Ashwani Kumar Chrungoo
The recent actions initiated by the Government of Pakistan against the terror establishment on the land under its control need to be looked positively. Pakistan is definitely at a cross roads but it has an opportunity as well to reorient itself. Pakistan over the last four decades has been actively involved in both kinds of businesses rightly or wrongly. The terror and the diplomacy around the terror.
The advisers within its establishment and the politicians who ruled the country went with the flow of compulsions the “cruel” time produced before it. Ever since the inception, Pakistan did not take an independent position regarding its role and status in the region. It unfortunately went with US, UK, NATO and other strategic alliances from time to time which were, in fact, crafted by the super powers keeping in view their own strategic, diplomatic and political gains in the region and outside the region. It is a disaster when a nation allows its national policy to be guided by the vested interests of the foreign elements and forces and particularly when they keep on pumping money and ammunition to the country in demand.
Pakistan, fortunately for itself, is situated in a geographically hub of sensitive political landscape which was recognised by the outside powers ab initio. Pakistan could not gauge its geographic and strategic placement mostly because it continued to harbour some “out of box” love for Kashmir. Its love for Kashmir was manifested in ill-advised wars and positions against India and ultimately on a doctrine that was recognised as “Inflicting Thousand cuts”. Its physical form took the shape of terrorism and diplomacy around terrorism.
India used seven decades of its independence, despite and inspite of political differences within, to create for itself a situation that the world would recognise it as a strategic and political power in the Asian context. It did successfully what it was supposed to do in international and diplomatic affairs particularly during the last five years.
The actions of UN and the super powers against Pakistan over some couple of years are a reflection of this policy focus of India. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) declaring Masood Azhar as Global Terrorist initiates a Herculean Task for Pakistan to accomplish its “international promises” to the satisfaction of the world powers.
This time Pakistan, despite insistence, could not persuade China to whisk away under the umbrella of Veto Power in the Security Council. It now becomes mandatory for Pakistan to be answerable to the neighbourhood first, keeping in view the recent situations emerging in India and Sri Lanka.
There is a wide agreement among most of the nations world over that Pakistan keep its hands off from the internal matters of India in Kashmir. Since India has proven its intent after the Pulwama carnage to go to any extent possible, Pakistan should showcase its intent to bring terrorists, active on its soil, before the justice system. Their terror infrastructure, financial mechanism and links with the politico-military establishment require to be severed. The world powers including India may demand to bring the culprits presently hidden in Pakistan before the global justice platform including the International Criminal Court and ICJ.
Pakistan also should come clean on the facts as it was recently termed as a country that “created terrorist groups to be a tool in their struggle against India” by former CIA director, Michael Morell. The impact of Pakistan’s decision to adopt terrorism as a part of its foreign policy and “policy in terms of India” had a huge toll in Kashmir after Punjab, three decades ago.
It needs to be acknowledged that the future governments in India will be ordained to pursue the existing policy of “zero tolerance against terror” and “terror and talks won’t go together”. There is no policy alternative than what has been crafted in the current context by the present government in India with a focus on the earlier commitment of Pakistan that “it will not allow the soil under its control to be used against India”.
It is time for Pakistan to, in its own interest, desist from the repetition of 1971 and Imran Khan, the PM of Pakistan, needs to come out of the “Yahya Khan shadow” as soon as possible lest “seven states doctrine” in the context of Pakistan may regenerate itself as soon as possible. Unfortunately for Pakistan this time, its economy is in shambles, its debt has crossed the advisable limits and the inflationary situation in Pakistan does not match the global markets.
Recent address of Imran Khan to the bureaucrats of Pakistan is an eye opener to the experts of economy, politics, defence and strategy in Pakistan to reorient their beaten path and take humanitarian view of what is paramount for the State of Pakistan. It has a Golden chance available to itself to finish the menace of terrorism that has bleeded its neighbouhood and its country of origin besides sending a message world wide that Pakistan remains the epicentre of global terrorism.
Pakistan is supposed to catch the bull by the horns and if it does, it has the open space to write a new history for itself and the region. But keeping in view the past, the question assumes a million dollar value whether Pakistan does its duty towards the generations to come……!
(Feedback: ashwanikc2012@gmail)
Trending Now
E-Paper
Follow our WhatsApp channel