MMA's policies in NWFP:

[Shah Khan]

MMA's policies in NWFP
Letter to Editor, Dawn

Ever since the NWFP got its new government, a stream of very exhilarating news has been coming from there. The new government has taken some very bold measures, all designed to take the province on a new path of prosperity.

First of all came the restriction on holding musical shows or inviting musicians to perform folk songs at wedding functions. Then came the executive order to stop all public transport during prayer timings. But this was only for a starter.

Even though the NWFP is a pretty conservative province, it should be everyone's duty to create perfect human beings. In this regard the government has come up with a draft ordinance to create a moral police whose duty will be to ensure that sexuality, especially female sexuality, is kept under complete check and the common people and the government servants offer their prayers regularly and on time.

Wearing of pants by boys in public schools has also been banned. A comprehensive package of islamization is being prepared which, among other things, will ban all cosmetic shops and the sale of female undergarments and completely segregate the society on the gender basis. Co-education will go. Male tailors will be banned from stitching clothes for women.

However, last week billboards advertizing toothpaste has been torn down and the use of billboards is banned. A draft bill has been introduced in the assembly to enforce wearing of veils.

One hopes that with the execution of these measures, the NWFP will become a prosperous province with no unemployment, no income inequality, no poverty and no hunger. This will be a great leap forward.

OSAMA LONE
Lahore
http://www.dawn.com/2003/05/25/letted.htm#4

[Shah Khan]

Most widely News Pic on the internet

Pakistani activists try to tear down an advertising billboard from a roadside pole at northwestern city of Peshawar May 23, 2003. Around 50 activists of Pakistan's hardline Islamic alliance tore down dozens of advertising billboards depicting women in this northwestern city as part of a campaign to stamp out 'obscenity.' (Reuters)

Pepsi
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...161/46rhr.html

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...241/46489.html

Pizza Hut
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...168/45u5f.html

Provincial information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai tells reporters at a news conference on Friday, May 16, 2003 in Peshawar, Pakistan that male coaches were banned Friday from training female athletes and sports teams in Pakistan's deeply conservative North West Frontier province. Under the new law male spectators and journalists will also be barred from watching and covering sports events where female athletes compete. (AP Photo/M. Sajjad) AP - May 16 4:35 PM

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...168/435cr.html

[Shah Khan]

Pakistan province debates Sharia law

The government in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province has unveiled legislation which, if approved, will bring strict Islamic law into force for the first time in the country's history.
The bill aims to give Sharia law precedence over secular provincial law and stipulates that every Muslim will be bound by it.

Deputies are also considering a bill to establish a new Department of Vice and Virtue.

Both bills are expected to be passed, as religious hardliners run the province with an absolute majority.

Women's groups and other critics have called the move "creeping Talebanisation" - fearing it will be like the former Taleban regime in neighbourng Afghanistan.

Many people in North-West Frontier Province, which borders Afghanistan, have close ideological ties to the Taleban.

Pakistan's federal law enforcers have little jurisdiction over the area, which is more strictly conservative than other parts of the country.

Analysts say President Musharraf will be watching events with some discomfort - he is keen to convince his Western allies that Pakistan is an ally in the war against terrorism, nor part of the problem.

'Supreme law'

Sharia follows the moral and religious codes laid down in the Islamic holy book, the Koran.

The alliance of religious hardliners which runs North-West Frontier Province has been working for months on the bill.


Tuesday's session in the provincial assembly was adjourned after a first reading.
"In the whole of the North-West Frontier Province, Sharia will be the supreme law in provincial matters, and all courts in the province will be bound to interpret and explain provincial law according to Sharia," the bill states.

Deputies now have a minimum of three days to consider its contents and consult with colleagues.

The details have been closely guarded, but the bill is expected to cover law and order as well as the social and economic welfare of the province's people.

It calls for free education, for example, for all children up to 16.

The BBC's Paul Anderson in Islamabad says so-called "honour killings", in which women are killed for adultery or other marital impropriety, are expected to be outlawed.

The move has been welcomed by members of the Islamic coalition which governs the province.

"This is an historic day, not only for this province but for the whole country because we are setting an example," said one leading member, Maulana Abdul Jalil Jan.

Women scared

But critics say they are worried provincial leaders are following in the footsteps of the Taleban, the Islamic hardliners who ruled Afghanistan and drove women and girls out of jobs and schools, back into their homes.

"The way Islamic parties have started imposing certain laws in the NWFP we feel will deprive many people of their basic rights," Kamla Hayyat of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said.

Some women in the provincial capital, Peshawar, fear they may be banned from working for foreign non-governmental organisations.

And the planned creation of a Department of Vice and Virtue has prompted concern among some people who recall pictures of the Taleban vice squads dispensing summary justice in Afghanistan.

Supporters of the move, however, say all they are trying to do is curb obscenity and protect human decency.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2939652.stm

[Shah Khan]

Pakistan militants attack circus
By Adnan Adil, BBC, Lahore

Hundreds of people have been injured in a stampede at a circus in northern Pakistan after Islamic activists assaulted the spectators.

The charge occurred after students from Islamic seminaries in Gujranwala, a northern city of Pakistan near Lahore, ransacked and torched the circus on Friday.

Armed with sticks and clubs, the attackers denounced it as obscene and "un-Islamic".

Eyewitnesses say the student attackers, who numbered over 100 were led by a local cleric, Qazi Hameedullah. He is a national assembly member and representative of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal or the MMA, an alliance of radical religious parties.

