Hasba bill tabled amid uproar in assembly(Talibanization)

Hasba bill tabled amid uproar in assembly

By Mohammed Riaz

PESHAWAR, July 11: The Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government tabled the controversial Hasba bill 2005, in the provincial assembly on Monday amid shouts of disapproval by opposition lawmakers, who tore up copies of the document. MMA secretary-general Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who was sitting in the visitors’ gallery, witnessed the protest by opposition lawmakers who described the Hasba law as a move towards enforcement of clerics’ dictatorship in the NWFP.

Pakistan 'moral laws' spark row

A controversial new law critics say will seek Taleban-style moral policing has been presented in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province.

The bill would see the introduction of a moral police force to ensure strict adherence to Islamic injunctions.

It was tabled amid deafening shouts of disapproval from opposition parties who have vowed to resist it.

However, hardline religious parties have enough seats in the provincial house to pass the bill.

Calling the proposed law "Taleban-style extremism", angry opposition politicians threw copies of the proposed legislation in the air to register their protest.

The proposed law calls for the establishment of a new department to "discourage vice and encourage virtue."