Applying the Irish model to Pakistan
Is the government really serious about solving these conflicts through negotiations or is it just political rhetoric?
The writer is a senior reporter at Daily Express in Karachi and tweets @Adil_Jawad
Right after the PML-N appeared as the biggest national political party in general elections three months ago, the international community and liberal circles of the country started to closely monitor the new government’s attitude and upcoming policies to deal with growing extremism in Pakistan, especially the radical militias, the Taliban and their allies.
Concerns of the international community and the civil society of Pakistan are not without grounds — the foundations of the PML-N were laid down during the so-called Islamisation process initiated by the military dictator General Ziaul Haq, in the 1980s. Its leader Nawaz Sharif and other notables of the party are said to have a soft corner for Islamic hardliners. They were in contact with them during the election campaign. The PML-N and Imran Khan’s PTI were the only parties that enjoyed amnesty from the violent attacks of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif and his team have recently announced an outline of a national policy to deal with rising extremism in Pakistan. Although the national security policy is yet to be announced, as expected, the top feature of the policy is to bring the militants to the table; not only the Taliban and their allies, but also Baloch separatists.
In a recent interview to British newspaper Daily Telegraph, Nawaz Sharif, clarified his position: “Of course we’re fighting each other,” he said. “I believe that there may be no harm in exploring the other option of having dialogue with them if they’re at all serious, and if we find them serious enough — and if we think that talks can yield positive results.” So, there is no doubt that negotiations will be his first priority. But more interestingly, he gave the example of conflict resolution in Ireland and said: “Britain had to talk to the IRA and resolve the problem and so, to explore this option, I think, is not a bad idea.”
The chief minister of Balochistan, Dr Abdul Malik, while addressing the provincial assembly, recently suggested that to deal with the Baloch insurgents, the Irish model should be considered. He said: “Our rulers adopted the Sri Lankan policy of killing Tamil separatists whereas they could have adopted the UK’s strategy of continued negotiations with the Irish people waging struggle for independence.”
This raises some very serious questions. Is the government really serious about solving these conflicts through negotiations or is it just political rhetoric? What are the lessons we have to learn from Ireland to go forward and avoid their mistakes?
Jonathan Powell, the chief of staff of former British prime minister Tony Blair, gave some answers to these questions in his book, Great Hatred, Little Room: Making Peace in Northern Ireland. He served 10 years as chief negotiator of the British PM to broker the deal between the Unionists and the IRA. A few months ago, I got a chance to meet him personally and discuss the peace process and its hidden lessons, to solve other conflicts of the world. According to Mr Powell, there are some aspects of the Northern Ireland experience that can be useful to other countries in similar situations and it is worth trying to learn from. He is a strong believer of the fact that theory negotiation is the only lasting solution of any conflict in the world. In fact, he doesn’t think that the victory of the Sri Lankan government against Tamil separatists has solved the problem.
Some other important aspects are: peace negotiation couldn’t be started before both parties admitted that they couldn’t win the war militarily; a third party or mediator is very crucial for any success story; back channel diplomacy and an uninterrupted peace process in any situation; an avoidance of setting preconditions; building trust; focusing on the future rather than the history; and the biggest lesson, to keep the process going, no matter what the situation is. Mr Powell says in his book: “Peace is not an event, peace has a process that takes very long time.”
These are the basic rules we have to keep in mind, if we really want to go into peace negotiations with the Taliban and the Baloch separatists.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 1st, 2013.
Concerns of the international community and the civil society of Pakistan are not without grounds — the foundations of the PML-N were laid down during the so-called Islamisation process initiated by the military dictator General Ziaul Haq, in the 1980s. Its leader Nawaz Sharif and other notables of the party are said to have a soft corner for Islamic hardliners. They were in contact with them during the election campaign. The PML-N and Imran Khan’s PTI were the only parties that enjoyed amnesty from the violent attacks of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Prime Minister (PM) Nawaz Sharif and his team have recently announced an outline of a national policy to deal with rising extremism in Pakistan. Although the national security policy is yet to be announced, as expected, the top feature of the policy is to bring the militants to the table; not only the Taliban and their allies, but also Baloch separatists.
In a recent interview to British newspaper Daily Telegraph, Nawaz Sharif, clarified his position: “Of course we’re fighting each other,” he said. “I believe that there may be no harm in exploring the other option of having dialogue with them if they’re at all serious, and if we find them serious enough — and if we think that talks can yield positive results.” So, there is no doubt that negotiations will be his first priority. But more interestingly, he gave the example of conflict resolution in Ireland and said: “Britain had to talk to the IRA and resolve the problem and so, to explore this option, I think, is not a bad idea.”
The chief minister of Balochistan, Dr Abdul Malik, while addressing the provincial assembly, recently suggested that to deal with the Baloch insurgents, the Irish model should be considered. He said: “Our rulers adopted the Sri Lankan policy of killing Tamil separatists whereas they could have adopted the UK’s strategy of continued negotiations with the Irish people waging struggle for independence.”
This raises some very serious questions. Is the government really serious about solving these conflicts through negotiations or is it just political rhetoric? What are the lessons we have to learn from Ireland to go forward and avoid their mistakes?
Jonathan Powell, the chief of staff of former British prime minister Tony Blair, gave some answers to these questions in his book, Great Hatred, Little Room: Making Peace in Northern Ireland. He served 10 years as chief negotiator of the British PM to broker the deal between the Unionists and the IRA. A few months ago, I got a chance to meet him personally and discuss the peace process and its hidden lessons, to solve other conflicts of the world. According to Mr Powell, there are some aspects of the Northern Ireland experience that can be useful to other countries in similar situations and it is worth trying to learn from. He is a strong believer of the fact that theory negotiation is the only lasting solution of any conflict in the world. In fact, he doesn’t think that the victory of the Sri Lankan government against Tamil separatists has solved the problem.
Some other important aspects are: peace negotiation couldn’t be started before both parties admitted that they couldn’t win the war militarily; a third party or mediator is very crucial for any success story; back channel diplomacy and an uninterrupted peace process in any situation; an avoidance of setting preconditions; building trust; focusing on the future rather than the history; and the biggest lesson, to keep the process going, no matter what the situation is. Mr Powell says in his book: “Peace is not an event, peace has a process that takes very long time.”
These are the basic rules we have to keep in mind, if we really want to go into peace negotiations with the Taliban and the Baloch separatists.
Published in The Express Tribune, October 1st, 2013.