News
Monday, August 12, 2013
Imran calls for anti-terror policy before APC* PTI chief says Pakistan has to get out of US ‘war on terror’ to curb terrorism
Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan on Sunday underlined the need for a comprehensive anti-terrorism policy before the All-Parties Conference (APC) is convened to curb the growing terror incidents in the country.
Imran said the idea of APC is meaningless until the government has a counter-terrorism policy to present before it.
He expressed grave concern over the deteriorating security situation in the country and stated that the government seems unable to formulate a viable and holistic counter-terrorism policy and a strategy.
He said that the government seems least interested in giving this issue top priority.
The PTI chairman reiterated that there is a need for a comprehensive counter-terrorism policy which identifies the different types of terrorism impacting the country and uses politico-economic measures alongside security measures to counter them on an emergency basis.
He said governance is imploding and the state cannot bear the growing pressure. “The security apparatus is overstretched and exposed in the absence of a holistic counter-terrorism policy, with the under-equipped and under-trained police force the greatest sufferer,” he noted.
As a first step, Imran stated that Pakistan has to get out of America’s “war on terror” which has allowed terrorists to misuse the narrative of jihad against the Pakistani security forces – the police, paramilitary and military. By de-linking from the US-led “war on terror”, he said the Pakistani state would deprive the terrorists of the narrative of jihad and allow it to combat them within a more viable environment. “While this is not the only policy component of an indigenous counter-terrorism strategy, it is a critical component, especially when it is accompanied by an immediate end to acceptance of drones,” Imran said.
He said the illegality of drones is now well-established internationally and a Peshawar High Court decision in this regard is still pending implementation by the federal government. What is equally well-established, Imran went on to say, is the negative impact of drone attacks through creation of more space for terrorists. This would be the PTI’s first suggested step in operationalising an effective counter-terror policy, especially in the context of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which has been the province worst hit by terrorism directly arising out of Pakistan’s support for the “war on terror” and covert support for drone attacks on Pakistani soil.
Imran said the ill-equipped police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has made immeasurable sacrifices in the front line fighting terrorists who are equipped with latest weaponry and night vision devices.
He said the province cannot bear the costs of such a disastrous policy any longer.
The PTI, he said, is formulating a strategy to protest the continuing participation in the “war on terror” and continuance of drone attacks and “we will announce our line of action soon after the by-elections”. “If the government is still unable or unwilling to present a holistic counter-terrorism policy, immediately extricate itself from the US ‘war on terror’ and stop drone attacks.”
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk