The meeting of the top brass of the country, who met under the chairmanship of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, following the despicable attack on Malala Yousafzai , and the ensuing ISPR release is indicative of the cusp of difficult choices that now squarely stare us in the face, demanding painful decisions. The incident has made the entire nation reflect on the state of drift whereby the cancer of extremism and terrorism has deeply invaded the body politic of the Nation and has now begun to metastasize in different forms and size. At stake is the future of Pakistan and its habitants and it is obvious that now time is finally at hand to take on the challenge head on.
The challenge to defeat terrorism has to be undertaken in an environment of national consensus and cohesion. The entire nation must come on board to provide political backing to the military instrument that forms the cutting edge of the national instrument to defeat the threat. Even as the Armed Forces and the affiliated intelligence agencies have to spearhead the campaign, a heavy responsibility falls on the shoulders of the Police, the Special Branch and the IB who have to spot and eliminate the infiltration of the terrorists in the civil society where they have mingled among the masses and established bases from where the terrorists organize their strike. The Legislation has to enact laws to eliminate the loopholes which enable the well-known terrorists to give a slip to the law enforcement agencies and escape justice when apprehended.
Attack on Malala has made it manifest that for the sake of our coming generations and for getting rid of the crippling blackmail of a small band of maliciously indoctrinated terrorists the nation has to go to the war with them. It seems that the moment of truth has finally arrived and we have to run the gauntlet thrown by the terrorists with an iron will.
GUL RAHMAN WAZIR
Peshawar
