Dr Qadri urges Musharraf to launch peace initiative

LAHORE, Sept 23: Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri, a leading Islamic scholar and Chairman of Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), a leading political party in Pakistan, has advised President Pervez Musharraf to launch a peace initiative to avert US military strikes on Afghanistan.

At a news conference here on Sunday, the PAT chief said the president should send delegations, comprising important political figures and ministers, to various Islamic countries to prepare them to play their due role in resolving the crisis.

He said to be able to effectively deal with the question of terrorism, the US should also address the 'state terrorism' going on in occupied Kashmir and Palestine. He said if the US did so, the Islamic countries would play their role in dealing with the menace of terrorism and the gulf between the West and Islam would also get narrowed.

The PAT chief called upon the Taliban to be flexible in their attitude and hand over Osama bin Laden to some impartial state for a fair trial. Such a step alone, he emphasized, was in the interest of the war-ravaged country.

On the other hand, he said, the US should also give the Taliban government a reasonable time to reach some solution. He said vengeance should be avoided.

Answering a question, the PAT leader said according to his information there was no plan to deploy US troops in Pakistan. He made it clear that his party would not support any such move.

The Revival 2001