Association of Pakistani Lawyers a team of Pakistani origin lawyers, Solicitors, Barristers, Judges in UK jointly condemn the terrorist attacks of 30 March at Lahore police training school and earlier a suicidal attack in a mosque in Jamrood during Friday prayer on 27 March which took many lives, and scores were injured affecting hundreds of families who lost their loved one’s thus creating terror.
APL expressed their condolences and said that their thoughts are with those who lost their lives and the security force officials who fought bravely to avert further causalities whether it is in Lahore Cricket team attack or today’s deadly shoot out.
APL noted that recent events in Pakistan including the ever growing number of suicidal attacks i.e over 80 in 2007 & over 68 in 2008, and a sharp increase in suicide missions in 2009 prompt some serious questions of the ever-growing threat of radicalisation in Pakistan and the ever-widening gulf between liberals and theologians, trends which can also be seen in the UK. These developments are alarming when Pakistan is quiet on political front and is advancing towards democracy, so the country needs a massive intl support at this very moment.
APL has further noted the statement from the UK Foreign Secretary on today's attack in Lahore, which says, "It is deeply saddening that Pakistan has today suffered another deadly attack, this time against people dedicated to protecting Pakistan's security. We condemn the attack unreservedly, and extend our sympathies to the families of the victims. The attack is yet another reminder of the threat that Pakistan faces from violent extremism. It is a threat that the international community must help Pakistan to tackle, in the interests both of Pakistan's people and of wider stability."
APL feels the statement is economical with true facts, as it believes that similar approach was not adopted by UK at the time of Bombay attacks and it ignores the basic fact that Pakistan is fast becoming a victim of insurgency flowing from Afghanistan which calls for a concrete and detailed measured statement outlining their stance to help Pakistan in counter insurgency which is growing faster as a result of weaknesses of ‘war on terror’ in Afghanistan and Intl community must expose the activities of foreign missions on the other side of the border fully operational against Pakistan without taking the threat of terrorism seriously.
APL believes that core issues needs to be dealt with and root causes of the major Intl disputes needs to be addressed if Pakistan and West wishes to make a progress on this struggle as addressal of those core issues will ultimately snatch the ammunition from the mouth of terrorist masters and hidden hands behind those pawns who use hate, and injustice on international front which act as a breeding ground to perpetrate and indoctrine poor and young to effect horrific and deadly attacks.
APL still believes that Simple democracy with justice and aid packages where education and social infrastructure is built with vigour can solve half of the problems in the tribal areas in Pakistan. In the whole struggle, the common man is suffering and middle class conservatives are losing ground and dialogue to revive some sort of a political process and peace is the key to bring calm in the region and sooner those who make policies without visiting the region understands it the better it will be for the country in question, the region and the world in return. The west must play its role to ensure the stoppage of spill over effect in Pakistan of insurgency in Afghanistan, and if it is not checked earlier, it has a potential capacity to destabilise the atomic power in return the region and the world.
APL demands that a fair assessment of the situation must take place to pin point intelligence gathering, sharing and disposal to those who are on the ground to understand it to check such attacks in near future and a thorough investigation to bring the perpetrators of such heinous crimes , those behind it, and those who are arrested must be brought to justice as only that can calm the bereaved families who lost their loved ones today.
Amjad Malik,
Chair Association of Pakistani Lawyers (UK)
30 March 2009
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