Pakistan: Islamic leaders detained to block protest

Pakistan police detained several senior hardline leaders in Lahore on Thursday in an attempt to stop them from leading a protest march against the recent amendments to the country's Islamic laws on rape and adultery.

The march by Mutahida Majlis-e-Amal, a six-party coalition of Islamic groups, was planned from Lahore to the nearby city of Gujrat, the hometown of the president of ruling Muslim League, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain.

Most of the arrests were confined to Jamat-I-Islami, whose leader Qazi Hussain Ahmed is also the president of the MMA, officials said.

Ahmad wanted MMA parliamentarians to resign on this issue. His views were opposed by his party general secretary and leader of Jamat Ulema Islami who wanted to seek a negotiated settlement with the government instead of resignations.

The detained leaders included Members of Parliament Hafiz Hussain Ahmed and Liaquat Baloch.

MMA says that the detained leaders were shifted to an unknown destination.

Several senior leaders, who were onboard a truck heading towards Gujrat, were also taken into custody by the police and the truck was driven to a nearby police station.

Earlier this month, the parliament approved amendments in Hudood laws on rape and adultery. Until now rape cases were dealt with in Sharia courts. Now civil courts will be able to try them.

Liaquat Baloch had said on Wednesday that the march is aimed at demanding resignation from the head of the ruling party, who had announced to quit his assembly seat if the amendment in the Hudood laws proved to be un-Islamic.

Earlier, a large number of policemen were deployed outside the headquarters of Jamaat-e-Islami in Lahore and erected barbed wires to stop a procession.

The MMA workers had gathered inside the headquarters and were planning to join the marchers but police foiled their attempt and pushed them back.

Police had blocked all routes to the Jamaat headquarters and were not allowing anyone to enter or come out of the building.

Qazi Hussain Ahmed broke police barricades at few places and was heading to Gujrat, with several vehicles in his motorcade.

Eyewitnesses in Gujrat say that police have taken control of the venue of the public meeting and it is not yet clear if the meeting would be allowed or not.

The provincial government in Punjab have banned gathering of more than five people, which is considered to be an attempt to thwart the public meeting.