The police resorted to using their batons as they tried to disperse the crowd. A fire brigade was called to put out the fire.

The mobs attempted to attack another circus, but were prevented by the police, who closed it down and ordered the closure of eight theatres in the town to prevent further damage.

No arrests

Qazi Hameedullah said he had told the administration to shut down the circuses, which he described as centres of obscenity and gambling.

So far the police have not made any arrests.

Deputy Inspector General of Police Chaudhry Iqbal told the BBC that the law would be upheld. But he refused to say why the police had not opened a case against the attackers.

The six-party religious alliance, the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), is in opposition in the national parliament and in Punjab province.

It runs a provincial government in the North West Frontier province.

Last week, MMA activists destroyed advertising billboards in Peshawar which depicted women.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2952614.stm

[Gulstan]

If they wanted to eliminate depravity, would it not be better to start with heera mundi, , but then again, it would have pissed off to many of their MPA MNA colleagues

[lakhania]

This is Just Sick!!...

Quote: moral police whose duty will be to ensure that sexuality, especially female sexuality, is kept under complete check and the common people and the government servants offer their prayers regularly and on time.

isnt prayer supposed to be a private matter between God and the prayee???!! one cannot thank God when there is a latthi hanging on his head. they must have elected some primary kids to the parliment.

[Shah Khan]

Quote: Originally posted by Gulstan If they wanted to eliminate depravity, would it not be better to start with heera mundi, , but then again, it would have pissed off to many of their MPA MNA colleagues

rightly said...

[nasim]

I truly believe that giving people the right to put people in positions of power and authority is the best way to develop a country that serves its people and not those who are in power. There are always cases of corruption at the very high end that grab headlines and the all to common cases of small time local officials who steal for themselves. But for the most part, it is better for the people to have the right to find these things out if it is happening and have to power to remove and prosecute those officials to whatever sentence they deem fit according to law and not the street. Better this than to find out the family that everyone put in power is corrupt indeed and that you really cant do anything about it for maybe a generation when some bigger bully comes in or internal bickering of the sons and daughters brings the whole house down.

So even in the case where we cant figure out why sane people would choose to empower people who aim to remove amusement and fun under the garb of there own interpretation of religion, needs to be accepted. It is a bitter pill to swallow for those who trust that people can govern themselves but I trust that if people at the next round of elections do not like being told what islam is or is not when religion should be totally private in the first place, will change their vote.

In my own opinion, NWFP is the last place in pakistan that needs its government worried about the personal lives of its citizens. The government is commonly referred to as the public sector for a reason, it is tasked with maintain a public system of services that the private sector will not be able to provide for everyone. The difference between the public and private sector should be where private includes all things that can be handled by a market. Obviously, those things that no one will pay up for out of there pocket but things that are still desired by a society like police, health, education, transportation etc are where public comes into the picture. These are things that the market will not provide for because the market is based on profit and costs. The public sector is supposed to tax in order to fill the costs for basic services of a society. If ever the day came where a market oriented society was able to figure out a fair way to pay for universal education or things we expect government to do, then what is the point of the nation state. My point in all of this is to describe what government in essence is a all about. All other issues that I have heard coming out of NWFP deal strictly with cultural norms that are matters of free choice. A circus is not illegal unless there are laws that are broken that have been decided as laws by some means of public vote. You could make shariah the law of the land if you want and I think the MMA is trying to do, but all I would ask is if they are able to pass it, then they should be willing to accept its repeal if that day came when a new assembly decides to keep or reject the things this assembly does.

Its getting a bit long winded but I get upset sometimes how far off some politicians like taking the powers of government. A truly free society does not have government telling them what to do. Even an MMA member should know that Islam is even divided between sunni and shiite and then both of these wings have different groups within them. How is ones interpretation of religion rule going to be the same as someone in a different clan/tribe/family or region. It takes government into a private matter and it should not be acceptable.

PS: Every few days, I read headlines in the daily dawn about the frequent shortages of funds that NWFP is dealing with. They are the only state that get this distinction whereas there is some form of developmental news coming out of the other states. The fact that the MMA has significant power in balochistan at the same time when Balochistan is getting the attention grabing development projects like coastal highways and gawadar port is something I believe the military should get most credit for. The fact that these gawadar projects are happening now and not 20 or 30 years ago I would blame on the military as well. The MMA in my opinion are going no where at an astonishingly fast pace. Is there any sort of economic agenda they plan on following because I have not been able to find one.

[Saad Hasan]

Quote: Originally posted by lakhania This is Just Sick!!... isnt prayer supposed to be a private matter between God and the prayee???!! one cannot thank God when there is a latthi hanging on his head. they must have elected some primary kids to the parliment.

I will be ever grateful for your sanctimonious interjection for all of us misguided souls, as we in our utter delinquency had no idea that we could indulge in this private of private matter as a recluse......You have very rightly made the case for abolishing the highly obscurantist and regimental mosque structure akin to catholic church, thus enabling the pragmatist and righteous amongst us to do away with this horrible impediment in our aspiration to engage god more directly and privately......It is my sincerest hope that we could do the same for such antiquated practices as Zakat and Hajj, a secluded version of these rituals shall be highly desirable......

[Shah Khan]

We did it!!!

[josh]

MMA is elected democratically and there is nothing wrong if they implement policies supported by majority.

[hassan]

Saad yaar, dictionary to chhor do - asaan angrezi likho

Anyways, I think a better thing for the NWFP government would be to focus on uplifting the society by educating the masses and making them aware of what is right and wrong - and by taking steps to improve the economy.

