Government agrees to impose Islamic law in parts of Pakistan

[Questioninggeller]

Not good for the atheists, Christians, homosexuals, or anyone without a fundamentalist reading of the Koran:


Pakistan Agrees to Islamic Law in Swat Region
New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/world/asia/17shariah.html)
By ISMAIL KHAN
Published: February 16, 2009

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistan government officials said they struck a deal on Monday to accept a legal system compatible with Shariah law (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia) in the violent Swat region in return for peace.

The agreement contradicted American demands for the Pakistan authorities to fight harder against militants, and seemed certain to raise fears in Washington that a perilous precedent had been set across a volatile region where U.S. forces are fighting Taliban militants operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
....
The deal on the Swat region (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swat_(Pakistan)) was conditional on both sides fulfilling their side of the bargain, government officials said.

They said the authorities agreed to a legal system rejecting any law that did not comply with the teachings of the Koran and the sayings and teachings of the prophet Muhammad, known as the Sunnah.

“After successful negotiations, all un-Islamic laws related to the judicial system, those against the Koran and the Sunnah, would be subject to cancellation and considered null and void,” said Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the information minister of the North West Frontier Province, according to Reuters.
...
On Sunday, Mr. Hussain, the information minister, played down the significance of a formal acceptance of Shariah law in the area, saying that it would be mostly a technical agreement.

“We are not enacting any new law,” he said. “The regulation already exists and is enforced in Swat, but the mechanism to enforce it is missing. We are only providing for an increase in the number of judges and setting a time frame for the disposal of cases.”
...

Full: New York Times (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/world/asia/17shariah.html)

[The Atheist]

An exercise in how to make Dubbya look good in hindsight.

The PoP is a dickless idiot governing by default with no power base within the army who must find friends where he can.

Normal transmission will be resumed in the next armed coup, due in a neighbourhood in Karachi in 10, 9......

(Just so long as Immie Khan doesn't get the job.)

[Questioninggeller]

From CNN:


Pakistani woman watches Taliban take over town she loves
February 17, 2009
CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/02/17/pakistan.taliban/index.html)

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Gul Bibi and her three children fled the Taliban's bloody interpretation of Islamic law in Pakistan's Swat Valley, hoping one day to return.

But now that the Pakistani government has recognized Taliban rule in the region in exchange for a temporary cease-fire, she said those hopes have been dashed.

She warned that the government's deal with the Taliban will have worldwide implications.
...
The chief minister of North West Frontier Province announced on Monday that the Pakistani government will recognize the Taliban's interpretation of strict Islamic law, or sharia. The Taliban's interpretation of sharia has included banning girls from school, forcing women inside and outlawing forms of entertainment.

This form of Islamic law is already in effect in parts of North West Frontier Province where the Taliban have control -- including Swat, which is located about 100 miles northwest of Islamabad.
...
It is difficult to gauge the concerns of residents in Swat, because the government does not allow journalists into the area due to the ongoing military operation. Also, residents risk their lives if they openly criticize Taliban rule.

Bibi -- who used a false name to protect her identity -- told CNN that people in Swat do not support the Taliban's version of Islamic law. A strict Muslim herself, Bibi said she observes the teachings of the Quran, and the Taliban's interpretation of sharia has nothing to do with the Muslim religion.
...
"For God's sake, in the West you must realize this: no education for women," she said. "You are going to destroy an entire generation."
...


CNN.com (http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/02/17/pakistan.taliban/index.html)

[Jigsaw_Psyche]

Bibi -- who used a false name to protect her identity -- told CNN that people in Swat do not support the Taliban's version of Islamic law. A strict Muslim herself, Bibi said she observes the teachings of the Quran, and the Taliban's interpretation of sharia has nothing to do with the Muslim religion.

That's because they're using the ahadith (sayings/actions of Muhammad) which is where Shariah law comes from. Conveniently forgetting to mention that doesn't mean they aren't following "true Islam" it just means you are deluded.