The usage of drone technology by USA inside Pakistan is a hotly
debated topic. Supporters
of drone attacks cite the death of many Alqaeda and Taliban leaders and the
reduction of terrorist attacks inside the Pakistani homeland as an example of the
effectiveness of drone strikes. Detractors
argue that the collateral damage is far too high for the drone strikes to
be permissible and point
to the moral dilemma that drone warfare faces.
Nobody denies that religious extremism and fundamentalism is
an evil personified by the Taliban and the Alqaeda. Nobody argues that action
should not be taken against the militants that are hell bent on the destruction
of the fabric of society. Since September 2001, the fight against extremism has
been raging on. Although there is no argument that many key terrorists have
been killed but we also have to acknowledge that religious extremism has
sharply increased rather than decline, which calls into question the USA
led war on terror, which ( thanks to USA) has become our war too.
If this war has become ours. If TTP has become our enemy
then, do we have to fight this war on the directives and with the assistance of
USA, whose own withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan is a case study in strategic
failure!
Surely, the enemy we are fighting is not a traditional enemy
our operations against them might have reduced their military threat but they have
not reduced their zeal to perpetuate terror. How drone strikes counter that
shortcoming is anybody’s guess. But look at the bigger picture, there is a
collateral damage in the drone strikes involved. That collateral then becomes
fodder for the extremists who exploit the havoc wreaked by the drone attacks on
civilians to recruit and BRAIN WASH more members and slowly this whole situation
degenerates into a vicious circle whose only victim is the innocent civilian
who’s killed regardless of a Hellfire Missile or a high velocity shrapnel
emanating from the exploding jacket of a suicide bomber. Surely, if the
solution to terrorism was a military one then the 11-year long war on terror might
have made our world better today.
The drone attacks are one such mistake in a long line of
mistakes that have been made when countering the disease of terrorism. To the satisfaction
of its supporters, drone attacks produce quick results. Unfortunately, the short-term
nature of the attacks is often confused with the rapid availability of results.
Hence, important questions regarding the legality and future usage of drone
technology has been consigned to the dustbin. We should have the right to ask our
governments that if drones are used a la’ American style, then what sort of
precedent does it set up for the future of international military offensives.
If USA can, with ease, violate the sovereignty of any country then, can other
countries do the same? Can Iran target alleged Jundullah camps in Pakistan or
MKO camps inside Iraq? Can India strike Hafiz Saeed in his home by using drones
on the oft-used premise that the use of force is in self-defense or an imminent
threat.
Drones
cause the local population to live in fear, the psychological toll of the
constant fear of drones, the suddenness of a strike, the unseen attacker, may
be more damaging to the psyche of the civilians than the battle hardened
Taliban. The argument that drone attacks reduce
extremism are baseless because their proponents are sadly confused on the
phraseology. Reductions in terrorist attacks do not constitute a reduction in an
extremist mindset.
Hence, the question that must be asked is not Can Drones
Reduce Terrorism. Rather Can Drones Reduce Terrorist Ideology? An ideology is
not some bunker or hideout that could be destroyed by a Hell Fire Missile from
the sky. Sadly, the proponents of North Waziristan Operation and drone attacks
are similar in mindset to the Taliban who also claim that violence is the only
solution. Hence, in my book both are the same. If drone strikes or military
operations had been successful, then Malala would not have been attacked in the
first place.
The fact that religion inspired terrorism is still alive in
Pakistan is a testament to the joint failure of our military and political establishment
to come up with a well-defined counter terrorism policy, the nation should be taken
into confidence concerning that policy. If Pakistan were given the charge of
drone strikes then the situation might have been different. Operations against
TTP would have been more successful if it was followed up by commercial development
but the rampant corruption, worsening economic situation and trampling of law
is a major obstacle in the elimination of terrorism from Pakistan. In that case,
drones can be effective against Taliban if they
were part of the strategy, not the strategy.
