According to a document contained on the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) Website, Sipah-i-Muhammad Pakistan (SMP), a splinter group of the main Shia party Tehrik-i-Jafria Pakistan (TJP), was formed by Shia extremists to counter "what was perceived as increasing terrorism indulged in by the SSP [Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan] and LeJ [Lashkar-e-Jhangvi]" (n.d.a). Although TJP reportedly denies any links with SMP, an article in The News reported Pakistani intelligence sources as saying that "in several instances they had found TJP people used as resource person by the militants" (5 May 2000). As well, the Political Handbook of the World 1999 states that "[t]he TJP is closely associated with the extremist Shi'ite Sipah-i-Muhammad, which has been a major participant in Pakistan's ongoing sectarian warfare."

A 19 January 1999 article reported that until 1997 Sunni-Shia "tit-for-tat murders" were almost identical, but that, since the police dismantlement of SMP in Lahore, the violence has mainly been one-sided and police have concentrated their efforts on targeting Sunni extremists (The News International). However, a 5 May 2000 article reported that 19 "militants" belonging to SMP were, at the time of article's publication, still at large (The News). The complete list of 19 names was reported as follows: Dr. Qaisar Raza, Imran Taraq, Syed Zulqarnain, Fawad Shah Taraq, Tahir Abbas, Zaheer Abbas, Syed Asad Abbas Naqvi, Musharraf Shah, Sharfat Ali Shah, Anwar Haider, Zubair Abbas, Zahid Hussain, Hussain, Syed Tanveer Shah, Baqar Mosoumi, Intizar, Abid Shah, Agha Ali, and Asad Ali (ibid).

SATP's 20 April 2001 Terrorism Update reported that the Pakistan Interior Ministry had classified SMP and several other sectarian organizations such as the Sunni organization Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) as being "heavily armed groups." The SMP is also contained on a list compiled by SATP naming organizations in Pakistan that have been classified by "some observers" as terrorist outfits (SATP n.d.b). A 20 March 2001 article reported that SMP and SSP had abstained from adopting a 10-point code of conduct to curb sectarian violence in Punjab, pleading "that government had detained a number of their leaders and workers who had not been released so far" (Dawn). Further, SMP was suspected by the police to have been responsible for the death of nine people and the wounding of 11 when gunmen opened fire on worshippers in a Sunni mosque in Lahore (AFP 12 March 2001).

No contact information for Sipah-i-Muhammad Pakistan could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. However, a 19 February 2001 Dawn article named Malik Ashraf Awan as acting president, Syed Shakir Naqvi as general secretary, and Akmal Naqvi as information secretary of SMP.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Agence France Presse (AFP). 12 March 2001. Rana Jawad. "Nine dead, 11 Injured in Sectarian Attack in Pakistan." (LEXIS)

Dawn [Karachi]. 20 March 2001. "Lahore: Ulema for Severe Action Against Sectarian Groups." http://www.dawn.com/2001/03/20/local19.htm [Accessed 17 July 2001]

_____. 19 February 2001. "GDA Membership."http://www.dawn.com/2001/02/19/nat8.htm [Accessed 17 July 2001]

The News [Islamabad]. 5 May 2001. Rana Jawad. "Hunt for Afghan-Trained Pak Terrorist." (WNC)

The News International [Karachi]. 19 January 1999. "623 Fell Prey to Sectarian Killings in Punjab in Nine Years." http://www.jarachipage.com/news/sectarian2.html [Accessed 13 July 2001]

Political Handbook of the World 1999. 1999. Edited by Arthur S. Banks and Thomas C. Muller. Binghamton, NY: CSA Publications.

South Asian Terrorist Portal (SATP). n.d.a. "Terrorist Outfits: An Overview." http://www.satp.org/pakistan/terrorist%20outfits/terrorist%20groups_pakistan.htm [Accessed 13 July 2001]

_____. n.d. "Pakistan: List of Terrorist Outfits." http://www.satp.org/pakistan/Terrorist%20Outfits/List%20Terrorist_Pakistan.htm [Accessed 13 July 2001]

Terrorism Update [New Delhi]. 20 April 2001. South Asian Terrorist Portal (SATP). "Pakistan to Launch Operation Against Illegal Arms." http://www.satp.org/news/2001/april/news20.htm [Accessed 13 July 2001].

IRB databases

LEXIS/NEXIS

Research Directorate. Country File, January 2000-

Two oral sources contacted

World News Connection (WNC)

Internet sources, including:

Amnesty International

BBC

CNN

Dawn

Frontier Post

Human Rights Watch

International Policy Institute for Counter Terrorism

International Relations and Security Network

Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies

Shi'a Homepage

Terrorism Research Centre