General Chatter

Lustig: But do you see the release of this tape as evidence that Osama is indeed still alive and apparently well? Do you think he’s in Afghanistan or do you think he’s in Pakistan?

Musharraf: Well this is a question which has been asked umpteen number of times. I feel that he is alive, yes, because of the various information and intelligence that has come up now. But to guess whether he’s in Pakistan or in Afghanistan, the possibility exists that he is shifting bases on both sides.

Lustig: You can’t rule out the possibility that he is in fact, or has been in Pakistan?

Musharraf: One can’t rule it out because certainly I cannot claim that the forces dominate every inch of territory. This is an inhospitable part of our tribal area which has been accessed after a century.

Lustig: Here’s Richard Davis from Lincoln, England.

Musharraf: We have to tackle the problem in a democratic and constitutional manner and I don’t agree with this statement that extremist militant forces will keep gaining strength as long as the foreign forces are in Afghanistan because that alone is not the issue. The issue is Iraq also now and the Palestinian issue, where on the TV you see a tussle between David and Goliath where tanks and guns are being faced by stone-throwing individuals. I certainly believe that Pakistan is a moderate, progressive, enlightened Islamic state. So therefore what you see on the television in your country…are very small number.

Lustig: But do you say that there is no connection between Islamist extremism and the presence of foreign forces?

Musharraf: Well certainly there is a connection. When we’re talking of getting hold of 400-500 Al Qaeda members, this is a short term strategy but unless we implement or we put on the ground a long term strategy, we won’t be successful. Yes there is a linkage, certainly, of extremist elements around the world. This linkage will be reduced and finished when we have a short term strategy — that is what we are executing already. And secondly, also, putting in place the long term strategy consists settling political disputes, human resource development, emphasising on the social sector, not only in the Muslim world but also in other parts of the world.

Lustig: Our next caller is Syed Faisal Zyeem who is in Karachi, Pakistan.

Musharraf: Is Israel able to control the suicide bombers? If a person is prepared to take the risk of killing one individual on the street I mean there is no — no law enforcement agency in the world will be able to guarantee total safety of all its people.

Lustig: We’re going to take a call from India, Ashutosh Pandey is on the line from Delhi. Ashutosh hello.

Musharraf: Yes indeed I think this is an important question. Now but to equate what Kamal Ataturk did in Turkey, he did in Turkey, according to Turkey’s environment.

Now we can’t impose what he did into Pakistan. You spoke from India, what can be done in India is different, what can be done in Pakistan is very different and what can be done in Turkey is very different. So now let’s confine ourselves to what can be done in Pakistan.

Yes this issue of madrasas is a very important issue. I’ve been saying that we are addressing the issue of terrorism in three dimensions. We are operating against Al Qaeda; we are operating against the Taliban and we are also operating against sectarian and religious extremism in Pakistan. Sectarian and religious extremism comes or is born through the extremist elements in some of the madrasas — not all of them — where they teach extremist acts to them. And also in some of the mosques, which are misused by some extremist elements, to spread hatred against other sectarian — against other sects.

Now we are taking action against both these. As far as madrasas are concerned, we’ve evolved a strategy, wherein we are asking madrasas to get registered and we are telling them to teach four other subjects as required by the normal education boards in our country, other than religious education. And may I say that we are meeting a lot of success.

Out of about 7,000 madrasas that roughly exist in Pakistan, may I tell you that almost about 2,000 have registered and they are prepared to teach those subjects, but it is easier said than done. We need to develop their capacity, we need to educate their teachers to teach those subjects, we need to put in a lot of financial inputs so that they can afford the teachers that are required to teach those subjects. So we are addressing this issue of madrasas — moderation in the madrasas — taking them away from extremism, sectarian extremism, right at the foundation. And I think we are meeting success. That is the strategy, there’s no short cut.

We cannot close down everything and this is certainly — when you attach this action with what Kamal Ataturk did in Turkey.

He did not act against madrasas — the environment was not at all th same as what is in Pakistan — so this is what we are doing. And we are also using the government machinery down to the local government level to ensure that the mosques and the madrasas are not misused by anyone to spread sectarian hatred. And this is what we are doing and I’m sure we’ll meet success.

Lustig: Majid Hussain is here from London.

Musharraf: When people talk of going back to Khilafat, I say that there’s no chance of going back to it. Khilafat demands a lot from the government. It is totally a Utopian idea. And now in this 21st Century through a democratic dispensation you can achieve the same goals what the caliphs did in the earlier part of the Muslim era. The crackdown in the army — there are just about three people who were arrested and interrogated because their affiliation to Al Qaeda.

Lustig: I want to read you this e-mail from Ghazanfar Iqbal in London, who says: Recent comments by the Israeli PM Ariel Sharon, and his Indian counterpart Mr Vajpayee confirm they are pressing for an anti-Muslim alliance with the USA. What do you plan to do in response? Is it time to build a Muslim military/political alliance to counter this?

Musharraf: No, no not at all. I don’t think they are meaning to create an anti-Muslim alliance. And if they are in Israel and US are doing that it’s extremely sad I would say. But if they are trying to unite to create an anti-Muslim military alliance it’s the saddest day in the history of the world. I think this ought not to be done and I don’t think Israel and the US is doing that at all. Now whether you are saying whether we would like to counter it with a Muslim military alliance — not at all.

Lustig: Do you believe though Mr President that the visit to India by the Israeli prime minister is potentially threatening to Pakistan’s interests?

Musharraf: The people here are taking it very seriously. We are watching whatever is happening and whatever statements are coming from across the border. I think it’s a very sensitive issue. I only hope that the leadership in Israel, PM Sharon, understands the sensitivity of Pakistan to whatever happens between Israel and India.