September 24, 2008
Wednesday
Ramazan 23, 1429

A national threat

THE warning by NWFP Governor Owais Ghani that militant groups operating in his province have established firm links with similar groups operating in Punjab is indicative of the national-level threat of militancy. The NWFP governor was not pointing a finger at Punjab or starting a blame game — he was simply pointing out the truth about Pakistan’s militant network. Southern Punjab has been host to some of Pakistan’s most radical militant Islamist groups for many years. The groups are familiar and the names endless: Lashkar-i-Jhangvi, Sipah-i-Sahaba, Lashkar-i-Taiba, Harkatul Ansar, Hizbul Tahrir, Harkatul Muhahideen, Jaish-i-Mohammad, Tehrik-i-Jafria and Sipah-i-Mohammad. They have brought with them new forms of terror to Pakistan, especially suicide attacks. In March 2002, two operatives of Lashkar-i-Jhangvi bombed the International Protestant Church in Islamabad — believed to be the first suicide attack by a jihadi outfit. Two months later, Harkatul Jihad-al-Islami killed 11 French engineers outside the Sheraton hotel in Karachi. Today, such bombings have become depressingly familiar — and occur across the length and breadth of Pakistan. No one familiar with these groups doubts that they are operating in the NWFP and fighting the state.

Eliminating such groups ought to be the top priority of the state. Unfortunately, it is not at all clear if that is the goal of the state. There are some positives in the current situation. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif took a tough, uncompromising line against Punjabi militants during his last tenure in the late 1990s. Violence by such groups came down dramatically on his watch — though allegations of extra-judicial killings and heavy-handedness by his government shot up. Chief Minister Sharif is then familiar with these groups and may well be able to rein them in again today — but the provincial administration must be careful to not overstep the boundaries of the law.

In the NWFP, it is reassuring to see Governor Ghani and Chief Minister Amir Hoti on the same page in the fight against terrorism. The ANP-led provincial government in the NWFP appears to have woken up to the dangers the province faces from militancy. The negatives become apparent once we zoom out to the national level. Islamabad appears lacklustre in its attempts to shut down homegrown militant groups. Be it the vigorous pursuit of cases against militants in the judicial system, shutting down the supply lines and recruitment channels or re-evaluating the intelligence agencies’ relationship with militant groups, the federal government has not provided a clear lead for the provinces to follow. This is tragic and is costing lives daily in militancy hotspots. Pakistan can only win its war against the terrorists if it pursues them with vigour, whoever they are and wherever they are. And if Islamabad provides direction. At the moment neither appears to be happening.

Afghan envoy’s abduction

THE kidnapping of the Afghan consul-general in Peshawar on Monday brings to mind the abduction of Tariq Azizuddin, Pakistan’s ambassador to Kabul, last February. Both envoys are said to have violated security norms and paid for this lapse. Azizuddin drove through the Khyber Agency on the way to the Afghan capital without informing the local authorities of his journey. In this case, too, Abdul Khaliq Farahi was guilty of breach of security. Here the similarities end, for Azizuddin was kidnapped in the tribal areas, while the Afghan envoy, who was going to become his country’s ambassador to Islamabad, was kidnapped in the provincial capital. In Azizuddin’s case, there was no resistance, but in Farahi’s case the faithful driver paid with his life. Azizuddin was reunited with his family after 97 days, and it remains to be seen whether the Afghan diplomat will suffer a similar and agonising period in captivity before being freed.

The Afghan envoy’s kidnapping once again shows the terrorists’ subterranean organisation, the efficacy of their intelligence system, and their ability to strike — whether at the Islamabad Marriott or in Peshawar’s posh Hayatabad area. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the kidnapping. Initially, that was the case with Azizuddin too. Later, it was revealed that the government had to release a number of Taliban to secure the diplomat’s freedom. What was praiseworthy in Azizuddin’s case was the secrecy with which the government followed the case and finally managed to secure his freedom. In this case, too, one hopes the government will pursue investigations away from the media’s prying eyes.

Regrettably, the Afghan government has acted with hurtful impetuosity and been quick to blame Pakistan for “unsatisfactory security cover” for the envoy. The Pakistan government says that there were guards at Farahi’s residence, but he chose to discard security precautions. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has condemned the kidnapping and directed the security agencies to do their utmost to recover Farahi. But the Afghan government, instead of lending cooperation to Pakistan and showing some understanding of the gravity of the situation this country faces, has once again proved it misses no opportunity to score a propaganda point off Pakistan. Against the harsh reality of this deep mistrust between Kabul and Islamabad, Afghan Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak’s proposal for a joint border force looks impractical. The two governments should first try to build bridges, develop mutual confidence and shed suspicions before a proposal of that nature can be considered.

