February 20, 2006	Monday	Muharram 21, 1427

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QUETTA, Feb 19: The Jamait Ulema-i-Islam (Fazl) and Jamaat-i-Islami have condemned the use of tear gas for stopping the Tehrik Tahaffuz Namoos-i-Risalat rally in Islamabad and placing JI chief Qazi Hussain Ahmed under house arrest.

Speaking at separate press conferences at the press club on Sunday, the leaders of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal warned that the government would have to pay a big price if restrictions on protests against the sacrilegious cartoons were not lifted.

JUI-F secretary-general MNA Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haidari said that President Gen Pervez Musharraf was under pressure from some western powers to stop demonstrations in Pakistan.

“The rulers must differentiate between Tehrik Tahaffuz Namoos-i-Risalat rally and political demonstrations as Muslims will not forgive anyone who show disrespect to Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him),” he said.

The JUI leader claimed that rallies in Karachi and Quetta, led by MMA leadership, remained peaceful whereas demonstrators organized by lower cadre became violent and said that government should allow the religious alliance to lead the rallies to stop destruction of property and vehicles.

He rejected the assertion of questioner that the Namoos-i-Risalat rally had been turned into anti-Musharraf movement and said that protestors raised slogans against President Musharraf when police used tear gas and arrested peaceful agitators.

Maulana Haidari said that not only Muslims on Saturday organized a big rally in London but Christian and Jew religious figures had also signed joint memorandum with Ulema condemning the sacrilegious cartoons published in newspapers but the Pakistan government was reluctant to allow rallies.

Jamaat-i-Islami leader Abdul Matin Akundzada at a separate conference said that Muslims would not give up the protest until Norway, Denmark and France publicly apologized over the publications of blasphemous cartoons.

He said that the JI would organize a series of rallies in the province and the first demonstration would be held on Feb 24 in Zhob. He said that Seerat and Women conferences would be arranged in Quetta and Hub.

Mr Akundzada said that the international community should take notice of the violation of the United Nations charter and Geneva Convention for publishing sacrilegious cartoons that hurt the sentiments of Muslims.

He said that the Nationalist political parties should also join the MMA to condemn or make separately protest to express solidarity with their Muslim brethren as the issue was not politically motivated.