‘Bomb, bomb phata’
These are precisely the lyrics of an Ali Azmat song that’s been sailing high on the video charts. Why? Because they reflect fear based on reality; on how life has come to be lived in our cities, towns and far off mountainous valleys alike. The suicide bombing targeting the CID SSP’s home in Karachi’s DHA district on Monday morning during the school-rush hour is but the latest case in point.
The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan hurriedly claimed responsibility for the attack which left eight dead, including a schoolboy and his mother who were on their way to school.
This and many other such assaults in our cities, on schools and shrines, are not the handy work of CIA drones which Imran Khan and others, like the Jamaat-i-Islami and Shahbaz Sharif, are so worried about. The last mentioned had requested the Taliban last year to spare Punjab because his government was opposed to the American action against the extremists hiding in Pakistan. One has yet to hear a word of condemnation coming out of such leaders’ big and loud mouths when it’s Pakistani extremists targeting their own innocent people. Is the killing by US drones more lethal and thus an attack on our sovereignty than that carried out by our own, home grown militants? It is the latter for the most part who have taken away much of the state’s sovereignty within its own borders by eroding the state’s ability to enforce its writ, to protect its citizens from the enemies within.
How many such terrorists from our own midst have we been able to nab and bring to justice thus far? Even when they are caught and arraigned in a court of law they manage to be set free by the judges for lack of evidence, and because of sloppy prosecution cases prepared against them that will not stand the court’s scrutiny. Not only that, known militant leaders spouting hate and venom, like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar, are left to preach hate and intolerance, along with nutty televangelists like Zaid Hamid and Aamir Liaquat Husain.
People like Farhat Hashmi and her Al Huda deputies, too, are free to hold forth, openly declaring Muslims not so puritan in their way of life heretics. On another bizarre plain, the media’s darling also remains Fauzia Siddiqui, the venom-spouting sister of Dr Aafia Siddiqui, who is now out, together with the JI on a fundraiser, to collect 15 crore rupees to defend her convicted sister in the US, this at a time, when money should be raised to alleviate the sufferings of the flood-hit people in Sindh. In Punjab, where the Dengue epidemic has spread, the Punjab Assembly meets only to call the virus God’s wrath visiting upon us for our sins. President Zardari too called for a day of prayers to ward off the curses of floods and Dengue! This is precisely what ‘Talibanisation’ (radicalisation) of society is all about. While in Afghanistan it was the illiterate masses who were Talibanised, it is the urban middle class in Pakistan which is becoming the tool of such rapid mass radicalisation.
This has to be stopped, and here’s how: the state should declare war on anti-social elements. To start with, hate speeches must be banned on all public forums, and more so on television that beams straight into our homes. Hate-mongers must be apprehended and brought to justice using due process of law, and not through summery prosecution by some special courts that have little credibility with the public and which in turn add to sympathy for them. The state needs to come out clean and put its resolve before the public that it is doing this in public interest and not at the instance of the US or any other foreign power.
As for the army establishment, which makes it its business to comment on foreign policy all the time, perhaps it too is required to tell the people that if ordered to assist the civilian security apparatus, as it did in Swat, it is willing to fight terrorists who are out on a killing spree in our own cities and towns. How could there be any external security when internal security stands so compromised, and of which the army itself has been a target, as the militants’ siege of the GHQ in Rawalpindi two years ago made it so very clear.
Before looking for strategic depth in Afghanistan, we should be reclaiming that same depth in our own country. This cannot be done by pursuing only the CIA sleuths that are there in Pakistan, but also through getting on the tracks of home-grown militants who have terrorised the average citizen.
The writer is a member of the staff at Dawn Newspaper.
I agree, sir !
Very disappointed to say the least when I found out my comments in response to a reader's observations were not published yesterday, whereas, another poster's ideas were given credence and published.
When the newspaper claims to have an unbiased opinion according to the disclaimer attached with all features and blogs, how is it that the policy of picking and choosing what to publish is practised on here?
And to clarify there was no hate speech or malicious content towards anybody or group in my post.
Makes you wonder how the writer's approach of curbing all things 'anti-social' shall be put into practise! Who shall be judge of that and what will be the critteria for it? Too much gray area. And if it is either black or white, it is still a form of an extremism.
Nice analysis
Pakistan needs a Great Wall of China to ensure that its Afghanistan border is completely sealed. In Today's world nothing is impossible. However the people who are looking for the 'Strategic Depth' wont let this happen.
I agree with everything in your article except for curbing free speech, just because it happens to be hateful. Freedom of expression should be the right of all citizens. The best way to combat the meance of hateful speech in the media is to offer something better to the general public, not start imposing censorship based on one's view of what hate speech is. Otherwise, you will be going down a very slippery sloap from which there is no return.
Congrats., Mr. Razvi on such a realistic cum analytical write up and no one will ever deviate from being in agreement with you, save the words ! Needless to over emphasize the issue, the only pin to redress, directs to the emergence of a masiah, of course not from the existing set – up.
War of all sorts should be stopped
The militants are not many in a society but their wepon is terror which scares almost everybody. The only solution to the present problem is Military rule which can will have summary trials and wipe out the militants. Police nd politicians re corrupt and Judges have their families to take care. Who is left which has no identification and not afraid of terrorists – the Military. Wake up Pakistan, wake up.
Well said Ramalik.