Danda bazi is not going to help them. Seems like their focus is on matters that are not going to improve the life of the common man. Rather it seems they want to stay in the limelight and get their 15 minutes of fame.

[Shah Khan]

Centre to act against NWFP in 24 hours: Jamali to announce action
By Rafaqat Ali

ISLAMABAD, June 2: The federal government will take an "administrative action" to tackle situation in the NWFP, and an announcement in this regard will be made by Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali within the next 24 hours.

This was stated by Federal Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed while briefing newsmen after a high-level meeting presided over by President Pervez Musharraf here on Monday.

He said it had been decided that the situation in the NWFP demanded the federal government's attention and an "administrative action" would be taken by the government.

The minister did not specify what he meant by the "administrative action," but when asked if the provincial assembly would be dissolved, he said it would not be the case. He also said that emergency would not be imposed in the province.

The meeting was attended by the prime minister, four governors, three chief ministers and some federal ministers, including finance minister, interior minister and information minister.

The NWFP Chief Minister, Akram Khan Durrani, did not attend the meeting. When asked whether Mr Durrani was invited or he himself opted not to attend the meeting, the information minister said he was not aware if the chief minister was invited or not.

Sheikh Rashid said the NWFP governor was present in the meeting. The meeting also took notice of the resignations of the NWFP district Nazims, and decided that President Pervez Musharraf would meet them on June 10, during his visit to the NWFP to inaugurate the Kohat tunnel.

He said the government believed that all issues should be decided through dialogue, and it would not close its doors for the opposition. But there should be an end to demands. "When after negotiations, we narrow down differences on some disputed issues, another list of demands is placed which is obviously not a good thing," he said.

The minister said the government wanted all the political forces in the country to work jointly for the strengthening of democracy after its revival.In reply to a question, Sheikh Rashid said: "The president is in the uniform, and will remain in the uniform."

The minister said the government would not allow the opposition to create a deadlock situation, and added that the democratic process would continue.He said the government hoped that all the democratic forces would play their due role in strengthening democracy which was revived after three years of military rule.

Sheikh Rashid said if the opposition parties tried to hamper the democratic process, the government would tackle the situation.The federal government, he said, was of the considered view that the district governments were a part of the democratic system as they were elected by the people. It was expected that all the federating units would cooperate in promoting and safeguarding the district government system, he added.

When asked about the possibility of any government-opposition showdown on the pattern of the Punjab Assembly, Sheikh Rashid said the police might have committed some excesses in Punjab but the attitude of the opposition should also be kept in mind.

http://www.dawn.com/2003/06/03/top1.htm

[Shah Khan]

Frontier PA adopts Shariat Bill
By Mohammed Riaz

PESHAWAR, June 2: The NWFP Assembly has unanimously adopted the North-West Frontier Province Shariat Bill, 2003, here on Monday. The Nifaz-i-Shariat Council, comprising Ulema of all schools of thought, has penned the religious law , which shall come into force at once all over the province, including its frontier regions.

The 15-point Shariat Bill was tabled in the House on May 27 by the Mutahidda Majlis-i-Amal government. The parliamentary leaders of all political parties, the MMA and two minorities lawmakers endorsed the bill that promises imposition of Allah's rule on the earth through His pious men.

The bill, based on the objective resolution and recommendations of the Islamic Ideology Council, promised protection of personal laws and religious freedom of all minorities in the province.

Abdul Akbar Khan of the PPP, who had proposed 18 amendments to the bill, withdrew all his amendments on a request made by NWFP Chief Minister Akram Khan Durrani. The chief minister told him it was a comprehensive bill, which didn't need any amendment at this stage.

Earlier, Anwar Kamal Khan of the PML-N said this bill was an Urdu translation of the Shariat Act, 1991. He said that bill was still valid, because it was at the floor of Senate soon after its passage from the National Assembly. The PML government could not get it implemented as the Nawaz government was dismissed by the then president.

Mr Akbar said that under the Constitution only the Federal Shariat Court and Islamic Ideology Council were competent to interpret this law as all courts could not interpret it. Bashir Bilour said the Pakhtuns, being devout Muslims, were staunch supporters of the Islamic Shariat.

"You will not find any Sikh or Hindu, as they are in Punjabi and Sindhi ethnic stocks, in Pakhtuns," he said. Felix Innocent, a minority MPA, welcomed the introduction of the bill and said minorities were satisfied on the passage of it as they had been given legal protection under this law.

Chief Minister Akram Durrani thanked all Opposition groups for their historic support to the MMA on the bill and hoped this cooperation between the Opposition and the treasury benches would continue in future.

He said that this law had come into force at once all over the province. He said he would follow in the foot steps of late Maulana Mufti Mahmood, who had first introduced Islamic laws in the NWFP in 1972.
http://www.dawn.com/2003/06/03/top2.htm

[Saad Hasan]

"Focus on a common man's problems".....as if all the secular-minded folks have nothing else on their mind and have dedicated their last breath to the cause of eradicating poverty and injustice.....would have to be interrupted from acquring VVVIP jets and fleet of Benzes, the NWFP assembly was the only assembly that refused newer cars, when Punjab assembly demanded that they be feted with new benzes......

And thank you Josh for pointing out a small yet salient aspect of the whole debate, democracy and the will of the people are only valid when somehow disenfranchized or oppressed muslims are bound to benefit....

