Lahore’s Growing Talibanisation, Radical Islamism & Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Radical Islamism & Jihad

12 Aug 2011, NewAgeIslam.Com

Lahore’s Growing Talibanisation

By Raza Rumi August 8, 2011 The recent abuse of police power at Lahore’s premier hub of arts is a sad reminder of how ‘culture’ is under attack from the state and vigilantes alike. The rough handling of a woman curator at the Nairang Gallery is not an isolated incident. There is an unfortunate history of attacks on artists and cultural spaces in Pakistan. According to reports, last week a senior police official barged into the gallery and harassed and assaulted a woman, later accusing her of wearing improper clothes and labelled the gallery’s work as ‘fahashi’ (vulgarity). Eyewitness accounts suggest that the official, a local SHO, at first picked on a couple and questioned why they were sitting together! Later, he barged into a rehearsal of a Bharatanatyam dance performance; and assaulted the female curator of the gallery who asked why the SHO was intruding in the activities of the gallery. Even the staff members who intervened to rescue the young woman were reportedly thrashed. http://www.newageislam.com/radical-islamism-and-jihad/lahore’s-growing-talibanisation/d/5235