Qaiser Felix

Karachi police detains three Muslim fundamentalists who are members of the ‘Tehreek-e-Islami Lashkar-e-Mohammadi.’ At the time of the murders in 2002 the local press and some police officials had said that they were the result of in-fighting among Christians.

President of the Bishop’s Conference, msgr. Lawrence John Saldanha, underlines that the election results have clearly shown the will of people for a civilian and constitutional management of power. A deal is reached between the Popels Party and Muslim League.

In spite of the violence, discrimination at the polls, and the low voter turnout, the victory seems to have gone to the People's Party and the Muslim League of Sharif, Musharraf's opponent. Christians win in the "Islamic" seats of Punjab and the North West Frontier Province.

At midnight tonight, the campaigns for the February 18 elections come to an end. The Christian community is called not to boycott the balloting. Extremely tense voting conditions are expected in some areas declared "highly sensitive".

The archbishop of Lahore and the president of the Pakistan bishops' conference, Lawrence Saldanha, explains to AsiaNews that the decision of the Danish newspapers cannot be justified through freedom of expression. Justice and Peace: the last time we all suffered, and the West must understand this.

Human rights minister ends a tour of the country’s prisons. He plans to reform the correctional service and include places of worship for non-Muslims. Human rights activists praise the initiative but want a judicial review of all cases involving people detained on the basis of discriminatory laws.

NWFP’s caretaker government wants to change the local justice system by replacing the Supreme Court with new Qazi Courts staffed with judges trained in Islamic law and assisted by ‘helpers’ selected from local clergymen.

A month from the elections Pakistan’s caretaker government issues an ordinance that imposes the death penalty or life in prison for cyber crimes. But the text of the law is so vague that sending a simple e-mail might be construed as a crime.

The boy struck the grand Shiite mosque of Mirza Qasim Ali Imambargah: 10 are dead, and 24 wounded. One year ago, an identical attack killed the head of the city's police. Pakistan risks falling into an intra-Muslim feud.

Yesterday's explosion in the capital of the province of Sindh killed at least 10 persons; both Pervez Musharraf and Benazir Bhutto's husband were in the city. The Daily Times speaks of a vast terrorist plan against religious targets during the current month of Muharram. A report from the think tank Pak Institute for Peace Studies warns of a strong presence of al-Qaeda and the Taliban in the tribal areas, and records 1,442 attacks and acts of political violence in 2007 alone.

After the murder of the popular leader, the political and religious leaders of the Christian community express their sadness and concern "for the death of a symbol of democracy". The Justice and Peace commission invites Christian parliamentarians to take their future in hand, and to become an integral part of national politics.

The kidnappers are from militias linked to Taleban commander Baitullah Mehsud, accused by Islamabad of being behind Bhutto’s assassination. Conditions of release a prisoner Exchange with key militants. But the Justice and Peace commission warns: it is premature to speak of a reason for the kidnap; it could just be a way to divert people’s attention.