JuD gives up on long march, will hold protests on June 1

The council will hold a ‘workers convention’ today.

KARACHI:

The Difa-e-Pakistan Council announced that it would focus on protests instead of organising a long march, as it had earlier planned.

The announcement came on Saturday after leaders of the major parties in the council attended a meeting. Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Munawwar Hasan, secretary-general Liaquat Baloch, Jamaatud Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed and Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi were among those present on the occasion.

JI chief Hasan announced that the council would hold a “grand workers’ convention” on Sunday in Karachi, where “workers could directly hear the future strategy from their leadership.” The council was committed to opposing the reopening of the Nato supply routes. It would organise protests in front of district headquarter offices across the country on June 1. Hasan said these protests would be peaceful as “we are a peaceful people and believe in the supremacy of the law and the constitution.”

Hafiz Saeed said that the council had decided to “use the weapon of the long march when it was needed.” He claimed that Pakistan was already becoming “more independent” when it came to defending its stand on various issues. As an example, he said, “Pakistan has taken a strong stance in Dr Shakil Afridi’s case.” Dr Afridi was sentenced by a court operating under the Frontier Crime Regulations for treason after he was accused of spying for the Central Intelligence Agency to locate Osama bin Laden.

Saeed added that they would not allow Pakistan to become “India’s marketplace,” and that India was working with the United States to scale up its hostility against Pakistan. He opposed the release of Surjeet Singh, an Indian national, who has been in prison for 30 years on charges of spying on Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 27^th, 2012.