South Waziristan and beyond
The lifting of the economic blockade imposed by the government on South Waziristan since May 30 is an overdue step. While the wisdom behind the military operation in the tribal agency to flush out foreign militants holed up there remains questionable, the imposition of blanket economic sanctions has done more harm than good to the government's case for cleaning the area of militants.
The security forces' failures over the last two years far outnumber their successes in achieving their objectives. The majority of wanted militants hiding in South Waziristan have remained at large while the general public has had to bear the brunt of the military action and the crippling economic sanctions.
Reports now emerging from Wana suggest that the civilian death toll among the local population as a result of aerial and artillery bombardment has been much higher than earlier estimated.
Coupled with the scarcity of everyday commodities caused by the economic blockade, the picture is one of widespread humanitarian distress. Together, these two factors, reports say, have led many young tribesmen to rebel against authority, with hordes of them taking up arms and joining the resistance put up by the actual troublemakers - believed to be a small band of foreign militants and their local hosts. Just goes to show how lack of proper strategic planning and its implementation can compound a problem.
That there can be no compromise with the militants and illegal aliens hiding in the tribal area and believed to be using Pakistan's territory for carrying out terrorist activities goes without saying.
The religious extremists operating throughout the country pose a real threat to the peace and stability of Pakistan, the region and beyond. Many of them are professionally trained fighters who are capable of employing sophisticated, hi-tech means of inflicting death and destruction.
They also include strategic planners and masterminds who are wanted in Pakistan and abroad for their alleged involvement in terrorist activities. The arrests of a number of high-profile Al Qaeda militants in recent months from this country, and the death in a shootout with security forces on Sunday of Amjad Farooqi, reportedly one of the most wanted men in connection with last year's assassination attempts on President Musharraf, point to the danger they pose. But, at the same time, there can be no justification for imposing collective punishment on an entire population for the folly of a few. The way the military operation was carried out in South Waziristan, for instance, amounted to just that.
The post-September 11 events that necessitated a strategic shift in Pakistan's policy with regard to Afghanistan and Islamist elements have led our own security forces to embark on one fire-fighting mission after another.
While the law enforcement agencies and paramilitary forces have been doing their job, a strategic planning vacuum still exists within the policymaking echelons of the government.
The threat to internal security, be it from foreign militants, as in South Waziristan, sectarian extremists elsewhere in the country or some tribal leaders in Balochistan, is multi-faceted.
Any lasting solution to these simmering problems will require a mix of well-thought-out political initiatives on the part of the government. While doing so, one lesson that Islamabad must learn from the Wana operation is that it should never act in a way that risks alienating the people on a large scale.
Reviving the KCR
Pakistan Railway's willingness to give the Karachi city government the required right of way as well as technical assistance for operating the Karachi Circular Railway is a good start towards the latter's revival.
However, the assistance from Pakistan Railway should not end there. It should also run the KCR under some arrangements it reaches with the city government since it alone has the technical capability and experience to run the train efficiently.
For its part, the city government needs to work out a plan to turn the KCR into an economically viable system. In 1999, the PR shut it down claiming that it was losing money heavily. Now that there is a decision to restart the KCR, a number of problems and shortcomings likely to hamper its operation need to be removed.
As a first step, a massive drive needs to be undertaken by the city government to remove the encroachments that have sprung up in different sections of the KCR tracks.
Once this is done, there will be enough space to build dual tracks to cover the entire loop of the service to ensure speed as well as safety of trains. Train timings have to be set to make intervals between two trains minimal.
Incidence of ticket less travel, which was the result of corruption among the KCR staff during the system's earlier lease of life, efficiency and punctuality of service are among other problems to tackle.
Also, the KCR should be empowered to organize its operations according to passengers' requirements. Finally, the urban train will have to be part of an integrated mass transit system for the city.
It can draw passengers in large numbers only if there are feeder bus services available as part of a greater mass transit system. It is only after these preconditions have been met that the KCR would be ready for revival on a long-term basis.
Violence in Nankana Sahib
The attack by a mob on one of Sikhism's holiest shrines and commercial structures surrounding it at Nankana Sahib in Sheikhupura district, Punjab, and the slow response of the government in controlling the violence there are yet another grim reminder of our intolerance, especially towards religious minorities.
A straightforward case of converting a college building into a hostel for visiting Sikh pilgrims was manipulated and misused by some people to harass the local Sikh community and the trust that runs the temple and manages the surrounding estate. Because of their neglected status, the religious minorities are often targeted for harassment and exploitation, with the government looking the other way.
The incident in Nankana Sahib is a case in point. The college building which the Punjab government (after a plea from a visiting Indian dignitary) wants to convert into a hostel is actually owned by the gurdwara trust.
It used to be a 'langar' in the past or a place to serve food to pilgrims. Changing it to a hostel for the pilgrims should be perfectly within the right of the trust that owns the building.
It was in fact magnanimous by letting the premises to be used as a college for the local community. Even now, it isn't as if the college will cease to exist; it's just that it will have to be shifted to another building.
Unfortunately, the violent actions of the mob and the tardy response of the police seem to have scared the local Sikhs so that they have said that they do not mind if the decision is reversed.
If the government wants to prove that is sincere about protecting the rights of all Pakistanis regardless of religion, it should act decisively and take action against those who instigated and led the Nankana Sahib mob. It should also support the decision to convert the building and should ensure that it is done.