Imran Khan again blasts war on terror

[Zarvan]

Defenders of war on terror should watch this program he also tells the reality of those who are killed as terrorists

 

[darkinsky]

mullah zarvan what prevents you to fight along side taliban? maybe they will also offer you one way ticket to jannah by offering you once in a life time opportunity to blow those kaffirs out there?

 

[InvisbleSoldier]

First of all who made them terrorists ? no one is a born terrorist. Why a man will leave all the things and will go in the mountains to fight against infinity war. They were too people like us having homes, families, children and they too wanted all the things like us. This started back from the afghan war. They are all those people. They are hard workers. They are dedicated. They are sincere. When a person see his family members being cut, blasted, raped infront of him by external forces, then all the humanity finishes. Their only motive remain to kill as many as Kuffars by Jihad. This was first limited to killing forces but now the circle has extended. More and more extremists are born. No one talks about that where those displaced Afghani, then flood, earth quake children people went ?. How many records all have. No one. They are surely recruited by those people. It is all government mistake. When own country does not support its own people, then war is not against kuffars. It is against the actual system. Change the system. Finish the war. Stop supporting US

 

[niaz]

First of all who made them terrorists ? no one is a born terrorist. Why a man will leave all the things and will go in the mountains to fight against infinity war. They were too people like us having homes, families, children and they too wanted all the things like us. This started back from the afghan war. They are all those people. They are hard workers. They are dedicated. They are sincere. When a person see his family members being cut, blasted, raped infront of him by external forces, then all the humanity finishes. Their only motive remain to kill as many as Kuffars by Jihad. This was first limited to killing forces but now the circle has extended. More and more extremists are born. No one talks about that where those displaced Afghani, then flood, earth quake children people went ?. How many records all have. No one. They are surely recruited by those people. It is all government mistake. When own country does not support its own people, then war is not against kuffars. It is against the actual system. Change the system. Finish the war. Stop supporting US

Good heavens!

Is this a post by a rational & educated human being? You are lumping together all terrorists as freedom fighters?

Your remarks only apply to Afghan Mujahedeen who were fighting the Russians. What happened after Russian withdrawal? Weren’t Afghans killing each other for the sake of power?

You forget atrocities committed by Taliban against Hazaras & the Tajiks; didn’t Mullah Omer Taliban attack Panj Shir valley, Mazaar Sharif & Bamyan for the sake of political power?

Now let us come to Pakistan. It appears that many a educated Pakistani has been blinded by sheer bigotry and is incapable of thinking straight. SSP & LEJ existed before 9/11. Pray tell me how LEJ & SSP activities against Hazaras of Quetta, Shia doctors and judges are justified under your logic. Are Hazaras killing and blasting your family members that you ignore their murder. All your compassion is reserved for the cold blooded killers but nothing for the Quetta female students? These girls were also among the 'Kuffaar' per your thinking. Why are TTP killing MQM MPAs in Karachi; is Altaf Hussein throwing TTP out of Waziristan?

It is this state of confusion caused by twisted rationale that is main cause of total break down of law & order in Pakistan. Thugs & ruffians are considered heroes but innocent citizens are punished for the crimes committed by the US?

Here is an article with sound arguments not like your post that is based on nothing but on self-righteous bigotry. Please read it with a cool head especially the firs three paragraphs.



Whither the state?


Jarrar Shah

Friday, June 28, 2013
From Print Edition


“We believe in dialogue but it should not be frivolous. Asking us to lay down arms is a joke”, said TTP chief Hakimullah Mehsud in December 2012. He further stated that democracy was against Islam and Al-Qaeda an ally worth dying for.

Why are our enemies so focused and we – the state, political parties, civil society and the media – in utter confusion and disarray? Why has human life become so cheap in our society that when a suicide bomb rips through a Friday prayer congregation at a Peshawar mosque, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa information minister shrugs it off by saying that it’s only a bombing, not the end of the world?

Terrorism and bombing campaigns are not unique to Pakistan. What is unique is the state and society’s response to it. If we continue on our current path or, worse, the path suggested by two major political parties – the PML-N and the PTI – future generations will wonder how an entire country was able to tie itself up in complicated knots over what is really a simple issue.

They will see archived YouTube footage of talk shows where people fight with each other instead of coalescing against a common foe. They will see constant finger pointing and displays of extreme denial. They will see experts and leaders blaming hidden hands and external forces.

