March 30 (Bloomberg) -- President Pervez Musharraf has failed to tackle Islamic extremism in Pakistan's religious schools, which continue to promote a holy war against the West and foment terrorism, the International Crisis Group said.

Five years after the government pledged a crackdown on the schools, known as madrassas, many still preach a violent ideology and train and dispatch fighters to Afghanistan and Indian-administered Kashmir, the Brussels-based advocacy group, which aims to resolve conflicts, said in a report yesterday.

``The Pakistani government has yet to take any of the overdue and necessary steps to control religious extremism,'' the group said. ``Musharraf's periodic declarations of tough action, given in response to international events and pressure, are invariably followed by retreat.''

Pakistan's government has rejected allegations that it isn't doing enough to counter radicalism in the world's second largest Muslim country. Musharraf last year ordered the country's 13,000 madrassas to register with the government. A year earlier, he ordered the expulsion of non-Pakistani students at the schools after a U.K. investigation into the July 2005 London bombings showed that at least one of the suicide attackers visited a Pakistani madrassa.

The ICG said the government's ``reform program is in shambles'' and that banned extremist groups continue to operate openly in Pakistan, particularly in the port city of Karachi.

The group called on the government to introduce a law that ``bars jihadi and violent sectarian teachings'' in madrassas and close schools that fail to comply. Many madrassas remain unregistered and government attempts to introduce non-religious classes have been futile, according to the report.

Financial Controls

The group recommended the government establish financial controls on the schools, to establish where they receive funding. Students should also be registered, the group said. Certificates issued by the schools shouldn't be treated as the equivalent of university degrees to encourage participation in mainstream education, it added.

Musharraf's reliance on a religious party to maintain control of Baluchistan's provincial government is hampering his ability to introduce changes, the ICG said. His coalition partner in the province, the pro-Taliban Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party, controls a network of madrassas, according to the report.

``Real reform will only be possible through the strengthening of the country's moderate parties and forces, with free and fair national elections in 2007 an essential first step,'' said Robert Templer, the group's Asia program director.

Islamic Opposition

Musharraf has faced protests from Islamic parties in Pakistan since he backed the U.S.-led war on terrorism in 2001. He has survived at least four assassination attempts by Islamic extremists.

His government has deployed about 80,000 soldiers and 1,000 military posts along the 2,430-kilometer (1,510-mile) border with Afghanistan in an effort to counter al-Qaeda and Taliban insurgents.

In October, the Pakistani army raided a compound at a religious school in Bajaur district near the Afghan border, which it said was a terrorist training camp. The raid prompted demonstrations by local tribesmen who said civilians were among more than 80 people killed.

To contact the reporter on this story: Ed Johnson in Sydney at ejohnson28@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: March 29, 2007 21:27 EDT