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Mullas are politicising caricatures
 LAHORE: Law and order in the city on Friday was normal and almost all markets and commercial centres except Alfalah Building on The Mall remained open despite a strike call by the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA). A majority of Lahoris found roaming on the streets or busy shopping were of the view that mullas were politicising the issue of the publication of caricatures of Prophet Mohammad (PTUI PBUH) in European newspapers.
| ... thereby disproving the theory held by some here that all Paks are lunatics... |
They said every Muslim and not only the ones in Pakistan was offended by the caricatures, but the way the mullas had protested had only brought disrespect for Muslims, Pakistanis and Lahoris.
| I think they might have gotten that gift for understatement from the Brits... |
They said the mullas were happy after protesting violently in the country, but they had in fact damaged the cause even more.
| The protests are the important part. The issue's a side... uhhh... issue. |
Ehtasham Ali, shopping at a clothing outlet on The Mall, said he had first inquired if protests were taking place on The Mall and then gone shopping. People had lost faith in the mullas who after damaging properties had claimed to have held a successful protest, he said, adding that when the media had projected the violence and looting on TV and newspapers, the mullas said the looters were not from among them and that the whole incident was a conspiracy against the religious activists. However, the mullas were behind the whole episode, he added.
| "No, no! Really! It's a conspiracy, I tells yez! Hatched in a smoke-filled room in the dead of night, by dark men of sinister demeanor! I seen it!" |
Munir Ahmed, a government employee, said he left work by 11:30am to get home before protestors could block all city roads. However, he had to buy groceries after coming home and when he left he saw that the situation was normal. Condemning the February 14 incident, he said it was one of the worst things Lahore had ever witnessed and that the religious parties should mend their ways, especially protests, on issues directly related to Muslims. He said the government should stop looters and punish people responsible of rioting in the city.
| That's kind of an original idea. I wonder how it'd work? |
Hamid Ali said the government needed to train law enforcement personnel to handle riots because they were not trained to handle the February 14 riot, which encouraged the protestors to loot.
| I'm not sure Pak law enforcement's actually trained to do anything. |
He said nothing had happened on Friday because the government had not allowed anybody to disturb Lahores law and order. Zareen Sabir said it was everybodys right to protest on such an issue, but nobody had the right to damage anyones property. Religious parties should arrange protests in which every citizen could participate and show their strength to the publishers of the caricatures while conveying the massage that their (publishers) action was against Muslim beliefs, she added.
Posted by: Fred 2006-02-25 |
