Reconciliation cannot be done in isolation, but has to have a national consensus and acceptance of the crimes by those receiving amnesty. It is like playing with the emotions of the families who have suffered the loss, and you cannot bury the past for political expediency. Because this will definitely haunt the nation in future.
The Prime Minister must first gauge the pulse of the public through Parliament whether the people of Pakistan, especially the bereaved families of victims, are ready to reconcile with those who butchered their loved ones or not. If not, then he must not thrust his decision on the nation, and if yes, he must go through the historical facts of South Africa’s famous Truth and reconciliation philosophy coined by Nelson Mandela.
Nowadays people and countries try to emulate this philosophy; however the key element of this doctrine is that with every reconciliation there comes a burden of truth. For example in ‘Truth and Reconciliation Commission’ Nelson Mandela’s wife who had been his biggest support system during his days of incarceration accepted that she aided and abetted in the murder of a white teenage boy after which Mandela with a heavy heart divorced her.
For such reconciliation you need the support of Parliament and consent of the nation; while Prime Minister Imran Khan, having ego higher than Himalayas, doesn’t even shake hands with the opposition leaders. Ironically, he is reluctant to reconcile with political parties carrying the public mandate of the same country he is ruling today but is anxious to reconcile with the militant groups. Such a reconciliation does not require endorsement of the PM but the acceptance of general public will which is represented by Parliament. Therefore, this serious issue must be put on the floor of Parliament for debate before taking any decision in haste.
The million dollar question is that with a thin questionable majority in Parliament, unpopularity in public and isolation from the international world is Imran Khan even eligible to offer an amnesty? Can we trust those who butchered our innocent APS students? Will they not repeat the terror again in future? Nation’s will is more important than that of the PM; is the nation willing to give amnesty to such elements? These are some of the many questions that Imran Khan must answer to the nation in Parliament before giving sweeping statements
However, in Naya Pakistan there are two sets of rules; mercy for those who stay in line with Khan and vendetta for those who stand against his incompetent, unpopular and klutzy government.
Over the past many years Pakistan has been a victim of terrorism with countless terror attacks on innocent civilians, political leaders like Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and the ANP’s Haroon Bilour and Bashir Bilour, our frontline forces who fought with ultimate valour against terrorism and not to forget the deadliest APS school massacre where 149 innocent Pakistani citizens, including 132 children, were killed at the Army Public School, Peshawar. The pupils were kept hostage and were forced to watch their teachers and principal being killed in front of them. It was barbaric and horrifying; the survivors of the APS attack would still be living in that trauma. The aftermath of this deadliest massacre shook the entire world, and the heart-wrenching optics of the incident brought tears in the eyes of every human being.
Later in Jan 2015 National Action Plan was established by the government of Pakistan to crackdown against the terrorists, and the operation was carried out because the public sentiments were strong and against those who murdered innocent children. The APS attack was one of the many horrific incidents witnessed by Pakistan in these past few years, in fact the wounds of these attacks are still fresh and won’t be easy for the nation to forget.
But ironically PM Khan while recently giving an interview to an international news channel talked about giving amnesty to those who were responsible for killing thousands of innocent Pakistanis. Now the question arises who has given him the authority to forgive any individual or group without having a debate in Parliament which he has never taken seriously since the day he entered power corridors; his statement has given an impression of weakness and incapability. Will he again use his much favourite tool, a Presidential ordinance, to bypass Parliament in this regard? So far that’s how he has been trying to thrust his decisions, be it ‘Open Balloting’ in Senate elections or the recent promulgation of a Presidential Ordinance for the use of electronic voting machines in elections; Khan has always tried to bypass Parliament. There are some public concerns after the controversial statement of the PM. Firstly, would he take the responsibility if in future the militant group breaches the agreement which he is desperately seeking? Secondly, who will be the guarantor? Thirdly, would the families of martyrs be taken into confidence or is it just a usual dictatorial move by Khan to prolong his inept government which is already tumbling? This is a serious matter which needs national consensus and thorough debate; not the whims and wishes of the Prime Minister as an individual.
The million dollar question is that with a thin questionable majority in Parliament, unpopularity in public and isolation from the international world is Imran Khan even eligible to offer an amnesty? Can we trust those who butchered our innocent APS students? Will they not repeat the terror again in future? Nation’s will is more important than that of the PM; is the nation willing to give amnesty to such elements? These are some of the many questions that Imran Khan must answer to the nation in Parliament before giving sweeping statements.
