MULTAN, 5 April 2003 — Tens of thousands of Pakistanis, most of them supporters of religious parties, rallied in the central city of Multan yesterday to protest the US-led war on Iraq.
The crowd, responding to the call of the six-party Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal opposition religious alliance, chanted “Allah-o-Akbar!” (God is Greatest) as they marched through the streets of the city, 440 km south of Islamabad. “We are all Al-Qaeda!” a group of bearded young men shouted, referring to Osama Bin Laden’s network blamed for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. “Down with Bush!”
The protest was the latest in a series around the country organized by the MMA, which did unexpectedly well in October elections on the back of growing anti-US sentiment. Police said over 50,000 protesters had joined the march.
Last Sunday a march in the northwestern city of Peshawar drew up to 100,000 people, the biggest protest so far in Pakistan since the war in Iraq started two weeks ago.
Most Pakistanis oppose the invasion of Iraq but religious parties have been calling for a jihad, or holy war, against the United States and its allies. These parties have been angered by President Pervez Musharraf’s decision to back the US-led war on terror after the Sept. 11 attacks.
Many participants in the Multan rally carried posters of Bin Laden and Iraqi President Saddam Hussain.
While the government has been a strong ally in the anti-terror war, arresting hundreds of militant suspects, it has opposed the war on Iraq, not least because of fears of a domestic backlash. The MMA, which is leading the denunciation against the war has drawn massive crowds in the previous five protest rallies staged in Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Peshawar and Quetta.
Except for Quetta, where some 40,000 protesters turned up last week, attendances at other demonstrations were over 100,000.
However, the protests they have remained peaceful. In Islamabad, a few dozen members of Shiite minority gathered in front of the United Nations building and burned a US flag.
“Iraq is the land of prophets, the land which houses the most revered sites belonging not only to Muslims but to the worldwide human beings and religions,” said a memorandum submitted by the group to a UN official. “Its protection is a responsibility of the entire world.”
Liaqut Baloch, a MMA parliamentarian, criticized the government for not taking a tough stand against the US, saying mere “deploring” the attack was not acceptable.
Samiul Haq, a top MMA leader claimed he has reports of the government considering expulsion of Iraqi diplomats and warned against any such move that would degrade their “Islamic brethren.”
Another main leader, Qazi Hussain Ahmed lashed out at the state-owned Pakistan Television for airing what he called vulgar programs at a time when the innocent Iraqi people were being killed.
