Beyond the ban

Pakistan’s decision to ban the Jamatud Dawa and Falah-e-Insaniat Foundation which is linked to it, is a step we hope can help the country escape increasing international isolation. The announcement was made following a meeting of the National Security Committee on Thursday. Since then a madressah in Bahawalpur has also been taken over by the Punjab government. At the same time the Financial Action Task Force, the Paris-based watchdog body on financing for terrorism, has decided to keep Pakistan on its ‘grey list’ and suggested the country needs to take more measures to meeting international commitments including those made to the FATF ahead of the group’s key meeting in May this year.

Pakistan of course needs to tackle extremism and deal with any groups engaged in militant action not only because other nations demand it but for its own welfare. As Prime Minister Imran Khan stated this week, Pakistan has lost tens of thousands of people to militancy, paying a price higher than that of any other country. It is therefore imperative that the country tackle the problem. We must however also look at the past and learn from it. The JUD and other organisations have been proscribed before. Indeed this happened late last year ahead of an FATF meeting. It is obvious, however, that merely announcing the banning of a group does not make it disappear or go away instantly. Since 2002 when then president General Pervez Musharraf banned a group of outfits, we have seen that these organisations simple re-emerge, sometimes under a different name and sometimes without any pretence of change at all. Repeatedly ‘banning’ them therefore serves little purpose. Attempts to mainstream these groups have also not succeeded with the same messages put forward by them even when they enter the political arena.

We will then need to look further into the future. If we are truly dedicated to the cause of driving out extremism and hatred from our soil, any measures taken must be carefully thought out and planned. They must not come as a result of external pressure but because we ourselves want to make our country a better, safer place for all who live within its borders. To achieve this, it is not enough to place a ban on organizations or to make announcements to this effect. The mindset they drive forward has to be eradicated at many different levels and tiers. It will take time to oust extremism and the thinking which underpins it. School and college curricula, the presence of hatred on social media, sermons delivered by mosque imams, the airing of pro-extremist messages by the mainstream media and other factors will all need to be looked at. The task is not a simple one. But a beginning has to be made and it is obvious from the FATF message that Pakistan cannot afford to wait much longer.