Pakistan: In the name of peace

The figures are astounding, not just for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which, since Jan 1, 2014, has borne the major brunt of terrorist attacks, but also for its capital Peshawar. Of the total 129 fatalities in terrorist attacks in the northwestern KP since the dawn of the new year, 80 were civilians, of which 75 deaths took place in Peshawar alone. There has been no drone strike since December. Nato supplies to Afghanistan via Peshawar remain suspended and there is no active military operation currently under way in any part of the tribal regions. And to cap it all, the peace dialogue is on between Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s handpicked four-member committee and the team nominated by the political shura of the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan. So on the face of it, there should have been no casus belli for the attacks as all reasons that have been offered as justification for the acts of violence by some political parties, including the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, have been addressed. But while there can be no justification, there can at least be some sort of explanation for what caused this escalation in the number of attacks, which by the way, has never witnessed any decline, save for the brief lull following the elections and the death of TTP supremo, Hakeemullah Mehsud, in a drone strike.

Opinions vary.

There are those who believe that since the TTP has not claimed responsibility for the attacks, hence they are the work of: a) splinter groups not interested in peace; b) a “third force” with vested interests (read military and security establishment) that is trying to create the mood for military action in Waziristan and c) foreign powers inimical to Pakistan that want to destabilise the country. There is yet another group of people, including the TTP, which justifies violence and terrorist attacks by arguing that since there has been no ceasefire, attacks and counter-attacks can continue. The TTP insists it is acting in self-defence. But this argument – regardless of whether one agrees with it or not – applies when the TTP accepts responsibility for an attack, like the one carried out in Karachi on Thursday. But what is one to make of the attacks that either remain unacknowledged or are claimed by groups hitherto unheard of? This is where it becomes murky or so it would seem to the hapless people of this hapless province – and by extension the rest of the country, apart from the security apparatus. The security officials may be slow in tracking down terrorists or pre-empting a terrorist attack but they do not lack information when it comes to militant groups, their nexus and or their involvement in terrorist attacks. Intelligence intercepts, ground and human intelligence and forensic evidence – there is tons of evidence about the involvement of groups involved in attacks, including some recent ones that have been disowned by the TTP. Why then are the nation and the political leadership confused? Is it that these intelligence reports are not shared with the political leadership? Who is it shared with? At what level? And what, if any, role do these intelligence reports and assessment play in the political decision-making over dealing with terrorism? If the political leadership is not being told, it is a very serious matter and will embolden those wreaking havoc in the country. But if they are being told and they do not want to speak about it, it would mean either that the intelligence is not credible or that they are too scared to call a spade a spade and risk public pressure for an operation. But there is a third option. The politicians know who or which group is behind most attacks but they do not want to vitiate the environment by pointing fingers as a ‘peace process’ is under way.

This is the underlying reason for the silence.

Our security establishment is no exception to the rule; it too has started focusing on which direction the wind is blowing in. As one official put it: “No one is interested in who did what. We are talking peace here, stupid!”