‘Anti-taliban’: JUI-F does not back armed struggle, says party chief
Rehman says Pakistani and Afghan Taliban not same and should be differentiated as such.
PESHAWAR:
Distancing himself from religious militancy, Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said his party believed in struggle within the ambit of law and did not support armed movements.
In an apparent reference to the Taliban, Maulana said that if someone questions the JUI-F stance of not backing an armed struggle, then they should be mindful that JUI-F would continue with its legacy of political struggle.
Addressing the Mufti Mahmood Conference in Shahi Bagh, Rehman said that Pakistani and Afghan Taliban were not the same and should be differentiated as such.
“We cannot impose our opinion on the Afghan people and they have a right to fight,” he said, adding that the JUI-F considers the Afghan Taliban’s war as a defence of their land, religion and freedom and that their struggle constitutes legitimate resistance.
However, he emphasised that Pakistan was “a different case”. There is no unified Taliban organisation in Pakistan as compared to in Afghanistan, he said.
“The Afghan Taliban are unified and have leadership, but in the case of the Pakistani Taliban every village has its own organisation and leadership,” Rehman said.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 24th, 2011.
Distancing himself from religious militancy, Jamiat Ulema Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said his party believed in struggle within the ambit of law and did not support armed movements.
In an apparent reference to the Taliban, Maulana said that if someone questions the JUI-F stance of not backing an armed struggle, then they should be mindful that JUI-F would continue with its legacy of political struggle.
Addressing the Mufti Mahmood Conference in Shahi Bagh, Rehman said that Pakistani and Afghan Taliban were not the same and should be differentiated as such.
“We cannot impose our opinion on the Afghan people and they have a right to fight,” he said, adding that the JUI-F considers the Afghan Taliban’s war as a defence of their land, religion and freedom and that their struggle constitutes legitimate resistance.
However, he emphasised that Pakistan was “a different case”. There is no unified Taliban organisation in Pakistan as compared to in Afghanistan, he said.
“The Afghan Taliban are unified and have leadership, but in the case of the Pakistani Taliban every village has its own organisation and leadership,” Rehman said.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 24th, 2011.