We live under continual threat of two equally fearful, but seemingly opposed, destinies: unremitting banality and inconceivable terror.” — Susan Sontag
The rise in terror attacks has perhaps numbed our feelings and our attitudes towards the fear of terror attacks. We used to feel sorry for the Iraqis, who were faced with constant terror attacks in the near past. Unfortunately, Pakistan is beset with a greater magnitude of attacks, taking a high toll of human lives. The constant exposure to fear has perhaps numbed our sensitivity. A banality of terror appears to be setting in. The other day, while visiting a private news agency, which provides visual news service to international TV channels, breaking news of the deadly bomb blast in Peshawar just after Hillary Clinton’s arrival in Islamabad was received. The News agency apprised its clients of the event and at that time the initial news still filtering in indicated a death toll of eight. The Client News Channels were not interested. It was shocking for me; and only when the death toll crossed 40, the channels jumped into action and commissioned news footage and detailed news stories. We are in a ‘state of war’ and should move beyond the doubting Thomases asking “whose war is it?” Our very survival depends on how we conduct ourselves. The targets have shifted from security forces and their infrastructure to schools, colleges, shopping areas inhabiting the lower class, and ordinary plebeians queued up to receive their humble salary at local banks. The farcical shroud of imposing “Shariat” or Islamic values has been shredded by the attacks on women and children. No tenet of Islam, what to say of ordain, even forgives those who take up arms against women, children and the weak and feeble. The time for paying heed to pleas of going for ‘talks, not war’ has passed. The assailants are armed with such sophisticated weaponry, their communication infrastructure is so highly developed, and the level of advanced training, which has been imparted, has mutated ordinary citizens into ruthless killing machines that resorting to peace talks now would be an indication of weakness. The hand of the decision makers has been forced by the incessant and increasingly vicious attacks. We have trodden the path of targeting the strongholds of miscreants and then entering into dialogues for peace earlier too. Leaving the task half-done and then ensuing for dialogue only provided much needed breathing time to the terror leaders, allowing them to replenish their weaponry, gain more time to train fresh recruits and deploy them into the heartland of urban centers to unleash terror whenever triggered into action. The task cannot be left unfinished this time, however painful it may be for us. Backing off now would only embolden the terror merchants to extract their pound of flesh as well as keep us hostage to their terms of foreboding and shock. Indeed a heavy price will be extracted of us in precious lives and our mental peace. The choice is ours, go after the harbingers of doom and gloom in one swoop and endeavour to finish them once for all or continue cowering in fear and be picked out as targets of terror attacks one by one. Playing with human lives is no easy matter. The US and most western countries are sensitive to casualties. The number of body bags sent home in their wars overseas, can upset the people back home into pressing for calling off the war. We have to own the fact that this however odious war, is now inevitable. Instead of running endless debates into its causes and who brought it upon us, we need to protect our civilians from further harm, not by waving the white flag for peace for that would be tantamount to surrender but by gearing ourselves up for action. We need to support the war effort wholeheartedly, the people dying in the streets, schools and places of worship are our own people. Yes the government needs to declare ‘a state of war’ so that we can take actions, which are tantamount to being under such a siege. We all have to gear up and do our bit to contribute to the war effort. During the Indo-Pak War, we were youngsters and had voluntarily organized ourselves into groups who used to keep vigil. The impending threat then was from aerial bombardment, we used to patrol the streets, ensuring that proper blackout was maintained when air raids took place and supervising the digging of trenches. There was a scare that enemy paratroopers would be dropped close to air bases and vulnerable points. Whether any actual paratroopers were dropped by the enemy or not, we beat up a few people whom we suspected of being intruders and thus falling into the category of possible paratroopers. Such was our enthusiasm and zeal that some of our excesses were condoned by our elders. Today the enemy is within us, he is faceless and stealthy. We all have to be vigilant and wary to thwart his dastardly deed of blowing himself up and taking numerous others with him. It calls for a different level of awareness. Unless each one of us takes it upon himself/herself to point at intruders, strangers or those apparently indulging in suspicious activities, we cannot win this war. We also need to reach out to the IDPs of Waziristan. Somehow the spirit that had guided us in the wake of the deadly earthquake of 2005 or the Swat Operations appears to be waning now. Unless we welcome the poor souls, who were earlier held hostage by the Terrorists, we may drive them into becoming cannon fodder for the terror merchants through our callousness. Such is the insensitivity, which sets in. We need to guard ourselves against banality; every life is precious. We are virtually on our own in this war and instead of looking externally for sustenance and support, let us enedeavour to help ourselves by tighteneing our belt, rationing scarce resources and most importantly, uniting in this war effort.
