Before we try to judge the world reaction, we must understand how and why we got to the stage where world is not prepared to listen to our pleas that Pakistan is the biggest victim, instead India has succeeded in blaming the unrest in Kashmir entire on Pakistan’s shoulders.
Causes for extremism and terrorism in Pakistan are manifold. Islamism (extreme right wing Islam), sectarianism and the Jihadi tendencies are all interlinked. All of these is also closely linked to and affect Pakistan Afghan relations and India Pakistan relations. Pashtunistan issue, Iranian revolution inspired by Ayatollah Khomeini and Soviet invasion of Afghanistan which resulted in the mushrooming of the madrassas for replenishing the mujahidin volunteers fighting the Soviet Afghan war are directly or indirectly linked as well.
What I think is terrorism may be considered ‘jihad fi sabilillah’ by some members. And when we try to point out India’s role in BLA attacks in Pakistan, it falls on deaf ears because it may be portrayed as a war of liberation.
Naturally this post is not going to resolve the problem, but for the benefit of the young and non-Pakistani members I would like to explain the situation the way I look it, leaving the conclusion to the readers.
Pakistan‘s transformation from a nice place to live into a near lawless society it had become before the “Zarbe Azb” happened only in the last 50 years or so. My parents were alive until the 1990’s and I used to visit Pakistan regularly. I have therefore observed the gradual degradation of the society as it happened.
IMHO the trend toward militancy started in the 1973 when Gen Nasirullah Babar started training Afghan volunteers in 1973. The reasons for this misadventure are entwined with the Pakhtunistan / Pashtunistan problem.
Root of the problem was the demarcation the border with Afghanistan in 1893 following an agreement between then King of Afghanistan Amir Abdur Rahman Khan and Sir Henry Durand. Since nearly half of the Pashtuns lived this side on the Durand Line; Pashtuns became minority in Afghanistan making up only 40% of the population.
There was no problem until 1947, after that date it was felt that if British India could be partitioned, why not Pakistan as well with Pashtuns forming ‘Greater Pashtun’ land in combination with Pashtuns across the Durand Line and bolstering the Pashtun population of Afghanistan.
Sardar Daoud, a cousin of the king Zahir Shah was appointed Prime Minister in 1953. It was Daoud who raised the tempo of the issue with the help of National Awami Party and its founder & leader Bacha Khan. Situation worsened when the West Pakistan was made into one unit.
Daoud sent troops into Pakistan in 1960 & 1961 and also issued Afghan Stamps commemorating Pashtunistan. (I have those stamps in my possession). In 1961 Pakistan broke off diplomatic relations with Afghanistan; re-established in 1963 after Daoud stepped down. Daoud was reappointed in 1973 and while Zahir Shah was holidaying in Italy, Daoud overthrew the King and assumed title of the President of Afghanistan.
ZA Bhutto fearing a resurgence of the Pashtunistan issue asked Gen Nasir ullah Babar to start arming Afghan Islamist volunteers. It was thus in the1970s, when both the United States and the Soviet Union poured aid to win support of the Kabul regime that Pakistani intelligence -- with financial support for Saudi Arabia -- first began their ties to the Islamist opposition in Afghanistan .
Ouster of President Sukarno in Indonesia and Anwar Sadat's decision to expel Soviet advisers from Egypt had convinced Moscow that it could no longer rely on non-communist nationalists. Simultaneously, the American defeat in Vietnam had emboldened the Soviet Union to push harder and compromise less. This caused a paradigm shift in Soviet policy toward the Third World in the 1970’s. Soviet Union actively supported that new Kabul regime which resulted in the rise of Communism and Soviet influence in Afghanistan.
In 1978 Daoud was overthrown and killed with all of his family with the Communists taking over the government and on April 30, 1978 Afghanistan became a republic. Perhaps because new Afghan government was not following Soviets dictates, Soviets sent troops in Afghanistan in 1979 appointing Noor Mohammad Taraki as head of the state.
Since Soviet Afghan war and its aftermath are well-known to everyone and I won’t go into its details. Suffice to say that USA and Saudi Arabia provided billions in aid using Pakistan’s ISI as a conduit. The long grinding war put such an enormous drain on the Soviet Union that Gorbachov, then president of USSR unilaterally decided to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, leaving Najibullah, the Afghan President to look after himself.
United States, having achieved their objective of avenging Vietnam debacle and defeating the USSR; literally washed their hands off the problem, leaving Pakistan to pick up the pieces and deal with the resulting mayhem. This period was critical in the rise of extremism and terrorism In Pakistan.
