Now or Never

In the crisis generated by the horrific tragedy of Peshawar, Nawaz Sharif

appears to have found a rebirth from a near collapse of his supine
government. In the surge of agitation led by Imran Khan against his
regime, and the incompetence of his government to handle the issues
facing the nation, his reputation as a politician had touched the lowest
ebb, and there was little hope that he would complete his full term. His
engaging the Taliban in a thoughtless and prolonged course of dialogues
for too long much to their advantage, his inability to take bold and timely
decisions, and his failure to control prices of consumer goods etc. were
all negative indicators on the basis of which most independent political
surveys had already declared that his regime had lost credentials to
remain in power.

In June last under the bold command of the present Army Chief a full
scale military offensive had been launched against the Taliban which is
successfully gaining ground. But internally the government appeared to
be as complacent as it had always been. For instance, on 18th January
2014, the Interior minister announced with much fanfare the
establishment of National Counter-terrorism Authority (NACTA), with an
ambitious plan to create a joint Directorate of 26 intelligence agencies
for enhancing the law enforcement, but nothing was ever heard about it
later. Even after lapse of a full one year, NACTA only exists on paper, and
is functionally dead. Besides, all terrorist organizations earlier banned by
the government are still operating openly and with impunity with

different names but under the same leaders which did not bother the
government. In most cases the ruling party itself freely gave party tickets
to the leaders and the activists of these out-lawed organizations and also
ensured their success in the last general election, some of whom adore
the benches in the Parliament. Thus it would not be wrong to say that
the government was following a policy of appeasement towards Taliban
bordering on hypocrisy. Publically they were debunked but inwardly they
were protected and even patronized. The policy against terrorism was
also ambivalent. The government patronized the terrorist organizations
with anti-Indian bias, but remained aloof and detached from those
responsible for insurrection in the Fata areas. There too, distinction
between good and bad Taliban existed for a long time till that distinction
was done away recently. The logic of keeping and later doing away that
distinction is not yet clear. The pro-Taliban terrorists formed the major
bulk of our religious parties and sectarian organizations which mixed and
mingled with our common people, who came to accept the Taliban cult
as a way of life for good or for bad. A survey carried out by 2014 Global
Attitudes of Washington based Pew Research Centre shows that 59% of
those questioned in Pakistan rejected the TTP but 33% were indifferent
towards the terrorist outfit. The result is that a startling 60 million
Pakistanis did not have any problem with the extremist worldview of the
Taliban.

In this background 16th Decembers heart-wrenching Peshawar tragedy

shook the entire nation and proved a watershed in Pakistans history. It
was no less than Pakistans 9/11 which brought in its wake some
developments which are both unique and far-reaching. For the first time
in its history, it brought the civil-military leadership as a solid block on

one table under one roof. The presence of General Raheel Sharif proved
a great cementing bond. Without him this unity was hard to obtain,
because some of our pro-Taliban religious parties could not muster
courage to articulate their traditional stands vis--vis Taliban in view of
the solemnity of the occasion. Resultantly a full unanimity was achieved
on 20-point National Action Plan, a rare feat demonstrated in recent
times. This unanimity may prove to be tenuous in future, with Imran
Khan wriggling out of it if his demands are not met in the on-going
parleys with the government.

There is no doubt that this National Action Plan has been devised with
great care after fully reviewing the prevalent realities. Steps like
execution of convicted terrorists, creation of military courts, deployment
of a special counter-terrorism force, formulation of a comprehensive
policy to deal with Afghan refugees and settlement of IDPs with ban
against glorification of terrorist organizations etc. have been much
debated in the press. The public may have divided opinion on most of
these points, but it is generally agreed that the Plan must be
implemented in the larger interest of the nation. Now the real test of
Nawaz government would be in its will and seriousness to implement
this Plan. The past record of the government however does not bode well
for the future.

