Weapons of mass instruction? - a preliminary exploration of the link between madrassas in Pakistan and militancy

This study conducts a preliminary investigation into the link between madrassas in Pakistan and Islamic militancy. Available literature is reviewed and pitted against findings from primary sources – such as interviews, news articles and information extracted from jihadi websites. For the purposes of this report, Islamic militancy in Pakistan has been divided into four main categories, based on a group’s perception of its key enemy: • global violent struggle (against Westerns targets) • cross-border jihad into Afghanistan/Kashmir/India • violent campaign against the Pakistani government and security forces • sectarianism An attempt is then made to understand how madrassas are involved in one or several of these violent expressions – that is, the role played by madrassas in promulgating militancy. Examples of madrassas, and evidence of their links to certain extremist organization(s), are given to illuminate this role. From promoting a jihadist ideology to kidnapping young boys, and from sheltering militants to acting as sites for jihadi gatherings, the roles played by Pakistani madrassas in expanding extremism are variegated. One should bear in mind that, insofar as inciting Islamic militancy is concerned, some functions of madrassas are easier to judge than others. It is difficult, for instance, to determine the exact ideology imparted in a given religious seminary and understand how it encourages madrassa students to partake in violent jihad; most of the textbooks in madrassas are in Arabic (a language not understood by the majority of Pakistanis). Hence, it is oral lectures (conducted in Urdu or Pashto) transmitted by the seminary teachers that are bound to have the greatest impact in moulding the students’ psyche. Although valuable, it is practically infeasible to visit and study each individual madrassa in Pakistan. Evidence (in the form news articles, or visual or audio tapes found online) of a madrassa’s participation in rallies or gatherings held by extremist organizations, or incriminating speeches given by a madrassa’s leading figures, can, however, help evaluate the madrassas-militancy connection. The present study finds a tentative link between Pakistani madrassas and Islamic militancy. While there is little evidence supporting a connection madrassa involvement in “global jihad”, weak to strong bonds are discernible for all other types of violent jihads in Pakistan’s context. An additional discovery of the present research is that jihadi teachings may not be the exclusive purview of madrassas, and an overemphasis on madrassas can be misguided and misguiding since the curricula used in Pakistani public schools (70% of all enrolled students) also contain inflammatory literature that might create a narrow worldview which is susceptible to extremist ideology. This segment of the education system therefore deserves greater attention.