Leaders of madrassas (Islamic seminaries) said on Sunday that they would not allow the government or anyone else to interfere in madrassa matters such as their syllabi and examination system.
| "Nope. Nope. Ain't gonna happen. Fuhgeddaboudit." |
In a communiqué issued after the Deeni Madaris Convention arranged by the Wafaqul Madaris Al Arabia, madrassa leaders said seminaries would continue working towards making Pakistan an Islamic and democratic state and would stay united and would not allow anyone interfere in madrassa matters.
| That's more Islamic than democratic, of course... |
It also said they would not accept the imposition of embargos to fulfil the agenda of the West. "Religious schools weren't involved in any kind of politics or terrorism and they don't want to fight the government, but they want it to accept their demands through dialogue because religious schools will not accept any imported philosophy in the name of so-called enlightened moderation," the declaration added. Syllabi reforms in madrassas would continue because they (madrassa leaders) believed that teachers in religious schools had the capability to teach conventional education, it said, adding that madrassas would also not accept the government's financial assistance at any stage.
| "We get enough money from Arabia, thengyubellymush..." |
Earlier, in his welcome address, Qari Hanif Jullandry, coordination secretary of the Ittehad-e-Tanzimat-e-Madaris-e-Deeniya (ITMD), said ITMD leaders were talking to the government about giving the status of education boards to the five Wafaqs. "Though the government isn't accepting our demands, we still believe in resolving issues through dialogue," he added. "We demand the government to accept our degrees equalling Matric, FA and BA," he said. Pakistan's religious leaders wanted to be on good terms with the international community, but on the basis of equality and justice, he said, adding that during 2004 as many as 54,000 students — 10,000 being female — appeared in the hifz (learn the Quran by rote) exam. He also said 10,000 students had become religious scholars in one year. |