Islamabad braces for cleric’s march
Qadri from Canada leads thousands for political change
ISLAMABAD: Thousands of supporters of a fiery cleric who has been calling for election reforms were descending on the Pakistani capital, where authorities have put up barricades and sent riot police into the streets in preparation.
The entry of Tahir-ul-Qadri, a mysterious cleric who just recently returned from Canada, into the Pakistani political scene has galvanised supporters looking for political reforms but worried detractors who fear he will derail the upcoming elections.
Qadri is leading a march of thousands of supporters to Islamabad to pressure the government to accede to his demands.
About 15,000 of his supporters left the eastern city of Lahore, where the headquarters of Qadri’s Minhaj-ulQuran organisation is located.
They were expected in Islamabad, as more supporters join the rally along the way.
Thousands of police have been deployed in the Pakistani capital and officers in riot gear are manning the city’s main roads and streets.
Authorities have used shipping containers to block off the part of the city where most government offices and embassies are located.
Qadri returned to Pakistan in December after living for years in Canada, where he’s also a citizen.
His calls for reforms ahead of elections this spring have galvanised many Pakistanis disenchanted after five years of a political system they say is deeply corrupt.
The cleric’s vaguely-worded demands include vetting of political candidates to make sure they’re honest and taking steps to even out the political playing field so more people can participate in the political process.