Taliban — An Afghan problem

THE DECLARATION made by President Pervez Musharraf at the joint press conference he addressed with the visiting British Prime Minister Tony Blair at Lahore on Sunday that Taliban is essentially an Afghan issue re-affirms ground realities-For now quite sometime, Western leaders and media have been unjustly implicating Pakistan in the resurgence of Taliban in Afghanistan. Taliban are indeed the product of the civil strife following the withdrawal of Soviet troops in which warlords were fighting amongst themselves to consolidate their stranglehold in areas within their previous operational spheres. Afghan masses were totally frustrated and disillusioned with the bloodshed and the rise to power of Taliban in Afghanistan was not an accident. The Afghan people had welcomed formation of a Taliban Government which brought order to the war-ravaged country but unfortunately in their zeal to implement a puritan Islam, the diehards who wielded considerable influence in the new administration went haywire in enforcing what they thought was Islamic morality.
Nine Eleven episode and subsequent stubborn attitude of the Taliban leaders gave an opportunity to the United States to unleash its armed might in dislodging the Taliban and bringing the volatile country under their military control. Five years down the road, things have not improved and Afghanistan continues to bleed. The resistance fighters which the occupation forces brand as Taliban are fighting a guerilla war against foreign troops which are in fact now totally bogged down. Some of these militants sneaked across porous border into tribal belt of Pakistan. Pakistan, a frontline state in the war on terror, could not allow its soil to be used by militants to launch attacks insides Afghanistan. In the military operations to flush out militants from Pak soil, our troops lost as many as six hundred soldiers including dozens of officers. It is nevertheless unfortunate that the West and in particular officials of US Administration have been claiming that Pakistan was “not doing enough”. President Musharraf has done well to debunk the Western propaganda by emphasizing in no uncertain terms that no country other than Pakistan has taken greater pains and made more sincere efforts to fight terrorism.
In the wake of Democrats’ victory in the US midterm elections, serious review of military strategy in Afghanistan is underway. British Premier Tony Blair has hinted at a shift in the strategy. President Musharraf has told the Western leaders that Taliban are not alien to Afghanistan. They are essentially a powerful section of Afghan society and they cannot be ignored. It is therefore prudent that moderate Taliban be inducted into the mainstream of administration in the war-torn country. Karzai regime has failed to accept that Taliban are a force to reckon with. The marginalisation of Taliban has so far not paid off.
 

Another roadmap?

THE new Middle East peace roadmap unveiled by three major European states and leading members of the European Union has been ripped apart by Israel without caring to examine it. It’s this smug intransigence that is at the heart of the Middle East conflict.
But coming as it does at a critical point in the Palestine-Israel conflict, the peace initiative by France, Spain and Italy deserves to be taken more seriously by Israel and the US. The roadmap put forward by President Bush in the post-September 11 chaos has disastrously failed. As part of the roadmap, Bush had promised an ‘independent and viable Palestinian state’ along side Israel by 2005. Year 2006 is about to leave us and the mirage of a free and peaceful Palestine remains as elusive as ever. In fact, instead of bringing about a visible improvement in the Palestinian territories, the woes of Palestinian people have only multiplied since the plan was launched. Braving the oppressive financial blockade imposed by Israel and the US, the impoverished Palestinians are literally struggling for basics like food and water. Adding to their never-ending misery is Israel’s siege of Gaza.
The on-and-off Israeli attacks on the huge prison that Gaza is, have already killed more than 300 Palestinians. On the other hand, the persecution of a helpless people has the Arab and Muslim world extremely agitated. This is a dangerous situation that needs to be resolved without any waste of time, if the world is to avoid its long-term consequences.
The peace plan proposed by France-Spain-Italy could just do that. The three countries have, following their mini-summit last week, asked the European Union to embrace the plan and pursue it with the Israelis, Palestinians and other members of the Middle East Quartet that includes US, UN and Russia. The plan will be presented to the EU summit next month. Which means the plan already enjoys the blessings of the EU members including Britain. The initiative wouldn’t have been made public by the three countries without giving notice to Brussels.
Which gives you hope that there may be after all a way to break the current political deadlock in the Middle East. The European plan envisages an immediate ceasefire, followed by the formation of a Palestinian national unity government that would be recognised by the international community (read US and EU). There would be an exchange of all prisoners and direct Israeli-Palestinian talks, while an international peacekeeping force monitors and maintains the ceasefire. This is an ambitious plan but not impossible to implement if Brussels and Washington throw their weight behind it. Now it’s time for the Arab League and OIC to encourage and help the EU get it off the ground.

—Khaleej Times