Even a bigger challenge awaits the Nawaz regime. For many months and
years, pledges had been made to crack down on violent Islamists with
Taliban leanings, but nothing concrete was ever done. As said earlier, it
had been a policy of appeasement towards parties overtly or covertly

siding with Taliban ideology and the government appeared to patronize

them out of fear for the nuisance they carried. Thus a culture of fear and
hatred had come to stalk our streets and alleys. This culture even
governed our print and electronic media not sparing even some of our
public institutions. Nobody could dare oppose Taliban ideology in public
for fear of his or her life. Many distinguished personages were attacked
and killed for expressing views contrary to their creed. Freedom of
thought and speech were stifled and nobody felt safe. The real challenge
before Nawaz Sharif is not the creation of a counter-terrorist force, or
registration of Madrissas, or even controlling pro-Taliban influence on
the media. It concerns primarily with adopting ways and measures to put
an end to the culture of fear and hatred and insecurity which has seeped
into the vitals of this society, making it more susceptible to further
deleterious influences of the organizations like the ISIS etc. It is
heartening to see that his 20-Point Action Plan also includes checking reemergence of proscribed organizations and blocking their funds,
dismantling their networks and showing them zero tolerance, which
indeed is a tall order. Now the real test of Nawaz Sharif is how far he
succeeds in achieving even half of these goals.

In this context, one cannot overlook the question of religion which is the
core issue in our war against the Taliban, and which has been made to
instigate a mischief against the State dubbing it as un-Islamic. In the first
place, the Founder of this Nation never intended it to be a theocratic
state, and wanted it to retain a secular image where all citizens,
irrespective of their faiths, should have equal rights and duties toward
the state (reference Quaids speech of 11th August 1948). If, however,
Islam was later declared as the state religion, then proper safeguards

were provided in the constitution and the apex court was given powers
to strike down any law found repugnant to the Quran and Sunnah.
Besides a Council of Islamic Ideology was also set up to tender advice in
religious matters. If despite all this some section of people still wanted
to impose their own brand of Islam with force to disrupt the state
structure, that section must be crushed with the full might of the state.
And the people having leanings towards Taliban must bear this fact in
mind that Pakistan is as good an Islamic state in the present-day world
as any other state could be. The difference, if any is not in the state-craft,
but in the individuals own willingness to follow the pristine teachings of
Islam.

Another good development is in the improvement of Pak-Afghan

relations and the new Afghan leaderships unequivocal willingness to
bolster security ties between the two countries, in so far the influx of
Taliban in each others territory is concerned. Throughout the Karzai
reign, such an understanding could not be reached which was why the
menace of Taliban could not be effectively controlled. The U.S too has
added its weight to this understanding. Nawaz Sharif would do well to
reciprocate the visit of Afghan President as soon as he sets in motion his
20-Point Plan to ensure that a permanent accord is signed between the
two countries to check Talibans intrusion from either side, along with
their repatriation on mutual basis.

Point 12 on the Action Plan relates to the administrative and

development reforms in FATA with immediate focus on return of IDPs.
It is not clear whether this would also include bringing the tribal areas

into the mainstream of the ordinary laws of the land (of course with
necessary and temporary exceptions) so that when their areas are
cleansed of the terrorist elements after military operation, their further
development could be possible alongside the rest of the country. This
would be even essential from defense and administrative point of view
to check future influx of foreign elements from creating the same
situation which had brought the country to this pass. Without these
measures the entire crusade against terrorism would come to naught.

If fate has catapulted Nawaz regime from a near collapse to a state

where imminent threat of agitation and dharnas has suddenly
vanished, all political parties have stood behind him like a solid rock, the
new Afghan leadership is keen to fight alongside him against the forces
of darkness, and the entire armed forces are at one with him eager to
obey his orders, he has got the necessary carte blanche to effectively
execute his Plan of Action. Rarely a Prime Minister has had so much
power and such a congenial environment. With the will and
determination he has displayed during these last days, he can decisively
act now, or if he doesnt, then the opportunity would be lost forever. For
him, it is now or never!