Whatever might be the critics’ reaction but no one could deny the fact that Imran Khan’s sit-in against US drones, despite little support from masses, seems a major breakthrough in country’s politics. Somehow, almost all the political forces in the country have reached a consensus against US drone attacks particularly since an unpopular end of Raymond Davis affair.
Even the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly had passed the resolution denouncing drone attacks before the Khan’s demonstration. Ironically, the resolution had been moved by Awami National Party’s Bashir Ahmad Bilour. The ANP remains the only political forces that suffered most in the war on terror for its staunch antagonism against terrorism. Individually, almost all the ANP top leaders appear to be in favour of drones for their accuracy in targeting local and foreign militants.
Despite opposition from many political parties, drone attacked have been seen by Pakistani authorities as ‘the most reliable instrument’ in war against terrorism. The recently release armed forces documents have also confirmed the credibility of such attacks. The latest reports suggest that drones mainly operated from United States and they have assistance from the both sides of the Pak-Afghan border.
Similarly almost all the supplies to NATO come from Karachi to Chaman and Torkham borders of Balochistan and FATA respectively. Hence the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has no jurisdiction on these supplies. The same is the case with the US-Pakistan collaboration on war against terrorism. So instead of staging a political show in Peshawar, Khan could have made it more effective by changing the venue to Islamabad or Karachi. Imran Khan, since his entry into the politics, has been most vocal opponent of the corruption of politicians and system.
Yet it was ironic to see a member of National Assembly from FATA on his side during the latest demonstration. That lawmaker was on the NRO beneficiaries’ list. Meanwhile, Khan has also lived in a house owned by a high-ranking official of the Pakistan Telecommunication Corporation who had been convicted by NAB for corruption. Even the public participation in the sit-in was not much encouraging for Imran Khan. Beside Tehrik-i-Insaf, the participants also included activists from Jamaat-e-Islami, PML
(Q), PPP (Sherpao) and both the factions of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam.
Participation from FATA, particularly from Waziristan region, which is the main target of drones, remained thin. What the political parties need is a national dialogue for an effective war against terrorism while upholding the country’s sovereignty.
