Author:
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: April 30, 2009
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/potemkin-battles/452667/
Introduction: something is too pat about the
Pakistan army's actions against the Burner Taliban
Just when it seemed advisable that Pakistan
measure the Taliban threat in terms of its ability to hold the extremists
to their word - as against the dramatic sport of calculating the physical
distance of the militants from Islamabad - that distance and how effectively
and sincerely the Pakistani government is battling to drive them back, has
now assumed paramount importance. Of course, that only reaffirms the need
to hold them to their word. The Swat peace deal was always a problem because
it let the Taliban spread to adjoining areas, effectively negating the writ
of the state. In the first week of this month, the Swat Taliban entered Buner
district, about 60 miles from the capital. At the end of last week, the Taliban
made a show of withdrawing, only to get involved in a battle with the Pakistani
armed forces forthwith.
The Pakistani establishment, amid arm-twisting
from the United States to focus on the real threat of the Taliban instead
of India, appeared to at last wake up and launch aerial campaigns against
militant positions in Buner, along with a ground offensive. But despite the
strong words from Interior Minister Rehman Malik about the government's intention
to thwart those trying to destabilise Pakistan, it cannot be gainsaid that
there's something odd about the whole episode. For one, it all seems a bit
too well-coordinated or well-timed - the militants entrench themselves in
Buner and Shangla, they pretend to withdraw but hold on, the government warns
and the military moves in, heavy casualties are reported and then the Swat
deal is under threat. All the while, the establishment breathlessly publicises
its action for the benefit of its benefactors. Could events have followed
a different course without the US admonition and conditions to aid?
The situation in Pakistan is grim. But the
Buner offensive also looks rather stage-managed. Regardless of the army's
action, there is, after all, no evidence of a shift in the core relationship
between the armed forces and the extremists. It's time Pakistan answered whether
it's going to end that relation or not. Otherwise, it would still be deceiving
the world and deluding itself against the Taliban.
