Is this Islam or fascism? How can you force people to do things in any religion? Isn’t religion suppose to be personal choice? And importantly where is government and the army & why haven’t they sent these fascist terrorist to hell yet?
Swat TTP makes beards, caps binding on residents
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
By Musa Khankhel
MINGORA: After proscribing female education in the troubled Swat valley, the militants issued another decree on Tuesday, asking the local people to wear caps and stop shaving beards after January 25. As the militants blew up the house of an Awami National Party (ANP) worker in Kabal, the cabinet of the Mingora city of ANP tendered en-bloc resignations over its party-led provincial government’s “anti-people policies and the Swat operation”.
The militants set January 25 as deadline for keeping beards in the Matta Tehsil of the valley and also asked people to wear caps in order to implement their self-styled Shariah in the area. They had already stopped barbers from shaving and trimming beards in the valley while following their fresh decree all barbers displayed “shave is banned” posters at their shops.
Militants sources said after the expiry of the deadline, no one in Matta Tehsil would be allowed to trim beard as they were trying for the establishment of a complete Islamic society. “It is in the best interest of the people,” they added.
The militants have already set up so-called “Shariah courts” across the valley. The people accept the decisions of these courts under compulsion. In a fresh incident, the militants blew up the house of an ANP worker, Muhammad Ilyas, in Manja area of Kabal. Local sources said Ilyas was brought outside and his house was blown up in front of him. They said the militants did not take away the ANP worker.
In a major development, the cabinet of ANP Mingora city tendered en-bloc resignation over what they called flawed and anti-people policies and the ongoing military operation in the valley. They also left the party for good.
Interestingly, they said they condemned the “un-Islamic activities” of the provincial government. Those who quit the party included president Malik Murad Ali Khan, Senior Vice President Humayun Khan, Vice President Anwar Iqbal, Fazl Rahim Khan, Khurshed Ali Khan, Bakthpur Bacha, General Secretary Haji Rafiq Ahmad, Rashid Ali, Mahboobur Rahman, Nasir Ali, Barkat Ali and Omar Wahid. Workers of the under attack parties, police officials and other government employees have been announcing their resignations from their posts to avoid the wrath of the militants, who have been recklessly killing their opponents. Meanwhile, four persons sustained injuries in separate incidents.