Terrorism is the biggest threat to Pakistan’s progress. It roots can be traced back from 1979, when there was an effort to kick out Russia from Afghanistan. But the problem became severe after 9/11. And now in 2011, it’s become a menace for our motherland. I do not want to go into detail history of terrorism in Pakistan. But the million dollar question is: what are the ways to eradicate or to overcome this most dangerous problem. So that as a result our nation can be brought back to the road of progress in all fields of life.
The first and foremost things are the unity and commitment. These are very important to achieve an objective. All stakeholders of the society must need to unite and become committed to this one agenda…….to eradicate terrorism from every nook and corner of the country. But after a very bloody war, we still see some of the stakeholders of the society who are supporting the extremist designs of the terrorist groups. I do not clearly know what their intensions are. But one thing is very clear: that is they are working against country’s betterment. We need to bring back first these people on the right direction using the process of dialogue.
Parliamentarian can play a very constructive role in this regard. They can use their influence in the right direction to convince the people of their constituencies to say “No to all sort of terrorist activities”. They can easily inculcate in the minds of people the vision of free terrorist society and about progressive and emerging Pakistan. But it is also a fact that we still did not see any useful role from these so-called representatives of the people. It is high time they must come forward to save the future of Pakistan.
Religious leaders in any society can play an effective role in times of crises. But the case of Pakistan is different regarding war on terror. These influential leaders were in some respect close to the terrorist organizations and to their self-professed ideology in the past. But it is the requirement of time that these leaders must come forward to use their influence in the society against all type of terrorism. They can play their effective role using mosques, speeches and writings to guide the ignorant masses of the country. There is still a large section of the society in Pakistan who prefers to listen these religious leaders at any cost. So why we are not utilizing the influence and potentials of these leaders in true sense?
Civil society is another major stakeholder. It is not playing their due role against war on terror. The close observation of this modern world demands that in time of crises civil society must come to the forefront to help the state machinery. But in Pakistan it is still a missing area (war on terror) of civil society. A mass movement is required to defeat the ideologies of terrorist organizations. And civil society can lead this mass movement very effectively. But this should be a collaborative effort from all stakeholders of the society. Because working alone against this big threat….terrorism can’t bring the desired results as required.
Education is another very important way to eradicate the root causes of terrorism. The first step should be to provide uniform system of education to the masses. This system of education must be free from prejudices and sectarian violence. It also includes both religious and modern education at equal ratios. This will help create citizens having a balanced approach towards life. Although it is a very lengthy process but it is very important. Because we need to clear the minds of young generation about the extreme designs of terrorist organizations. (A few days ago a renowned professor has given a lecture on topic related to terrorism in a university. In question-answer session when he was asked about who is responsible for terrorism in Pakistan. He refused to give any comments on this question). So this attitude must be stopped right now.
Good governance is another area which needed more attention in this regard. The important work in this regard which has been done so far is only to equip security personnel’s with latest weapons and to increase their salaries, and compensation in case of casualties. But Policy makers of Pakistan (after entering into the dangerous war on terror) did not create a suitable mechanism through which terrorism can effectively be checked. For example, there is no clear data of people residing in the country. There is no check and balance on foreigner’s activities in the country. There is no effective way to check cross border terrorism from Afghanistan and Indian side. There is not sufficient training mechanism for security personnel’s to counter terrorist organizations plots. There is still time our intelligence and law and order agencies can start door to door campaign for checking and registration, and to monitor it effectively. Also institutional working should be done according to rules and regulations. This will give a sense to the citizens of the country that Pakistan’s future largely depends on good governance, and ultimately they will participate in this process.
Also there is an urgent need for the military to come forward and state explicitly the present situation regarding war on terror to all citizens of the country. This strategy will clear the minds of people. Because Pakistan is the most affected country in the world in war against terrorism.
The role of parents and teachers can’t be denied in times of crises. Because they are the main architects of nations. But we see no efforts from any side (nor from them itself) to utilize their full potentials regarding elimination of terrorism. We are not observing any type of collective efforts within homes, schools, Colleges and universities against terrorism. It is time that these builders of nation must come forward to save the country future. After all, terrorism is our common enemy, and we can’t see a prosperous Pakistan without eradicating it.
All these major efforts must be initiated at the same time and must be communicated to all citizens through electronic and print media. This is also one of the most demanding area for the media to work on. As it is also badly required from the media to channelize their work in a constructive manner to inform people how they can beat terrorist designs. After all, united approach and combined efforts for a good cause can only make a nation stronger and prosperous in all respects.
