Need to Attack Sources of Tension: Mowahid

Washington, DC: US drone strikes are just another way of applying symptomatic treatment to the deep running disputes like the Palestinian question and Kashmir, which the world community can no longer afford to ignore, author and attorney-at-law Mowahid Hussain Shah argued. He noted that blatant state oppression, denial of rights to the people of occupied Jammu and Kashmir and Palestine, big power belligerence, loose employment of abrasive language in the media and lopsided policies have combined to inflame militancy.

“Unless the world addresses the root causes of radicalism, there can be no enduring peace,” Mideast expert Mowahid said while leading a discussion on the current world scenario at the American University.

The author of “Will and Skill”, a book analyzing reasons for the gulf between the Muslim world and the West, contended that leadership in the Western world capitals must show moral courage and statesmanship to craft a viable way forward.

He said drone operations are simply not working and are escalating polarization by taking a toll on innocent civilians, therefore undercutting any justification for their use and prolonging the impasse.

The lively question and answer session reflected a keen desire on the part of American and international students for course-correction.

The students, representing a cross-cultural mix from around the world, expressed appreciation for the broader international perspective on major global issues.

Dr Akbar S. Ahmed, Ibn Khaldun chair of Islamic Studies, who recently wrote a book “The Thistle and the Drone,” introduced Mowahid to the audience.

 


Back to Pakistanlink Homepage

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Editor: Akhtar M. Faruqui
© 2004 pakistanlink.com . All Rights Reserved.