Daily Times

I questioned in my article on last Saturday (Daily Times, September 14, 2013) if the All Parties Conference’s (APC’s) unconditional offer to the Taliban was’surrender’ or not. I put a question mark after the word surrender, and then stated in some detail the conditions that will define the negotiations as surrender or not.

It is with grief and disappointment that I have reached the conclusion that the APC’s offer of negotiations is an unconditional surrender! It has left no dignity for the nation. It is an absolutely disgraceful sell-out, with bowed head and hands together in forgiveness. Even more painful is the silent support of the army to this surrender.

This surrender is a slap on the face of all the parties. And even this extremely insulting agreement for negotiations is rebuffed by the Taliban, adding injury to insult. Who will now deny that the General Officer Commanding (GOC) Swat has not been killed along with a Lieutenant Colonel and his staff? We released the TTP criminals from jails, but paid Rs 25 million ransom for Wapda employees from Gomal Zam Dam!

Major General Sanaullah, GOC, Malakand Division, was martyred along with Lieutenant Colonel Tausif and Lance Naik Irfan Sattar, in an attack in Upper Dir on Sunday, September 15. May God bless their souls and give their families the fortitude to bear the loss. These martyrs laid down their lives in the service of the nation to protect the lives of Pakistanis; there can be no deaths nobler than these.

The murderers are the Taliban militants who have promptly accepted responsibility. They have done so after the unconditional offer of the APC had been made and ‘accepted’ by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Can it be called ‘acceptance’? No. They actually ‘welcomed’ it. They must have welcomed it as a beginning to total submission and surrender and preferred to send a strong message in response. The message they sent is to the armed forces as well as the politicians. I read their message like this:

“Good that you have understood that you are no match for the TTP resolve of brutality and its resources for militancy. Good that your will is broken. But we need to crush your willpower and self-respect completely and forever. So just see what we can do before we even think of talking to you.”

The TTP has also laid down pre-conditions for talks, including release of all their prisoners. Remember: the TTP has not offered to release any Pakistani prisoner in return! They want confidence building measures before negotiations. It is a ploy to get concessions; the ‘settlement’ of the issues never happens.

The TTP is not ready for any negotiations. The negotiation bogey is a trap, and the first step towards total and actual surrender of Pakistan’s defence mechanism, including the armed forces, and preparation for total control of Pakistan’s assets including its nuclear arsenal.

Some readers may be shocked by my analysis. It only means they are waking up too late in the day. Please recall that if this shock does not wake up the nation then it will become its fate. Remember that the loss of life this Sunday is not the first one. The Pakistan army and its allied paramilitary forces, like the Rangers, have lost one serving Lieutenant General and three Major Generals and almost 30,000 soldiers earlier, in the line of duty. Some major army establishments have been under attack in Karachi and also the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

Have all the martyrs laid down their lives just to be included in the Yaum-e-Shuhada (Martyrs Day)?

Could it be true that the armed forces led by General Pervez Kayani are also a party to this surrender?

There is a nightmare for those who are sleeping. Hear the wakeup call. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up with a shriek…’No…no…no…’

Say NO to negotiations now. Pick up the courage and face the militant threat with unity. Encourage the politicians and the armed forces to stand up and reflect the national resolve and sentiment. Politicians must stop hiding behind the slogan of the ‘US war’. Pakistani lives and nationhood are at stake. Go ahead and protest to the UN against drone attacks. But to surrender in front of militants against Pakistan is not acceptable. It is a war against the nation and the country. It is a war, and wars are always thrust on a nation in one way or the other. Nobody willingly invites war or the aggressor. Such invitations are only given by conspirators in history who align with the aggressor and extend support from inside and commit treachery. If Imran Khan and Mian Nawaz Sharif and their colleagues in the APC did not understand it before then they need to understand it now.

The martyrdom of the GOC Swat may be the last wake up call for the politicians as well as the heads of the establishment, including the armed forces. If they can come out of their slumber, depression, and the comfort of cosy offices, and stand united with the nation to fight the enemy inside, then they will succeed with the support of the Pakistani nation. Please do not take it lying down. Cowardice is not part of the history of this land and should not be a part of the history of this land. There will be loss of life in an honourable fight, and that sacrifice will raise the head of the nation with pride and fill hearts with gratitude. Stand up, say ‘NO’ to blackmail and make the nation proud of you.

Otherwise, it is simply surrender, not a negotiation.

The writer is the former CEO Pakistan National Council of the Arts; Chairman Fruit processing Industries; Chairman UNESCO Theatre Institute Pakistan and COO ICTV, USA. He is the author of Melluhas of the Indus Valley 8000BC to 500 BC. He can be reached at naeemtahir37@gmail.com