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Guest Column
Fifty Fifty |
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Pakistan reaches the tipping point There are indications the government may have finally made up its mind to hit back at terror. The latest wave of attacks, which has prompted people to ask what is the State doing to protect them, seems to have caused that. Nasim Zehra
Everyone
seems to be asking the obvious question now: Will this ever end? Who will protect us? Who will stop this? The terrorists’ dark and deadly scorecard in Pakistan has suddenly shot up. The year 2014 has had a gruesome start. The rapidly widening net of suicide attacks and bombs set off by terrorist groups ranging from the TTP to the LeJ is devouring citizens at a frightening speed. By now far more than the often quoted figures of 40,000 civilians and 5,000 security personnel have been killed.
The government has failed to address Pakistan’s most critical problem. Its repeated failure, even after announcing dates, in formulating a National Security Policy, speaks to the government’s inability to even understand the problem. At best, the government has focused on lecturing people on the virtues of dialogue with the TTP, made contradictory statements on what steps have been taken to initiate the dialogue, sought help from opposition leader Imran Khan in that, issued condemnations of terrorist attacks, or announced compensation for those killed in the attacks. In contrast, the terrorist groups have not lacked in confidence, capacity or clarity of objective. They have remained on the offensive and conducted suicide bombings, jailbreaks, targeted killings, intimidation. With the latest wave of attacks that has claimed the lives of 22 pilgrims die in Mastung (including two schoolchildren), three TV people, members of a Tableeghi Jamat in Peshawer, a woman administering polio drops to babies in Karachi, and soldiers near the GHQ among others, Pakistanis have had enough. Even as the fear of mounting terrorist attacks spreads, so does anger and frustration. People remember with awe and respect how the 15-year-old student Aitezaz Hasan died in Hangu performing the service he assigned himself. Hasan was blown up by a suicide bomber who he tackled to stop from entering his school that had a thousand-plus students inside. Many are outraged at why a 15-year-old had to die like this. In Quetta the Hazara community, which is regularly targeted by the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, repeated their unique, if heart-wrenching, form of protest after their pilgrims were killed in Mastung. In the freezing cold, they sat in the streets with the bodies and refused to bury them until the killers were found. For the people, the tipping point has been reached. Where is the State, why can’t it protect its citizens, they ask. They recall with fear and admiration Chaudhry Aslam, one of Pakistan’s bravest, if controversial, police officers who was killed by a car bomb in Karachi. A determined demolisher of the TTP networks, Aslam inspired peoples’ confidence in an environment where terrorist groups have ransacked their lives at will. Terrorists have now begun openly threatening and killing members of the Pakistani media. Potentially in such an environment, sections within society can begin to surrender before terrorists. In Pakistan, however, people have demonstrated the ability to resist and fight back, especially when the threat becomes clear and present. Of the mainstream political parties, the MQM and ANP have been the most vocal critics of terrorist groups yet over the past few years. On four different occasions almost all parties have passed consensus resolutions, calling for dialogue with these groups. Equally they have attacked the illegal unilateral drone attacks by the US. On tackling terrorism, most parties have spoken with a forked tongue, with multiple meanings to multiple audiences. In recent weeks, however, the PPP’s young chairman Bilawal Bhutto, who has launched a twitter offensive against terrorists, has promised to support the government’s decision to go against all terrorist groups. Bhutto strongly opposed dialogue with those who neither accept Pakistan’s Constitution nor live by the law. Nevertheless, there seems to be a realisation within sections of the government that this collective vacillation on how to tackle the unending curse is now proving too costly. Some action against terrorists is already underway in North Waziristan, Panjgur, Karachi and Islamabad. Political parties, including the MQM, ANP and PPP, are willing to support military force against the terrorists. The army, which has long been the prime target of TTP attacks, has also conducted raids in North Waziristan. The demand that terrorist hubs in North Waziristan be attacked is gaining broader support. Even Imran Khan, the lead proponent of dialogue, has asked that the Prime Minister call political leaders so that he and the army chief may brief them on the security situation. The PTI leader has said in a recent interview that if the army conducts an operation his party will support the army. Early indicators are that the government too has finally reached the tipping point. The latest wave of terrorism seems to have caused that. We may soon witness the end of the government’s ad hoc and confused response to tackling terrorism. But with that clarity will come the real test of Pakistan’s entire political leadership. The battle against terrorism will be long, hard and gruesome. Will the leadership be able to ready the people of Pakistan for that?
