The words that the prime minister mechanically read out at Jamia Naeemia in Lahore last week suggested that he, in his personal capacity, longs to redefine the ongoing counterterrorism policy. The prime minister essentially pleaded to religious scholars to reject preaching hate and promote tolerance and inclusivity, yet he cannot do that himself until his party’s top leadership and the state apparatus stands behind him without flinching.
The prime minister’s choice to attend the seminar at the Jamia Naeemia has a history of its own. The Sharif family has had close relations with Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi. His able son, Mufti Sarfaraz Naeemi, had always denounced the Tehreek-e-Taliban’s terrorist actions and declared their ideology as unislamic. He was also known for his outspoken criticism of suicide bombings and strong support for military action against militancy. Naeemi was the man behind the Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz, a group of nearly 20 Sunni parties, that united against the violence committed by the Taliban.
As a result, however, Mufti Sarfaraz Naeemi was assassinated in a suicide attack in June 2009. Sarfaraz was at the seminary’s office in Garhi Shaho when he was targeted in an attack that was claimed by Baitullah Mehsud’s faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban. After the incident, the chief minister Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif, called the Taliban brethren and urged them to stop attacks in the province even though many people believed that this could have been the time to take a firm position. And then at a seminar in 2010 held to commemorate the services of the late Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi, Shahbaz Sharif said that as “the Taliban and PML-N both opposed former military dictator Pervez Musharraf he was surprised that this common stance has failed to stop the Taliban from carrying out terror attacks in Punjab,” as Dawn reported.
Hence, the prime minister’s first visit to Jamia Naeemia after coming to power remains symbolic. In his 16-minute read-out, Nawaz Sharif said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government and ulema would collectively thwart all attempts aimed at creating fissures in society and with their efforts would strengthen peace in the country. He regretted that throughout the world, the real teachings of Islam had been distorted but he believed that ulema and religious leaders had the panacea for such challenges by using their pulpits to present the true picture of the religion.
According to some media reports, minutes before the prime minister took to the podium at the Jamia Naeemia, a few students and participants at the event chanted slogans in favour of Mumtaz Qadri, the man who killed former Governor Salmaan Taseer. Though the management silenced them, this reflects how seriously the prime minister’s written speech could have been taken. These are clear signs that the government needs to stop siding with “lesser” extremists. The policy of the good or bad Taliban has long failed and giving into propagators of extremism on any level or from any sect will never lead to a progressive or peaceful Pakistan.
Nawaz Sharif’s words, then, seem more philosophical than practical. He expects the ulema to play a role, and also offered to bring sympathisers and facilitators of militants to justice. But the ground reality has been quite the opposite to this even with the implementation of the National Action Plan. The gaps and loopholes in the plan still exist and so does the resistance to fix them. Propagators of extremist ideology and terrorist sympathisers operate freely in the heart of the capital and hold rallies, while the confusion over what is or what is not terrorism continues prevails. It was only in October last year that the Ahle Sunnat wal Jamaat (ASWJ or formerly the Sipah-e-Sahaba) held their annual conference in Islamabad at a time when Section 144 was imposed in the city to prohibit large gatherings.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the government had resolved that all political forces would be taken on board. Note that this is not religious forces that he was referring to, but political forces. Yet, the ultra religious mindset reins in political forces, even in the ruling party’s own rank and file. A uniformity in approach to counter hate is absent.
Militancy and terrorism can be fought only when governance is improved, democracy is strengthened, basic human rights are not curtailed and progressive forces are not alienated. For this, the ruling party has to promote tolerance and inclusivity. It has to come clean against extremism in all shapes and forms. It also has to break ties with many jihadist groups and prevent them from being used or perceived as assets. While at it, the prime minister also needs to share with the public the scope, successes and failures of the on-going military operations across country.
Even though the prime minister’s speech was a good sign, he needs to provide a decisive policy that directs concrete action rather than providing soft counter-narrative. Until then such speeches are just words that cannot be swallowed hook, line and sinker.
