Relevant extracts from President General Pervez Musharraf's address toPaksitan
I want to talk about the regional situation. Firstly, I want to talk aboutMumbai bomb blasts in India. Pakistan, the entire nation, the government andmyself strongly condemn these blasts. We are all opposed to terrorism andextremism and Pakistan itself is fighting against terrorism.
And God willing Pakistan will succeed in this regard. I assure you that Pakistanwould continue its fight against extremism and terrorism. I want to address tothe people of Mumbai and say to them that we are shocked over the loss of livesin the terrorist attack. I condole with the families who lost their dear ones.
Pakistan itself is a victim of terrorism and is fighting against it. And westand by you in fight against it. But I also want to say something on thisoccasion. The attitude of the Indian government after this incident was somewhatregrettable. To say that the dialogue process should be postponed or halted, inmy view, is a victory for terrorists. Terrorists want to stop the peace processand the normalization process and I am sure that Indian government would notlike them (terrorists) to win. We all oppose terrorism.
Pakistan is part of the international coalition in the fight against terrorism.If we put blame on each other it will be a defeatist attitude. So I wouldsuggest that we should carefully think before giving any comments. No one shouldgive unsubstantiated comments. We are all together against terrorism.
I assure that Pakistan will fully help India to identify terrorists or theirorganization if we are provided with specific information and evidence. We standby you against those who undertook such terrorist attacks making you suffer somuch. Secondly, I would talk about Afghanistan. The situation has changedsomewhat in Afghanistan. We tackled al-qaeda and made offensives against itsoperatives in cities and mountains as well as in North and South Waziristan andits operatives are on the run. They now hide in mountains in small groups. Wehave broken their network.
I think, the situation has transformed (the focus has shifted) from al-qaeda toTaliban. Its centre is southern Afghanistan, Kandahar region where Mullah Omeris still controlling Taliban and this is negatively impacting Pakistan. Someelements are also in Pakistan’s FATA area, who are involved in cross borderactivities.
We are strongly taking action against them. We have designed a new strategyagainst Taliban and I would give its details later. I want to say that we aretogether against terrorism and cooperating with the coalition forces. Pakistanwill not accept any allegations in this respect. I have already mentioned in thecase of India that blame game is a sign of defeat and weakness and they shouldstop. We can respond strongly but I think it is inappropriate. We have to fighttogether against terrorism. I would say on this occasion that foreigninterference into Pakistan from Afghanistan must stop.
We can respond strongly but I think it is inappropriate. We have to fighttogether against terrorism. I would say on this occasion that foreigninterference into Pakistan from Afghanistan must stop.
On Islam, Extremism
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My dear countrymen! I have gone into details. Now in conclusion, I would liketo touch upon a point which is very important. It is extremism, which has to beeliminated from our society. This is eating into our social fabric like a whiteant. If we failed to curb extremism, we would not be able to sustain progress,we are making now. We have to promote tolerance in our society. We have toeschew intolerance. If you look at this issue in the international perspectives,watch world media, you will come to realize that Pakistani society is being seenas intolerant one. This is very dangerous development. I have also realized thiswhen I go around touring foreign countries.
This is detrimental to our dignity and our honour. When we go abroad we facethis problem. Millions of Pakistanis live. They also face the problem. They arelooked down upon by others and dubbed as extremists. They are kept at a bay. Oureconomy suffers because of this image. We are trying to improve our image abroadand have achieved some success. We tell them that Pakistanis are moderatepeople, majority of them are moderate. Extremists are only a few. If the worldcomes to believe that our society is extremist, it would be tragic. What to talkof other religions, we are not showing tolerance among ourselves. If we killeach other, if we carry out blasts, what would be the world’s reaction?
How would we be counted among the developed countries? How would we ensure ourprogress? I earnestly appeal to you, my brother and sisters, give up extremismand adopt the path of moderation. Islam should be a unifying force, it shouldnot be a divisive force. We are scattering and are scattered. Our strength isturning into weakness. The real power of Islam is its unifying force. We believein moderation.
This is the way to progress. We have to take this path. In this regard I wouldstress on public reforms. I would urge Prime Minister and all Provincial ChiefMinisters to ensure implementation of these reforms. Police must improve theirattitude. Police have to take action against car snatchings, firings, theft anddecoities. These crimes are prevalent, and the police have to react, but theirmain focus should be on curbing extremism.
You can overcome this menace when you stop misuse of loudspeakers in themosques. They indulge in abusive language against their adversaries. They callnames. They incite people against others. Muslims are pitted against Muslims.They preach hate against the whole world. There is hate material in the shape ofbooks, magazines and other things. Such hate material must not be circulated. Idon’t think this is unachievable. What I want is that the prime minister, andchief minister should look at the problem and take it seriously. They shouldbring about changes in the attitude of police.
All intelligence agencies must play their role in curbing extremism. This is howwe can move forcefully against extremists. My brothers and sisters! With yourcooperation, we will be able to eliminate extremism from our society. Pakistanwould be known as a moderate country and this is the path to progress.
In conclusion, I pray to Almighty Allah that He may enable us to take the rightpath. May Allah protect Pakistan and guide us so that we take Pakistan towardsprogress and the people of Pakistan towards prosperity.
