- Incidents of the sort are bound to occur
The country has been assured again and again by Ch Nisar that the organisation calling itself IS had no existence in Pakistan. It must have come as a rude shock to many to learn that that network not only exists in the country but is also responsible for kidnapping a Chinese couple who were teaching Mandarin in Quetta. This is, in fact, the latest dastardly act committed by the terrorist network. Ch Nisar needs to realise that a state of denial on his part can create serious problems for the country.
The abduction was denounced immediately by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman who urged Pakistan to take all necessary measures to secure the early release of the hostages. An article in “Global Times,” an official publication of the Chinese government, maintained that the kidnapping highlights risks along China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The article mentioned that last year a Chinese engineer was injured in a bomb attack in southern Pakistan and a separatist group claimed responsibility for the attack saying they were targeting the CPEC. The article concluded that “terrorism, unstable domestic politics, and disagreement among various parties within Pakistan about how CPEC transportation routes should be mapped out are prominent challenges to the implementation of the CPEC”
Pursuing a short-sighted policy of using ‘good terrorists’ against ‘bad terrorists’ those who matter turned Balochistan into a safe haven successively for the Quetta Shura, LeJ and a number of other sectarian outfits. Most of the IS members come from some of these groups. It was forgotten that good terrorists frequently morph into bad terrorists, biting the very hand that fed them. One is not sure if the lesson has been learnt by the concerned quarters. The failure to provide security to the Chinese in a small city like Quetta is beyond comprehension. We are now told that the battle between the IS kidnappers and security forces continues to rage in a neighbouring district. The negligence in providing security to the Chinese has put the country into an embarrassing situation.