Pakistan: Charity Terrorism

It is no secret that many militant Islamic parties like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, use charity fronts to fund terrorist activities. As soon as one organization is banned, it changes its name and re-registers itself as a charity. The Let has many such names, the most heard of which is Jamat-ud-Dawa (JuD). JuD denies it is a part of LeT and is just a charity organization, and is run by the same Hafiz Saeed who founded and led the LeT before it was banned. Even back in 2008, the UN declared the JuD a front for LeT and Pakistani authorities vowed to crack down. But Pakistan, it would seem, is a very tolerant country.

Jamaat-ud-Dawa's listing will prohibit US entities or citizens from dealing with the organisation, but will probably have little effect on its operations or fund raising. The US’s annoyance over such charities is not new and US memos from 2009 state that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wanted Saudi Arabia to stop funding groups like the LeT. At the time, three other countries were also names: Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE. JuD has had people travelling to Saudi Arabia to gather funds for new schools which were never built. The Haqqani Network in the past has been earning significant funds though UAE based businesses, and the Taliban extort money from the large Pashtun community settled in the UAE to the extent of kidnapping businessmen based in Dubai.

The whole thing is an international racket. None of these countries cooperate to try to catch these smugglers and militants when clearly they can help stem the funding of terrorism to Pakistan and Afghanistan. The US can only freeze US held assets, but in the rest of the Gulf States and Pakistan, we allow these criminals to roam free. The problem is also that of legality and the right that is afforded to these organizations to freely associate in Pakistan. The flow of money is often illegal and hard to monitor. Often funds are smuggled to and fro from Saudi Arabia under the guise of cash for pilgrimage and checking is lax. Zakat collection by Islamic charities is another unmonitored activity, and sadly the lines are blurred between legitimate charities and militant organizations. The way that the government operates, people are responsible for their own survival and protection, and need to be on the lookout for terrorist charities. Zakat is a major help to the poor especially in the month of Ramazan, and people are encouraged to try their best to ensure they donate to the right people.