Paigham-i-Pakistan: is the effective solution to counter terrorism?

Terrorism has been an important part of Pakistan's foreign policy since the late 1970s. After Soviet invasion on Afghanistan, Pakistan played a special role in the US and Saudi Arabia-backed Mujahideen war, the contribution of Pakistan's army and ISI was extremely important. But after the establishment of the Taliban's power in 1996 and the destruction of it in 2001, terrorism transform in various styles. And today Pakistan is becoming a victim of its own super-critical policies.

Since Pakistan was a nation built in the name of Islam and the supremacy of Islam always prevailing, therefore, in the event that Pakistan is lying in a fiercely contradictory situation such as supporting terrorism and being a victim of terrorism.  Therefore, in a situation where Pakistan is lying in a fierce contradictory position such as supporting terrorism and being a victim of terrorism, it also appears to be the most useful use of Islamic religious leaders, and it’s resultant is “Paigham-e- Pakistan”.

On March16 , Pakistan government launched the Paigham-i-Pakistan, (Compiled through the efforts of the International Islamic University Islamabad,)a document signed by 1,829 religious scholars, that declares several actions un-Islamic. These, among others, include suicide attacks against the state, spreading sectarianism, anarchy in the name of religion and issuing a call to jihad without the consent of the state, denounces the use of force on the pretext of imposing Sharia, waging an armed struggle against the state, or employing violence and terrorist tactics to settle ethnic, geographical, religious and sectarian conflicts.

Some earlier uses

The idea of this move seems to have been borrowed from two similar precedents. Firstly, a 600-page fatwa against terrorism was released in March 2010 in London by Dr Tahirul Qadri. Secondly, in July 2013 at Lahore, 50 scholars of the Sunni Ittehad Council issued a collective fatwa against suicide bombings, the killing of innocent people, bomb attacks, and targeted killings, declaring them as haram. There have been attempts earlier to forge a consensus to counter religious violence: in 2015, some 200 ulema issued a decree against suicide bombings; in May, 31 2017  prominent religious scholars signed a similar fatwa. The latest document, however, compile a wider range of crimes committed in the name of faith as well as a far more comprehensive representation of the diverse strains of religious thought in the country.

Important Stakeholders in Preparation

This document is prepared with the assistance and support of state institutions of Pakistan and with the cooperation of the following: Wafaq-ul-Madaris al-Arabiyyah, Tanzim-ul-Madaris Ahl-e-Sunnat, Wafaq-ul-Madaris al-Salfiyyah, Wafaq-ul-Madaris al-Shi'ah and Rabitat-ul-Madaris Pakistan. Assistance in preparation of this document was also provided by the academia from prominent Pakistani universities and the eminent religious scholars of Pakistan from Dar-ul-Uloom Karachi, Dar-ul- Uloom Muhammadiah Ghausia Bhera Sharif, Jamia Binoria Karachi, Jamiat alMuntazar Lahore, Jamia Ashrafia Lahore, Jamia Haqqania Akora Khattak, Jamia Muhammadiah Islamabad and Jamia Faridiah Islamabad.

Important Points

According to the document, declaration of Jihad by an individual or group shall be considered an act of rebellion against the State and sectarian hatred, armed sectarian conflict, and imposing one’s ideology on others by force stands in clear violation of the injunctions of Shariah and are a “disorder on earth”. This mirrors the teachings of the Holy Quran and Hadiths very often preached from the mosque pulpit.