Swat Valley Power Struggle Led to Islamic Law Decision

JUDY WOODRUFF:

For more on the situation in Pakistan, we turn to Robert Grenier, former CIA station chief in Islamabad. He's now with Kroll Associates, a consulting firm.

And Anita Weiss, she's professor and head of international studies at the University of Oregon. She has written extensively about Pakistan and was there in November.

Thank you both for being with us.

To you, Robert Grenier, first. Why did the government of Pakistan agree to let the Swat Valley be ruled by Sharia Islamic law?

ROBERT GRENIER, Former CIA Official:

This really doesn't have so much to do with Sharia law, per se. This really has to do with power.

And the government found that it was simply unable, using the army, to subdue the Taliban in Swat Valley. And essentially they're capitulating right now. They're hoping that essentially these people can be appeased.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Anita Weiss, is that what's going on, they're hoping for capitulation?

ANITA WEISS, University of Oregon: Oh, I certainly concur with that, because there have been some very brutal things going on in the Swat Valley for the last two years. A year ago, there was beheading of police officers.

But the problem there is that there's limited consensus on what Sharia law should actually be, what law would — you know, what parts of Sharia should actually be imposed.

Like, for example, in your lead-in, you were talking about education. Well, Islam certainly very strongly supports not only male education, but female education. There is a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad that says, "Seek knowledge even if you have to go to China."

So the idea of closing boys and girls schools is anathema, really, to Islam, but not to their particular interpretation.