Fighting terrorism

It was never in doubt that the change in army command would not affect the ongoing security operations. As expected, on his very first visit to Karachi as Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa praised the security agencies for bringing about a noticeable improvement in the law and order situation. And in a statement issued by the ISPR he expressed the resolve to continue the Karachi operation till the attainment of "sustainable peace", and not to allow its gains to be reversed. But in an indirect hint he also made it clear that this is a long haul battle for which the civilian authorities should be better prepared to play their role.
The Pakistan Army, he said, would render all necessary assistance to the provincial government for capacity building and training of law enforcement agencies for long-term effectiveness against organised crime and enduring peace for the city. The longer-term responsibility to maintain peace and stability, of course, rests with the civilian agencies. Considering that the Karachi operation has been going on for more than three years, by now the provincial government should have readied its civilian agencies for that. It does look good for it to be reminded of what needs to be done. Indeed, the Karachi police have made great sacrifices fighting the terrorists, but in order to do their job effectively and efficiently they must be duly trained and equipped to take on terrorists and other dangerous criminals who may be lying low for the time being.
Things at the Centre do not inspire much confidence either. The federal government has yet to fully implement the 20-point National Action Plan (NAP). It has been two years when the political consensus based NAP was formulated, yet there is no tangible action on such vital points as choking terrorist financing, ensuring against re-emergence of proscribed organisations, registration and regulation of madressahs, dealing firmly with sectarian terrorists, and establishing and deploying a dedicated counter-terrorism force. There has been much talk but no action on cutting foreign funding of extremist organisations. Regarding madressah reforms, Sindh is the only province where some progress has been made. Others keep getting cold feet in the face of religious parties' threats not to allow any interference in madressah affairs. Although Punjab is a home base of certain notorious sectarian organisations, the provincial government has been resistant to requests for a Rangers operation there. And proscribed organisations remain active under reinvented identities. The proposed dedicated counter-terrorism force was to be raised under the National Counter Terrorism Authority (NACTA). But as things stand, NACTA itself is not fully functional because the government wouldn't allocate necessary funds for it. No wonder, in his farewell speech last month the outgoing CoAS General Raheel Sharif felt it necessary to underscore the need for NAP implementation. General Bajwa now has his own suggestions to make. This would not be necessary if only the civilian leadership were earnestly leading the fight against terrorism.