They will see people blaming dictators, democrats, agencies, and political parties. They will occasionally see some voices calling for a sense of purpose and see those voices drowned out in a sea of mass denial and confusion. These future generations would shake their heads in utter disbelief. They would question how any society could descend into such utter chaos.

Forty-thousand people were slaughtered in the last 10 years, and 6,000 soldiers were martyred. For what? This confusion?

Article 9 of the constitution states: No person shall be deprived of life or liberty save in accordance with law.

It is the responsibility of the state to provide security to its citizens. The top priority for any government has to be the same. There can be no ifs and buts yet somehow in our country there are only those. Drones, America’s war, petro dollars, double games, proxies, deprivation and now the biggest if and but of our time – that elusive consensus.

Enough already. No more APCs. We, the people, are dying. The state is crumbling, retreating at a faster rate than our glaciers.

Here’s the bottom line. Our state does not enjoy monopoly over violence. No state really does but the proportion in Pakistan is at another level – putting the wild wild west of yesteryear to shame. Groups have taken up arms against the state in open rebellion. Some of these groups reject the constitution outright; others like those in Karachi have brought a proud and prosperous city to its knees by engaging in mafia warfare.

A four-pronged strategy is needed from our government – the starting point being that every Pakistani’s life is precious and that the writ of the state has to be established over every inch of its sovereign territory.

The first prong is counterinsurgency – to retake territory where the writ of state has slipped away over the years. The military has done a great job doing this in Swat, agencies of Fata etc. But civilian follow up has been lacking. It is imperative that a strategy is devised where civilian institutions are built up to replace the army deployment in these areas.

The second prong is counterterrorism, which has caused the most confusion. Since bombings and killings continue unabated, the argument goes our operations in various areas have failed. The main goal of the army operations was to take back control of those areas where anti-state insurgents had become powerful.

To counter terrorism we need a separate and highly effective counterterrorism campaign. This entails training the police force across the country and updating the various intelligence services. Beefing up prosecution and passing stronger anti-terror laws is another crucial aspect. Merely putting up checkpoints with disinterested cops stationed on them is hardly enough to tackle terrorism.

The third prong of our state’s strategy needs to focus on anti-extremism. This is a strategy that will produce results in the long term but will go a long way towards draining the swamp that produces the terrorists. Updating and making our curricula compatible with the 21st century and vastly improving and expanding provision of public education will be the main pillars of this strategy. The state should not look at some militant groups as possible proxies. This has caused too much damage.

A concerted media and PR campaign needs to be initiated as well. These daily incidents of killings have unfortunately become statistics. Who are the worshippers killed in Peshawar? Who are the students killed in Bolan Medical Complex? Who are the people killed by the ‘na maloom afraad’ in Karachi?

We need to put faces to these deaths so that our resolve is steeled and we realise that our very survival is at stake. In the short term, crackdown on hate literature has to be initiated. Those insurgents who give up arms need to be rehabilitated into the mainstream.

The final prong consists of two parts, good governance and rule of law. This has to begin with immediate effect. Efficient utilisation of state resources will solve many of our issues such as loadshedding, unemployment and poverty. Resources also need to be devolved to the grassroots by introducing an effective local government system thus enfranchising the citizens of our nation. Rule of law and speedy justice are essential components of this prong.

The situation in Swat and Malakand was rooted in the people’s sense of injustice. The Baloch insurgency is complicated and requires nuanced handling, but if resources are spent as much as possible on the citizens of that province properly, their standard of living should improve drastically.

The 18th Amendment has placed the onus of good governance on the provinces now. It’s their turn to now introduce credible local government and devolve resources.

We can either continue with our handwringing, finger-pointing, heads-in-sand approach or we can resolve to move forward with purpose and not let our sacrifices go in vain. If the state believes that its primary responsibility is the security and welfare of its citizens then the choice is obvious.

The writer is a director at a consulting firm. He tweets @jerryshah.

Email: jarrar.shah@gmail.com

Whither the state? - Jarrar Shah

 

[muse]

If the state believes that its primary responsibility is the security and welfare of its citizens then the choice is obvious.

Most certainly the state believes in security and welfare - just not of it's citizenry, it is this , that should be obvious.

 

[InvisbleSoldier]

Good heavens!

