Resurgence of terrorism

The old problem must not be allowed to come back

there seems to be a revival of militant activity. the incidents seem to centre around North and South Waziristan, which had developed into the epicenter of terrorism in the not too distant past, and which required a full-fledged and long-term operation by the army to clear the area. the Pashtun tahaaffuz Movement’s MNA Mohsin Dawar has said that the militants are not only returning, but regrouping. JUI(F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has linked the rise of militancy to the impending withdrawal of US forces from afghanistan, which is to take place in September. there is a disturbing aspect to this revival; it is no longer directed against the afghan National army, and the US and Nato forces alongside them, but the most recent attacks have been directed against the Pakistan armed forces.

When the USSR withdrew from afghanistan, the resistance was also left at a loose end, and the energies of the Mujahideen found an outlet in some going to Kashmir. this was something outside the control of the governments of the time, but Pakistan developed a reputation for being the terrorism capital of the world. this has been exploited to the hilt by India, which does its best to make sure that Pakistan suffers for this, at all possible international forums, and has not been entirely shed.

therefore, Pakistan must ensure that the US withdrawal does not lead to the same sort of result. It must not be forgotten that in the 1990s, the military was not targeted. Now it is. this should lead the military itself to abandon the ‘we-know-better’ attitude in favour of one bringing all stakeholders in the process, and let Parliament decide together on a suitable policy, one which would ensure that there is no revival of the kind of terrorism which placed the country in so much trouble. a good starting-point would be to make sure that the benefits of integration with the rest of the country are indeed reaching the tribal areas. Going by the recent past, they seem just as brittle as they were when taken over by the militants.