LET us not delude ourselves; over the past few weeks the militants have launched an unrelenting assault on Pakistan while the government’s response to this offensive has been characterised by confusion and paralysis. Let us recall the trail of death and destruction the TTP and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi have left in the first few days of 2014. The new year started off on a grisly note when Shia pilgrims returning from Iran were targeted by a suicide bomber outside Quetta, while on Jan 9 Karachi’s top anti-terrorism cop Chaudhry Aslam was mowed down by the TTP in a devastating bombing. More recently, on Sunday a massive bombing inside Bannu garrison was traced to the Taliban, while a day later the banned outfit struck at the doorstep of GHQ in Rawalpindi. Tuesday brought more mayhem as pilgrims returning from Iran were again killed, this time in Mastung, in an attack claimed by LJ, while three anti-polio workers were gunned down in Karachi. And as these lines were being written on Wednesday, there were reports of a deadly attack targeting a police team tasked with providing security to anti-polio workers in Charsadda, while an immunisation team also reportedly came under attack in Sibi.
In such circumstances, with the militants launching one bloody terrorist operation after another, we can only concur with Human Rights Watch’s assessment that the state is either unable or unwilling to stop terrorism. In both instances, the consequences for the people are deadly. The organisation is spot on when it says in its World Report 2014 that banned outfits operate “with impunity” in Pakistan. There seems to be a complete lack of commitment and resolve on the state’s part to go after the militants. Where is the much-needed leadership in such a state of crisis?
Much more needs to be done by our leaders than have photos taken with victims of terrorism or while offering fateha for the departed. Ordering one or two retaliatory air strikes is not going to break the militants’ back. What the political leadership, particularly the prime minister, must do is tell the nation exactly how the government intends to tackle terrorism, in black and white. Stopping a suicide bomber just as he is about to detonate may indeed be near impossible. That is why it is important to take the fight to the militants, to destroy their hideouts and safe havens, uproot the infrastructure which brainwashes, trains and dispatches suicide bombers and prosecute those guilty of waging war on the people and state of Pakistan. Does the government have any such intention? Or will it continue to be on the defensive, capitulating to the terrorists and ceding more and more ground? The state needs to assert itself and display some leadership if the militant onslaught is to be stopped.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
PAKISTAN: State of paralysis
LET us not delude ourselves; over the past few weeks the militants have launched an unrelenting assault on Pakistan while the government’s response to this offensive has been characterised by confusion and paralysis. Let us recall the trail of death and destruction the TTP and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi have left in the first few days of 2014. The new year started off on a grisly note when Shia pilgrims returning from Iran were targeted by a suicide bomber outside Quetta, while on Jan 9 Karachi’s top anti-terrorism cop Chaudhry Aslam was mowed down by the TTP in a devastating bombing. More recently, on Sunday a massive bombing inside Bannu garrison was traced to the Taliban, while a day later the banned outfit struck at the doorstep of GHQ in Rawalpindi. Tuesday brought more mayhem as pilgrims returning from Iran were again killed, this time in Mastung, in an attack claimed by LJ, while three anti-polio workers were gunned down in Karachi. And as these lines were being written on Wednesday, there were reports of a deadly attack targeting a police team tasked with providing security to anti-polio workers in Charsadda, while an immunisation team also reportedly came under attack in Sibi.
In such circumstances, with the militants launching one bloody terrorist operation after another, we can only concur with Human Rights Watch’s assessment that the state is either unable or unwilling to stop terrorism. In both instances, the consequences for the people are deadly. The organisation is spot on when it says in its World Report 2014 that banned outfits operate “with impunity” in Pakistan. There seems to be a complete lack of commitment and resolve on the state’s part to go after the militants. Where is the much-needed leadership in such a state of crisis?
Much more needs to be done by our leaders than have photos taken with victims of terrorism or while offering fateha for the departed. Ordering one or two retaliatory air strikes is not going to break the militants’ back. What the political leadership, particularly the prime minister, must do is tell the nation exactly how the government intends to tackle terrorism, in black and white. Stopping a suicide bomber just as he is about to detonate may indeed be near impossible. That is why it is important to take the fight to the militants, to destroy their hideouts and safe havens, uproot the infrastructure which brainwashes, trains and dispatches suicide bombers and prosecute those guilty of waging war on the people and state of Pakistan. Does the government have any such intention? Or will it continue to be on the defensive, capitulating to the terrorists and ceding more and more ground? The state needs to assert itself and display some leadership if the militant onslaught is to be stopped.
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