Monday, September 30, 2013

Pakistan: War unavoidable against terrorists

The terrorists struck in Peshawar\\\'s busy Qissakhwani Bazar and killed 40 innocent Pakistanis in one blast on Sunday; on the other hand, US drone attack killed six Pakistanis in North Waziristan on the very day: Taliban and the US, like a pair of blades of the same set of scissors, come from the opposite directions but meet for the purpose of shredding Pakistan into pieces. India, of course, is playing the fulcrum in the process. Both claim to be struggling to save us from the other. Pakistan\\\'s government may not have the will to stop the harmful activities of the two but the nexus between the two is crystal clear to all in the nation. In the strange and twisted logic of our politics, Taliban can do no wrong: their endless killing of our civilians and troops; illogical argument of avenging US drones related deaths by killing innocent Pakistanis; insistence on keeping Shahbaz Taseer as hostage but at the same time demanding the release of the murderer of his father the late governor of Punjab Salman Taseer; keeping the VC of Peshawar Islamia College University Ajmal Khan, a scholarly person with not a violent bone in his body, as their prisoner for the last three years; kidnapping foreigners and demanding tens of millions of dollars for freeing them; killing some members of the armed forces who were in Balochistan to provide humanitarian help to the quake victims and other many such shameful acts of violence and let us not forget the terrorists violence against our troops and civilians while talking of peace. What has the peaceful religion of Islam to do with the acts of these \\\'Islamic fighters? PM Nawaz and PTI chief Imran should explain these atrocities before making excuses for them! All the above and the thousands of acts of cruelty and meanness which cannot be mentioned here due to shortage of space, seem to spur our political leadership to renew with greater vigour the offer for peace talks to the Taliban; to provide them facilities and to pamper them in any way possible. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has condemned the many atrocities of Taliban, including the cold blooded murders of Major General Sanalluh and his colleagues, the twin blasts at a church in Peshawar and the Sunday\\\' bombing in Qissakhwani Bazar. His condemnations, however sound hollow and insincere when he refuses to withdraw his talk offer for peace in the face of such blatant acts of violence. Similarly, the PTI chief Imran Khan seems to be very insincere in his denunciations of the above mentioned acts when after each violent act committed by the Taliban, he comes more strongly for an office for them; If a Taliban office in Pakistan is not formal recognition of terrorism as a legitimate way of promoting one\\\'s point of view what else is! No cruelty by the terrorists seems to convince Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan of the inhumanity of the Taliban. Nor are these leaders fazed by the Taliban\\\'s refusal to recognise the Constitution of Pakistan. The offer of peace talks has encouraged the terrorists in their violent ways. They will not be wrong in thinking that the more violence they do, the more concessions and recognition they will get. Under the circumstances, will it be wrong for them to imagine taking control of the country if they can manage bigger blasts, bigger attacks on sensitive installations, kill more high officers of the armed forces, and murder greater number of civilians. With Nawaz Sharif refusing to withdraw offer for talks and Imran Khan urging for more facilities and recognition for them, it seems things are going the Taliban way. But the situation cannot be maintained for much longer. The nation is fighting for its survival against ruthless forces; it cannot afford the senseless brinkmanship of its political leaders. The argument given by the PTI that the Taliban do need an office for peace talk is the result of ignorance. There have been thousands of sessions of talks held by governments of all nations with unruly anti-state elements during the course of their nations\\\' histories: All such talks were held through neutral emissaries between rival parties who did not or could not give formal recognition to the other side. Even top individuals from both sides met on rare occasions but such meetings were in secret and never recognised. Formal actions resulting in recognition, if needed, were taken only after acceptable terms had been reached but not before that. In the real world only the losing side agrees to talk and only to salvage some of its gains, The Taliban have to be defeated decisively and rooted out of their strongholds in the tribal areas with military action. Instead of waiting for them to strike our troops have to take the fight to them. We have to subdue the Taliban by force and deprive them of any hope of victory through violence before talks with them can be fruitful but not before that.

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