Military courts acceptable only in national interest, says Fazl

PESHAWAR: Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said if the military courts are inevitable, his party would accept them in the larger national interest.

He said that his party had accepted an extension of military courts after the federal government agreed on removal of words ‘religion’ and ‘sect’ from the text of the National Action Plan (NAP).

Talking to media persons after a conference of the principals of seminaries at the JUI-F provincial secretariat on Wednesday, Maulana Fazlur Rehman said if all political parties agreed on extension of military courts for the sake of establishing peace, the JUI-F would have no objection.

“For the sake of peace and promoting law and order, we will swallow this bitter pill,” he said while referring to extension of military courts.He said the JUI-F had expressed its reservations over the military courts in the 21th Amendment in the Constitution and then opposed linking terrorism with religion and religious sects as prescribed in the National Action Plan.

About the tribal reforms and the future status of Fata, the JUI-F chief said the federal government had also agreed on bringing the tribal areas into the mainstream after five years and the party would withdraw the demand of referendum to decide the future status of Fata only in national interest.

“We believe that all decisions related to the tribal areas should be taken with the consensus of tribesmen and the tribal people are in a position to decide their own fate at the moment,” he said and added that the JUI-F would oppose any decision imposed on the tribal people.

The Maulana said the government should focus on rehabilitation and reconstruction process of the tribal belt to improve the health and education sectors in the tribal areas.