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Religious extremists burn five music shops for "promoting obscenity, destroying religious values"

(PPF/IFEX) - Five music shops were burnt on 4 July 2007 in the bazaar of Miramshah, the main town in the restive Pakistan's Federally Administrated Tribal Areas (FATA) that border Afghanistan.

Press reports, quoting local residents, said unidentified men set the shops ablaze with petrol.

The militants had earlier warned shop owners in the city to stop the business of selling music and video tapes and discs or be ready to face the consequences.

The Taliban and other religious extremists have been waging a campaign of threats, intimidation and violent attacks against video and music shops because they believe that movies and pop music promote obscenity and are aimed at destroying the religious values of the people.

In June 2007 alone, there were more than 20 bomb attacks on music and video shops in FATA and the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) of Pakistan.