Pakistan’s religious schools in spotlight again

‘Respect’ for bin Laden
Little of the activities of the three July 7 British-born bombers of Pakistani descent —Tanweer, Mohammed Sidique Khan and Hasib Hussain — is known during their visits to Pakistan. Immigration records of Tanweer and Khan’s trips were released by the Pakistani government, and intelligence services are attempting to trace their travels inside the country.

Members of Tanweer’s extended family, contacted by NBC News, say that he stayed with them for a month in a small village in western Pakistan. A cousin, Ashfaq Ahmad, said Tanweer was “very religious” and had “great respect for Osama bin Laden.”

Though Ahmad said he couldn’t understand how his “quiet” cousin could have taken part in a bomb plot in London, he said Tanweer was deeply affected by what he saw as injustices toward Muslims.

“Whenever he would see news of Muslims being killed, he would tell us this was wrong,” Ahmad said.

An immigration record showing entry into Pakistan by Hasib Hussain has since been discredited and attributed to another man of the same name with no connection to the bombings. However, Hussain is believed to have relatives in the Kashmir region and, like many Britons of Pakistani descent, visited family over the years.

‘Bad name’ for Islam
Whether the influence of a madrassa on one of the bombers was religious or radical, the link between the attacks and Pakistan has put the country’s leadership on the defensive.

In a TV address to the nation, Musharraf announced a new initiative targeting madrassas with suspected links to militant groups.

“Those who are involved in extremism and terrorism won’t achieve anything except giving Islam a bad name,” Musharraf said.

Mian Khursheed / Reuters Pakistani activists throw stones to destroy a police post during a protest against the government's crackdown on madrasas in the capital, Islamabad, on Friday.

But the president refused to let Pakistan take the blame for being a root cause of the hatred of second-generation Britons with Pakistani ancestry.

“We certainly have a problem here, which we are trying to address very strongly. But may I say that England also has a problem, which needs to be addressed," he said.

Religious leaders say the same, although they see the crackdown on Islamic groups — which have resulted in hundreds of arrests in the last week — as orchestrated by the West.

Wary of its image abroad, the Pakistani government has ordered madrassas to turn away foreign reporters. The views of Abdul Rasheed Ghazi, the head of one of the country’s largest madrassas, could be one reason why.

“Pervez Musharraf is a dictator, and we think he is an agent of the United States of America,” Ghazi said in an interview, when asked for his reaction to the government crackdown. “The reaction will be hatred — hatred for Tony Blair. Hatred for Bush.”

Targeting madrassas
Ghazi, who believes he might be detained by the police, defended the madrassa system as overwhelmingly legitimate. He said madrassas and the government had a common goal of closing down militant schools.

“The madrassa system is doing a better job (of educating) than the government.”

Musharraf appeared to agree in his televised address. Closing down schools will leave thousands with nowhere to go, he said.

Musharraf has reiterated an order for madrassas to register with the government by the end of the year, or face closure. Ghazi said registering was a reasonable request, but it will be followed by regulation by government officials.

“They are not sincere to help us. They just want to come in to interfere. That is not acceptable,” he said.

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