[Waqqas]

http://akhbar.urdupoint.com/columns/...29-05-03.shtml

http://akhbar.urdupoint.com/columns/...01-06-03.shtml

[Shah Khan]

Islamisation drive in NWFP
Dr Tariq Rahman

The author is a Professor of Linguistics and South Asian Studies, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad

The Government of the MMA has made headlines by passing a Shariat Bill and defacing boards with pictures of women on them. Those who oppose such measures use the following arguments: these are cosmetic steps and not Islamisation in the real and deeper sense of the term; these steps are a product of the ruling cleric's own version of Islam while 'real' Islam is different from it; such steps will drive out investment in this cash-strapped province; this will disempower women even more by restricting their mobility and opportunities; it will lead to the kind of witch-hunting which has already been witnessed in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, revolutionary Iran and parts of Swat during Sufi Muhammad's movement; it will produce a dull, stringent, colourless society without the normal pleasures of life.

Let us look at these arguments one by one. The first argument, that these are cosmetic steps, is not really a strong argument. What is 'cosmetic' and what is not is a matter of interpretation. Those of us, like the present author, who are not qualified to pass a judgment on religious issues should not pass any judgment on this issue. In any case, if the clerics go for 'deeper' Islamisation, it could make life even more unlivable for the critics.

The second argument, that this is the cleric's own version of Islam, merits more attention. There are at least three major interpretations of the Islamic law even in orthodox Sunni Pakistani Islam: the Ahl-i-Hadith; the Deobandis and the Barelvis. Moreover, the Shias have a different interpretation too. In addition to that there are modernists whose interpretation is different from all these sub-sects. Even in the NWFP, there are independent interpreters of Islam who have different views from the MMA leadership. Mohammad Farooq Khan, both in his recent statements and in his book Islam Kya Hai? (1997) says:

Thus, the holy Qur'aan proves that the veiling of women's faces is not necessary when they are at home or in safe places. It is necessary in the street, the open bazaar and unsafe places (p. 323).

He goes on the suggest that music too is allowed unless it is part of lewd and irresponsible get-together (p. 330-331). At another place Dr Farooq argues that no person can be forced to adopt a peculiar dress or a way of thought (p. 369).

With these differences in the interpretation of religion, it is unjust to impose any one version of Islam by the coercive apparatus of the state. It would lead to friction, amounting perhaps to a civil war, between the liberals and the MMA. This would really shake the fabric of the state which is neither in the interest of the liberals nor the MMA. For this reason alone, if for no other, the MMA should consider whether the imposition of any single version of Islam -- other than the laws already in use -- will lead to more dissension and friction or not? If they will lead to conflict, would it not be 'good' not to impose them?

The third argument, that the foreign investors may start investing in the NWFP may be true. Even if it does not happen because of the female faces on the hoardings, it might happen if the MMA changes the banking laws. Although there are Islamic modernists who argue that the present system of banking interest is not riba, the MMA widely believes it is. If the MMA moves beyond 'cosmetic' measures to such vital issues as banking and bans interest in all forms, then the province will be very badly hit indeed. As it is, even the ban on alcohol for foreigners in hotels and the demolition of hoardings, may irritate foreign investors. This is a powerful argument and the members of the MMA should ask themselves whether they are responsible for reducing poverty in the province or not? If they are, would it not be 'good' to concentrate on that?

The fourth argument, that of disempowering women, is really very compelling. As it is, the women of the NWFP are very disempowered. In Farida Shaheed's book called Imagined Citizenship (2002) published by Shirkat Gah a national survey of 1609 women was undertaken. Among those who answered that: 'men did not allow me to vote', the share of the NWFP women was the highest being 31.9% whereas the national average was 13%. They are allowed unaccompanied trips for shopping only in 17% cases whereas the national average is 31.9%. Thus, in the name of honour and Pakhtun tradition, women have always been disempowered. Besides honour and tradition, men have also appealed to Islam to restrict women's mobility and chances in life. All this is not new; what is new is that women's restrictions and disempowerment will be institutionalised by law. This is worrying because whenever the law has been extended to any cultural or societal field -- as during the Ziaul Haq era -- no government has been able to reverse this trend.

This brings me to witch hunting. It has been observed that whenever vigilante groups have been entrusted with the enforcement of values, what has happened is that an inquisition has been unleashed. This happened in China when the 'cultural revolution' made young people disgrace distinguished scholars creating emotional scars which have not been healed yet. It happened in Iran when the Pasdaran-i-Inqilab insulted people, spied upon them and generally unleashed terror in the minds of intellectuals and urban elites. And in Afghanistan, as we all know, the Taliban drove away intellectuals, purged the universities and closed them down, and did away with art and culture -- all in the name of enforcing 'good'. Can this not happen here? And, if it does, would it create 'good' or its opposite?

The banning of music, painting, sculptor and other forms of art will distort the minds of the people because pleasure is an important aspect of life. The NWFP is already a very martial society and the need is to promote values of peace and tolerance. A joyless society is always an intolerant one. Eric Fromm's An Anatomy of Human Destructiveness (1973) tells us that societies which curb the joys of life promote cruelty, aggression and war. From this point of view, the Hisbah Act which creates a vigilante group, perhaps of young activists, will create more unpleasantness than virtue in the NWFP.