Is this a post by a rational & educated human being? You are lumping together all terrorists as freedom fighters?

Your remarks only apply to Afghan Mujahedeen who were fighting the Russians. What happened after Russian withdrawal? Weren’t Afghans killing each other for the sake of power?

You forget atrocities committed by Taliban against Hazaras & the Tajiks; didn’t Mullah Omer Taliban attack Panj Shir valley, Mazaar Sharif & Bamyan for the sake of political power?

Now let us come to Pakistan. It appears that many educated Pakistani has been blinded by sheer bigotry and is incapable of thinking straight. SSP & LEJ existed before 9/11. Pray tell me how LEJ & SSP activities against Hazaras of Quetta, Shia doctors and judges are justify under your logic. Are Hazaras killing and blasting your family members that you ignore their murder. All your compassion is reserved for the cold blooded killers but nothing for the Quetta female students? These girls were also among the 'Kuffaar' per your thinking. Why are TTP killing MQM MPAs in Karachi; is Altaf Hussein throwing TTP out of Waziristan?

It is this state of confusion caused by twisted rationale that is main cause of total break down of law & order in Pakistan. Thugs & ruffians are considered heroes but innocent citizens are punished for the crimes committed by the US?

Here is an article with sound arguments not like your post that is based on nothing but on self-righteous bigotry. Please read it with a cool head especially the firs three paragraphs.



Whither the state?


Jarrar Shah

Friday, June 28, 2013
From Print Edition


“We believe in dialogue but it should not be frivolous. Asking us to lay down arms is a joke”, said TTP chief Hakimullah Mehsud in December 2012. He further stated that democracy was against Islam and Al-Qaeda an ally worth dying for.

Why are our enemies so focused and we – the state, political parties, civil society and the media – in utter confusion and disarray? Why has human life become so cheap in our society that when a suicide bomb rips through a Friday prayer congregation at a Peshawar mosque, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa information minister shrugs it off by saying that it’s only a bombing, not the end of the world?

Terrorism and bombing campaigns are not unique to Pakistan. What is unique is the state and society’s response to it. If we continue on our current path or, worse, the path suggested by two major political parties – the PML-N and the PTI – future generations will wonder how an entire country was able to tie itself up in complicated knots over what is really a simple issue.

They will see archived YouTube footage of talk shows where people fight with each other instead of coalescing against a common foe. They will see constant finger pointing and displays of extreme denial. They will see experts and leaders blaming hidden hands and external forces.

They will see people blaming dictators, democrats, agencies, and political parties. They will occasionally see some voices calling for a sense of purpose and see those voices drowned out in a sea of mass denial and confusion. These future generations would shake their heads in utter disbelief. They would question how any society could descend into such utter chaos.

Forty-thousand people were slaughtered in the last 10 years, and 6,000 soldiers were martyred. For what? This confusion?

Article 9 of the constitution states: No person shall be deprived of life or liberty save in accordance with law.

It is the responsibility of the state to provide security to its citizens. The top priority for any government has to be the same. There can be no ifs and buts yet somehow in our country there are only those. Drones, America’s war, petro dollars, double games, proxies, deprivation and now the biggest if and but of our time – that elusive consensus.

Enough already. No more APCs. We, the people, are dying. The state is crumbling, retreating at a faster rate than our glaciers.

Here’s the bottom line. Our state does not enjoy monopoly over violence. No state really does but the proportion in Pakistan is at another level – putting the wild wild west of yesteryear to shame. Groups have taken up arms against the state in open rebellion. Some of these groups reject the constitution outright; others like those in Karachi have brought a proud and prosperous city to its knees by engaging in mafia warfare.

A four-pronged strategy is needed from our government – the starting point being that every Pakistani’s life is precious and that the writ of the state has to be established over every inch of its sovereign territory.

The first prong is counterinsurgency – to retake territory where the writ of state has slipped away over the years. The military has done a great job doing this in Swat, agencies of Fata etc. But civilian follow up has been lacking. It is imperative that a strategy is devised where civilian institutions are built up to replace the army deployment in these areas.

The second prong is counterterrorism, which has caused the most confusion. Since bombings and killings continue unabated, the argument goes our operations in various areas have failed. The main goal of the army operations was to take back control of those areas where anti-state insurgents had become powerful.

