A file photo of JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman speaking to the media in Peshawar. PHOTO: NNI
ISLAMABAD: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, welcoming the peace-talks offer by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), said the government and military leadership should authorise tribal jirgas to negotiate.
The TTP signalled its willingness to enter peace negotiations on February 4 with the government if three senior politicians – Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Chief Nawaz Sharif, the JUI-F chief and Jamaat-e-Islami amir Syed Munawar Hasan – would act as guarantors.
Fazl, while addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Monday, said the signals given by the group were “apparently positive”.
The JUI-F chief said a grand jirga of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) tribes can prove to be of great help in this process.
Earlier during the day, Interior Minister Rehman Malik said PML-N chief Nawaz had refused to act as an insurer.
__________________________________________________
[poll id="1022"]
COMMENTS (18)
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ
This is treacherous, unpatriotic and dangerous talk. In an ideal world Maulana sahib would be tried for treason for granting such credibility to our enemy. He talks of Peace talks? With the men who behead our soldiers? With the men who destroy schools, target children, kidnap people, and use suicide bombings targeting innocents to spread fear? Peace talks with men who have openly declared that their sole purpose is to topple the 'Un-Islamic' state of Pakistan? Peace talks with people who believe all us Pakistani's to be unbelievers, worthy of being killed as per divine ordinance? What rubbish. What a bunch of absolute rubbish.
Taliban now want to gain more time for furthering their nefarious designs. Afghan Taliban are already under pressure for negociation with Western powers and America, and Pakistan & Afghanistan are going to play a go-between role. It is rumoured that before the American exit, a settlement is likely to be struck with Taliban. If it is done, then Taliban will have no room to hide anywhere. They just want to do some face saving, and hence offer for negociation. It is not believed, that such talks will bear any fruit except wastage of time and giving Taliban space and license to kill more people ruthlessly.
Note the political personalities the TTP named to represent all Pakistanis are those of the religious far right and are themselves Taliban or Al Qaeda sympathizers, if not supporters. At least Sharif has rejected this, and somewhat drifted away (though still in touch with extremists in South Punjab).
Pakistan gave up sovereignty, betrayed by its own ideological citizens and leaders, exploited and surrendered to the religious extremists a long time ago.
The nexus between the military, mullahs and terrorists are concocting new ways to dupe the masses. More charades and smoke and mirrors produced by the directors of this Machiavellian play. What a farce!
@Raj - USA: Sincere advice and analysis Raj.
@Hammad: "We will all be better off if these Taliban sympathizers get bitten by their own snakes. Somebody had to say it."
Best comment ever.
Do not negotiate with them. Talking to them is giving credibility to them. In any case, how who are TTP, and how many are there. 1000 or 10,000? what happened to all the civilians that were killed by them and the property destroyed by them?
What is their negotiating terms? Amnesty, annual tribute to the region they control, and political powers and parliamentary seats?
TTP will step into the mainstream, join political alliances with the parties and will play a vote game with them and will push their agenda.
Step one is complete in is this negotiation.
Already Egypt parliamentarians are having difficulty with the elected salafi MPs in the parliament.
PAK army and politicians know who the TTP are and where they live. Just wipe them of, for good of PAK.
If PAK is incapable, US or India should take care of them. The TTP will become their headaches in the future, and PAK people will support the now legitimized TTP political alliances in mass rallies without knowing the motive.
How can anyone trust talibans? They do not follow teachings of any religion, have no education and have no moral or ethical values. They interpret Quran in their own twisted ways, just like the leaders of political parties. They are most untrustworthy and change sides at the slightest pretext. Pakistan should know that all talibans of any faction hate Pakistan. No one is Pakistan's friend, be they Afghan Taliban or TTP. The tribal leaders cannot control them and in fact the tribal leaders are afraid to drive them out of their territories. They may not like India but they hate Pakistan and Pakistan and Afghanistan are their first targets. They can target India only after they have full control of Pakistan. So, Pakistan will be destroyed first and disintegrate into several small emirates, before they even think of venturing into India. Many are supporting negotiations with talibans on the logic that if US can negotiate with them why not Pakistan? US is negotiating because it Pakistan is not supporting US in its efforts to wipe out the talibans completely. US is interested in preventing terror reaching its shores and if it can be confined to Pakistan and Afghanistan it serves their purpose, at least temporarily and facilitates their exit from the region. Whereas, Pakistan on the other hand, by negotiating with them is only ceding away its territory and control to the talibans. Many in Pakistan mock US saying that it has lost the war in Afghanistan. Who benefits from such statements and thinking? It only strengthens the talibans and does not affect US at all. After all, US is a foreign power in the region and shall vacate the region as soon as possible. It will then be only Pakistan and Afghanistan that will be living under the rule of talibans. I believe that if Pakistan supports the US fully and truthfully to take on the talibans, US and NATO shall and can wipe them out completely. But, Pakistan is more interested in keeping the talibans for future use against India. By that time, Pakistan would have fully disintegrated and moved to a primitive age under the taliban rule and there will be no Pakistan to take on India.
Yes jirga, move back to medieval times, these jirgas will suit TTP. Wake up people dont give in to these terrorists who want to destroy Quaids Pakistan
So, Maulana has come with Jirga System ; again there will be Sofi Muhammad and again they will celebrate their victory while Diplaying Some head cut it off ; exactly according to their laws. Congratulations peace is comming. Shut down school Bulldoze modern health system, speacillay vaccinations etc. etc.
Let Mullahsahibs go and talk instead to the violent TTP... Before giving an inch of Pakistan away!
This is the same Taliban who announced a few weeks ago that they would not target military...tell that to all the soldiers killed at the checkpoint two days ago...they cannot be trusted and neither can their supporter Fazl...they are the enemy within Pakistan...
We will all be better off if these Taliban sympathizers get bitten by their own snakes. Somebody had to say it.
“nizam-e-adl” ordinance. Dear Uzair "Nizam-e-Adal Ordinance" was a modified version of the" Nizam-e - Shariate Ordinance"promulgated during the second tenure of Benazir Bhutto government for the three districts of Malakand Division of KPK. The "Nizam-e-Adal Ordinace" of 2010 was rubber stamped by all the members of the Parliament except a PML(N) member of National Assembly Mr. Ayaz Amir. If the conditional peace talks offer between the Government and TTP materialize, then there is no wonder that such a peace of legislation will be drafted and passed from the Parliament for the the whole country.
"Negotiations" with TTP are fine as long as they are purely about the terms of surrender of the TTP and NOT the Pakistani state, i.e. what happened with the "nizam-e-adl" ordinance.
yes plz dismantle all the courts and parliament.just use jirga system
Of course they are willing to negotiate because simply put ttp is winning the war