It is true that the military has used the religious lobby to further its policy in Afghanistan and Kashmir. It is probably also true that the clerics want an authoritarian order which the military has promoted when it has ruled openly or behind the scenes. It might also be true that the MMA has been empowered to keep the PML-N and the PPP out of power. However, if the military thinks that the MMA will always keep the military's power intact, then maybe it is mistaken. It should be understood that the religious lobby feels that it must create its own version of an 'Islamic society'. It is also clear that without political power it cannot create such a society. Thus, the religious lobby will not remain a stooge of the military. It will bid for power in its own right. By creating a parallel system of enforcement of the law (Hisbah), it is creating a para-military force. As poverty increases people will become more and more keen on a new order and, therefore, susceptible to being seduced by a fascist political order which promises immediate transformation of society. Such a combination of committed ideologues, a parallel force and armies of aggressive and unemployed youth is potentially dangerous for the state and, of course, for the military as an institution. It is, therefore, not in the interest of the army to support the authoritarian excesses of the MMA.

While one may not agree with aspects of the Islamisation drive of the MMA, this does not mean that this government should be dismissed or suppressed. The rules of democracy allow an elected government to complete its tenure -- so be it. The same rules also ensure, as John Stuart Mill said in On Liberty, that the majority cannot force itself on the opinions or way of life (including clothes) of a minority (ie those who disagree with it). This the MMA government should respect while the federal government should respect its democratic right to complete its tenure. In the end, it is the democratic order which should be supported and not this government or that.

http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jun2003-d...03/oped/o1.htm

[Usman S.]

MMA's Islamization drive

The recent diktat issued by the MMA in the NWFP throws light on the abysmal lack of knowledge prevailing among the mullahs and their MMA cohorts. In an attempt to Islamize the irrelevant, they have made a laughing stock of themselves.

Anyone with the least sense of history knows that the shalwar (shawol) and kameez (qamis) are essentially non-Arab, non-Islamic dress forms, that originated in Parthian Iran (248BCE-224AD).

The words shalwar and kameez are both from the Pahlavi language, a Middle Iranian language that developed from Old Persian, the language of the Zoroastrians of Iran. The use of the shalwar and kameez as a national Iranian costume can be seen from Parthian times and the best known examples are the large bronze statue from Shami in south-western Iran dated late 1st century BCE and found in the Tehran Museum; and the statue of the worshipper from Hatra in Iraq, depicting a shalwar and a belted kameez.

Similarly, the statue from Bard-i-Nishandeh from south-western Iran, 3rd century AD, depicts a royal Parthian personage wearing the shalwar and kameez. In fact, this early Zoroastrian Iranian dress became so popular that it was later widely adopted by non-Arab countries from Central Asia to the subcontinent.

If anything, the shalwar-kameez is a Zoroastrian Iranian national costume, and despite the Arab invasion of Iran in the 7th century the Parthian shalwar-kameez prevailed as a dress code in most of these countries. This can also be seen by its continuous usage for over 2,000 years in the villages of Kurdistan, Azerbaijan, Yazd and Luristan in Iran.

I wonder what the mullahs of the MMA have to say over them making it mandatory to adopt a dress code, which is essentially as non-Islamic in origin as is the trouser and shirt.

F. ALI

Karachi

http://www.dawn.com/2003/06/05/letted.htm#3

[Shah Khan]

Islam and religious politics in NWFP

Shafqat Mahmood
The writer is a former Senator and a former federal and provincial minister

It is not in our stars to rest easy. The issue of who should rule the country, civil or military, is still unresolved and likely to remain so for a long time. Prospect of peace in South Asia is grinding along at a snails pace and could yet suffer a set back. The Americans are breathing down our neck to root out al-Qaeda and claiming, according to today's newspaper, that we are a hot bed of terrorism. The system of governance is in a crisis because the old has been discarded and the new has yet to find its feet.

This is not all. We face problems of poverty, ignorance, disease and hunger and our environment is being degraded at an alarming rate. We cannot lift or dispose off the garbage we produce and waterways around the cities have turned into carriers of raw sewage. Even the sea around Karachi is mottled grey because of the contaminants we dump into it. Needless to say, ground water in most places is not fit to drink.

Our population is growing and growing. We were 50 million in 1971 and are 140 now. In another twenty years we would be close to 300 million. We have been lucky that our agriculture has done well and all of us can be fed but this may no longer be possible if we keep growing at the current rate. Besides the possibility of food shortages, population

pressures will also affect our infrastructure, our civic services, and our schools and hospitals. We would have to do a lot better if we are to stave off the Malthusian crisis that lies ahead.

These dark thoughts come to me when I see the antics of the Frontier government. Not for them the problems of governance or of the environment or of improving civic services. Not for them the mundane realities of everyday existence. They are on a morality rampage and it is their version of morality that everyone has to endure. They want to stop all music, put women under a cloak or preferably behind four walls and make every one wear shalwar kameez. (This particular demand defies comprehension because how is shalwar kameez more Islamic then a trouser.)

They have also made compulsory the saying of prayers and are preparing a vice and virtue squad for enforcing this and other moral edicts. Next they will probably make beards compulsory and ban wearing of shorts by men because it is titillating -- not to women but to other men. They are closing down cinema house through threat and intimidation and soon will ensure that cable TV is off the air. If they are not stopped, they will soon ban pleasure. This is what the Taliban tried to do in Afghanistan and this is the model MMA is trying to follow in the NWFP.

I personally know some of the Maulanas in the top leadership positions of MMA and find them hard-headed men of the world, who will share a joke and laugh as heartily as any one else. Many of them in their personal lives are open and dare I say, liberal. The common perception seeing their pictures is of fire breathing ideologues. Nothing could be further from the truth. They are politicians in the game of power and will do whatever it takes to get there.

