Apparently, the victimhood narrative that nations adopt is not for the lack of an alternate narrative, but for the want of legitimising evil actions. A threat to the American soil and its citizens from Al-Qaeda and other militant groups, posing America as a victim of global terrorism in entirety is just one example of the victimhood narrative adopted by the superpower. This alone justifies the US intervention in Afghanistan, extending its reach further into Iraq and its latest unilateral raid in Pakistan.
Similarly, the victimhood narrative adopted by the Indian, continuously blaming Pakistan based religious groups for the various incidents of terror on its soil has won a lot of global sympathy and a position that it has completely encashed. The fact that most of the terror plots have been later on claimed by its own Hindutva groups becomes immaterial as long as the pressure keeps mounting on its neighbour and its own interests are served. These narratives are surely adopted consciously and cleverly built upon and propagated to serve vested interests. The more powerful you are, the more plausible and credible this victimhood narrative will sound.
PROF KABIL KHAN
Peshawar