To counter terrorism we need a separate and highly effective counterterrorism campaign. This entails training the police force across the country and updating the various intelligence services. Beefing up prosecution and passing stronger anti-terror laws is another crucial aspect. Merely putting up checkpoints with disinterested cops stationed on them is hardly enough to tackle terrorism.

The third prong of our state’s strategy needs to focus on anti-extremism. This is a strategy that will produce results in the long term but will go a long way towards draining the swamp that produces the terrorists. Updating and making our curricula compatible with the 21st century and vastly improving and expanding provision of public education will be the main pillars of this strategy. The state should not look at some militant groups as possible proxies. This has caused too much damage.

A concerted media and PR campaign needs to be initiated as well. These daily incidents of killings have unfortunately become statistics. Who are the worshippers killed in Peshawar? Who are the students killed in Bolan Medical Complex? Who are the people killed by the ‘na maloom afraad’ in Karachi?

We need to put faces to these deaths so that our resolve is steeled and we realise that our very survival is at stake. In the short term, crackdown on hate literature has to be initiated. Those insurgents who give up arms need to be rehabilitated into the mainstream.

The final prong consists of two parts, good governance and rule of law. This has to begin with immediate effect. Efficient utilisation of state resources will solve many of our issues such as loadshedding, unemployment and poverty. Resources also need to be devolved to the grassroots by introducing an effective local government system thus enfranchising the citizens of our nation. Rule of law and speedy justice are essential components of this prong.

The situation in Swat and Malakand was rooted in the people’s sense of injustice. The Baloch insurgency is complicated and requires nuanced handling, but if resources are spent as much as possible on the citizens of that province properly, their standard of living should improve drastically.

The 18th Amendment has placed the onus of good governance on the provinces now. It’s their turn to now introduce credible local government and devolve resources.

We can either continue with our handwringing, finger-pointing, heads-in-sand approach or we can resolve to move forward with purpose and not let our sacrifices go in vain. If the state believes that its primary responsibility is the security and welfare of its citizens then the choice is obvious.

The writer is a director at a consulting firm. He tweets @jerryshah.

Email: jarrar.shah@gmail.com

Whither the state? - Jarrar Shah

When the war was over. US tried to eliminate all those people. they became like jobless. they were given food, home, money, shelter, armory in the war against Russia. What those fighters will do when the funding will finish ?.

I understand that there is a difference between terrorists and Mujahideens. But up to 90% extent their all war is against US and its allies. The target killing and sucide bombers are a separate scenerio which target the civilians.

 

[Pakistani E]

Ok fine then, so all of those people who have lost relatives to ttp should take up arms and start blowing up takfiri masjids and their medersahs, they should start targeting Taliban and all their supporters as a "reaction" to the Taliban attacks but I wonder if this honourable gentleman would justify our rage and hatred for Taliban and all their supporters? does IK are about the 40k plus Pakistanis or is he more worried about 4k pushtoons? talk about double standards. Hypocrisy at its worst.
Ik im gong to get raged at by burger fanatics but that's normal whenever they don't have any intelligent to say. So tell me Ik fanboys what do you want us Pakistanis to do who have lost relatives to ttp munafiqs, should we strap bombs too? will we be forgiven?

 

[xyxmt]

When the war was over. US tried to eliminate all those people. they became like jobless. they were given food, home, money, shelter, armory in the war against Russia. What those fighters will do when the funding will finish ?.

I understand that there is a difference between terrorists and Mujahideens. But up to 90% extent their all war is against US and its allies. The target killing and sucide bombers are a separate scenerio which target the civilians.

they should have searched Islam for these questions, after all they were fighting for Islam then all of sudden once they had no reason to fight they forgot about Islam, one options would have been to relocate from war areas and find a job just like they relocated to war areas. They then became criminals and should be dealt with like criminals. They can ask Mufti Imran khan for answers because it seems like he has answers for everything.

 

[niaz]

A very good article about Imran Khan's rhetoric:


TTP and the perils of inertia

ABBAS NASIR


IT is our war. It is America’s war. Thousands of Pakistanis have perished in this war. And all we do is take part in this debate. We do nothing to end it.

If one could put it down to a simple lack of will or spine it would have been bad enough. That a fair bit of the discourse on terrorism represents ideologically motivated obfuscation is unforgivable, particularly given how many compatriots have had to sacrifice so much.