Just like the other so-called liberal parties, some of the Maulanas have inherited their leadership. Fazal Ur Rehman and Sami ul Haq are two well-known examples but there are others whose fathers were Senators or members of National and Provincial Assembly. This of course begs the question that how can religious leadership -- piety, observance, scholarly erudition -- be inherited but it is and everyone accepts it.

We are sensitive to hierarchies in our social life and aware of their reflection in the political process but do not see them easily in the religious parties. These parties are also hierarchy ridden and the right lineage makes a huge difference. Jamaat-e-Islami was more egalitarian than the others but now Qazi Sahib has made his daughter an MNA. Any feudal politician would have done the same. Maulana Fazal Ur Rehman's brother is an MNA and if I am not mistaken Sami ul Haq's son is an MPA. We are on to the third generation even among the religious parties.

The point I am trying to make is that MMA may appear to be a collection of religious zealots -- and there are many of this ilk in lower echelons -- but a majority of the leadership are practical and realistic men. They use religion as an identity and as a political slogan just as the PPP uses socialist terminology to define itself or ANP uses Pakhtun nationalism. These slogans may reflect core beliefs of their members but in practice it is politics and power that motivates the leadership.

If this be the case, then why are these practical, hard-headed MMA leaders going ahead with Taliban like steps in the Frontier? They know that this will alienate a large section of the intelligentsia and maybe many important people in the military. Yet, they still want to go ahead. Why?

There are number of factors that are pushing them in this direction. In the first place their government has failed to make any difference in the lives of the people. If anything their administration has been below average with most of the Ministers unaware or unable to understand the intricacies of government. It is one thing to sit outside and make tall promises and another to deliver. And they have failed to deliver.

The second factor impelling them towards Islamisation is the fear that their government is likely to be sacked. They seem to be working on a very short agenda because they do not know when they will be asked to go home. The resignation of District Nazims -- one of whom is the brother of the PML (Q) Secretary General -- must have alarmed them beyond measure because they must have calculated that this cannot happen without a nod from General Musharraf.

So it is their calculation that soon they might be headed home and would have to be accountable to the people for their performance in government. Since they haven't done very much, they would like to claim credit for bringing Islam to NWFP. This is of course false and bogus because Islam has been in the Frontier for a long time and people generally are very observant Muslims. They didn't have to wait for the MMA to bring it to them. Yet, for the Maulanas there is little else they can take credit for and thus they will squeeze these Islamisation measures for as much political capital as they can.

In the end it is all politics but these steps can have unintended consequences. Some of the rank and file will be carried away not only in the NWFP but in other provinces. Vigilante actions may start in other places against women, against cinema house or other places of entertainment. There might be retaliation and we may have a full scale battle on our hands. It is for this reason that MMA must be stopped. Their playing of cynical politics has the potential of causing a great deal of disruption. Given our other problems, we can least afford internal strife.

http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jun2003-d...03/oped/o1.htm

[Shah Khan]

Change attitude or face mass march, MMA warns govt
By our correspondent

LAHORE: Reacting strongly to the federal government's conspiracies against the NWFP government and absurd language against Ulema by prime minister and cabinet members, the MMA has decided to halt the dialogue process with the government and continue protest in the assembly with all opposition parties until the rulers change their attitude.

The decision was taken at an emergency MMA Supreme Council meeting held at the hospital room in Lahore where Qazi Hussain Ahmad is admitted for a check-up. The meeting was presided over by Maulana Noorani while other participants included Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Prof Sajid Mir, Allama Sajid Naqvi, Liaquat Baloch, Hafiz Hussain Ahmad, Pir Ijaz Hashmi and Riaz Durrani. Amir of his own faction of JUI Maulana Samiul Haq did not attend the meeting because he was reportedly on an NWFP visit.

Briefing newsmen at the residence of Pir Ijaz Hashmi, MMA President Maulana Shah Ahmad Noorani said: "If the LFO issue was not solved and federal government's attitude toward opposition was not improved, the MMA would give call to the people to march toward Islamabad in millions."

However, he did not give any date for that call saying," we cannot give any time-frame for that at this time." Flanked by Maulana Fazlur Rehman, Liaquat Baloch, Riaz Durrani, and others, Noorani said: "Our protest in the National Assembly will continue during the budget session, however, its modus operandi will be decided at the meetings of opposition parliamentary parties before the start of the session."

He alleged that the NWFP Nazims' resignation was a conspiracy against the provincial government whose strings were being controlled from the presidency which was evident from the fact that they had not submitted their resignations to the chief minister, according to law. Noorani announced that the MMA would begin mass-contact drive from June 10, and the first rally would be held in Sargodha while the second in Karachi from June 20. Dates of other rallies would be announced later, he added.

He praised the NWFP government for adopting Shariat Bill despite difficulties, and said that entire nation deserved congratulation on achieving this feat. He said a "thanks-giving day" would be observed on Friday (today) across the country where prayers would be offered in all mosques for this blessing.

Noorani said, "We want reconciliation and not confrontation with the government which was evident from our efforts to solve the LFO issue through dialogue." He was critical of the reported remarks of Prime Minister Jamali and Information Minister Sheikh Rashid that "Charity-fed and mosque-dependant Ulema are confronting the rulers", and said: "We are proud to be charity-fed and not British-fed like many cabinet members."

He said the Shariat Bill was unanimously passed with the support of minorities and women but the federal government was conspiring against the provincial government. He mentioned administrative changes in the province bypassing the elected chief minister and adopting a resolution by the PML-QA, NWFP, demanding governor's rule in the province. He said that the issue of breaking of billboards with obscene pictures and messages against our cultural values was being raised to score point against the MMA.

