Crossing the T-zone


By Shehar Bano Khan

Is an international conspiracy under way to declare certain organisations as a bunch of terrorists and rogues, or is there some truth in the allegations?

UNDER a systemic neo-imperialism, demonising religion has become a statement on liberalism. The universal expression of ‘innocent-unless-proven-guilty’ in a court of law is a benefit now awarded on the basis of religious affiliation or its absence.

The post-9/11 events have had a telling effect on human impartiality. A bearded Muslim and a hijab-clad woman are conspicuous suspects allegedly conspiring, mostly through foul means, to transform the darul har’b into the darul Amn. This is what Islamic fundamentalism means to the neo-imperialists, and this is what they want people to believe.

Many people think that anybody who is inclined towards Islamic norms disrespects society, and is constantly fed upon annihilating non-Islamic cultures. Helped by the western and, in some cases, our own media, overt fidelity to religion is a crossover by default into the carefully contrived sociological construct referred to as the ‘T-zone’. The common word for the T-zone is terrorism. The T-zone is sustained by unsavoury stories of Muslims’ misconduct damaging the ozone layer and the very axis on which it rotates. Many westerners’ conception of a Muslim is that of a genetically mutated ‘being’, showing little respect for law, entertaining a murderous streak for non-Muslims and ready to sign off and exterminate flora and fauna and humans, all in the name of jihad.

Jihad — a venerated component of Islam — which has been reviled and abused by the West as an ‘act of misdirected passion’ is pushed down as a temporal substitute for mercenary-driven needs. Western ideas of mutated Muslims are not above anything, and nothing is beneath their dignity. They can be expected to kidnap children for ransom, enslave them to be sold to the highest bidder to funnel funds for religious organisations, offering courses to young men ostensibly moved by the spirit of jihad, and so on.

The latest diatribe let loose against Muslims is the publication of an article in a UK-based newspaper titled, Rescued — the Pakistan Children, by Marie Colvin. Published recently, the article has all the chutzpah necessary to defile Muslims, jihad and religious organisations. Making use of all the constructs that demonise Muslims, the story, woven around a sensational turn of events, is set in Muridke, an hour’s drive from Lahore.

The writer has accused the Jamaatud Dawa, one of Pakistan’s Islamic organisations, of arranging the kidnapping of 20 Christian boys, aged six to 12, from various villages in Punjab and selling them into domestic slavery and flesh trade to raise money for underhanded activities, the training of ‘terrorists’ being one of them.

Ms Colvin has established that Gul Khan, a “wealthy militant who uses the base of the Jamaatud Dawa (JUD) near Lahore, is behind a cruel trade in boys aged six to 12. They are abducted from remote Christian villages in Punjab and fetch nearly Rs1,000 each from buyers who consign them to a life of misery in domestic servitude or in sex trade”.

The story links Gul Khan to the Jamaatud Dawa, calling the organisation’s headquarters at Muridke a base camp funded by Osama bin Laden in the late 1990s. In a sting operation to rescue the kidnapped children, Marie Colvin has claimed that the central character of the story, Gul Khan, was spotted driving .... with a knapsack full of cash to the JUD’s headquarters .... where he regularly stays”.

Nearly all the Christian boys, later rescued by a Pakistani Christian missionary and an American evangelist for $28,500 paid in cash, were kidnapped by “a large man with a turban and a beard”. It is surprising that instead of concealing the abductor’s identity, the trader assigns the task to a man made even more conspicuous by a turban and a beard. And what is even more surprising is the naivete of Gul Khan’s accomplice organisation, the Jamaatud-Dawa, for allowing him to conduct transaction of handing over the boys for cash right in the middle of its headquarters in Muridke.

Why would anyone or any organisation allegedly involved in illicit activities bring itself under direct suspicion by making use of its base in a blatant operation? If the Jamaatud Dawa were involved, as the story claims, should the Gul Khan versus the kidnapped boys’ transaction not have taken place in another part of the country to divert suspicion?

In all fairness, a counteraction to the story’s serious allegations cannot be had without getting the version of Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, the right-wing organisation’s amir. The Jamaatud Dawa is on the Pakistan government’s watch-list and is banned by the US State Department for being an outcrop of the Lashkar-i-Taibah, outlawed and banned as a terrorist organisation by Pakistan on the instructions of the United States.

