Police and TLP protesters come face to face near the Yateem Khana Chowk in Lahore | Arif Ali/White Star
Violent protests by the now-banned Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan once again put the police in the direct line of attack, resulting in hundreds of casualties in the service. Police complain that their concerns fall on deaf ears, while they are often castigated for their brutality. Is the issue simply one of reforming the police?
The protests began on Sunday, April 11, intensifying the following day when the police were ordered to arrest Saad Rizvi, leader of the far-right religio-political group Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan [TLP].
Major roads and highways across the country were blocked, forcing people to observe a lockdown far more stringent than any recent government-imposed Covid-19 lockdown. As markets remained shuttered and people stayed at home, clashes between the police and protesters intensified outside.
In early May, Pakistani ambassador to the
Philippines Imtiaz Kazi said his government is ready to share its “vast
and valuable” counterterrorism experience with the
Philippines in its war against terror.
“Pakistan
can rightly claim it has won the war on terror, albeit at a costly price,” Kazi
said in an interview with
Arab News.
Pakistan’s counterterrorism successes against Islamist militant groups have been recognized widely and the Philippines can benefit greatly from Pakistan’s experience. It now appears that the two countries are working on plans to expand their defense partnership, with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and the Philippine defense ministry expressing interest in cooperation with Islamabad.
ISLAMABAD: The Quaid-i-Azam University , Shaoor Foundation, National Counter Terrorism Authority , Paigham-e-Pakistan, and Iqra University jointly hosted an online conference of the vice-chancellors.
Promotion of peace, tolerance in universities underscored
Islamabad
May 1, 2021
Islamabad : The Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), Shaoor Foundation, National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA), Paigham-e-Pakistan, and Iqra University jointly hosted an online conference of the vice-chancellors on academia’s response to the challenge of religious extremism.
A total of 40 VCs from Islamabad and across Sindh attended the conference and discussed the issue of extremism in the country.
They approved a set of recommendations for the promotion of peace and tolerance at universities.
According to them, there is a need for the promotion of peace and civic education of students through co-curricular activities, faculty training on conflict resolution, the establishment of peace platforms, student societies, and elected bodies for peace and improvement in curriculum and pedagogy.
Punjab not taken on board to discuss TLP ban removal
Workers have challenged the ban SAMAA | Naeem Ashraf Butt - Posted: Apr 30, 2021 | Last Updated: 9 hours ago SAMAA | Naeem Ashraf Butt Posted: Apr 30, 2021 | Last Updated: 9 hours ago
The Punjab government has reportedly been not taken on board to discuss the removal of the ban from Tehreek-e-Labbaik.
This comes as a
shock because the party was banned on the recommendations of the Punjab home
ministry and National Counter Terrorism Authority.
Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed has called a meeting on May 1 to discuss the appeal filed by the workers of the banned party. It was banned for holding violent protests, injuring policemen, and vandalising public property while staging a demonstration against the arrest of its chief Saad Rizvi.