Daily Times

With all the hype about counter terrorism these days, the formulation of winning strategies and how we have curtailed extremism successfully, there is still a lot of doubt if this is the real situation on the ground. If one only takes a stroll through any sector in the federal capital of Islamabad, the horrors of the prevalent circumstances dawn upon us. The capital is filled with posters and placards put there by Hizb ut-Tahrir (HuT), calling for a “Caliphate” and overthrow of a legitimate and democratic regime. For anyone not familiar with HuT, this is an internationally banned organisation. The eerily long time these placards have stayed on display gives the impression that no one is ready to challenge them. This is all taking place in a city where no banner can be displayed without administrative approval. Similarly, the donation box at a grocery store, in which customers generously donate their loose change, may on careful examination belong to some banned outfit or an organisation affiliated to it. The blood of Shahbaz Bhatti and Salmaan Taseer is still fresh, along with the numerous other innocent Pakistanis who die every day due to terrorist-related violence and our citizens themselves seem to be arming them with their money. Our state and policy circles are unaware that the extremists have not been curtailed in northwest Pakistan but have actually infiltrated the capital under the guise of saviours.

With millions of dollars of international aid flowing into the country in the name of countering terrorism, it is surprising that our country is standing at the same juncture where it was a decade ago. Our people still believe that we have been fighting a war sponsored by the US and the west against our own brethren. Our people blame “hidden hands” and “foreign powers” for any untoward incident (including the floods and earthquake), rationalising that they are out to destabilise Pakistan. We are still distinguishing between terrorists, even at policy level, and categorising them as friendly or controllable and non-friendly or uncontrollable. Our policy is still based on dealing with the devil and considering some terrorist groups as a lesser evil. These groups are still being pampered for some future utilisation. The mullah-militant nexus is out there for everyone to see. Religious political parties are hand in hand taking out rallies with the open support of these outfits, aiming to acquire the limelight. Unfortunately, even the mainstream parties are either cosily accommodating them or are preferring to stay silent. Let me rephrase: the prevalent situation is not of that of a decade ago, it has actually worsened.

What have our policy circles been doing since this war on terror began? Were we ever sincere while coming into this war? Why are fingers being pointed at us in the international arena, questioning our intentions? It is getting difficult by the minute to defend Pakistan on the global platform. While at every forum, we try to reach out and list down our sacrifices and efforts against terrorism, our international partners are concerned about the outcomes and rightly so. Two of the main figures of our federation have been assassinated only in the last three months in the name of religion and there has been no outcry over it. Every sphere of our lives has been infiltrated by religious extremists, who exploit religion every chance they get. They have, most importantly, infiltrated the media as it is a tool that can be used to shape public opinion. In the garb of freedom of speech and promotion of opinion and ideas, the militant media has been brainwashing our people. They openly promote the activities of banned outfits and terrorist organisations in the print and electronic media. These groups are conveniently given the spotlight by airing and publishing their statements and promotion of their so-called philanthropic activities. The anchorpersons on various news channels also seem to be promoting their viewpoints.

It is evident that throughout these years we have been fire fighting and that also with the wrong tools. It was only when the militants came too close for comfort that military operations were launched. So far there has not been a single decision taken during this conflict that has been accepted across the board. This accounts for the half-hearted attempts being made by the state. Our efforts have not only been half-hearted but are only reactive, rather than attempting something proactive and turn the tables by forcing the extremists on the back foot. Our policy makers have been so far looking to triumph in this conflict only by force, but there are other aspects as well that have to be looked into. The root causes and the main elements involved in the rise of extremism within the country are not being addressed. The Taliban apologists in our midst and the right-wing religious parties have always looked towards sabotaging any sincere effort to curb terrorism. They have been able to successfully convince the ignorant masses that this war has been imposed on us and we are falling prey to an imperialist plan.

It is imperative that while there is still time, we should retrace our steps and implement a multifaceted policy to counter the extremist insurgency at every level. Our media, education sector and our politics should be cleared of these elements. Instead of political parties bowing down to these elements for electoral point scoring, they should face them and help the general public in identifying and rejecting these radicals. The policy based on strategic depth and vague ideologies should be abandoned for good, as the resulting fallout has proved to be the biggest threat to the sovereignty of Pakistan. Perhaps it is time that the progressive sections, which have kept their silence in the face of the onslaught of the extremist quarters, should come out with force. This is a crucial stage and if the progressive sections do not take a stand, then the extremists will flourish and flood the minds of the masses with their poison.

The writer is an Islamabad-based development consultant. She can be reached atcoordinator@individualland.com