IF KARO-KARI AND HONOUR KILLINGS ARE NOT ABOLISHED, MQM WILL WAGE MOVEMENT AGAINST THIS CURSE- ALTAF HUSSAIN

Karachi- 15 January 2004
Mr Altaf Hussain, founder and leader of Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) demanded of the President and the Prime Minister to banish the archaic system of Karo-Kari and Honour Killings under which feudal and tribal lords play havoc with the lives and property of the Middle Class and downtrodden people, and take pride in pronouncing death sentences under the rubrics of Karo-Kari and honour killings.

Mr Altaf Hussain described such inhuman practices a blot and a slur on the face of the society which can not be tolerated, he told this to his general workers in a meeting that held at the party's Head Office commonly known as "90" tonight, making it clear that if the warning went unheeded, he will be forced to launch a movement to protect those fearing insecure and at the mercy of the feudal and tribal lords at a time when the 21st century has given a new message of hope and security to the people. Pakistan was still groaning under the shadow of dark ages, a glaring example of which was the life sentence announced by a Jirga of feudal and tribal leaders against Shaista Almani for marrying a person of her choice. Describing the young girl as "an oppressed daughter of Sindh", he paid tributes to Governor Ishrat ul Ebad for bringing Shaista to Karachi and giving her state protection. Unfortunately however, he said, he had been informed that her uncle Khuda Bux Almani had taken Shaista's mother and two sisters to an unknown place.

Mr Altaf Hussain stressed that their lives were in danger. He demanded that they be brought back to Karachi and placed under safe custody. He confirmed that he had served a 48-hour ultimatum on the government to arrest the jirga members for awarding death sentence to a girl who had solemnised her nikha under the sharia, but who feared for her life because of the tyrannical system still in vogue in this age of modernism. He said that the party’s coordination committee, which had been vested with complete authority to deal with crucial issues, would take a decision about the future line of action.

He praised President of Pakistan for his directive to the Sindh administration to give protection to the girl, but this was not enough. He wanted all those involved in sentencing her in the name of honour killing, to be arrested, irrespective of their status and influence in the society. He started his speech by asking the people whether they would be ready for long marches from Hyderabad to areas where this evil system is practised. The crowd chanted in affirmative, giving a carte blanche to their leader. He thanked the people for their support, but made it clear that he himself would not rest till Karo-Kari and Honour Killings are completely eliminated from Pakistan, and " If I start a movement against it, no one should object to that".

Mr Altaf Hussain regretted that instead of clarity in laws, a conglomeration of Anglo-Saxon, sharia, and the Jirga laws, had complicated the country's legal system, under which duplicity had become an over-riding factor. The Jirga system was in direct attack on civilised norms, which an overwhelming majority of the society wished to practice. The system must now end or else the Muttahida Quami Movement will be constrained to set up its own "jirga system". He wondered as to why the army, the police, the sharia court, were reluctant to abolish the contemptible system. At the same time he criticised the PPP, the PML (N), and the MMA, which he called as "Mysterious Mullah Alliance". These so called champions of democracy, and human rights, had exposed themselves before the masses by remaining a passive spectator to an issue, which is nothing short of a tragedy. Why haven’t these parties who spent a year thumping desks in the Assemblies at the behest of their unseen masters, and stopping only when given a " halt" order, had not bothered to launch protest or long marches on a subject which was of paramount importance to the people of Pakistan? He asked.