HRCP urges rethink on terror fighting plan

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has strongly condemned Monday night’s attack on the police academy in Quetta and demanded reassessment of the counter-terrorism strategy to put an end to the blood-letting. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Commission said: “It is alarming that despite the apparent focus on countering terrorism over the past few years, the terrorists were able to launch another major attack in a provincial metropolis like Quetta and cause such a high loss of life.

“We condole with the families who lost loved ones in the attack on the police training school in Quetta”, the statement read.

HRCP expressed the view that terrorism could not be overcome by reliance only on security operations. No state, however mighty, can fight terror without public support. Addressing the public alienation and winning their trust is vital in this fight. Despite much talk of developing alternative narratives on restoring peace to society there has been little action on that account. That needs to change without any further delay, the statement urged. “It is perhaps too early to speculate on the perpetrators of the police school attack, however, Pakistan must pay serious heed to the deteriorating relations with our neighbours”, it said.

The HRCP said “There is no wisdom in keeping multiple fronts open. Particularly amid the present day terrorism, which has a cross-border dimension, it makes all the more sense to join hands for security and fighting terrorism.”