The rise in terror attacks has perhaps numbed our feelings and our attitudes towards the fear of terror attacks. We used to feel sorry for the Iraqis, who were faced with constant terror attacks in the near past. Unfortunately, Pakistan is beset with a greater magnitude of attacks, taking a high toll of human lives. The constant exposure to fear has perhaps numbed our sensitivity. A banality of terror appears to be setting in. The other day, while visiting a private news agency, which provides visual news service to international TV channels, breaking news of the deadly bomb blast in Peshawar just after Hillary Clinton’s arrival in Islamabad was received. The News agency apprised its clients of the event and at that time the initial news still filtering in indicated a death toll of eight. The Client News Channels were not interested. It was shocking for me; and only when the death toll crossed 40, the channels jumped into action and commissioned news footage and detailed news stories. We are in a ‘state of war’ and should move beyond the doubting Thomases asking “whose war is it?” Our very survival depends on how we conduct ourselves. The targets have shifted from security forces and their infrastructure to schools, colleges, shopping areas inhabiting the lower class, and ordinary plebeians queued up to receive their humble salary at local banks. The farcical shroud of imposing “Shariat” or Islamic values has been shredded by the attacks on women and children. No tenet of Islam, what to say of ordain, even forgives those who take up arms against women, children and the weak and feeble. The time for paying heed to pleas of going for ‘talks, not war’ has passed. The assailants are armed with such sophisticated weaponry, their communication infrastructure is so highly developed, and the level of advanced training, which has been imparted, has mutated ordinary citizens into ruthless killing machines that resorting to peace talks now would be an indication of weakness. The hand of the decision makers has been forced by the incessant and increasingly vicious attacks. We have trodden the path of targeting the strongholds of miscreants and then entering into dialogues for peace earlier too. Leaving the task half-done and then ensuing for dialogue only provided much needed breathing time to the terror leaders, allowing them to replenish their weaponry, gain more time to train fresh recruits and deploy them into the heartland of urban centers to unleash terror whenever triggered into action. The task cannot be left unfinished this time, however painful it may be for us. Backing off now would only embolden the terror merchants to extract their pound of flesh as well as keep us hostage to their terms of foreboding and shock. Indeed a heavy price will be extracted of us in precious lives and our mental peace. The choice is ours, go after the harbingers of doom and gloom in one swoop and endeavour to finish them once for all or continue cowering in fear and be picked out as targets of terror attacks one by one. Playing with human lives is no easy matter. The US and most western countries are sensitive to casualties. The number of body bags sent home in their wars overseas, can upset the people back home into pressing for calling off the war. We have to own the fact that this however odious war, is now inevitable. Instead of running endless debates into its causes and who brought it upon us, we need to protect our civilians from further harm, not by waving the white flag for peace for that would be tantamount to surrender but by gearing ourselves up for action. We need to support the war effort wholeheartedly, the people dying in the streets, schools and places of worship are our own people. Yes the government needs to declare ‘a state of war’ so that we can take actions, which are tantamount to being under such a siege. We all have to gear up and do our bit to contribute to the war effort. During the Indo-Pak War, we were youngsters and had voluntarily organized ourselves into groups who used to keep vigil. The impending threat then was from aerial bombardment, we used to patrol the streets, ensuring that proper blackout was maintained when air raids took place and supervising the digging of trenches. There was a scare that enemy paratroopers would be dropped close to air bases and vulnerable points. Whether any actual paratroopers were dropped by the enemy or not, we beat up a few people whom we suspected of being intruders and thus falling into the category of possible paratroopers. Such was our enthusiasm and zeal that some of our excesses were condoned by our elders. Today the enemy is within us, he is faceless and stealthy. We all have to be vigilant and wary to thwart his dastardly deed of blowing himself up and taking numerous others with him. It calls for a different level of awareness. Unless each one of us takes it upon himself/herself to point at intruders, strangers or those apparently indulging in suspicious activities, we cannot win this war. We also need to reach out to the IDPs of Waziristan. Somehow the spirit that had guided us in the wake of the deadly earthquake of 2005 or the Swat Operations appears to be waning now. Unless we welcome the poor souls, who were earlier held hostage by the Terrorists, we may drive them into becoming cannon fodder for the terror merchants through our callousness. Such is the insensitivity, which sets in. We need to guard ourselves against banality; every life is precious. We are virtually on our own in this war and instead of looking externally for sustenance and support, let us enedeavour to help ourselves by tighteneing our belt, rationing scarce resources and most importantly, uniting in this war effort.
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