In a statement released on April 28, by the US State Department, the Jamaatud-Dawa and its sister organisation, the Idara Khidmat-i-Khalq (IKK), were added to the ‘Specially Designated Global Terrorist Designation of the Lashkar-i-Taibah’. The April 27 action under the Executive Order 13224 “blocks all property, and interests in property, of JUD and IKK that are in the United States, or come within the United States, or under the control of the US persons. The US Secretary of State took this action in consultation with the Attorney General, the Secretary of the Treasury and the Department of Homeland Security”.

The Laskhar-i-Taibah is one of the three indigenous organisations fighting in the disputed territory of Kashmir. After the US labelled it a terrorist organisation, the Pakistan government banned it in 2001. Hafiz Mohammad Saeed is accused of operating the banned organisation under its new name, the Jamaatud Dawa. Though there is increasing pressure from the US government to ban the JUD, the government of Pakistan has so far not yielded.

“There’s no truth in the Jamaatud Dawa acting as the Lashkar-i-Taibah’s substitute. The Jamaatud Dawa was previously called the Markazud Dawa, established in 1985, which was later given the name of the Jamaatud Dawa. The Lashkar-i-Taibah came to the fore in 1993 and is related to the Kashmiri jihad. I was never Taibah’s amir nor did I establish it. That’s a fact I’m willing to challenge in any court of law,” says Jamaatud Dawa’s amir, Hafiz Mohammad Saeed.

The Dawa’s amir was sitting cross-legged on a thin piece of floral-upholstered mattress at the organisation’s Chauburji Markaz in Lahore. Like the rest of the Markaz, spread across three acres in a bustling part of the city, the bare white-washed walls and ceiling fans were the only two things used for cooling in all the rooms.

As I entered the amir’s room, two members of the Dawa, sitting beside Hafiz Mohammad, respectfully withdrew to one side of the room. Throughout the interview, the amir’s and the other two members’ eyes remained lowered. My tea cup and plate full of biscuits were placed at a polite distance from me. They waited for the amir to take the first sip before reaching out for their cups.

Abdullah Muntazir, in charge of the JUD’s publication, Voice of Islam, entered and handed me a sheaf of papers. It contained accredited letters from international organisations like the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) seeking the Jamaatud-Dawa’s support in tracing family members missing after the October 8 earthquake. It also carried the Sri Lankan High Commission’s letter of appreciation for the JUD’s relief work during the Tsunami disaster. The JUD’s sister organisation, the Idara-i-Khidmat-e-Khalq, also banned by the US government, is an internationally recognised and registered relief-oriented organisation.

“The Red Cross and other UN agencies have given us certificates of appreciation for our relief work in the Kashmir earthquake. Our work is spread all across Pakistan. We’ve constructed schools, colleges, libraries and provide free medical aid to people all over Pakistan. People trust us and donate huge sums of money to keep our programmes going. If Jamaatud-Dawa had a reputation of kidnapping children for ransom, would they support our educational, health and other relief related programmes,” asked Hafiz Saeed.

He called the publication of the Gul Khan story an international conspiracy to declare the Jamaatud Dawa a terrorist organisation. “The story is part of that propaganda. We are being maligned through such stories. The fact is that the US doesn’t want a humane picture of Muslims. At first we thought the US was only against jihad, which it now calls terrorism. But when the US declared the Khidmat-i-Khalq a terrorist organisation, its policy became all too obvious. It doesn’t want people to sympathise with us for our relief work. It wants people to believe we use funds for earthquake as a cover-up to train and send people off to jihad,” argued the amir.

On December 12, 2005, an international news agency published remarks made by Rian C. Crocker, the US ambassador to Pakistan, in which he expressed “concern over the relief activities of what he called jihadi organisations in the quake-affected areas, and pointed out that the banned group, the Lashkar-i-Taibah, is using the new name of Jamaatud Dawa.

“He wanted us to stop our relief work in the area. We’ve sent our objection in a written statement to the US government for declaring us and the Khidmat-i-Khalq terrorists,” says Hafiz Saeed.

If the written objection held little surprise, a multi-faith rally supporting the JUD and condemning the US decision to ban it, was held in Sindh on May 16. Holding placards, nearly 800 Hindus and Christians coming from different parts of Sindh gathered in Hyderabad terming the US decision cruel. “Is it not surprising that the story in the Sunday Times was published a few days after this protest? Why would minorities support us if we are kidnapping their children?” added Yahya Mujahid, the Jamaatud Dawa’s spokesperson.

“We are going to sue the newspaper for accusing us of involvement in an assassination attempt on General Pervez Musharraf and for coming up with the absurd version of child kidnapping. There’s not a single FIR registered against us for kidnapping 20 boys. We believe in jihad and spreading the message of Islam. Our faith doesn’t allow us to force people into conversion or to kidnap minorities,” said Hafiz Saeed.

