Terrorism

(Bismillah Anwar, Lahore)

God has created this beautiful world with immense love and kindness. With Enormous affection Allah Almighty has given birth to his lovable creatures. He has given multiple colors to this world. He has formed Rivers, Oceans, Mountains, Stars and several other creations for the pleasure of mankind. He has given millions of shades to this mortal world. All are made for the gratification of human beings. Unfortunately, Human beings did not understand the motives of the creation of this world. Destruction and turmoil have become the fashion of the day.

Terrorism is the biggest threat to Pakistan’s progress. It is the gravest foam of destruction and disaster. It damages the internal as well as external infrastructure of every country. Insecurity and mental pressure have created a sense of self deprivation among masses. It roots can be traced back from 1979, when there was an effort to kick out Russia from Afghanistan. But the problem became severe after 9/11. And now in 2011, it’s become a menace for our motherland. At present, Pakistan has been facing the gigantic problem of terrorism. It has become the fashion of the day. It is regarded as headache for federation and a nightmare for public. It has colossal roots which spread inside the internal as well as external boundaries of Pakistan. Although it is global issue yet Pakistan has to bear the brunt of it. Pakistan’s involvement in war against terrorism has further fuel the fire. We are facing war like situation against the terrorists. This daunting situation is caused due to several factors. These factors include social injustice, economic disparity, political instability, religious intolerance and also external hands or international conspiracies. A handful of people who have their vicious interests to fulfil have not only taken countless innocent lives but also distorted the real image of Islam before the world through their heinous acts. Terrorist acts like suicide bombings have become a norm of the day. On account of these attacks Pakistan is suffering from ineffaceable loss ranging from civilian to economic. People have become numerical figures, blown up in numbers every now and then. Terrorists have not left any place vacant. They spread around the whole country. Markets, shrines, mosques, hotels, gardens and educational institutes all are now under the thumb of just one click of terrorists. They blasted everything. They are responsible for the innocent lives of people. They hold special place in hell.

Islam is the pious religion around the whole orb. Purity of Islam reflects from the teachings of Holy Prophet( PBUH ).It always gives the message of peace , prosperity , kindness, justice, equality and love. Islam forbids all kinds of corrupt activities. Massacre of innocent lives are highly reprehensible in Islam. Committing cruel activities are forbidden in pious religion Islam. Islam openly negated terrorism.

The religion of Islam (Submission), advocates freedom, peace and mutual agreement and admonishes aggression. The following verses make it very clear.
“And do not aggress; GOD dislikes the aggressors”. (Quran 5:87)
“You shall resort to pardon, advocate tolerance, and disregard the ignorant”. (Quran: 7:199)

The relations of Muslims (Submitters) with others are based primarily on peace, mutual respect and trust. The theme in the Quran is peace, unless there is oppression or injustice that cannot be resolved by all the peaceful means available. The true religion of Islam forbids the killing of innocent people, irrespective of the cause, religious, political or social beliefs.

“...You shall not kill * GOD has made life sacred * except in the course of justice. These are His commandments to you that you may understand.” (Quran 6:151)
“You shall not kill any person * for GOD has made life sacred — except in the course of justice.” (Quran17:33)

Islam is the perfect religion of the world; it condemned all stances of terrorism. How can a terrorist wish for heaven? They are directly assigning their place in hell.
Injustice is one of the foremost factors that breed terrorism. When the grievances of the people are not redressed they resort to violent actions. So this is the case with Pakistan where timely justice has always been a far cry. Hence, the delayed justice is working as incentive for victims and dragging them to the swamp of terrorist organizations.
Illiteracy is the root causes of extremism and terrorism. More than one in five men aged 15 to 24 unable to read or write, and only one in 20 is in tertiary education. Such a high illiteracy rate has made Pakistan vulnerable to terrorism. Furthermore, technical and vocational education, and adult literacy, are especially important but unfortunately have been neglected the most in Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Tribal Areas. Illiteracy and lack of skills provide fertile ground for those who wish to recruit young men and women to their cause, especially when significant monetary payments are attached.

Regarding poverty, it is also an incubating cause of terrorism. And it is said that “a hungry man is an angry man.” Notably, majority of people in Pakistan are living below poverty line. While especially for the youngsters, unemployment has made the matter worse. In these adverse circumstances, some people go to the level of extremism and even commit suicide. These are the people whose services are hired by the terrorist groups and they become easy prey to terrorism.

Food insecurity is also linked with militancy and violence. When people remain unable to afford food and cannot meet their basic needs civil strife grows. A report by the Islamabad-based Sustainable Development Policy Institute the highest levels of food insecurity, for instance, exist in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, according to the report, where 67.7 per cent of the people are insecure. The next highest level is in Baluchistan, with food insecurity at 61.2 per cent, and then in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, 56.2 per cent. In Pakistan some extremist forces are exploiting the feelings of lower and lower middle class food insecure people. They are motivating their unemployed youth to commit heinous crimes such as suicide attacks against innocent people.

Another reason of terrorism is dissatisfaction. When a person is dissatisfied with the rulers and thinks that his rights are being humiliated or exiled, his living of life has not been compensated, he is deprived of rightful inheritance to office, wrongly imprisoned and property confiscated then he joins some religious parties. It does not matter which organisation it would be. None of the organizations has any importance for him. Adopting an organisation would only save him from the critical situation he is in and leaves him to play in the hands of his so-called leaders who destroy his public sense of security.

