Sir: Terrorism in Pakistan has become a major and highly destructive phenomenon in recent years. The annual death toll from terrorist attacks has risen from 164 in 2003 to 3,318 in 2009, with a total of 35,000 Pakistanis killed between September 11, 2001 and May 2011. Its roots can be traced back from 1979, when there was an effort to kick out Russia from Afghanistan. But the problem became severe after 9/11. And in 2011, it became a menace for our motherland. I do not want to go into history of terrorism in Pakistan. But the million dollar question is: what are the ways to eradicate or to overcome this most dangerous problem. So that as a result our nation can be brought back to the road of progress in all fields of life.
The first and foremost things are unity and commitment, which are very important to achieve national objectives. All stakeholders of society need to unite and become committed to this one agenda to eradicate terrorism from every nook and corner of the country. But after a very bloody war, we still see some of the stakeholders of society who are supporting the extremist designs of terrorist groups. I do not clearly know what their intensions are. But one thing is very clear that they are working against country’s betterment. We need to bring back these people to the right direction using the process of dialogue.
Parliamentarians can play a very constructive role in this regard. They can use their influence in the right direction to convince the people of their constituencies to say “No to all sorts of terrorist activities”. They can easily inculcate in the minds of people the vision of terrorist-free society. But it is also a fact that we still did not see any useful role from these so-called representatives of people. It is high time they must come forward to save the future of Pakistan.
KAINAT RASOOL SIYAL
Karachi