Pakistan

Attack on check post

State institutions owe public an accounting of accepting drones and need to take ownership of war against militancy.

Editorial February 02, 2013

A file photo of security personnel inspecting a burnt out police checkpost following an attack by armed militants last year. PHOTO: AFP

The killing of 31 people by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) at a check post in Lakki Marwat is sure to reignite the same old debate about root causes of militancy. The TTP claimed the attack was carried out in retaliation for a drone attack in North Waziristan, which killed two of its commanders. There is absolutely no reason to take the TTP at face value. Such attacks on check posts are a commonplace militant tactic, used to try and grab territory and spread fear and chaos among the ranks of the military. If we are to accept that this particular attack can be traced back to the use of drones, how are we to explain the hundreds of other such attacks over the last few years? The fact is that the TTP is at war with the state and so it continually attacks it. The presence or absence of drones does not change that dynamic in any way.

We have to accept that drones are a reality in Pakistan for the time being. The outgoing US defence secretary, Leon Panetta, said in a recent interview that targeted killings through drone attacks are a vital part of US national security. His possible replacement, Chuck Hagel, is a less hawkish figure but there is a bipartisan consensus in the US that drone attacks are an accurate method of killing militants. That is not going to change any time soon. Our state institutions have essentially made peace with this, but have done so, away from the public view. They owe us a public accounting of this decision and need to take ownership of the war against militancy.

The brave soldiers who die nearly every day fighting the Taliban, whether at check posts or on the battlefield, are owed an explanation by the government and the military. The difference between public rhetoric and private reality needs to be reconciled. Until we do that, it will be hard for us to take ownership of this war. The US needs to be seen as an ally working in concert with our government, not a rogue nation violating our sovereignty. Until then, the TTP will be able to continuously exploit public opinion for its own benefit.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 3^rd, 2013.

COMMENTS (5)

Shaikh Mohommad | 11 years ago | Reply

"We have to accept that drones are a reality in Pakistan”What logic? The relationship that exists between USA and Pakistan is that master and servant relationship. This should end. Pakistan should look after its interest. This cannot be achieved unless the country quit the American imposed war on terror.

Singh | 11 years ago | Reply

Why you censor my comment ET?

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Hari Om | 11 years ago | Reply

For the “root causes of militancy” one need look no further than the blowback of Pakistan’s attempt to foment Islamic terrorism in India.

As the old adage goes “You reap what you sow”. Alternatively spring boarding of the more contemporary comment by Hillary Clinton, “ the guy who keeps poisonous snakes in his backyard convinced they’ll only attack his neighbours, will eventually get bitten.

Ibrahim P | 11 years ago | Reply

Sir thank you for writing this piece, it is exactly what is needed in Pakistan; building a public narrative for the war that is being waged on us and that we are fighting. Unfortunately, until more media (and political ) figures start to echo your words and sentiments, such thought is highly unlikely to become commonplace. If the media is indeed the fifth column in Pakistan, then the power to fight militancy ultimately lies with people like you. Some of you, like yourself, are cognizant of the fact that we need to take ownership of this war, yet others are quick to curb commitment to it out of a misplaced sense of doubt about the nature, goals, tactics, and determination of our enemy. All over the world, media's strive to vilify the enemy of their country, and they do this because it is their responsibility to not only present but also remind people of the core reasons that their army is fighting a certain war against a certain enemy. Yet the supposedly 'free' Pakistani media, for all its gusto, never openly speaks out, or aggressively condemns, or deliberately maligns the TTP. Let's see more editorials calling for ownnership of this war, lets see a talk show in which someone issues a decree or threat against Qari Hussain, or Hakeemullah Mehsud, or Maulana Fazlullah. Wishful thinking right? You know its the right thing to do, but just like the issue of blasphemy law, no one has the courage to do it.

Let me finish by saying that it is you, the individuals of the electronic and print media, that hold the keys to fighting militancy. It is your duty, as journalists, to bring the truth to the fore, so why be selective about it?

Salman Khan | 11 years ago | Reply

Wow. What logic. Just because the drones will continue so we should forget about them and disfount the fact that they can be causing this terrorism on our soil? May be you are forgetting what cane first. The American imposed war or the terrorism on our soil!

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