Terrorism: Incoherent policy doomed to failure : Jan Assakzai
On the other hand, some politicians are calling for talks with the Taliban militants apparently taking the cue from the Afghan government’s move to talk to the Taliban. The likes of Imran Khan and Munawar Hassan forget to see that these militants are fighting against their own people: The Mohmand blasts and Data Darbar attacks were twin cases in point.
Two main theses are vying in the Pakistani debate over militancy. A section of politicians, media and think tanks wrongly believe that Pakistan is fighting the war of the US. Some have even gone to the extent of asking for a price tag in order to fight the militants.
On one side, the state has promoted the idea that foreign powers might be backing militant attacks in the country. On the other side, the notion that militants attacks would end if Pakistan stopped fighting the US “war on terror” is widespread among these right wing media anchors and pro-Taliban writers. This debate is also grounded in the false dichotomy that the only option for addressing the militant problem is either force or negotiations.
But Islamabad is fighting the TTP and its allies who have challenged its internal sovereignty who are using Pakistani territory against neighbouring countries and the world at large. The political and army leadership are beholden to the people of Pakistan to get them rid of the threat and intimidation of militancy and they must act in unison. So the fight is no favour to any country. It is a fight for Pakistan and its people. The narrative should stop harping on victim mentality and misguiding the general public.
Meanwhile, the country is in deep economic trouble. The government has already warned that the country is undergoing an economic meltdown because of energy/ power shortages and rising prices. In the midst of this political and economic turmoil, the government is trying to find a way to contain the security situation with the help of the army.
Moreover, there is no political consensus within the country about the nature of the problem, let alone how to deal with it especially the PML (N) led provincial government in Punjab does not want an operation against these militants at all. The defacto “Islamic Emirate of Waziristan” on Pakistani soil is still there challenging the veracity of all the threat perception doctrines of strategic community of Pakistan.
Seen against the backdrop of significant differences between the principal political actors: the PPP and the PML-N, on how to deal with the extremism and militant attacks, the crisis is unlikely to go away. This bodes ill from a counter terrorism perspective since the two parties are the pillars of federal and provincial governments, respectively.
Worse, the PPP- the senior partner in the coalition government—has been far from coherent on how to deal with the militant threat in Punjab. It must come out to lead the debate. After all, late Benazir Bhutto was killed in a despicable act of terrorism. That said, the strategy of persuasion and talks will only lead to a temporary lull in suicide attacks and militancy. Islamabad is caught between the militants and the US.
The militants will only be emboldened by the government’s concessions and use those concessions to advance their position. These proposed “talks” with top leadership of either the TTP or their Punjabi militant allies in Punjab would be acquiescence to their demands. The process not only will embolden the militants and will also fail to create a secure environment within Pakistan. This strategy of talks may be in line with the establishment’s past plan to use persuasion and negotiation to contain the militants in FATA and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but only forced to abandon later for a full scale military operations in Swat, South Waziristan Orakzai, and Mohmand.
If any talks are held with these militants, they will be from a position of weakness. That weakness stems from the lack of a coherent policy on the part of military and civilian leadership in the face of growing domestic and foreign policy problems. This, in turn, will only aggravate the emerging crisis between Washington and Islamabad. The growing perception in Washington that, the incoherence in Islamabad is only strengthening the militants, will push the United States toward more unilateral action, once it pasts the stage of draw down phase.
If the leadership fails to stand up to these well entrenched militants, they would become more of a challenge to be dislodged. The sooner it is recognised the less clouded will be policy options for countering the menace. Meanwhile, the army apparently is trying to steer clear of open involvement in politics to restore its stature, making it dependent upon the civilians in regard to security issues.
Ultimately, unless there is a comprehensive and coherent strategy to tackle the militants of all shades, the state of paralysis in the face of the militant threat to national security will persist. This will allow the militants to enhance their capabilities making them much more dangerous and violent, and potentially create a major problem with the United States. janassakzai200@gmail.com
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