Going to Muridke, said to be the Osama bin Laden-funded base, where Ms Colvin asserts, “... young men can be seen practising martial arts with batons on rolling green lawns patrolled by guards with Kalashnikovs ...”, is an experience in itself.

On a hot, scorching summer day, the signpost giving the Dawa’s Markaz’s directions led me to a dusty road and a few minutes later I found myself facing the security bar lifted by a guard to let me in.

The Markaz of the Jamaatud Dawa is situated five kilometres from the main city and covers an area of 200 acres. Eyes searching for “young men practising martial arts” would meet nothing more than deserted green fields with Taiba Hospital on the left and a hostel on the right. A drive further into the Markaz would bring into full view the squarely built red-bricked Jamia Dawa Al-Islamiya, an educational institution, a science college and laboratory, a separate college for women and four residential privately-owned colonies. Most of the teaching faculty lives on campus with their families in small, conservatively furnished houses.

Hafiz Abdul Rehman Makki, the head of the Dawa’s foreign and political affairs division, took me to his house where his smiling wife and cheerful looking daughters greeted me. Two of them looked shyly at me while Hafiz Makki’s wife instructed another to bring tea. “My father, Professor Hafiz Abdullah, studied at the Aligarh University and after Partition came from Amritsar to settle in Bahawalpur to teach Islamic Studies at the Bahawalpur Degree College. He was closely associated with the Muslim League and the Quaid-i-Azam. He was later made the principal of that college. My father was the maternal uncle of Hafiz Saeed and was also the pioneer of the Jamaatud Dawa. This organisation was not established accidentally, but has deep-rooted and eminent background. We are not like some ofthe others and don’t discrimintae against any religious denomination. We think it is haraam to use arms in Pakistan because we are all Muslims. In fact, our faith does not allow us to harm a fellow Muslim be they Shia, Sunni, Deobandi or Barelvi,” sadi Hafiz Abdul Makki.

He strongly objected to the US accusation of linking it to Al Qaeda. “That’s negative propaganda. The Jamaatud Dawa doesn’t believe in targeting cities and peace loving people which Al Qaeda is said to be doing. After the earthquake the Jamaatud Dawa gained huge support from people who lauded our relief efforts. This story was printed to malign us so that the people’s attention could be diverted from the good work we had done in the quake-affected areas. It is not an Islamic approach to kill non-Muslims, force them to convert and sell their children,” affirmed Hafiz Makki. “We are going to take this matter to court and, God willing, no body will be able to prove what the story has claimed. For six months we were helping Muslims and non-Muslims alike in Balakot, Mansehra and other areas of Kashmir. You can go there to confirm how we treated them. The non-Muslims were given the same treatment as Muslims.”

Referring to the allegation of a turbaned, bearded man abducting small Christian children, Hafiz Makki said that nobody in the Markaz wore a turban. “Since it’s a fictitious character they’ve painted such a picture.”

Adnan Masih, who lives in the nearby Nangal Sahidan Basti and works as a stable boy at the Markaz. said he had never been forced or felt threatened by Jamaatud Dawa people. “They give me extra money on Christmas and Easter. I’ve never been mistreated by them,” says the 16-year-old. The same holds true for Majeed Masih, who has been living in Nangal Sahidan Basti for three years and works at a brick kiln owned by Sheikh Abbas.

“There are nearly 175 Christian families living in Muridke since before Partition. A few of them work at the Markaz. Would they want to come here if we mistreated them? We are conservative, but that doesn’t mean we are not progressive,” said Professor Zafar Iqbal, another pioneer of the Jamaatud Dawa.

The duty officer at Muridke’s local police station, Mubarik Ali looks surprised at the news of Christian boys’ abduction by JUD members. “There’s no FIR registered to my knowledge,” says Mubarik Ali.

Mohammad Asif Gujjar, nazim UC 12, tehsil Muridke is also taken aback by the story. “Kidnapping by them? That’s not possible. I’ve lived and studied at the Markaz and have never heard of Jamaatud Dawa people being involved in such acts,” confirms Asif Gujjar.

An investigation into the veracity of the story is under way conducted by the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA). “We can’t be certain about the authenticity of the story unless documented proof is provided to us against the Jamaatud Dawa. Till that’s done, it is difficult for me to verify or deny the story,” said APMA chairperson Shahbaz Bhatti.