Mr. Rizvi, as a politically astute person, you should know that unless the people rise up and come to the streets, nothing is going to make things better for Pakistan – not the army, not the politicians, not maulvis, not anyone else. The people have to take their destinies in their own hands.
I disagree. It may take 1000 years before all Pakistanis will learn to be united on living together in peace. But for today, Pakistan needs a leader like Mustafa Kamal of Turkey or a militay dictator to clean Pakistan from all militants, terrorists and extremists for the sake of future generation and then hand over the government to elected people who are much better human beings as this day.
I am a father whose child attends a school right across the street from where this blast took place, we were actually in the process of getting in the car to drive her to school when this happened. If it had happened an hour later and with more explosive power, results would have been catastrophic! There are four schools literally right next to each other with thousands of children.
While the article is no doubt an intelligent piece of work and brings to light many important and otherwise ignored issues, what I want to see the most is people taking active interest in preparing against such attacks and other disasters in Pakistan. Okay, so we know what the situation is, it happens almost every single day, we talk about it, we watch it constantly on the TV, our lives are interrupted by them yet as long as it does not happen TO us, well.. talking is all we do.
When do the people get off their back sides and start to take action? I am not talking about picking up weapons, I am talking about disaster prevention and risk reduction. I am talking about building communities where everyone acts as one. Maybe that is just too much work and talking about others not doing the right thing is easier than doing the right thing ourselves.
This has become a very, very sad place to live in and so far, there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
Stay Well – Stay Safe!
A wonderful analysis and thought provoking article.
Premier Lee of Singapore is claimed to have said once that he never met more people pre-occupied with the after life than the present than in Pakistan. The excessive permeation of religion in every facet of life in Pakistan, which has markedly accelerated during the last ten years is at the core of what ails the country. Newspapers like the Dawn try hard to mitigate this trend but their readership is limited. It is the duty of the electronic media to eschew greed and not promote those programs that further intensify the out of control religiosity which is creating so much havoc in the country.
As far as the drone attacks are concerned, it is well to remember that the savages who kill hundreds of innocent people in Pakistan, and their fellow travellors are not our 'brothers'; they are our bitterest enemies and killing them and those whom they protect, as the drone attacks do, is no infringment of the soveirgnity of the country but is in actuality a favor to us.
An excellent article with great insight and analysis that speaks the truth. Murtza and another scores of courageous, honest and unbiased Pakistani journalists, who are credit to their craft, are the only hope for Pakistan. That said, why don't you guys publish your writings in local Urdu papers and educate the masses who desperately need to know and expose the hate mongers. I hate to say but, Murtza, you are preaching to the quire.
May THE GOOD LORD bring peace and stability to Pakistan.
Brilliant Article by the author. My view is Let Democracy to stay first. This happens in a budding democracy. If President prays to ward off evil spirits then wait for a time when a President behaves like a President.
We all know the answer to the problem but I think a good time is coming to Pakistan. Long Live Democracy in Pakistan.
well done, other great article
Urdu media should also start writing/presenting such facts with more logics and rational thinking.
disagree on one point that is about the god's wrath. i might not be a practising muslim, but there are accounts in Quran and Hadith that direct towards this. for example earthquakes and floods etc. so yes, this virus may be god's wrath. but this in no way means that one must stop to utilize intelligence and resources to eradicate the damage.
very good article…and i totally agree that there should be some control over what private television sells….its soo frustrating to sit at home and watch the innocent people die….as a youth it seems like there is no hope left…:(
An excellent article written by Mr Murtaza which throughs light on the basic issue confronted by Pakistani people who are suffering at the hands of incompetence and insincerity of our political leadership and their parties. This is high time now and it would be better if our political and religious leader spread the message of peace rather than utter poisonous lectures and talks. Our judiciary has now to play its role.Even if Army action/operation is required in Karachi and other cities, it should ask the govt to allow the same without any more delays.
Let me voice my opinion by saying that this a highly unbalanced article. Venom spouting Fauzia Siddiqui? If standing up for your rights is equivalent to spouting venom, then she is guilty as charged.
Also, equating a call for prayers to 'Talibanisation' is highly uncalled for.
Whilst speaking out against the ills within our borders, the writer shows complete disregard for gross violations committed by the country that initiated the war on terror.
Great article.
Thanks for the article but I wish this should be translated in urdu and publish in urdu newspaper, Dawn readers have almost same thoughts so printing in urdu newspaper can make difference. For sure Talibans are enemies of Islam, muslims and Pakistan, we should protect our children from such elements in our society. we need Quid-e-Azim like leader to put us on right path and I think that could be Imran Khan and Dr Ata-ur-Rehman. Our nation has produced Ashfaq ahmad, Dr Abdul Salam, Dr Salim-u-Zaman Siddiqui and many other great minds now why it is producing religious extremist.
I wholeheartedly agree that articles of this quality and candor should be published in Urdu newspapers. True, it is risky, but otherwise how can the real public be persuaded of Taliban brutality and brought to justice. I take my hat off Mr. Razvi!
Bravo Mr. MURTAZA RAZVI for this brilliant article. I must say it’s been long time since I have read an article, written by any newspaper columnist in Pakistan, without personal inclination towards the issue. Round of applause for the way you used the pen to describe the taboos, Media, Radicalism and Strategic depth, realistically.
Excellent, clear analysis.