RAWALPINDI, Nov 24: The Awami Workers Party (AWP) on Saturday condemned the sectarian killings in Rawalpindi and Karachi in recent days.

They warned that unless the state completely abandons its policy of patronising militancy, society and the polity will continue to be pushed towards complete breakdown.

In a statement, the party said that it was imperative to adopt a posture of non-intervention in the affairs of neighbouring countries because the meddling in the name of so-called ‘strategic depth’ is the root cause of sectarianism and other parochial violence within Pakistan today.

Party leaders Aasim Sajjad, Shehak Sattar and Nazish Zahoor said that mainstream political parties were unwilling and unable to fully confront the nexus of imperialism, military establishment and religious right which was responsible for the politicisation of religion and the spread of militant ideologies throughout the society.

They said that only a left party with a genuine anti-imperialist and anti-establishment programme could provide Pakistans long-suffering masses with an alternative to the status quo, and this is the fundamental objective of the recently founded Awami Workers Party.

The party leaders said that the party’s organising activities in the twin cities had begun in earnest following the founding conference in Lahore on November 11, with the emphasis on blooding a younger generation of leadership.

The party has emphasized the need for youth – more than 60 percent of Pakistans current population is under 23 years of age – to become involved in the political realm because it is this younger generation that has been most affected by the politics of hate and sectarianism that is eating away the very fabric of Pakistani society.