It was during this time we saw mushrooming of Madrasahs in Pakistan and the rise of the Wahhabi Pashtun commanders such as Gulbuddin Hikmatyar who received funds from the Saudi donors, while Iran and India (mainly to offset Pakistani influence) supported the opposing non-Pashtun Northern Alliance.
In 1947 there were fewer than 200 madrassas in Pakistan; the number had grown to about one thousand by 1970. However the number swelled to about 8,000 by 1988 and 40,000 by 2002. Vast majority of these were financed by the Saudi & Gulf countries grants and run by barely educated Deobandi mullahs engaged in propagating Salafai/ Wahhabi ideology.
Iranian revolution and rise of militant Shia Isalm under Khomeini in 1979 was another watershed. Pakistan with between 15 to 20% Shia population and located next door to Iran was a convenient receptacle for the Khamenei’s revolutionary ideas who lost no time supporting Pakistani’s Shi’a with money
Fearing rising Iranian influence; Saudis,, with active help of Zia ul Haq and his close allies the Jamaat Islami (JI) and Jami’ at Ulemai’ Islam (JUI) responded by massive funding to counter the Shi’a Islam.
The role of Saudi Arabian money in aggravating sectarian hatred in Pakistan starting from the 1980s has been highlighted by a number of researchers in Pakistan and abroad. The Afghan Jihad had resulted in the free supply of arms and military training to the hard-line Sunni Islamists. The same Sunni militants started attacking the Shi’as and killing their notables.
Zia government failed to remain neutral and impartial. It was observed during Zia regime and his protégé Nawaz Sharif gov’t both at centre and Punjab that the Saudi influenced Mullahs were supported. Shia bureaucrats, doctors, engineers and nominated community members were killed more during the democratic governments on sectarian ground.
Tehreek e Nifaze Fiqah Jafria was formed in 1979 but it was not a militant organization. In response to Sipah e Sahaba (SSP) formed in 1985 by Haq Nawaz Jhangvi,; the Sipah e Mohammad, a Shi’a militia soon emerged to fight the Sunni extremists and Shia militia also engaged in tit for killing of Sunni religious leaders starting the sectarian conflict which has gone on until now. .
As a Pakistani and a Muslim; I feel deep anguish that what is essentially a fight of regional superiority and leadership of the Muslim word between Iran and KSA, has resulted in about 10,000 fatalities in sectarian violence. Being fewer in number; Pakistani Shi’as have lost out in the numbers game and bore brunt of the damage and about 2000 fatalities of the Shi’a Hazara community alone.
Coming back to the Afghan situation, following the 1989 withdrawal of the Soviet military, Afghan president Najibullah managed to maintain power for nearly three years when Tajik mujahidin forces captured Kabul and formed a government at Kabul. .
Hikmatyar immediately contested the new government because for the first time in more than three centuries, non Pashtuns were governing what heretofore had been a Pashtun dominated country. After some infighting, there was a Pakistan brokered power sharing Peshawar Agreement of 1989. However, when Rabbani refused to step down as had been agreed, Hikmatyar's forces surrounded the Kabul proceeded to shell the city mercilessly.
In the meantime Kandahar and southern Afghanistan was in a state of chaos, with numerous warlords; each ruling his own patch. Civilians had little security from murder, rape, looting, or extortion. Internecine fighting had virtually eliminated the traditional leadership, leaving the door open to the Taliban.
It was in the backdrop that Taliban seemingly arose of nowhere. Mullah Omar initially seized the Afghan border post of Spin Boldak in October 1994 with fewer than 200 followers. A month later Taliban attacked Kandahar, the second-largest city in Afghanistan and took control within two days. Each conquest provided the Taliban with fresh supply of equipment and munitions -- from rifles and bullets to tanks including MiG fighters. Within one year Mulla Omer and his Taliban commanders had seized 9 of Afghanistan's 30 provinces. Just over one year later, Jalalabad fell, and a couple of weeks later, on September 26, 1996, the Taliban had taken over Kabul.
Thousands of Pakistani volunteers; mostly Pashtuns; were fighting on Taliban’s side. Pakistanis encouraged the Taliban as a way to promote stability and ensuring a pro-Islamabad government in Kabul. Americans and the Saudis were happy to see the change because mujahedeen groups such as Gulbuddin Hikmatyar, had started flirting with Iran.