The writer is a journalist based in Washington who has extensively covered US-Pakistan relations. He tweets at @Wajidasyed
The prime minister’s choice to attend the seminar at the Jamia Naeemia has a history of its own. The Sharif family has had close relations with Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi. His able son, Mufti Sarfaraz Naeemi, had always denounced the Tehreek-e-Taliban’s terrorist actions and declared their ideology as unislamic. He was also known for his outspoken criticism of suicide bombings and strong support for military action against militancy. Naeemi was the man behind the Tahaffuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz, a group of nearly 20 Sunni parties, that united against the violence committed by the Taliban.
As a result, however, Mufti Sarfaraz Naeemi was assassinated in a suicide attack in June 2009. Sarfaraz was at the seminary’s office in Garhi Shaho when he was targeted in an attack that was claimed by Baitullah Mehsud’s faction of the Tehreek-e-Taliban. After the incident, the chief minister Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif, called the Taliban brethren and urged them to stop attacks in the province even though many people believed that this could have been the time to take a firm position. And then at a seminar in 2010 held to commemorate the services of the late Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi, Shahbaz Sharif said that as “the Taliban and PML-N both opposed former military dictator Pervez Musharraf he was surprised that this common stance has failed to stop the Taliban from carrying out terror attacks in Punjab,” as Dawn reported.
The Sharif family has had close relations with Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi. His able son, Mufti Sarfaraz Naeemi, had always denounced the Tehreek-e-Taliban's terrorist actions and declared their ideology as unislamic
Hence, the prime minister’s first visit to Jamia Naeemia after coming to power remains symbolic. In his 16-minute read-out, Nawaz Sharif said that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz government and ulema would collectively thwart all attempts aimed at creating fissures in society and with their efforts would strengthen peace in the country. He regretted that throughout the world, the real teachings of Islam had been distorted but he believed that ulema and religious leaders had the panacea for such challenges by using their pulpits to present the true picture of the religion.
According to some media reports, minutes before the prime minister took to the podium at the Jamia Naeemia, a few students and participants at the event chanted slogans in favour of Mumtaz Qadri, the man who killed former Governor Salmaan Taseer. Though the management silenced them, this reflects how seriously the prime minister’s written speech could have been taken. These are clear signs that the government needs to stop siding with “lesser” extremists. The policy of the good or bad Taliban has long failed and giving into propagators of extremism on any level or from any sect will never lead to a progressive or peaceful Pakistan.
Nawaz Sharif’s words, then, seem more philosophical than practical. He expects the ulema to play a role, and also offered to bring sympathisers and facilitators of militants to justice. But the ground reality has been quite the opposite to this even with the implementation of the National Action Plan. The gaps and loopholes in the plan still exist and so does the resistance to fix them. Propagators of extremist ideology and terrorist sympathisers operate freely in the heart of the capital and hold rallies, while the confusion over what is or what is not terrorism continues prevails. It was only in October last year that the Ahle Sunnat wal Jamaat (ASWJ or formerly the Sipah-e-Sahaba) held their annual conference in Islamabad at a time when Section 144 was imposed in the city to prohibit large gatherings.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said the government had resolved that all political forces would be taken on board. Note that this is not religious forces that he was referring to, but political forces. Yet, the ultra religious mindset reins in political forces, even in the ruling party’s own rank and file. A uniformity in approach to counter hate is absent.
Militancy and terrorism can be fought only when governance is improved, democracy is strengthened, basic human rights are not curtailed and progressive forces are not alienated. For this, the ruling party has to promote tolerance and inclusivity. It has to come clean against extremism in all shapes and forms. It also has to break ties with many jihadist groups and prevent them from being used or perceived as assets. While at it, the prime minister also needs to share with the public the scope, successes and failures of the on-going military operations across country.
Even though the prime minister’s speech was a good sign, he needs to provide a decisive policy that directs concrete action rather than providing soft counter-narrative. Until then such speeches are just words that cannot be swallowed hook, line and sinker.
The writer is a journalist based in Washington who has extensively covered US-Pakistan relations. He tweets at @Wajidasyed