July
20, 2007
Lal Masjid and Beyond
President Musharraf has received encomiums from
the US President, British Premier, Chinese and Afghan
leaders on his adroit and stringent handling of
the Lal Masjid clerics and their misguided followers.
Benazir Bhutto and other moderate elements, including
bulk of the national media, have also supported
his tough action.
His administration is already engulfed in the enormous
problems arising out of the cyclone that has hit
Sindh and Balochistan. The All Parties Conference,
held in London while the Lal Masjid stand off was
gathering momentum, has in its resolution called
for an immediate resignation of Musharraf. Then
there is the lawyers’ movement for the restoration
of the Chief Justice, rule of law and democracy.
And, the Lal Masjid operation claimed no less than
102 lives including 11 persons in uniform, according
to the Islamabad administration. That is a major
tragedy that would keep resonating with the people
for a long time to come.
Many of the followers of the two clerics, who got
killed in the exchange of fire, were notably from
the Frontier Province. It might thus add to the
intensity of the radical religious factions’
hatred of Musharraf and his anti-extremists policies.
The deputy leader of Al Qaeda, Ayeman Zawahiri,
has vehemently condemned him over the Lal Masjid
episode. He had already issued an edict earlier
for the assassination of Musharraf.
Demonstrations against Musharraf have already been
held in the Frontier Province, particularly in Waziristan,
some areas of which are said to be serving as sanctuaries
for the Taliban. This gives an idea as to the shape
of things to come unless strong actions are immediately
initiated to preempt untoward developments.
The episode of Lal Masjid negates the allegation
that its administration was subservient to the ISI
dictates and that the furor was inspired to divert
attention from the All Parties Conference convened
in London by Nawaz Sharif as well as from the popular
response to the Chief Justice’s case in the
Supreme Court and the rallies of lawyers in his
support. Media coverage of the step-by-step developments
belies the charge. It also exposed the poor negotiating
abilities of Chaudhry Shujaat Husain and Ijazul
Haq, proving once again the veracity of Peter’s
Principle that people manage to get elevated to
the highest level of their incompetence.
One must add quickly here that the stubbornness
of Maulana Abdur Rashid Ghazi was chiefly responsible
for the failure of the negotiations. He and his
elder brother, Abdul Aziz, who was caught trying
to escape in a head-to-toe veil (burqa), had 39
criminal cases registered against them including
21 for terrorism. The fanatic duo persisted in their
demand that the cases be withdrawn and they be provided
safe passage to their home, that is they be allowed
to go scot-free. Who would succumb to such a foolish
demand?
No one understood the mind of a mullah better than
the Quaid-i-Azam. He invariably refused to have
anything to do with them when they opposed him and
the demand of Muslims for Pakistan. He refused to
deal with them even when they were ready to join
his movement unconditionally. And, he warned Muslim
leaders to be wary of the clerics as they were rarely
genuine. Iqbal said:
Deen-i-Kafir fikr o tadbeer-i-Jehad Deen-i-Mullah
fisabeelillah fisad
Soon after independence, the religio-political lobby
called for the Islamization of the state but the
Assembly rejected it. Yet, it produced the Objectives
Resolution. The pressure of the lobby was temporarily
pacified. But, it maintained its nibbling. The 1956
Constitution called Pakistan an Islamic Republic.
The lengthy rule of Zia caused substantial changes
in the complexion of the polity. Islamization became,
under his 12-year long watch, the top priority of
the society.
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan provided Zia
with the support of the US and requisite resources
to launch religious projects serving directly or
indirectly the anit-Soviet war in Afghanistan. A
network of religious seminaries was set up which
served as the breeding ground of “Mujahideen”,
religious warriors. The young men coming out of
these institutions had a certain mindset; they were
virtually brainwashed. They were provided guerrilla
training at numerous facilities near the Pak-Afghan
border. Many of these seminaries still exist but
they now claim to be imparting both religious and
secular education. Pakistan has around 20,000 such
religious schools. Most parents send their children
to such seminaries, as board and lodging are both
provided free.
The Lal Masjid complex had 5,000 students both male
and female. One has reason to believe that radical
reforms in the curricula are likely to take place
now that the two clerics’ fiefdom has come
to an end.
Musharraf had till now prevaricated in dealing firmly
with religious institutions. The Lal Masjid operation
and the appreciation he has received at home and
abroad ought to have removed his hesitation in taking
a firm stand on the seminaries. He has already made
this point quite clear in his address to the nation
on July 12.
The anti-Musharraf resolution of the All Parties
Conference of London lacks any lever for its implementation.
It sounds like the mice deciding to bell the cat.
The basic flaw lies in the fact that almost all
participants are the products of the feudal system.
Many of the 38 parties exist on their letterheads
only. The leader of the PPP, the party that has
grass-roots representation, has elected to remain
at a distance from the conference confirming the
speculation that she had entered into a deal with
President Musharraf. But she had, nevertheless,
a very strong representation in the meeting. She
is playing the game of “heads I win, tails
you lose”, or as a newspaper put it, she is
trying to hunt with the hound and run with the hare.
The lawyers’ movement is the only development
Musharraf has to be wary of. It is a genuine civil
society movement in favor of the Chief Justice and
against the military rule. If Musharraf could develop
a strategy to pacify the lawyers, he might be able
to devote his energies to tackling the trouble-breeding
seminaries.
The Taliban have pushed Afghanistan back to the
Middle Ages. Musharraf may be able to save Pakistan
from following suit. He has the advantage of leading
an essentially moderate society. - arifhussaini@hotmail.com