After the Soviet withdrawal, thousands of the madrassa educated youth who possessed no other skill except the fighting; found themselves out of work. GOP had to find something to do for these religiously instructed and motivated youth. Two options appeared: use them to establish a pro-Islamabad government in Kabul and second to encourage the youth to head to Kashmir and support the cause of its Muslim majority from Indian occupation. However the mujahedeen had become increasingly uncontrollable and hostile over the years and not always willing accept ISI dictates which gave rise to what is termed as “Violent non-state actors”.
Arguably, extremist Islamist non-state organizations in Pakistan have their roots either in mujahedeen fighters and the Kashmir-focused organizations or in the sectarian outfits that sprang up during the Zia ul Haq era of Islamization. Most of the members of these non-state organizations are either Pashtuns or Punjabis, two major ethnicities of Pakistan.
Pashtuns are largely a tribal people who live by their Pashtunwali code integrated with Islam. Majority of Pashtuns adhere to Deobandi-Wahhabi version of Islam. However only a small percentage are militant Islamists.
Pakistani military establishment used Pashtun tribesmen in the 1947-48 war against India when Pashtun tribesmen rallied for religious cause and monetary gains. During the 1979-89 Afghan War against the Soviets; Pashtun kinship blended with nationalism was the main factor. All key Pakistan-backed veterans of Afghan war such as: Gulbuddin Hikmatyar, Abdul Rab Rasul Sayaf, and Mohammad Younus Khalis were Pashtuns
Punjabis, comprising 45% of Pakistan's population, either subscribe to Barelvi or Shi’a Islam primarily because in the 12th and 13th century, Sufi mystics from Iran and central Asia had converted Punjabis from Hinduism and Buddhism to Islam. Culturally, and historically Kashmiris are closer to Punjabis hence Punjabi militants have been active in the insurgency in Indian-held Kashmir with Pashtuns providing training & arms to the Kashmir insurgents. Additionally, because of the funding & influence of the Saudi Arabia. Punjab militant non-state groups such as Sipah-e-Sahaba and Lashkare Jhangvi have been the main sponsors of anti-Shi’a target killings.
For nearly 20 years Pakistan had been supporting the mujahideen and then the Taliban, touting them as fighters of Islam. After 9/11, the same people were branded pariahs and terrorists almost at once. Pakistan facilitating the US forces therefore caused a schism in the Pakistan polity as well as society in general. JI & JUI along with many Deobandi followers all over Pakistan thought that Musharraf has sold Pakistan too cheaply. Retired ISI chief Hamid Gul was prominent among his critics.
After private the TV channels were licensed, the problem worsened. Private channels cared more about the ratings than rights and wrongs of the situation. Urdu media and Urdu press which has far larger audience, is filled with journalists and anchors who are partial to the Islamists. Even the Oxford educated Imran Khan got the nickname of Taliban Khan for his consistent support of the Taliban cut throats.
During the Zia era, JI had managed to penetrate into the armed forces and quite a few officers working for the ISI had close links with the persons who later joined Taliban and sectarian outfits. Hence there were many critics of Musharraf within the armed forces. Several Islamists raised arms against Pakistan and there was an attempt on his life with active help from some PAF personnel.
In 2007, many such militants coalesced under the banner of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. It has taken about 5000 soldiers and 50,000 Pakistani civilians before majority of Pakistanis have come around to agree to fight the terrorists. Even today, Pakistan is struggling to tame these militants and their allied violent non-state actors. This effort met with only partial success. Anti-Taliban celebrities such as Malala Yusufzai are not well liked among their own countrymen. On the other hand GOP dare not touch Lal Masjid Mulla who refused to condemn the Army Public School Massacre.
It is with the above background that one should judge as to why despite so many sacrifices by Pakistan, the world is deaf to Pakistan’s protestations.
Objectively speaking, the world perception is arguably incorrect, but Pakistani policies as well as the polity carries more of the blame for the perception that GOP supports non-state terrorist groups.
Before criticising Pakistan for not doing enough, USA should realize that when the US is unable to control illegal movement across her Mexican border, they cannot expect GOP to completely stop Taliban fighters moving across far more porous Pak-Afghan border. Besides, a Pushto speaking Afghan is indistinguishable from a Pakistani Pashtun. It is therefore very easy for the Afghan Taliban to hide and get treatment in Pakistani cities.
India should also realize that most of the non-state organizations that are responsible for the attacking the parliament or carrying out Mumbai attacks are no longer state sponsored. Therefore, instead of using these incidents as an excuse to brand Pakistan a terrorist sponsoring state; India should cooperate with Pakistani agencies in eliminating these thugs. Additionally, there is a genuine indigenous uprising in Kashmir and instead of blaming it all on the foreign interference India should try to redress the genuine grievances.
