EDITORIAL : THE DAWN, PAKISTAN

Shabqadar carnage

THE deadliest suicide attack this year in Pakistan claimed scores of lives and renewed a fear that more may follow. Indeed, that is precisely what the Pakistani Taliban are vowing in the wake of the death of Osama bin Laden. Yesterday`s assault in Shabqadar, Charsadda district, on paramilitary cadets embarking on buses to go home serves as a grim reminder that the enemy within is alive and well, and focused on causing as much havoc as possible. The Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan have claimed responsibility for the attack and say they will not back off come what may. So that leaves us with a very serious question: at a time when relations with the US are becoming increasingly strained and the political situation at home is developing fault lines, will the authorities simply accept the blowback or give a fitting response to those who threaten our way of life?

The answer, hopefully, is the state will not accept such tactics. Acts of retaliation for Osama bin Laden`s killing, irrespective of the furore that the violation of Pakistan`s sovereignty has created, are perhaps to be expected but on no count can they be tolerated. In the same breath it ought to be stated that a major security lapse did indeed take place in Shabqadar on Friday. Lives might have been saved if better checks and balances, and perhaps even more significantly, superior intelligence inputs had been in place. It is almost impossible to unarm a suicide bomber when he or she has already arrived at the venue which is being targeted. The game is over by that time. Enhancing security after the event counts for little. The key here is prevention and concrete measures to ensure that. However, this has been sadly lacking in what we have seen so far, with a few exceptions, in the fight against terrorism.

That said, too much blame cannot be heaped on the country`s security personnel. They are overstretched and battling a foe that is both elusive and difficult to understand. The enemy has sanctuaries in the tribal areas as well as some of the country`s most densely populated areas. To take preventive action in so lawless a state is no easy task. Yet the battle must be fought, especially in this heightened state of insecurity. Al Qaeda was always a nebulous organisation and the death of Osama bin Laden does not mean his sympathisers have been taken out. What is needed at this point is better intelligence, so that countries that are ostensibly working jointly to tackle militancy and terrorism realise the problems the other nation faces.

LHC verdict

THE contradiction in the presidency has been exposed. The PPP co-chairperson has been given marching orders and this may make President Asif Zardari very lonely in the barricaded house where he is currently encamped. A Lahore High Court ruling on Thursday emphasised just how imperative it is for the president to maintain his neutrality. The four-member bench found it not only surprising but also strange that the federation`s counsel should choose to boycott the proceedings. Even stranger is the federal government`s vow that it will challenge the LHC verdict. This is typical of the ruling PPP which has been entering and exiting court cases in panic. Despite the application of these unique, often inexplicable, tactics the government appears to be forever stuck in the courts.

The verdict has been hailed by many, but it has also been criticised by those who say that the `bar` on Mr Zardari is beyond the court`s mandate. The PPP cadres talk of the distance between the ideal and the practical, pointing to the peculiar circumstances of Mr Zardari`s ascent to the presidency of the party and then of the country. They complain of the selective `dispensation of justice` by the courts and take pains to explain the (security) situation that prevents the president from publicly performing his dual role as a politician. But these are considerations born of notions that cannot defy the legal directive — at least not without opening another chapter of tense relations between the president and the courts. As the legal word goes, President Asif Zardari must part company with the PPP chairman. He must now prepare himself to face the fallout of this. With his sanction, his sister Faryal Talpur has been looking after much of the party`s affairs. A more formal role for Ms Talpur may not go down well with party workers and voters since she is not directly linked with the Bhutto name. There was recently talk of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who holds the ceremonial title of PPP chairperson, playing a more active role in the party some time soon. With the LHC verdict, this could happen even sooner.

A tragic case

THE perpetual unease that characterises Pakistan-India relations has a particularly negative impact on prisoners unfortunate enough to be languishing in the `other` country`s jails. These individuals fall through the cracks and are often forgotten by both governments. Dr S.M. Khaleel Chishty is one such individual. As reported in this paper, the 78-year-old Karachi-based virologist was sentenced by an Indian court to 14 years` imprisonment in January and is currently lodged in Ajmer jail hospital in the state of Rajasthan. While on a trip to visit his mother in 1992, an altercation took place outside his brother`s home in Ajmer in which one person was killed. Dr Chishty was also implicated in the case and his trial dragged on for the next two decades. A well-educated man who has taught at universities in different parts of the world, he seems to have been caught up in highly unfortunate circumstances. His family is appealing to the Indian government to have him released and repatriated on humanitarian grounds, considering the fact he is in poor health as he is suffering from multiple ailments.

Though we cannot comment on his guilt or otherwise — the family insists he was implicated in the case due to his nationality — Dr Chishty deserves to be sent back to Pakistan considering his precarious condition. The case was not political but motivated by a family feud; hence the Indian government should consider remitting his lengthy sentence and allow him to return to Karachi. Bearing in mind his advanced age and ill health, time is of the essence. The family has also appealed to the president and prime minister to request their Indian counterparts to expedite his release. The government must use diplomatic channels to ensure Dr Chishty has consular access and to request the Indian government to consider his case for release on compassionate grounds.