The government’s decision to open negotiations with TTP (Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan) about the possibility of a conditional amnesty, and the militant outfit’s subsequent unilateral ceasefire for about 20 days, needs to be analsyed strictly from the point of view of national security and national interest; nothing more. It is therefore essential to consider the pros and cons of the move. It’s flat-out rejection by certain segments of society is understandable, especially the tens of thousands of families that lost loved ones to TTP’s barbarity. The country also expresses solidarity with the deep pain and utter shock of the families of children that were so savagely butchered by TTP in the Peshawar school attack.
But on the other hand the government points to the olive branch extended to Baloch separatists who promise to lay down arms as an example of what it expects to achieve. There’s also the argument that this was never our war and the time has come to put it behind us forever as opposed to letting it smolder a while longer. There’s no doubt about the ability of our military forces to keep us safe. Indeed, ours is the only army in the world that has won military campaigns in the rugged terrain at the feet of the Himalayas.
Some opposition parties raising hue and cry risk doing more harm than good to the country by turning such a sensitive issue into an ordinary point of confrontation. PML-N especially cannot really criticise such initiatives because in its time it made headlines for suggesting amnesty for TTP provided it didn’t attack Punjab, their own hub. All this only goes to show that these are extremely complicated matters. It’s no surprise that every government since the insurgency tried to talk it out with the insurgents. The government must, however, make sure that it takes everybody along in this, instead of going it alone. It must also consider the implications for people who lost loved ones to TTPs violence and then take a decision that is in the best interest of the nation.
Source: Published in Daily Times​