The Pashtun-Talib dichotomy

Barkat Shah Kakar

The emergence and extension of Taliban sometimes betray the very mindful and vigilant dissents like Tariq Ali who equated Taliban as indigenous Pashtoon nationalists fighting with a rogue state for its rights and identity. This lecture of the reckoned dissent Tariq Ali at Toronto, last year has generated despair especially in the leftist and idealist spheres of writers and progressive social and political activists. It could be called the anti-thesis of the the perspective he shared in his outstanding account of the Clash of fundamentalism.

Similarly Imran Khan, the reckoned progressive politician has also contextualized this situation with a naive perspective in his several TV interviews. He mainly strive to challenge the rationale of insurgency and so-called war against terrorism, but wants a safe passage and protection to the terrorisms being operating from these areas. Though this perspective strive to generate a dialogue with local Taliban but the historical process indicates that dialogues do not take place between the unequal, slave-master and dominant-dependent. Contrary to this perspective the opinion of the architect of Taliban and Jihad like Gen (Rtd) Hamid Gul, Conl Imam , and Gen (Rtd) Javed Nasir is very clear who equate Taliban as the true Muslims, role of models of Pakistani youth and committed Pakistnai's for the cause of protecting the homeland from the global empires. So it is clear that Taliban are good guys and their opponents should be destined to killed and ruined.

Similarly the Dichotomy of equating Pashtoon as Talib and non Pashtoon as non-Talib is also prevailing even in the domains of state. It quite resembles to the revolutionary anthem of Animals against their struggle of liberation from human, well narrated in the outstanding novel by George Orwell “The Animal Farm”. The two lines “ 1)Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy 2)Whatever goes upon four legs, or has wings, is a friend.

So this confusion is now going to be buried while having authentic reports of Punjabi Taliban convicted in the several atrocities and raids on the law reinforcing agencies and public spaces. Afrasyab Khattak,Political and human rights activist has confirmed the presence of 3000 Punjabi Taliban in the Pashtun areas where insurgency has been carried out. Irrespective of Tehrik Taliban Pakistan (TTP) the other local partners of Alqaeda like Jehs-e- Muhammad and Lashkar-e- Tayaba are now well stemmed in the non-Pashtun areas especially of province Punjab which are actively operating parallel to Alqaeda and Taliban.

In the wake of this politically fabricated dichotomy thousands of families of the Sawat IDPs were not entered into Karachi and Sindh because they were Pashtoon and it was assumed that they might turned into Taliban. Even before this, being intimidated with the spreading culture of Pastoon entrepreneurship and enterprise in Karachi MQM devised strategies to control this growth through propagating the self made hypothesis of Taliban incarnation. Altaf Hussain having a self made political exile in London and pretending as the truest Pakistani always uttered this dichotomy as one of the inevitable considerations.

Though it is very naive, but the popular consciousness most of the time is betrayed and is divided amongst choosing one of the absolute evils. Mass media can play vital role in unpacking both of the rivals as the anti-God and anti-People. It is significant to understand both of the rivals in the context of its moral legitimacy and tools of dealing with the conflict. Similarly the leading situation in the country and region must be noticed as an outcome of the historical process which has been crafted in the result of the choices of a military regime and then pursued by the series of the publicly selected regimes. In order to explore solution to our problems it is necessary to re-phrase out question, to alter the mind set that is to protect our land and people it is necessary to wish that our neighbor should live with the same peace and dignity.

The end

bshahkakar@yahoo.com