He also condemned as conspiracy the petition in the Supreme Court against Ulema's degrees, saying the 'unconstitutional judges' were also involved in that. He said that the conspiracy was aimed at declaring null and void Ulema's degrees that had been accredited by the UGC and the Election Commission for the last 30 years so that they would be removed from parliament.

He said that the MMA decided not to counter the petition because the judges hearing it were 'personal servants' of the rulers who extended their services for three years as a political bribe and because they did not take oath under the Constitution after it was restored.

He said that this petition was engineered because extension of judges' service under the LFO was also a contentious issue between the government and the opposition. He made it clear that conspiracies could not force the MMA to change its principled stance that parliament must be the supreme body; all amendments in the Constitution be placed before it for approval; the Constitution should remain uncontroversial; any government servant desirous of public office should wait for two years after retirement; government must give a cut-off date after which no FBI agent or US troop should remain on Pakistani soil, and all airports be got vacated.

Maulana Fazlur Rehman alleged that the NRB President Daniyal Aziz was leading the conspiracy against the NWFP government through Nazims because they assembled in his office for that purpose.

He alleged that Nazims' resignations were given on prime minister's instructions, adding that President Musharraf also threatened that anybody moving complaints against the corruption of Nazims would be fixed up.

He wondered as to why Balochistan Nazims did not resign after prime minister threatened them sometime back. PPI adds: The MMA, the PPPP and the PML-N have decided to block the budget session commencing from June 07, while the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal has threatened the government to get ready to face the music.

"If the Jamali government did not change its attitude and remained adamant on the LFO and toward the NWFP government, the MMA would stage protest within parliament along with the ARD and could also give a call of mass march towards Islamabad," it was said.

http://jang.com.pk/thenews/jun2003-d...main/main2.htm

[Ali Mian]

AoA,

I cant help but laugh at the MMA, they are feeling quite confident these days and actually trying to intimidate the government, going as far as inticing the government to dissolve the assemblies. I think the government needs to play its cards quite carefully here.

An important thing that we should remember when it comes to the MMA is that they are as hollow of a political party as any other party in Pakistan. In other words, they represent only slogans and nothing else. They do not have any real policies or credible solutions to the countries problems. I know these people well, their solution to all problems is that they be put in power and they will change everything for the better. Hmmm, now doesnt that sound familiar, I could swear I heard Benazir saying the same thing or perhaps it was Nawaz Sharif? Try arguing with them and challenging their views and you will very quickly be labelled as someone who does not understand Pakistan's problems or one who does not understand Islam. Unfortunately the lack of education and ignorance in Pakistan means that there are not alot of people who ask questions that I or many others would. As a result ignorance is their greatest ally, they are mis-using Islam as their slogan to rally people and of course no good Muslim questions what the Maulana Sahib has told you, I think my point is clear.

I think that we should not over estimate the support the MMA has in Pakistan, religious parties have never enjoyed support in Pakistan though they have been quite successful in staging protest rallies and demonstrating street power. The votes gained by the MMA in last years elections should not be construed as a popular mandate for them, rather seen as a protest or anti-US vote due to the war in Afghanistan. This sentiment has only increased across the Muslim world after the war against Iraq. Consequently, if an election were to be held today, the MMA would probably get more seats because they would use this disenchantment and anti-US sentiment to their advantage. People in Pakistan and else where in the Muslim world think alot with their emotions rather than rationality. "Khoon Josh Marta hai" and we start following those who further enhance those feelings.

Now I should say here that as a Muslim and Pakistani, I am not against Sharia or following Islamic principles, afterall we are an Islamic society and it is our duty to follow the teachings of Islam. The problem I have with the MMA is that they are among the least qualified people to lead us a nation and as Muslims. Their policies or lack there of are based as I said earlier on Josh and abusing the popluar sentiment.

In anycase, it appears that the MMA and the government are on a collision course, a collision that need not occur but from the sights of it those in the MMA driving seat are quite willing to risk a crash. Why? As I said earlier they feel quite confident that they have popular support, or at least sentiments on their side. They are using this game of chicken to see who blinks first and try to get the government to compromise on the LFO and accept their demands. They would not mind too much if the assemblies are dissolved and a new election is called because it will increase their chances further, whereas they know that the international environment is not too condusive to military rule in Pakistan again at the moment.

So what should the government do? If I were President Musharraf, I would continue to drage things out. Put discussions on the LFO in the drawer, it is a part of the constitution end of story. Keep an eye on the MMA and make sure they do not cross the line in the NWFP meaning really enforce federal laws and take them to account on the slighest slip-ups. Make sure the local bodies stay intact and working. I would not dismiss the NWFP government but keep a good eye on them, let them fail on their own and discredit themselves which I think they will. If they can on the other hand really make things better then good for them they should be appreciated but I dont expect much. Basically, no rash moves should be made because a rash move can get us into some serious internal problems.

wasalaam
Ali Mian

[Shah Khan]

News Pics: Clean up in Multan

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...168/4bepm.html

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...168/4benn.html

[nasim]

Getting sharia passed as LAW is one thing, breaking existing laws is another. The people going around painting bill boards should have to pay the party that put up the advertisement and face some sort of penalty for damaging the property of others.

This sort of street politics is exactly how the nazis and fascists in germany and italy came to power. Through the use of force on the street to intimidate the entire population.