The dominant argument is that Pakistan’s support to the US-led war in Afghanistan and the CIA’s drone attacks are the only drivers of terrorism in the country. Ergo, this support to the US is not just blamed for terrorism but also advanced as a justification for the mass murder of our people.

Refusal to accept this view in its entirety is immediately pounced upon as being tantamount to condoning or worse still supporting the drone attacks that mostly kill our civilians, women and children, and occasionally the militant in the tribal areas.

God help you if you happen to have doubts about talks with the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP): “Amreeka key agent media mein bethey huey hein jo amn ke khilaf hein” (There are American agents in the media opposed to peace), Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leader Imran Khan said in his ‘first’ televised interview since his election campaign accident.

His utter contempt for anyone holding a view different to his own is always a bit upsetting but, on this occasion, it was reassuring because it established the PTI leader had been restored to good health and his former self.

Therefore, it wasn’t surprising to hear him say that if the US can facilitate the opening of an Afghan Taliban office in Doha and initiate a dialogue with them why couldn’t Pakistan do the same in case of the TTP.

Let me be open and admit that I have a soft corner for the great Khan. He gave me and countless others one of the finest moments of our lives by leading Pakistan to its only Cricket World Cup triumph. That is why we all forgave him for his “In the twilight of my career…” speech.

That the well-meaning, born-again Muslim then went on to a greater triumph in setting up and successfully running the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital for specialised cancer care in memory of his mother who, like mine, died at the cruel hands of cancer was awe-inspiring.

So yes, I disagree with him but won’t call him Taliban Khan; even if he finds ideological compassion for the TTP and understanding for the atrocities committed by the group against thousands of Pakistanis.

He is free to call me an American agent or by whatever name he wishes because I oppose talks with the TTP. I do so because there is no parallel between that and the US starting a dialogue with the Afghan Taliban.

The US is now keen to get out of Afghanistan, a foreign country it invaded with UN approval and possibly a just cause, after the Taliban administration refused to hand over the mostly Saudi suspected perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks on US soil.

It went into the country seeking retribution. This retribution wasn’t possible without regime change. It did what it thought necessary. It may even have attained its main objective of attacking Al Qaeda in its sanctuary and denuding it of its capacity to attack the US on its soil again.

But a democracy it remains and its war-weary voting public is wary of continuing a bloody conflict which, they understand, cannot be won. So, the US has now embarked on its plan to shrink its giant footprint in that foreign country.

However, it also doesn’t wish a return of the pre-invasion situation in Afghanistan where Islamic militants from around the world found a safe haven and training ground to serve as a launching pad for their global jihad.

It wants guarantees that only the Taliban can give. It isn’t clear if, in line with ISI belief, the Taliban can return to their pre-war glory and rule over Kabul as well but it is clear to the US they’ll have large swathes of the country under their control as they do even now; hence, the talks.

If the admittedly imperfect Afghan democracy collapses post-US withdrawal so be it as long as the new power structures can guarantee no sanctuaries for global jihadis. The US doesn’t seem interested in ‘nation building’ any more. It’ll retain its drone programme, and possibly some residual air and special operations capability so nothing’s left to chance. We have our democracy to lose. Unless, that is, we actually believe that once the US has pulled out of Afghanistan or we have pulled out of the ‘US war’ all will be hunky-dory. We’ll need to forget the TTP is committed to their brand of Sharia in the country and beyond.

They find democracy, diversity of opinion and faith against their ideological beliefs. Groups of mass murderers such as the Lashkar-i-Jhangvi are either TTP allies or franchises. The TTP continues to offer sanctuaries to foreign fighters with global ambitions.

Thousands of soldiers have died clearing the bulk of the tribal areas of these militants. The TTP remains ensconced in its remaining stronghold of North Waziristan. That is where the serpent’s head is.

TTP and the perils of inertia - DAWN.COM

 

[InvisbleSoldier]

they should have searched Islam for these questions, after all they were fighting for Islam then all of sudden once they had no reason to fight they forgot about Islam, one options would have been to relocate from war areas and find a job just like they relocated to war areas. They then became criminals and should be dealt with like criminals. They can ask Mufti Imran khan for answers because it seems like he has answers for everything.

When we make the criminals from our own people and them, then we have no right to declare them criminals after. We, Americans used them against Russia and today Russia fund them back and rooted out America and even Pakistan is at crucial stage.