Today’s Pakistan is facing democratic turmoil. A path chartered by the military regime of Ayub Khan, Yahiya Khan then of Zia-ul-Haq was altered by yet another military regime that of Musharraf. All these regimes produced political instability, poor governance, institutional paralysis, by passing the rule of law, socio-economic downfall and so on. These fragile conditions along with deteriorating law and order situation have provided a fertile ground for terrorism to grow.

Furthermore, lack of proper government set-up and lack of coordination and information sharing between various institutions of government is also a cause of behind the escalating terrorist activities. Not to talk of providing security to common people, our law enforcing agencies (LEAs) have completely failed to protect high officials of the country. In the absence of law and proper trial the terrorists are entrenching their roots firmly. Failure of the (LAEs) to bring the terrorist to book has emboldened terror mongers to strike at a target of their choice at will. Schools, hospitals, markets and places of worship have become their favorite targets.

The soviet Afghanistan war was the most critical event responsible for spreading militancy and intolerance in Pakistan. A fundamental change that altered the very character of Pakistani society occurred after establishment of the soviet backed communist regime in Afghanistan. The aftermath of the soviet withdrawal exposed the damage, transformation of violence and Weaponisation into Pakistani society. It ultimately plagued Pakistan with a new trend commonly referred as “Kalashnikov Culture” and “Talbanisation”.

Religion became the dominant force during the Zia regime when the Islamization of laws and education became a state policy. And the Islamic legislation was promulgated and a number of Islamic enactments were made, including the Hudood and blasphemy laws. One may also mention the vital role of the jihadi in their fight against the Soviet military occupation with the American support, as well as the generous patronage extended by the government to the religious parties and groups. It may be added that various religious groups benefited from the support they received from abroad, in particular from Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Religious Madrasah is not something new for the Islam or our country. But after Russian attack on Afghanistan it took a new dimension. They were being used as recruitment centers for jihadi. Thousands of Mujahedeen were trained and sent to Afghanistan for so-called jihad. After the fall of Russia, a sizeable number of the jihadi who returned to Pakistan got involved in terrorist activities.

Since September 11, 2001, 21,672 Pakistani civilians have lost their lives or have been seriously injured in an ongoing fight against terrorism. The Pakistan Army has lost 2,795 soldiers in the war and 8,671 have been injured. There have been 3,486 bomb blasts in the country, including 283 major suicide attacks. More than 3.5 million have been displaced. The damage to the Pakistani economy is estimated at $68 billion over the last ten years. Over 200,000 Pakistani troops were deployed at the frontline and 90,000 soldiers are fighting against militants on the Afghan border.

Iranian Revolution also created a sense of conflicts inside the boundaries of Pakistan. Sectarianism conflicts erupted. Shia and Sunni rivalry began which further deteriorated the condition. This also laid the strong foothold of extremist inside the boundaries of Pakistan.

War on terrorism9/11 began, when three hijacked planes collided with the World TRADE CENTE NEW YORK and Pentagon building. This was the cowardly attack which occurred on 9/11.killed several innocent lives of people. People were buried under the roof of largest building. This clearly showed the weakness of USA intelligence agency. President Bush invited the whole international community to participate in so called war on terrorism. Pakistan became the top non NATO ally of Pakistan. Pakistan moves heaven and earth to curb the power of Taliban. After the long year of partnership, between USA and Pakistan, USA has decided to evacuate Afghanistan before 2014.This war on terrorism has claimed millions of innocent lives. Millions of USA military officers were lost their lives. It created havoc around the whole globe. USA will assign this responsibility to afghan forces.

The drone strikes have increased anti-Americanism in Pakistan society and the region. The terrorists have used the collateral damage to maximize the environment and society to their benefit. Families of people killed in collateral damage become ideal nursery for suicide bombers In Pakistan society drone attacks are popularly believed to have caused even more civilian casualties than is actually the case. The persistence of these attacks on Pakistani territory is continuously creating public outrages and alienating people from government and Army. The drone is a tactical weapon and has certainly given good results tactically to support coalition forces operation on their sides of the border but strategically history has many unanswered questions.

Terrorism puts adverse impact on the life of individuals. Every city is now under the influence of terrorism. It affects the mental health of people. People fear around the whole country. Our beloved father of nation Quaid-e-Azam condemned bloodshed on every occasion. Unfortunately now at every place in Pakistan Rivers of blood are flowing. Dead bodies are floating in this river, and all are happening because of terrorism. Terrorism spreads havoc .It claimed millions of lives. Don’t know how many others will be victimized in upcoming days. It puts bad impact on social life. Now Pakistani society has become the hub of terrorism. Bomb blast has become the norm of the day. Every street comes under the target of just one thumb click. Students are avoiding going to schools. Absences of teachers are reached at its zenith. Overall infrastructure of FATA, KP, and Baluchistan are damaged because of massive terrorist attacks. Girl’s schools are also targeting. The basic motives of terrorists to damage the educational institutes. They do not give preference to women education. They want to treat women as chattels. They openly negated the concept of women empowerment. The recent attack on 14 year old blameless girl named Malala Yusuf zai was regarded as cowardly act of terrorists. What they want? They actually want illiterate Pakistan. They wanted to spread the condition of Pre Islamic Arab. Pre Islamic Arabs were engaged in nasty circle of vices. They were the rulers of darkness. They were unaware people. After the arrival of light in the shape of Prophet (PBUH) the overall world has been transformed. No one knows the hidden motives of extremist except bloodshed. Education is regarded as the blood of a country. Nation cannot grow like a tree in the absence of education. Education provides knowledge. It gives respectful position in social cycle. Absence of knowledge is as similar as absence of humanity in men. God has given full permission to avail knowledge. It is the right of every individual to attain knowledge. Without knowledge, a man is like an animal.

Bismillah Anwar
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