Measures to improve security situation

In continuity to the previous post where the causes of deterioration of security situation in Pakistan were identified, below are some suggestions to perk up the situation. The suggestions have been divided in two main categories namely institutional measures (at governmental and madrassahs level) and individual measures (to include every citizen individually or as a member of community).

Institutional Measures

• Measures to be taken by the Government. Government (to include federal government, provincial governments, cabinet, ministry of interior, ministry of religious affairs, ministry of defence and all their relevant departments) have to play leading role and needs to take bold steps to restore law and order in the country. Bold steps may be bitter and politically ominous for any government in power but those are necessary for national integrity and sovereignty. Political leadership must realize that their survival and gaining power is conditional to peaceful internal environment in the country. Some measures to be taken by the government are as under: -

• Political Will to Address Security Issues Across the Board. Political parties and government must keep their personal association and political benefits aside and deal with the issues impartially. During decision making process and consultation, national interest must be given precedence over all other political gains, personal or political alliances with anti-state groups. Stern and speedy action must be taken to nip the evil in the bud. Indecisiveness and using delaying tactics encourages trouble makers to multiply. Resultantly they grow large enough to be easily controlled.

• Improvements in Educational syllabi. Polluted minds of the youth are lethal for integrity of any nation. Central and provincial governments must revise educational syllabus to ensure that any hateful content is removed. Instead of hateful content, syllabus must include true Islamic teachings of peace, harmony, brotherhood, tolerance, co-existence, and unity. Students must be taught the spirit of Islam; a religion for universal peace and blessings, and not to divide them in different groups and sub-groups.

• Monitoring of Madrassahs. Religious schools (madrassahs) are vital for providing religious teachings of Islam and to educate people on the Islamic code of conduct vis-a-vis modern days’ environments. Madrassahs are doing a great service in this regard but unfortunately some of them are being exploited by foreign countries to use these madrassahs for spreading hate, training militants, and enrolling youth for their nefarious aims. In return the madrassahs involved in such activities are heavily funded by such foreign countries. Government has to play her part in monitoring the madrassahs to make sure that: -

• Syllabus being taught in madrassahs is in line with national policy of unity, harmony and brotherhood, instead of spreading hate against others for worldly gains.

• No madrassahs are involved in recruitment of Jehadis and training thereof. All such madrassahs must be banned and sealed irrespective of their political and/ or religious affiliations with any group/ sect/ pressure group etc.

• Funding of madrassahs must be properly monitored and their accounts must be audited by independent auditors to keep a track of their sources of income, details of expenditures, and to keep a check on any irregularities.

• Central syllabus must be prepared for madrassahs to ensure that no hateful books or literature against national integrity and unity is being taught.

• Hateful speeches, spread of hateful literature and publications from the platform of madrassahs must be discontinued. Use of loudspeakers and content of sermons for Eids/ Friday prayers be centrally controlled/ monitored.

• Religious groups/ politico-religious parties must be taken into confidence and consulted before formulation of foreign policy about any international issue. Once the policy has been formulated no group to be allowed to propagate/ mobilize general public against it. All such activities must be considered as anti-state and should be punishable under Pakistan Penal Code (PPC).

•    Control on Protests/ Processions and Public Gatherings. In a democratic country, people have the basic right to freedom speech, freedom of expression, freedom of political opinion and freedom to demonstrate against any decision/ legislation made by the government. These rights of people must be respected but on the other hand it must also be ensured that such freedoms do not snatch away the rights of other citizen like protection, business, movement, and schooling etc. Government needs to formulate laws and implement them strictly to ensure that no unlawful activities are permissible under the blanket protection of freedom to citizens. Some steps suggested are as under: -

• Political/ religious gatherings on roads must be strictly disallowed through legislation. A place may be reserved in each city/ town for all such activities and no blockade of roads be permitted under any circumstances. Offenders must be punished severely under PPC.

• Burning of tyres during processions/ protests should be declared unlawful. These burnt tyres not only increase pollution and cause respiratory diseases but also decolour the surroundings thus destroying the ambience and environment of areas astride main roads. Offenders must also be punished under PPC.

• Before any procession/ protest the management of such event must sign an agreement with local administration and ensure that any damage, loss, destruction, theft of public and/ or private property shall be avoided. In case of any such losses, a neutral assessment committee be tasked to assess the loss and that must be recovered from the organizers of such processions/ protests. Defaulters must be punished under PPC.

• Display of Arms in Public. The culture of show of power by displaying arms in public by the private guards of elites must be disallowed. No public display of arms by any person should be allowed other than Police/ CAF/ Military personnel on duty. Strict punitive action must be ensured against offenders irrespective of whatever pressure Law Enforcing Agencies (LEAs) have to bear to implement this law.

• Depoliticizing of LEAs. To ensure that laws pertaining to improving security situation are implemented, it is imperative that LEAs must be free from any political pressures/ favours. Heads of the LEAs must be given free hand to take action against any violations of laws, arrest/ detain offenders without considering any political/ religious/ social/ influential pressures. They must also be free to do postings, transfers, promotions, demotions and all other departmental administrative actions as per the rules and merits and no political or other pressure groups should be allowed to interfere in their routine professional performance.

• Administrative Measures. Local administration must ensure that police, government employees and other responsible staff are aware of potential security threats and are mentally/ physically prepared to thwart against any eventuality. Certain protective measures to be taken by local police include: -

• Maintaining a list of all tenants living in the area with their personal data/ copy of CNIC etc.

