Pakistan, Madrassas, and Militancy
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View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Calhoun, Institutional Archive of the Naval Postgraduate School Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Theses and Dissertations Thesis Collection 2006-12 Pakistan, madrassas, and militancy Colbert, Jason M. Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School http://hdl.handle.net/10945/2385 NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS PAKISTAN, MADRASSAS, AND MILITANCY by Daniel L. Billquist and Jason M. Colbert December 2006 Thesis Advisor: Glenn Robinson Thesis Co-Advisor: Heather Gregg Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302, and to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (0704-0188) Washington DC 20503. 1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank) 2. REPORT DATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED December 2006 Master’s Thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE Pakistan, Madrassas, and Militancy 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Daniel L. Billquist and Jason M. Colbert 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION Naval Postgraduate School REPORT NUMBER Monterey, CA 93943-5000 9. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSORING/MONITORING N/A AGENCY REPORT NUMBER 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. 12a. DISTRIBUTION / AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited 13. ABSTRACT (maximum 200 words) Following the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, the US government has become increasingly concerned with madrassas, Islamic schools of religious education in Central and South Asia. U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell denounced these religious seminaries as radical institutions which produce Islamic jihadists capable of threatening U.S. national security and interests. This thesis examines the history and current evidence available on madrassas. Specifically, it analyzes their historical evolution and reaction to domestic, regional and international developments. It finds that there is little evidence to connect madrassas to transnational terrorism, and that they are not a direct threat to the United States. However, Pakistani madrassas do have ties to domestic and regional violence, particularly Sunni-Shia sectarian violence in Pakistan and the Pakistani-Indian conflict in Kashmir, making them a regional security concern. This thesis argues that the best path for combating religious militancy in madrassas is by helping to create better alternatives to madrassa education, including state run and private schools, and not by targeting madrassas directly. 14. SUBJECT TERMS Pakistan, Madrassa, Militancy, Sectarian Violence, Trans-national 15. NUMBER OF Terrorism, Regional Jihad, American Perspective PAGES 105 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY 18. SECURITY 19. SECURITY 20. LIMITATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF THIS CLASSIFICATION OF ABSTRACT REPORT PAGE ABSTRACT Unclassified Unclassified Unclassified UL NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Prescribed by ANSI Std. 239-18 i THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK ii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited PAKISTAN, MADRASSAS, AND MILITANCY Daniel L. Billquist Major, United States Army B.A., Eastern Washington University, 1993 MASTER OF SCIENCE IN INFORMATION OPERATIONS from the NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL December 2006 Jason M. Colbert Major, United States Army B.A. Texas Tech University, 1993 MPA, University of Houston, 1995 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN INFORMATION OPERATIONS from the NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL June 2007 Authors: Daniel L. Billquist Jason M. Colbert Approved by: Glenn E. Robinson Thesis Advisor Heather S. Gregg Co-Advisor Gordon McCormick Chairman, Department of Defense Analysis iii THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK iv ABSTRACT Following the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, the US government has become increasingly concerned with madrassas, Islamic schools of religious education in Central and South Asia. U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell denounced these religious seminaries as radical institutions which produce Islamic jihadists capable of threatening U.S. national security and interests. This thesis examines the history and current evidence available on madrassas. Specifically, it analyzes their historical evolution and reaction to domestic, regional and international developments. It finds that there is little evidence to connect madrassas to transnational terrorism, and that they are not a direct threat to the United States. However, Pakistani madrassas do have ties to domestic and regional violence, particularly Sunni-Shia sectarian violence in Pakistan and the Pakistani-Indian conflict in Kashmir, making them a regional security concern. This thesis argues that the best path for combating religious militancy in madrassas is by helping to create better alternatives to madrassa education, including state run and private schools, and not by targeting madrassas directly. v THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK vi TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION............................................................................................. 1 A. INTRODUCTION.................................................................................. 1 B. PURPOSE............................................................................................ 2 C. CONCLUSION ..................................................................................... 4 II. WHAT ARE MADRASSAS?........................................................................... 5 A. WHAT IS A MADRASSA?................................................................... 5 B. EARLY ISLAMIC EDUCATION INFLEUNCES AND INSTITUTIONS..................................................................................... 6 C. THE MADRASSAS’ RISE AND DECLINE .......................................... 9 D. MADRASSA CURRICULUM ............................................................. 13 E. CONCLUSION ................................................................................... 14 III. PAKISTAN AS THE FOCAL POINT ............................................................ 17 A. INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 17 B. PAKISTAN: A LAND OF COMPETING IDENTITIES ........................ 17 C. ISLAMIC DIVISION OF PAKISTAN................................................... 19 1. Sunni Divisions within Pakistan........................................... 19 2. Shi’ia Division within Pakistan ............................................. 22 3. Jamat-i-Islami......................................................................... 23 D. MADRASSAS OF PAKISTAN ........................................................... 24 1. Madrassas and the Pakistani Education System................ 25 2. School Enrollment in Pakistan ............................................. 26 3. Who Attends Madrassas?..................................................... 28 4. Spheres of Influence ............................................................. 30 5. What Do Madrassas Teach? ................................................. 31 E. CONCLUSION ................................................................................... 34 IV. MADRASSAS, POLITICS, AND MILITANCY .............................................. 37 A. INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 37 B. RELIGION IN POLITICS .................................................................... 38 C. CATALYTIC EVENTS........................................................................ 40 D. MADRASSA, SECTARIANISM, AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE......... 43 1. Transnational Terrorism........................................................ 44 2. Regional Violence.................................................................. 46 3. Sectarian Violence................................................................. 50 E. CONCLUSION ................................................................................... 51 V. AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE OF MADRASSAS........................................... 55 A. INTRODUCTION................................................................................ 55 B. EARLY PERSPECTIVES OF MADRASSAS IN COLONIAL INDIA.. 56 C. 1947 TO 1970S .................................................................................. 59 D. SOVIET INVASION OF AFGHANISTAN AND RISE OF THE TALIBAN............................................................................................ 61 vii E. 9/11 TO THE PRESENT ...................................................................