THE term ‘torture’ has come to be closely identified with police workings in the country. It is not surprising, therefore, that recently an eight-year-old boy died and a woman sustained injuries in Sanghar as a result of alleged torture by police officials. This is a blatant violation of the law by the very authority that is meant to enforce it. Police often place extracting confessions ahead of the rules that govern such practices. Pakistan has all the necessary laws in place to prevent torture; however, these are not implemented in letter and spirit. It is also a signatory to the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment which is an international human rights instrument. Under the Convention it is mandatory for signatories to take effective measures to prevent torture within their borders.

This begs the question: how effective has the government been in dealing with erring police officials? The Police Order 2002 outlines offences by police officials which merit punishment, and the inflicting of torture or violence is punishable with imprisonment of up to five years along with a fine. However, this is not being implemented. The failure to carry out reforms has led people to regard the police with mistrust; the police have become a symbol of terror and incompetence.

After the incident in Sanghar, the villagers expressed their outrage by blocking the road and placing the dead body on it along with burning tyres. Such incidents indicate disillusionment with the police force and accentuate the failure of the authorities to mete out punishment to guilty police officials. The government should now act swiftly to ensure that justice is done. Very often police officials are able to cover up their crime through false reports and evidence. In this case, as in others, one hopes an investigation is carried out and the culprits brought to book.


OTHER VOICES - European Press

The pantheon of misplaced trust

The Slovak Spectator

WHAT to do about those pesky opinion polls that frustrate half of the nation about the choices of the other half? There is a specific type of poll that’s especially guilty of causing a large portion of the population to roll their eyes and hang their heads: the kind that measures which politicians the public trusts most. If the polls are right, then the country’s most trusted politician is the prime minister, since 32.4 per cent of those polled named him in mid-September when the Slovak Statistics Office asked random respondents to list the three politicians they trusted the most. President Ivan Gašparoviè came in second with 15.6 per cent.

The third most trusted is Interior Minister Robert Kaliòák with 10.8 per cent…. Fico, Slota, and Meèiar. These three have been topping different opinion polls long enough to understand by now that their popularity is not just a summer fling with almost half the nation, but an expression of the public’s happiness to be ruled by them…. “People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can’t get,” English novelist Aldous Huxley wrote in his novel Brave New World.

Over 30 per cent of the nation is happy with a prime minister who tolerates a justice minister suspected of ties to Baki Sadiki, the alleged boss of a drug gang. This is the same prime minister who not so long ago heralded a new era … by declaring that it is not unacceptable to award public funds to supporters … of the governing coalition parties if their projects conform to the law and the rules.

If we talk about the trust that people put in politicians, perhaps it is worth mentioning … a story about Slota’s signature on parliament’s attendance sheets, which mysteriously appeared even when Slota was not around…. Slota earned several ‘badges of honour’ for missing the highest number of parliamentary sessions, but he is still paid from our taxes for being there…. But Slota’s presence in the pantheon of most trusted politicians is no less disturbing than having Meèiar there…. Perhaps it’s justified because it is highly probable that if parliamentary elections were held tomorrow, Slovaks would see these same faces marching into government, despite all the controversial statements … and all the failed ministers they’ve had to fire.…Yet politicians worthy of the public’s trust do not work their way up the ladder or burst onto the political scene overnight…. — (Sept 22)

Palin swots up on diplomacy

By Ed Pilkington

SARAH Palin has thrown herself into a 36-hour crash course in foreign diplomacy as she makes a highly publicised visit to the UN in New York this week in an attempt to shrug off the perception that she is an international affairs ingenue.

The Republican vice-presidential candidate, who obtained a passport to travel outside North America for the first time only last year, is meeting a raft of leaders from several of the world’s current hotspots. But her cramming timetable fails to include any scheduled encounter with a major European leader.

Her induction begins Tuesday night with attendance at a cocktail party held by President George Bush at the city’s Waldorf-Astoria. The Lebanese president, Michel Suleiman, and other leaders, carefully selected for their goodwill towards America, were on the guest list.

Even before Palin takes her first steps into the UN’s international territory on the East Side of Manhattan, she has walked into controversy. She had been billed to appear at a rally outside the UN building organised by New York Jewish groups protesting at the arrival of the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, at the annual UN general assembly.

But Palin’s invitation was withdrawn by organisers following a public spat with Hillary Clinton.

Since her appointment as John McCain’s running mate last month Palin has faced stiff criticism, and even ridicule, for her lack of international experience. The McCain campaign unwittingly fanned the flames by emphasising that as governor of Alaska she was knowledgeable about neighbouring Russia. The theme was picked up in a Saturday Night Live spoof in which Tina Fey has Palin say: “I can see Russia from my house.”

In meetings at the UN she will meet leaders from many of the world’s most sensitive regions. She will meet the presidents of Afghanistan and Iraq, Hamid Karzai and Jalal Talabani, as well as the leader of the main US ally in Latin America, Alvaro Uribe of Colombia. The new Pakistani president, Asif Ali Zardari, is on the list, as is Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh.

— The Guardian, London

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"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."
Helen Keller