• Keep a vigilant watch over movement of strangers entering/ exiting the area.

• Vehicle movement and pattern of movement of any suspicious people/ vehicles/ motorbikes etc.

• System of secret monitoring of street hawkers/ house maids/ gardeners and other domestic labourers.   

• Measures to be taken by Madrassahs. Role of Madrassahs cannot be undermined as they share the burden of Government in providing education, food, protection, and financial assistance not only to the pupils but also their families. These madrassahs are sponsored and funded by NGOs, religious groups/ organization and locally by committees of citizen. Most of these madrassahs are doing great service to a very noble cause and are educating children of those families who cannot afford sending them to regular schools due to economic hardships. Some of the madrassahs, unfortunately, have been reported to sponsor terrorist organizations, banned religious groups, militants and other anti-state players because of two main reasons. First – their sectarian association with those groups and secondly – greed for monetary gains. Leadership of madrassahs and their organizing bodies must review the strategy and ensure that no black sheep are permitted to destroy the reputation of madrassahs as an institution. A self analysed and well thought out code of conduct must be formulated and strictly followed by madrassahs. Some recommended measures madrassahs must adhere to are given below: -  

• Non-Branding of Mosques. No mosques must be branded as a Devbandi, Wahabi, Hanafi, Shia, Brelvi etc. All mosques have to be considered as house of worship of Allah and any one must be allowed to enter in any mosque and offer prayers according to their own faith (fiqh). This will help in creating a wave of brotherhood and unity and will bring different sects closer to each other.

• Teaching of Common Aspects. Basic beliefs of Islam are common in every sect of Islam; the minor differences are when it comes to practices. Religious scholars must make joint efforts to highlight the common aspects and not exploit the differences for the sake of their personal gains.

• Interaction between Scholars of Different Sects. Electronic media has made some efforts to make the scholars of different sects sit together and discuss common aspects accepted by all. Such efforts must also be done by the scholars themselves to visit each other’s madrassahs, participate in each other’s religious gatherings, show respect to the customs practiced by opposite sects and must curb the tendency of declaring each other as nonbelievers (kafir).

• Disassociation from Militants. Management of madrassahs must ensure that there madrassahs are not associated with any militant group, recruiter, solicitor, or helper of such extremists/ terrorists groups. Madrassahs must make sure that the students enrolled in their institutions are taught the religious preaching in their true spirit without any worldly gains.

• Respect for Holy Personalities. All religious leaders must ensure that their followers respect holy personalities of opposite sects. No one should be allowed to show slightest disrespect for the family, wives, and companions of Prophet Muhammad (peace is upon him). Scholars must educate common people to refrain from use of abusive language and calling names to anyone as it is strictly prohibited in Islam and under no circumstances can be termed as any service to the religion.

Personal Measures

Personal measures include measures to be taken at individual level and as a group of citizen in daily life. Every person must be responsible to ensure following: -

• Keep the movements of their children under strict observation to ensure that: -

• They are not befriended with any negative elements in school, mosque, neighbourhood etc.

• Ensure that no teacher in school/ madrassah or a visiting tutor at home is propagating them on any hateful content.

• No one is trying to convince them to side with or join any militant group or militia and fight against the state.

• They are not being brainwashed to support or be part of any suicidal mission.

• Their donations or charity is going in positive hands and is not being used to fund any militant/ anti-state organizations.

• Everyone must understand that understanding and following the religious teaching is the responsibility of every Muslim. Every Muslim must learn the beliefs and practices through study, research and analytical evaluation of Islamic history. Blindly following the preaching of any scholar, mullah or molvi is against the spirit of Islam.  

• Religious affairs must not be left to Molvis only. Being Muslim it is the responsibility of every citizen to learn basic things like saying prayer call (azan) in the ears of a new born child, offering funeral prayers (namaz e janaza), and other such things themselves, without being dependent on religious clerics.

• Must not support any act of hatefulness against anyone else despite any association, close relation, loyalty to any other association.

• Must not participate in any anti-state protest, procession etc and if it is unavoidable, must not cause harm to any public/ private property during the protest.

• Must understand that everyone is responsible for everyone’s own deeds so let others live and let them exercise their right of freedom to worship. No one will be answerable to what others have been practicing. If one is very keen to preach, preach according to Quranic instructions as mentioned in Holy Quran (16:125) “Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best. Indeed, your Lord is most knowing of who has strayed from His way, and He is most knowing of who is [rightly] guided.” Always remember that use of force against your opponent means that you have run short of arguments to prove your point of view.

• Never support, assist, side, protect, cooperate with any person having militant design or association with anti-state element even if they are your close relatives or blood relations.

• Remain vigilant and if you observe any mischievous or suspicious activity around you, immediately report it to the authorities concerned.

• Worship your political/ national/ social ideology but not the personalities. None of the religious, political or any other leader is infallible and every one of them can commit mistakes. Do not follow or defend them blindly. If they are wrong in any policy, argument, thought, idea etc, just be courageous to have difference of opinion with them.

• Beware of all such persons/ groups/ media person/ press/ channel etc that preaches anti-state propaganda in the garb of modernization, liberalism, etc. Be loyal to Pakistan and ensure all our efforts are to safeguard and protect the interests of our beloved motherland.