Pakistan and Another "Wake-Up Call"

By Jeffrey Imm

In the capital of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan today, the widely read newspaper The Nation contained an article entitled "A wake-up call," by Tarik Jan, which should be required reading for American government policy makers to get an insight into the thinking of many Pakistanis today. While the continuing revelations about Pakistan government members' support for Jihad should be a sufficient wake-up call to American policy makers, the August 4 article in The Nation further demonstrates the pro-Sharia, pro-Taliban position held by many Pakistanis.  

In the August 4 article "A wake-up call," Tarik Jan clearly calls for Pakistan government support of the Taliban and calls for Sharia law as a basis for governing the Islamic Republic of Pakistan:

"The pro-shariah local Taliban are sons of the soil. They are not separatists and are the upholders of the integrity of Pakistan. They may be ultra conservatives but when they call for the shariah implementation, they are in line with the nation's constitution, which visualises an Islamic Pakistan.  Some people like Rehman Malik and others who share the former's perception are raising hell that they would not let the shariah call prevail, for in their perception it will be against the government writ. A state, as they frantically argue, cannot afford to have two kinds of law and administration."

"Right now in FATA, the federation has lost friends. Those who side with the federation are killed by dubious elements. Thus, it will be good politics if pro-state Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan is embraced by the Gilani administration for seven obvious reasons:"

"One, it will be a step towards restoring the government writ. Two, it will bring much-needed peace. Three, it will bring order to a chaotic situation where the colonial set-up has already collapsed for its sadistic approach to people and their problems, inefficiency and insensitivity. Four, once the local Taliban are recognised as the rightful representatives of their people in their region of influence, they will be able to chase out miscreants from their jurisdiction. Five, they can also go after the blood of the agents' provocateurs, and Indian recruits engaged in sabotage and fomenting scare in society. Six, the Taliban can also negotiate neutralisation of the presence of foreign elements if due inquiry proves their presence. Seven, it will strengthen Pakistan as a nation and a state."

"From all counts, the FATA situation is manageable; it offers challenge as well as hope. Islam can heal wounds, give courage, and help build a nation that yearns for Islam's remedial power. The call for the shariah is not a laughable joke. If the PPP administration, and the establishment that supports it, did not read the situation correctly, it may devastate our nation. Today, it is the call for the shariah in FATA, tomorrow its sympathy wave can embrace the whole nation. The colonial world and its manifestations in Pakistan are in the death throes. The nation cannot continue with its stink for long. The FATA call is a wake-up call."

Tarik Jan's commentary in The Nation should indeed be a wake-up call for American leaders regarding the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.  Public opinion polls suggest that many other Pakistanis share Tarik Jan's views.   In consistent national polls in August 2007 (page 34, Question 16e) and January 2008 (page 31, Question 12g), nearly 75% of the Pakistan population stated that it was important for the government to implement "strict Sharia law." This Islamic republic has federal Sharia courts today, and the Taliban are working to develop more Sharia courts in FATA and NWFP regions of Pakistan. Such support for a Sharia-based Islamic Republic of Pakistan is hardly just "extremist" thinking. America's leaders need to reassess Pakistan, as they also need to develop a strategic assessment of the challenges of Islamic supremacism itself.

The Nation states that it is the "market leader" in Pakistan's capital (Islamabad) as well as throughout Punjab province, with a "strong presence" in Karachi. The Nation is described by BBC as one of the major media institutions in Pakistan, and it is part of the 60 year old Nawa-i-Waqt group of publications. It claims to be "internationally the most quoted Pakistani newspaper."  The Nation clearly had no qualms about a commentary that openly promotes the Taliban.  The author, Tarik Jan, is a senior research fellow of the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), who has been quoted in Time Magazine and the Christian Science Monitor to provide insight on Pakistan and Islam.  

If American leaders continue to ignore such pro-Sharia, pro-Taliban sentiment in Pakistan, they do so at the peril of our national security and the continuing threat to our armed forces fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan.


Sources and Related Documents:

August 4, 2008 - Pakistan's "The Nation" Newspaper: A wake-up call - by Tarik Jan

August 1, 2008 - Pakistan and Delusions about Negotiating on Jihad -- Counterterrorism Blog - by Jeffrey Imm

June 10, 2008 - Pakistan and the Growing Threat of a Sharia Mini-State -- Counterterrorism Blog - by Jeffrey Imm

Pakistan and the Growing Threat of a Sharia Mini-State - Sources and Related Documents

Pakistan's "The Nation" Newspaper - About Us

Nawa-I-Waqt Group of Publications

Wikipedia: Nawa-i-Waqt

Wikipedia: The Nation (newspaper)

Wikipedia: Institute of Policy Studies (Pakistan)

Institute of Policy Studies (Pakistan)

BBC - Pakistan Media

Tarik Jan - IPS CV

December 17, 2007 - Christian Science Monitor: As Pakistan lifts emergency rule, Musharraf eyes next step -- quotes Tarik Jan

August 2, 2007- Time Magazine: Pakistan: Divided by Faith -- quotes Tarik Jan

May 2, 2007 - World Muslim Congress: Muslims and West: Accumulating Wounds -- by Tarik Jan

Terror Free Tomorrow: January 19-29, 2008 Pakistan Poll - "Pakistani Support for Al Qaeda, Bin Laden
Plunges; Moderate Parties Surge; 70 Percent Want President Musharraf to Resign: Results of a New
Nationwide Public Opinion Survey of Pakistan before the February 18th Elections"
-- see page 31, Question 12g on support for implementation of "strict Sharia law"

Terror Free Tomorrow: August 2007 Pakistan Poll - "Pakistanis Reject US Military Action against Al Qaeda;
More Support bin Laden than President Musharraf: Results of a New Nationwide Public Opinion Survey of
Pakistan"
-- see page 34, Question 16e on support for implementation of "strict Sharia law"

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