9/11 has been the most potent conflict transformer for South Asia as it has not only altered the security dynamics of the entire region but has massively impacted the social, political and economical conditions to a considerable extent where we can kiss every prospect of a return to the pre-9/11 setting goodbye. The security situation has altered permanently.
The sheer brutality of the suicide attacks that have rocked the Pakistani land have shaken the people on multiple levels and scales. The physical loss of lives, property and other possessions is just one aspect that may bring pain and misery but the trauma of living under a terrorized atmosphere of perpetual fear and apprehension, irreversibly impacts the psyche.
The political climate is as chaotic as ever with vicious rumors of Zardari being re-elected for another five years. All state institutions at daggers drawn with each other, there hardly seems a political will being exercised in the country. The judiciary runs amok without achieving much in terms of law and order, while the armed forces are left to their own devices to take major decisions over policy matters.
The growing trust deficit between Pakistan and the US can also be translated as the political inability to forge strong relationships with other nations to further the national interest. To become isolated at this crucial stage where the endgame draws dangerously near and Pakistan would be in the best position to consolidate its gains, is hardly a sensible decision. The mishandling of the Salala controversy and the issue regarding reopening of the ground lines of communication for Nato goods are just a few among hundreds that have served to damage Pakistan in terms of tarnishing its image and proving detrimental to its interest. The social fabric is in tatters. Intolerance is on a continuous rise where the best policy one can adopt is of muted conformity. Multiple views and ideologies circulate and are thrust upon the public through brute force. What people have learned from the religious extremists or Taliban is that the best manner in which one can get ones message across is through forceful imposition. Where morality takes a nose dive, wickedness rears its ugly head to consume a society in its entirety. Keeping everything in view we must realize that not everything may be in our control, but surely not everything is out of it too. We need to see what we can actually do that may bring about the transformation that we are hoping for.
LUBNA UMAR
Islamabad