The law is supposed to be the final say, be it sharia or not. You cannot just go out and destroy property unless every business man and entrapreneur investing in the area is expected to simply pack up and leave since no one could possibly know what to expect in a commercial and business sense day to day. If I were to use advertising to promote a product I were producing and this happened to bill board space purchased in good faith, I would not be happy at all. If laws change and what was legal yesterday is not legal today, than you give people time to adjust. The thing I dont get is where the law enforcement is. I am pretty sure that the religious police will never be lax in beating people who trim their beards but what about the real police who are supposed to protect the public from real threats to society like crime.

A good turn of events would be to take sharia and use it against members of the MMA, top leadership and the street thugs who carry out this intimidation. Accuse shia members of not following sunni practices and sunni members of not following shiite practices of what sharia is and show just how ridiculous the idea of applying interpretations over a vastly diverse population. Than blast the media outlets with pictures of developing portions of every province in pakistan and end the advertisements with the budgetary problems of NWFP. Let the people see how the MMA is dragging this issue into debate while the real debate on how to develop NWFP is no where to be seen. Show the leaders of the MMA how idiotic the idea of one religion code over a country that has enough religious strife between sunni-shiite and the various sects within each group. Just look at the murder of 11 shiite police in quetta.

I cant believe that people in NWFP are not fighting for more money from the center and more federal development money at a time when the center is flush with cash rather than bickering about sharia and the LFO, two issues that take them head to head with the military. I think everyone will agree that the military will not backdown from power when it comes to the current setup, not until more time has passed at least and I dont blame musharraf at all since I would never trust the MMA to guide pakistan towards progress and most importantly, a stable democracy.

[Rafaqat]

MMA is elected by the people of NWFP. That they took advantage of anti-American sentiment, suggests that their thinking is inline with Majority of the people of NWFP. Now one has to give them enough chance to serve their constituency.

All is not good however. MMA have to demonstrate that they can do business thorugh proper channels and peacefully. Just because MMA is in power, does nto mean taht every voter of their constituent can take laws in their own hands. Law and order is responsibility of police and not of the street level MMA supporters.

If an advertising board is obscene, then it can be removed, but such an issue should be addressed through appropriate authorities, be it police or some one else. MMA's lack of control on their supporters is a dangerous sign. The leaders of MMA must be held accountable for the actions of their supporters.

When we discuss the issues relating to a religous party, people should avoid the immediate urge to curse them and wish them to fail. Judge them on their actions, judge them on their performance and not on the basis of your personal dislike of any religous party.

We are all muslims, why are we afraid of living under sharia laws ?

Rafaqat

[nasim]

News on dawn indicates that MMA is taking up a hostile position vis-a-vis the LFO and are staking their 17 point islamization drive to continuing dialogue over the LFO with the government. I dont see how this aggressive attitude is going to get the MMA anywhere. They have absolutely zero track record of governance and the first major fight they have chosen is on the very foundations of power in pakistan ie the military. Like it or not, the next 4 to 5 years are going to have the current setup stay unless the MMA can somehow force the army down. From everything we know about musharraf and the current high level officer corps that surrounds him, does anyone believe they will back down to the demands of a 6 month old alliance of non-experianced group of religious leaders under the current strategic situation pakistan is facing. We know for a fact that under the toughest times late in the second nawaz era, the military was hesistant to pull the plug and did not do so until nawaz grew a little to big for his britches and tried to take the military command down himself. This is not a group of leaders who were biting at the heel to take power from nawaz. There was a coup no more that 4 years ago and you cannot simply go back to the old setup, especially given all that has happened in the world without having the actual wielders of power being united in whatever setup is made. In my opinion, we have to give musharraf the doubt that he will back off from the uniform or the presidency in due time, when this new setup is given time to mature and take root. I would give him the space to do this simply because he was never the one who forcibly came into this position. Everything he has done was a result of the decisions of nawaz sharif to take out the military high command and this was something the army would not allow. This is historical fact in pakistan, not something new or revolutionary. If the MMA cannot figure out that anyone in power in pakistan has to deal with the military, especially these days is naive in my opinion.

To force political change means fighting with the center, a center that cannot be taken down without harming pakistan in the short and medium term and this is something that no one should want given the current situation in the world. Anyone should be able to see this, even the MMA. THIS IS NOT THE APPROPRIATE FIGHT FOR THE TIME BEING, ESPECIALLY FROM A PARTY THAT HAS NOTHING AS HISTORICAL ACHIEVEMENT TO BASE THEIR POLICIES ON.

Rafaqat,
We might all be muslims but what about those who are not. What about christians who do not want to wear beards, want to drink alcohal or eat pork. What of sikhs and hindus who may fear that this islamic drive will lead to these youth movements of relgious rioters to confront minority groups and mock them for their 'indecent' ways. What if minorities in pakistan being criticised for not following sharia becomes a common thing. Obviously the police are not doing anything to stop such things as it is today. Remember that shia are a minority in pakistan as well. Do you think that the most hard corp terrorists like sipah-e-sahaba will not be emboldened by a push to the conservative in values of the society. When they see youth movement people destroying 'evil' western influences like posters, will they not want to carry the 'purification' of society even further and attack heritics of islam within pakistan. Heritics being interpretations of islam that do not agree with their own interpretation. THIS IS A VERY SLIPPERY SLOPE. ONCE YOU BEGIN TO GO DOWN IT, COMING BACK IS VERY DIFFICULT.

Given the fact that MMA came to power by vote, it is important to let them see that they must also abide by the vote and live by the vote. That means following the law. They are passing bills do to the authority of the law but their street antics show how little respect they have for the law when it runs contradictory to what they want to see happen.