Changing tack

The parameters of initiating talks with the Taliban must be made clear to the citizens.

We are going to see a significant change in direction as far as tactics on the war on terror go. Mian Nawaz Sharif, as he stands on the starting blocks ready to begin his third tenure as prime minister, has told a gathering of elected representatives from his party in Lahore that he will be initiating dialogue with the Taliban. He said he does not believe that bullets can succeed and he has pointed out that so far, the battle being fought in the north of the country against terrorists had cost some 40,000 lives and millions of rupees. Mr Sharif is reported already to be in touch with intermediaries ready to begin the process of dialogue, while several independent candidates elected from tribal areas have also joined the PML-N.

The prime minister-elect certainly has the mandate to pursue the policies his party chooses. Its position on engagement with the Taliban had been made clear many times in the past. We must, as such, wish him well — for there can be no bigger gift to the country than an escape from terrorism and the menace it brings with it. People living in the conflict zone, too, desire nothing so much as peace. But the PML-N, and its policy team, should keep in mind the past history of talks with the Taliban and the repeated breach of agreements by the militants — a pattern seen over and over again through the past decade. Indeed, these interludes of “peace” have simply allowed the Taliban to regroup. It is also true that before the current military operation was launched in 2009, the Taliban held all seven tribal agencies and other territories, such as Swat. The description of the Taliban as a “misguided minority” rejected by the people by army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani must also be kept in mind.

Mian Nawaz Sharif must keep all these factors in view as he begins the negotiation bid. So far, the parameters of these talks have not been spelled out — but we must hope these will be made known to us as citizens, so we know where our leaders stand on key issues.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2013.