami ... The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independentbranch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... and PML-Q also spoke in same vein. At the Jinnah Institute, Imtiaz Gul cited examples where state allocated green belts in Islamabad to seminaries and mosques even though no construction was permitted in these areas. Fawad Chaudhry, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Human Rights, reiterated the government's commitment to fighting extremism and militancy in the country and highlighted "the high risks public officials face in their line of duty". Human Rights Activist, Tahira Abdullah, noted that it is not just fear but also the lack of unity among civil society that prevents them from coming together as one cohesive unit that is capable of demanding change. She said that the Rimsha Masih case is a test case for the Pak state and civil society. Farman Ali, a journalist, said that the judiciary needed to play a more active role in clamping down on and punishing bully boy and sectarian outfits "operating with impunity across the country -- even in the federal capital". Justice (retired) Ali Nawaz Chohan observed that while judges do operate in an environment of fear, and with minimum resources, it was their duty to write judgments in accordance with the law of the land, without letting fear dictate their pronouncements. |
| Posted by:Fred |