Pakistan expects a
historic general election in 2013, which might be jeopardised by terrorist attacks. For the first time, a momentous democratic transition in which one democratically elected government after completing its full term succeeding another is about to take place. Yet many suspect that if the fresh bout of violence from militant groups continues, furthering chaos and lawlessness, the expected general election might not happen.
Militancy continues to be the hydra-headed beast that the top Pakistani leadership has failed to slay. The critical question remains: is the Pakistani leadership willing to tackle this breeding problem or is it comfortable with remaining habitually complacent?
The New Year brought shameful and dreaded assaults by extremist groups on the Pakistani Shia community. Groups such as Lashkar-e-Jhangvi have long regarded Shia Muslims as heretics. Stepping up attacks recently, the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (a banned organization) are thought to have set up several training camps for militants, and have access to large quantities of weapons and explosives.
The brutality started when almost 100 people were killed and 121 injured in a suicide car bomb blasts in Quetta’s Alamdar Road area on the night of 10th of January, 2013.The attack was owned by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. A majority of the people killed in the Alamdar Road blasts belonged to the Hazara Shia community. The massacre led to a mass protest carrying coffins of 87 demanding the removal of the Balochistan government, imposition of Governor rule in the province and deployment of army in Quetta. The Hazara community bemoaned that a severe lack of provincial governance had lately turned Quetta as a killing field for the religious-ethnic minority. They refused to bury their loved ones until their demands were accepted. On the 13th of January, the government succumbed to their demands and the prime minister after dismissing Chief Minister Nawab Aslam Raisani placed Balochistan under the Governor rule.
The aggression continued when the same Hazara Shia community was targeted again in Quetta on the 16th of February, 2013. This time at least 88 people were killed and almost 200 wounded when a large explosion occurred near a market at the busy Kirani Road. The casualties included a large number of women and children. Following the attack, the major protests took place not only in Quetta but also other parts of Pakistan. The banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi again accepted responsibility for the deadly bomb blast and vowed to continue its anti-Shia operations despite the Governor’s rule.
After a fortnight, Pakistan saw terrorist attacks on Shia community sprouting in Karachi. Another mass bloodshed was witnessed on the evening of 3rd of March, 2013 in Abbas town (a Shia-dominated area of Karachi) whereat least 45 people, including women and children, were killed and 140 injured after two powerful bomb blasts. No group claimed responsibility for planting these bombs, which went off near a mosque where worshippers were leaving for evening prayers. The people in Karachi went on strike protesting against the attack bringing Karachi to a halt. For the next couple of days schools and businesses remained closed paralysing Pakistan’s financial capital.
Following Karachi’s attack major public unrest prompted the attention of the Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhray who after visiting Karachi took suo motu notice of the bombing. The public anger again was directed at the government and the main complaint was that the law enforcement agencies and other government officials did not reach the venue in time for the rescue operation after the attack. As a result, the civilians struggled to manage the situation by bringing out bodies from the debris for hours.
Already hearing a case over the earlier bombings in Quetta, the Supreme Court ordered authorities to come up with a strategy to protect Shias in Quetta and Karachi. Consequently, the top police official, the Inspector General of Sindh was also dismissed.
Around the same time Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani visited Karachi where he was briefed on the security situation in the country’s financial capital. On his return a corps commanders held a meeting under him at the Army General Headquarters in Rawalpindi. Discussing the country’s internal security situation along with professional matters pertaining to the armed forces, the military leadership was given a special briefing on the law and order situation in the cities of Karachi and Quetta.
The next day General Kayani told President Asif Zardari that the army was willing to do whatever was required, such as the 2009 operation in Swat, to achieve stability in the currently troubled provinces of Sindh and Balochistan.
Meanwhile, Pakistani government faced strong international condemnation after the attacks. In an official statement made by the US Ambassador Richard Olson, intolerance and indiscriminate violence against innocent civilians posed a threat to a prosperous future for Pakistani citizens. The spokeswoman of Chinese Foreign Ministry Hua Chunying through a press briefing told that China opposes all forms of terrorism. The French Foreign Ministry Philippe Lalliot said that France offers its condolences to the victims’ relatives and reiterates its support to the Pakistani people in the fight against terrorism. And finally a recent statement by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, “There cannot be normalisation of relations between our two countries unless and until the terror machine, which is still active in Pakistan, is brought under control.”
A lack of comprehensive counterterrorism operation is fast dragging the country into international isolation, domestic discord and the epicentre of global terrorist camps. If urgent and sincere efforts are not taken by the top Pakistani leadership in rooting out terrorism, militant organisations might interfere in Pakistan’s first democratic transition.
In case militant groups continue to attack innocent civilians in major cities, military operations might be the only available option to provide respite to the already bleeding cities. If a military operation takes place then the chances to hold a general election seem rather remote.
If the political and military leadership prioritises a militant free Pakistan over a bloody general election by backing a national interim government to provide the much needed immediate relief for a short period of time, they will demonstrate that they are ready to embrace this small hiccup for the larger national interest. In that case, Pakistan may not commemorate its extraordinary democratic transition but would indeed experience an equally critical much needed defining moment in its civil military relationship, worthy of celebration.
The writer is a Doctoral Candidate at School of Advanced Study, University of London. Her research is focusing on political communication in post 9/11 Pakistan