National consensus to eradicate terrorism

How we got here; how to get out

Pakistan is passing through a very turbulent phase of its history. In this difficult time, external and internal enemies have joined hands for one particular cause ie to weaken the roots of Pakistan through terrorist activities. Enemies want to cripple this country economically and damage it physically so that it cannot rise as a powerful state.

The history of the international system can be traced back to 1648 when Westphalia Treaty ended the long thirty years of war between Protestants and Catholics. A new system known as “Sovereign State System” was established; according to which each country was a sovereign state, free to exercise power within its physical boundaries. In this context, relations among different countries emerged and concepts like nationalism and balance of power came into existence. World War I (1914-1918) was born of this nationalism. At the end of World War I, the Treaty of Versailles (1919) gave birth to another international system, which led to World War II.

At the end of the Second World War (1939-1945), the global system changed and two powers rose on the horizon — USSR and USA. These two powers were in fact two blocs of power ie capitalism and communism. Rest of the nations joined one or the other bloc. These two economic and political systems shaped a world order known as the bi-polar system. Pakistan joined the capitalist group soon after its birth. Its tilt towards USA, ignoring the geographic proximity with USSR, marked the subsequent events of Pakistan’s history. Contrary to this, our rival India established good relations with the Soviets.

All extremist and terrorist elements must be clearly defined and identified as the common enemy by all segments of society. No favour should be granted on the basis of religious, social, political or personal affiliations

The alliance of Pakistan with America has witnessed many ups and downs. The event that sowed the seeds of extremism and terrorism in Pakistan was the long Soviet war in Afghanistan. USSR invaded Afghanistan in 1979 to access the warm waters of the Arabian Sea. America exploited Pakistan in the name of religion and Muslims from all over the world gathered for jihad in Afghanistan, the purpose of which was to oust the USSR from Afghanistan. Being the neighbouring country Pakistan extended full support and Taliban found sanctuaries in tribal areas of Pakistan.

America was successful in defeating USSR in 1989 and creating its hegemony over the world as a sole super power. The Afghan war ended led to the disintegration of Russia. The porous border between Pakistan and Afghanistan facilitated the unchecked flow of Afghan refugees and mujahideen into Pakistan.

In 1996, Samuel Huntington presented a new theory, “Clash of Civilisations”, in which he categorised the world into seven civilisations and predicted that conflicts among these civilisations would arise out of religions on which these seven civilisations are based. The terrorist attack of 9/11 and the subsequent war against terrorism supported this theory to some extent. Once again the supremacy of America was established and Pakistan was not left with any choice than to assist the attack on its western neighbour. The concept of ‘strategic depth” lost its importance and like the Afghan war (1979-1989), Pakistan became the frontline state in the war against terrorism in 2001.

Pakistan suffered huge losses as a result of joining this war, and a long wave of terrorist attacks started across the country. The Peshawar attack on Dec 16 is the most horrific of these attacks, in which 132 innocent children were killed. This tragedy brought all religious and political parties on the same page and they joined hands to root out terrorism from this soil.

The whole world condemned this attack. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has vowed to continue this fight “until the menace of terrorism is eliminated” from Pakistan. “The nation needs to get united,” he added. “We need unflinching resolve against this plague.”

There is a dire need to change the national mindset through education. The next generation of these extremists may be educated to become responsible citizens of Pakistan

In the wake of this attack, terrorism has been recognised as a national issue and it has been accepted that this war cannot be won until we as a nation are united. This war cannot be won in a day or a month; it requires long concerted efforts by government, army and the people as well.

First of all, all extremist and terrorist elements must be clearly defined and identified as the common enemy by all segments of society. No favour should be granted on the basis of religious, social, political or personal affiliations.

Secondly, the death sentence should be implemented without any discrimination. All criminals coming in its ambit should be executed without any delay. There should be one policy to deal with the enemy of state and no direction or pressure from outside should be accepted.

Thirdly, media which is considered the fourth pillar of society should play a responsible and positive role. A code of conduct should be defined and implemented.

Fourthly, intelligence agencies should play a proactive role and every threat should be dealt with competence to save the lives of innocent people.

Last but not least, there is a dire need to change the national mindset through education. The next generation of these extremists may be educated to become responsible citizens of Pakistan. Every child is born innocent. The state has to play its role in this regard. The ulemas should also come forth to explain and spread the true sense of Islam which means “peace”. All types of terrorism whether political, social or religious are condemnable in Islam.