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Pakistani
Activists: Musharraf Follows Dictates Of Western Powers
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| Pakistani
police shutting down religious parties' offices |
Additional Reporting By
IOL Correspondent in Islamabad, Aamir Latif
ISLAMABAD, Jan. 13 (Islam
Online & News Agencies) - Pakistani President, General Pervez Musharraf's
address to the nation Saturday evoked a mixed reaction from a cross-section of
society, with secular segments terming it "historic", while religious
parties blasting the government for "following the dictates of western
powers".
Mainstream political parties
were also divided in their reaction to the president's speech in which he
unfolded a number of measures to "stem the tide of religious
fanaticism" and develop a tolerant and moderate society in Pakistan in
accordance with the principles of Quaid-e-Azam Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
Chairman of Pakistan's Muslim
League (PML), one of the largest political parties in Pakistan, Raja
Zafar-ul-Haq said the government had accepted all the demands put forth by the
Indian government. The president had condemned the October 1 attack on the
Srinagar parliament and what had happened in the compound of Indian parliament
on December 13.
Regarding the extradition of
the 20 alleged terrorists to India, he said most of them were non-Pakistanis. He
pointed out that five of them were Sikhs. "Now Indians are left with no
justification to whip up war phobia in the region," he said. The PML
chairman was critical of the measures announced by the president to regulate
religious schools and mosques.
He was skeptical about the
government's ability to regulate madrasas and mosques through police, which, he
said, was corrupt to the core.
Jamaat-i-Islami, the largest
religious party in Pakistan, also lambasted the president for overlooking the
main issues confronting the country.
Instead of addressing the
more pressing issues of restoration of democracy, price hike, increasing
unemployment, rampant corruption and inefficient state apparatus, he entangled
himself in non-issues of mosques and madrasas to appease the western powers, a
spokesperson for the Jamaat-I- Islami said.
"It is quite strange
that the president did not say a word about holding of elections in the
country," Acting Amir of Jamaat-i-Islami Syed Munawar Hassan said. Joint
Secretary of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam Maulana Atta-ur-Rehman said: "We have
been saying from the day one that Musharraf is pursuing American agenda."
He said all these measures
taken by the government were meant to appease the United States and western
nations.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani
daily newspaper, International News, said Sunday that the
Islamic groups targeted by
the Pakistani authorities have preempted the official drive by quickly
initiating measures that will transform these publicly seen overt groups into
organized underground Islamic movements.
"I cannot change my
course in the wake of trials and tribulations. I shall continue my struggle
until the Muslim Ummah is liberated and Allah's word is established in the
world," said Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the detained chief of Lashkar-e-Taiba,
in a message posted at the group's website on Saturday, reported the News.
"While Pakistan's
military commanders were still shaping the contours of their first ever push
against Islamic militants last week, the underground leadership of the Jihadi
groups such as Jaish-e-Muhammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Harkatul Mujahideen, Al-Badr
and Hizbul Mujahideen have already altered their identities and have selected
new undisclosed locations as new bases for their henceforth secret
movement," the paper said.
An Al-Badr Mujahid, who asked
not to be named, told the News in Karachi that instead of recruitment
through public campaign, underground cells of experienced supporters would now
conduct secret recruitment and funds collection activities for Jihadi causes
across Pakistan.
To maintain a public presence
all the five best known groups have already moved their low profile public
operations to Azad Kashmir, where the authorities have decided to let them
operate as pro-Kashmir freedom political groups under the new names, the paper
said.
These groups are supported by
both unemployed semi-educated youth as well as hundreds of educated Pakistani
citizens, including doctors, engineers, government workers and those working in
sensitive federal government organizations, the paper reported.
The restrictions only took
place since the September 11 events, the paper said. Before that, there were no
restrictions on private Pakistani citizens for taking part in such activities.
On the contrary, senior Sindh
police officials acknowledged the police were under instructions to let groups
in Karachi recruit people for guerrilla training and to solicit funds for holy
wars in occupied Kashmir and Afghanistan.
"It is too difficult for
us to adjust to the new guidelines," said a senior Karachi police official
who received orders two weeks ago to launch a crackdown against all "Jihadi"
activities in Karachi, the News said.
"A new underground army
of 5,000 armed and trained religious extremists will revolt against this
about-turn in government's posture," said a senior Pakistani official.
"They would pose the greatest threat to law and order in Pakistan in weeks
and months to come."
"It is going to be a
long torturous battle in this deeply religious Islamic country." He added:
"The outcome is most difficult to predict."
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