President Karzai’s timely remarks

EDITORIAL: Daily Times

Afghan President Hamid Karzai released a rather biting statement on Thursday aimed at making Pakistan realise that the monster of extremism can turn on anyone at any time. Quoting the tragic example of Malala Yousafzai who was shot in the head by the Taliban 10 days ago, President Karzai pinpointed that Pakistan’s strategy of using extremist militants to do its bidding was taking its toll. He urged his Pakistani “brothers and sisters” to learn the lesson that using extremism as a tool was bound to have ramifications for the country. He described extremism as a snake that would not hesitate to turn around and bite anyone who used it against others. This statement was issued during a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen in Kabul. Whilst the words may be sharp, they carry a ring of truth and underlying urgency. President Karzai also took this opportunity to urge Pakistan to work together with Afghanistan to tackle the militant problem that has been devastating his country for decades and has started eating Pakistan from within over the last few years. Citing the example of Malala was very timely indeed. Maulana Fazlullah has been accused of being the mastermind of this attack. When the Pakistan Army launched its offensive in Swat in 2009, Fazlullah took refuge across the border in Afghanistan, given a safe haven by the Haqqani network. It is ironic that this is the same Haqqani group that Pakistan has given a safe haven to on Pakistani soil and allowed to operate in Afghanistan, at the risk of annoying its ally in the war on terror, the US. We supported the Haqqani group against NATO and the US forces in Afghanistan, allowing it to launch its offensives from the safety of Pakistan’s tribal regions. Now, it is the same network that is allowing the Pakistani Taliban to use Afghanistan as its base to launch terror attacks - like the one against Malala - inside Pakistan. This is the blowback of the proxy war project many predicted would come sooner or later. Now that it is here, Pakistan needs to revise its support for elements that are clearly supporting those who wish to tear this country apart. Fazlullah is a firebrand, known for his hatred for female education and extreme views against progress and equality. He is a barbarian who believes that children too are fair game in his bloodlust. Now that Malala is regaining her health, and with the world community behind her, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) continues its threats against her life. Any civilised approach towards dealing with these monsters is going to run up against a wall. It is time to fight fire with fire - a point that Karzai touched upon in Thursday’s press conference. It is time Pakistan changed its policy towards the militants and abandoned its delusion of ‘strategic depth’ in Afghanistan via these jihadi proxies. All these militants are on the same side, joining forces to pit country against country and neighbour against neighbour. It is time to do what is needed to end this menace once and for all, with Pakistan and Afghanistan joining forces to prevent these extremist militants from using the porous border to their advantage, hopping from one country to another, mocking the very idea of sovereignty. President Karzai is spot on. It is time to end this game before it consumes both neighbouring countries