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Fifty Fifty
One
of the saddest aspects of Sunanda Tharoor’s death was that while she was very well connected on the social media, she appears to have had no real friend by her side towards the end. Apart from her husband, there was no one of any consequence that she met with just before her death. And in the preceding few days, as she became increasingly isolated in that hotel room, it should be no surprise that she turned to Twitter to express her anguish — repeating over and over again to journalists and ‘social media friends’ that she suspected a Pakistani journalist was stalking her husband and wanted to break up their marriage. These are very private sentiments, indeed, but she chose a public platform for them, perhaps because the lines between the public and the private had become completely blurred for her.
But there are far too many of us who, like her, forget that there is a huge difference between sharing a secret with a close friend, and expressing something on the social media. After all, many of those we connect with on the Internet are people we have never met in our lives, and might never meet, either. It is not as though they are our confidantes. Thus, for all we know, these people could be problem makers — delusional individuals who sometimes feed into our anxieties. The fact that Sunanda, over and over again, repeated her concern in the week before her death that she had been betrayed is no secret. It was obvious that she was in a very vulnerable space. Thus, one wonders if she would have been saved had she been in touch with a really good friend, or even a professional psychiatrist or a doctor. Equally disturbing is that she had such large doses of anti-anxiety medication. Some investigation should be done as to how the doctor concerned was permitted to give her such a huge quantity of medication that is only bought under prescription. Most of us know that no one sells you such a lethal amount. Even worse was the fact that she was on a self-imposed starvation diet. For anyone who was close to her, or had been with her at the time, this behaviour should have actually rung alarm bells. If any depressed person is left alone, with the freedom to consume huge amounts of mood-altering medication, what can possibly be the tragic outcome? Depression is a dangerous disease, and it is recognised that a depressed person cannot be treated purely through medication. A regular therapeutic programme has to be worked out, especially if the cause for the depression is known. In this case her depression and mental breakdown could have been linked to marital discord. Just because Sunanda presented herself as a confident woman of the world, rich and successful, married to a man who is polished and sophisticated, why did we forget that she was actually, in front of our eyes, spiralling out of control. When she was making those strange remarks on TV (for instance, about the so-called ‘other woman’ being an ISI agent) why did no one — even among her social media friends —not insist that she see a doctor? Why instead was a statement issued that they were happily married and that their accounts had been hacked? By brushing away her obvious concerns, why was it important that the charade of happiness had to be maintained? It was so reminiscent of the old days when women were supposed to maintain their silence. Sunanda chose to speak up, but on a platform alas, which comprises mostly of strangers who don’t really care, and who might even be there just for the celebrity kick. Thus sadly, her hopelessness was overshadowed by both the intrinsic cynicism and isolated construct of the social media. I cannot claim that I knew her well, but we did meet once in a while at social gatherings and literary festivals where Shashi Tharoor, like us, was also speaking. She always seemed cheerful, except the last time when we met a few months ago. We had a brief conversation and then, a little later, I noticed that she had abruptly left the gathering. She seemed thinner and less vibrant than before, and she had come alone. Of course, I put no special significance on either her appearance or the fact Shashi Tharoor was not with her. But later that afternoon, I found her sitting alone in a room, texting to someone on her mobile phone. I thought I would try to speak to her, but she seemed so absorbed in what she was doing that I thought better of it. Yet that image is just such an apt — yet heartbreaking — way to remember her. |
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