Posted on 07/13/2005 4:56:14 AM PDT by Srirangan
12 July 2005: The Pakistan army has set up an in-house Islamic accountability committee (IAC) that will monitor religious matters and enforce regulations on the general public and institutions, and General Parvez Musharraf will head this committee.
The IAC was set up on 6 July after almost three weeks of deliberations at a corps commanders’ conference at the Rawalpindi GHQ presided over by General Musharraf, and ever since, the developments have been closely monitored by Western diplomats.
The official Pakistani explanation is that the IAC will prevent misrepresentation of Islam in cases such as the Mukhtar Mai rape case, which provoked an international uproar, and destroyed Pakistan’s image, but diplomats said Musharraf has come under army pressure to set up the committee.
Diplomats said that a majority of middle-level army officers were distressed with Musharraf’s lifestyle of a Western general and his advocacy of liberal Islam for Pakistan, and they put pressure for a IAC which superior officers could not be seen to resist, and the country’s most powerful nine corps commanders finally capitulated, leaving Musharraf with no option but to fall in.
“Musharraf still thinks that with the committee, he can control the fundamentalists, but it could well turn the other way around,” said a diplomat. “Once the army intervenes in religious affairs, its impact is bound to be felt internally.”
The other reason for the IAC, diplomats said, could be to counter the growing ferment in the middle levels of the army over stalled promotions and transfers, with over two hundred superceded officers from major to major-general rank complaining of corruption and nepotism.
“Musharraf promised them transparency at all levels of the military hierarchy, and he has clearly failed in his task,” said a diplomat.
As diplomats see the emerging scenario in Pakistan, General Musharraf could feel his powers curtailed, his isolation within the army could increase, unless he takes the late General Zia ul-Haq’s path of Islamisation, and a growing number of corps commanders and senior formation commanders could change their position not to be out of step with hard line elements in the military.
Seperation of church and state hopefully will be maintained to block the Muslim loonie religious leadership from killing innocent people.
pong
If musharraf were dethroned, his nukes would be a terrible problem.
I watched the PBS story of the children being taken hostage in Russia tonight, and I combined that with all Islamic terrorism around the world, and I saw situation after situaton being repeated, and I wonder why so hesitate at wiping out the world's most evil men.
Why is our government so lame as to let these things being repeated in Western Nations? The Halocaust could not have been more evil or cruel, but it was of a longer duration.
"Why is our government so lame as to let these things being repeated in Western Nations? The Halocaust could not have been more evil or cruel, but it was of a longer duration."
To do what will need to be eventually the support of the American people is needed. Until we have another 9/11 or two that's not going to happen.
"Islamic accountability committee". Now that's an oxymoron in itself.
Now *that's* a Twilight Zone-worthy headline!
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