INSIGHT INTO MADRASSAS:Where education meant Jihad

On Special Arrangement by hPK... an INSIGHT into what goes on inside the notorious religious schools of Inner Punjab.

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Muridke, December 22

Outside a small patchy, dusty road twisted and turned through green rice fields, curved through a cluster of brown bricked small houses and cattle, crossed a railway line and many people on bicycles and on foot under a dim blue December sky towards Markaz-e-Dawat-ul-Irshad, an educational complex of Lashkar-e-Taiba in the outskirts of Muridke, a small town 32 miles south of Lahore.

Inside, Rashid Minhas, the principal of the college, sat cross-legged on foam cushions in a room with no furniture and one light bulb as he tried to explain the philosophy behind the foundation of the educational centers of Lashkar-e-Taiba. "We are Muslims and we have to follow the tenets of Islam", he said emphatically in an accent which had Arabic undertones as he moved his hands in the air trying to explain and expound his beliefs. He touched his beard and said, "The Holy Prophet had a beard and he told the followers to keep a beard, so we have a beard. It is one of the tenets of Islam".

But to the outside world, Lashkar-e-Taiba wasn't an educational or social organization as Mr. Minhas was trying to explain. It was one of the main militant groups that had been involved in a militant struggle against the Indian army in the Indian held Kashmir. With its string of suicide attacks, the latest, as alleged by the Indian government, on the Indian parliament, it had come to the forefront of world's attention and alarm once again. President Bush banned it, along with another organization UTN, on Thursday saying that it was a terrorist organization, which had tried to destabilize the relations between India and Pakistan. 'It is their (Bush's) headache. We are only involved in education and run the college and university', Mr.Minhas said pointing towards the two blocks outside.

What he didn't tell was that the building was funded mainly with Arab money. Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the leader of the Lashkar-e-Taiba, a former teacher of Islamiat at the University of Engineering and technology in Lahore, is said to have had close connections with ISI and because of the "Salafi" origins, had close links with the 'Wahabis" of Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan as well. He was well connected with the ISI and had been defiant of the civil administration many a times, openly criticizing the policies and advocated the "Jihad" in Kashmir vociferously over the years. Having a tacit backing of ISI, it was the main fuel for ISI's proxy war in India. It is said that the main headquarters in Muridke was used as a transit camp for Arabs leaving for Afghanistan and Central Asia and Arabs used to come to the Muridkay on a daily basis in the months before 9/11. Benazir Bhutto, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan had alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba being associated with the Al-Qaeda.

The campus of the educational center was relatively newly built with works still in progress. The blocks of dull pink bricks, with masons and carpenters still working on the structure, stood in a quaint manner, a stark difference to the poor dwellings outside the campus. The air was fresh and crisp. Many students with their beards and baggy trousers set high up their ankles, in accordance with the Islamic way, strolled and walked around the main road that linked all the blocks. Some were dosing off, lying on the grass of the football ground under the sun. Many wore camouflage colored jackets and had long, curly hair. Even the security guard outside was wearing a camouflage colored uniform.

Mr. Minhas seemed quite proud of the buildings as he showed around, pointing at every building with a certain pride in his eyes and touching the arm of the person standing in front with his hands habitually. However, an academic environment seemed to be missing. The boarding blocks and living lodges were much more than apparently needed. Some people were even sleeping in the corridors and some were appearing and disappearing from the stairs and doors. Many people didn't seem students. There was plenty of activity. All the students hailed from poor backgrounds that couldn't afford the education at government or public schools. Educational centers like this one offered almost free education main with emphasis on religious teachings. Poverty and illiteracy rages in Pakistan. More than half the population lives below the poverty line and is illiterate. The living conditions are aggravating every passing day. Clean water, better hygiene and education are all missing. Most of the people are deeply religious and fatalistic. To them sending their children to such educational institutions is a better option. Here, they would get education (though nominal), food, and if they opt for jihad, and most would, a glorified and respectful death. It's a just and noble cause for them.

A thin, frail boy stood by the pillars. He was eleven years old. Umar, as he told his name, said that he had come from a distant town and his father was an electrician. He had been here for two months only. When asked that what would he like to become in the future, he said that he didn't know. "Life-who knows how long it is?" he said in a faint voice.

To the students in these schools, the first and foremost thing taught is the ephemeral nature of worldly existence, and the importance of an Islamic identity. It was obvious that the identity of being Muslims was deeply embedded in their psyche right from the start. One could see that from words of Mr. Minhas. Almost all of his sentences started with " We are Muslims". And a Muslim had to work and strive for the glory of his religion-wage jihad- a holy war against any one whom tried to oppress Muslims. To the students of Lashkar-e-Taiba, India had denied the Kashmiri people their right of freedom. To them fighting against India was a holy war-a jihad. They were not afraid to die. They were not afraid to attach bombs to their bodies and walk inside an Indian military installation and blow themselves off. It was martyrdom. It was a way to paradise.

Nasir Rehman, the administrator of the whole compound, 27 years old and half of the time fiddling with his cellular phone, was unperturbed by the fact that Lashkar-e-Taiba was banned by the government. He said that if United States or Pakistani government banned the freedom fighters, it was banning the right of freedom of people of Kashmir. He said that he had gotten his Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore. It struck as a strange thing. The education offered in that university was in English. He couldn't speak it. But Mr. Minhas didn't let him speak much either.

While standing, Rashid Minhas seemed heavier with strong shoulders and was of a medium height. He liked to talk and didn't like to listen. His interpretation of religion seemed dogmatic and ritualistic. His vision seemed to be impaired with these traits. He liked the structure. He liked the building of the educational compound and was indifferent to the lack of educational environment. He liked his beard. His view of the world was simple and regressive. Any thing from outside was intimidating and threatening. It had to be rebuked and rebuffed-with force. But he was obviously not a simple man. He was evasive to the questions about Lashkar-e-Taiba's link with Al-Qaida or Lashkar's activities inside Kashmir and Pakistan. To a question over whether the attacks on the WTC were a good thing, he smiled and said, "you know better".

by Salman Masood