'Only male Muslims should be president, PM in Pakistan'

ISLAMABAD: One of Pakistan's radical religious political party in its election manifesto has demanded that only male Muslims should become president and prime minister of the country.

"We will declare that only male Muslims become the president and prime minister of the country," said the poll manifesto of Maulana Samiul Haq's Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S).

Elections are scheduled Jan 8 in Pakistan, where President Pervez Musharraf imposed emergency on Nov 3.

However, Musharraf, who was sworn in as civilian president No 29 after he doffed off his military uniform, has promised to lift emergency Dec 15.

The JUI-S in its manifesto also demanded banning non-Muslims from being appointed to important posts in the country, according to Daily Times.

JUI-S is a unit of religious alliance Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA), which aspires to establish a complete theocracy in Pakistan.

The JUI-S manifesto said that all non-Muslims in the country would be allowed to run religious educational institutions, however, no missionary institutions would be allowed to set up their institutions in the country.

The party has also discouraged culture of co-education in the country where a divide between extremists and liberals is widening.

JUI-S would discourage co-education in the country and separate women universities would be opened in this regard; the Arabic language would be introduced as a compulsory subject whereas English would be an elective subject; and interest based banking would also be stopped across the country.