Civil society activists, students and journalists participated in the rally to express solidarity with victims of terrorism and extremism. PHOTO: RIAZ AHMED/EXPRESS
Hundreds of people marched from Aiwan-i-Iqbal to Lahore Press Club in a peace rally organised by Aman Ittehad on Wednesday.
Civil society activists, students and journalists participated in the rally to express solidarity with victims of terrorism and extremism.
Irfan Mufti, the convener of Aman Ittehad, called for a debate on historic emphasis on ‘strategic depth’ which, he said, had shaped its foreign policy for decades.
“New alignments are fundamentally changing regional and global politics,” he said. “The agreement between the US, its allies and Iran, for example, is a certain game-changer. Yet Pakistan’s foreign policy remains incoherent and embedded in an era that has long passed,” he said.
Mufti said peaceful coexistence with neighbouring countries and bilateral trade relations must be pursued through proactive diplomacy.
Aman Ittehad condemned the provocations that fuelled sectarian and religious disharmony, and rejected the persecution unleashed on citizens on the basis of sectarian and religious identities.
“We hold government responsible for its failure to apprehend perpetrators of this violence, and its ineffectiveness in curbing it,” Mufti said.
Aman Ittehad also called for a clear roadmap, concrete policy actions and an unambiguous narrative to effectively deal with militancy.
Participants were carrying banners and chanting slogans “we want freedom.”
Speaking on the occasion Fauzia Viqar, of Shirkat Gah, said, “Effective governance and justice are a requisite for peace.”
Viqar said militancy had a differential impact on women and gender analysis needed to be done to find sustainable conflict resolution.
Farooq Tariq of Awami Worker Party said, “We want such a government which provides equal opportunities to both men and women.”
He appreciated Aman Ittehad for the rally and urged the government to make laws which could help in bringing peace to the country.
Aman Ittehad also demanded urgent policy attention to redress internal governance challenges. It urged each provincial government to ensure true devolution of powers and the establishment of local governments in accordance with Article 32 and 140A of the Constitution.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 2nd, 2014.
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