Afghans must also realize that Pakistan and Afghanistan are virtually twin brothers. There cannot be peace in Afghanistan without Pakistan’s help and there can be no peace in Pakistan without peace in Afghanistan. Regrettably Afghanistan has been anti Pakistani from the very beginning and was the only vote against Pakistan’s entry in the UN.
Pakistan’s reluctance to fight the Haqqani group is based on the genuine fear that sooner or later Taliban will recapture Afghanistan or the Pashtun belt at the very least; and Pakistan does not want a very hostile militant regime on her North Western frontier.
The way forward is the have a strong Afghan Army that can defeat Taliban on its own. Once the possibility of Taliban retaking large chunks of Afghanistan disappears; Pakistan attitude toward anti- Afghan groups will automatically change. Afghanistan should also stop facilitating Baluch Separatists and TTP and not allow RAW to actively engage in anti-Pakistan activities from the Indian Consulates in Kandahar & Jalalabad.
There has been a comedy of errors from Pakistan’s side which involves the whole sections of Pakistan society.
There is no such thing as a good Taliban. Despite the fact that Musharraf announced in 2002 that Pakistan will not allow her land to be used for terrorism against her neighbours; Haqqani network and Hafiz Saeed’s Jamaat Dawa have been functioning unhindered.
Hijacking of a civilian airliner is a serious offence but Masoud Azhar who hijacked Indian Airliner in December 1999 is not only roaming free but his Jaish Mohammed supposedly banned since 2002, is still collecting donations outside Karachi mosques unhindered. Verbal support of Taliban by JI and Imran Khan has convinced many ordinary Afghans that Pakistan state is behind the bombings carried by the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Every one observed the cruelty practiced in Swat during the brief period of Taliban regime, main stream politicians led by the JI Amir Manawa Hassan and Imran Khan of PTI, did not want any action taken against the Taliban until the last minute
Banned sectarian and terrorist organization have been allowed to go on working by simply changing the names. Death sentences of the convicted terrorists not carried out. Saudi influence and support of the sectarian outfits had been so strong that no judge was willing to sentence Malik Ishaq, leader of the Lashkar Jhangvi’ only way was to eliminate him in police encounter.
Most importantly, nearly all the major political parties have members that carry soft spot for the Saudis and therefore there is no ‘political will’ to eliminate staunchly Wahhabi outfits that form core of the sectarian and jihadists groups. That is why carnage against the Hazaras in Quetta and against the Shia’s in Pakistan's major cities goes on and overtly terrorist friendly people like Ran Sana Ulla remain important members of the PML- N provincial government.
One has to grudgingly accept that there is no such thing as black & white in Realpolitik. We live in a global village and onus of changing the attitude of her neighbours as well as the international opinion rests with the GOP policies as implemented by the Pakistani foreign missions, and the behaviour of Pakistani politicians as well as what foreigners perceive from the Pakistani press and the electronic media. Sadly Pakistan has been severely deficient in all of the departments.
OBL was found living in Pakistan. Mulla Mansoor leader of Afghan Taliban was killed by the US drone in Pakistan traveling on Pakistani passport. Ramzi Yusuf the World Trade Centre bomber was arrested in Islamabad.
James Fowley was not a fighter, he was reporter; how can Allah be pleased with the beheading of US journalist James Foley? Why don’t Pakistani political parties such as JUI or JI come out and openly condemn Abu Bakr Baghdadi for allowing such inhuman acts.
We must ask ourselves as to why no one wants to play cricket in Pakistan and that will answer why there is no empathy for Pakistan. Empathy of the world would only be gained when it is clearly seen that in addition to the Pakistan armed forces, the political leaders as well as the general population are determined to eliminate terrorism from their midst.
Admittedly there is no easy solution to the problem of extremism, sectarianism and intolerance. Operation Zarbe Azb may have reduced the intensity but something akin to surgery may be required to cleanse the society of this disease. Should my countrymen decide to fulfil the dream of the Quaid and the founders; an all-out effort in needed from every Pakistani.
Finally I would like to restate that these are my reflections and I don’t expect my fellow countrymen to agree with me. At the end of the day, it is up to my compatriots who live in Pakistan to decide whether they prefer to live in a modern Islamic State like Malaysia or Oman or Dubai or under something like ISIS or Mulla Omar’s Afghanistan.
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