Islamists say Pakistan agrees to French boycott, end protest
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[November 17, 2020]
By Asif Shahzad
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani Islamist
group called off protests over cartoons of Prophet Mohammad on Tuesday
saying the government had agreed to their demand for a boycott of French
products, the group's spokesman said.
Thousands of Islamists had clashed with police on the edge of the
capital, Islamabad, on Monday in protests over the recent display of
cartoons of the Prophet in France.
"We are calling off our protests after the government signed an
agreement that it will officially endorse boycotting French products,"
Ejaz Ashrafi, a spokesman for the Tehrik-i-Labaik group, told Reuters by
telephone.
The government spokesman was not immediately available for comment on
the agreement, which, according to a copy provided by the group and seen
by Reuters, was signed by two ministers, a top official and the group's
leaders.
The French embassy in Islamabad declined to comment and Pakistan's
foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Protests broke out in several Muslim countries over France's response to
a deadly attack last month on a teacher who showed cartoons mocking the
Prophet Mohammad to pupils during a civics lesson.
For Muslims, depictions of the Prophet are blasphemous.
Pakistan condemned the re-printing of the cartoons.
The agreement between the group and the government also stipulated that
the Pakistani parliament would decide within three months on whether to
expel the French ambassador.
Also, all detained protesters and their leaders would be set free
immediately, the spokesman said, shortly after he was released.
The Islamist group that has made blasphemy its rallying cry had
blocked one of the main roads into the capital, demanding the
government sever diplomatic ties with France and expel its
ambassador.
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People chant slogans as they set fire to France's flag during a
protest against the cartoon publications of Prophet Mohammad in
France and comments by the French President Emmanuel Macron, in
Karachi, Pakistan October 31, 2020. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro/File Photo
Pakistani trade with France was valued at neAlso, all detained
protesters and their leaders would be set free immediately, the
spokesman said, shortly after he was released.
The Islamist group that has made blasphemy its rallying cry had
blocked one of the main roads into the capital, demanding the
government sever diplomatic ties with France and expel its
ambassador.
Pakistani trade with France was valued at nearly $800 million in the
last financial year, according to central bank data, with $422
million worth of exports and imports valued at $356 million.
There is a history of violent reactions to perceived incidents of
blasphemy in Pakistan, where insulting the Prophet Mohammad carries
the death penalty. A mere accusation of blasphemy can provoke a
lynching.
The Islamist group called off a similar protest in 2017, in which
one police and six protesters were killed, after the government
agreed to its demands, which included the resignation of the then
law minister.
(Reporting and writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Michael Perry,
Robert Birsel)arly $800 million in the last financial year,
according to central bank data, with $422 million worth of exports
and imports valued at $356 million.
There is a history of violent reactions to perceived incidents of
blasphemy in Pakistan, where insulting the Prophet Mohammad carries
the death penalty. A mere accusation of blasphemy can provoke a
lynching.
The Islamist group called off a similar protest in 2017, in which
one police and six protesters were killed, after the government
agreed to its demands, which included the resignation of the then
law minister.
(Reporting and writing by Asif Shahzad; Editing by Michael Perry,
Robert Birsel)
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