Securing the summit

Many of the positive vibes on the likely progress at the forthcoming SAARC summit seem to be smothered in the concerns about security in Pak...

Many of the positive vibes on the likely progress at the forthcoming SAARC summit seem to be smothered in the concerns about security in Pakistan. The two recent terrorist attacks on Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, carried out with great sophistication, raise questions not only of his personal security and future, but also of the issue of security for the SAARC summit scheduled to start in Islamabad next Sunday. New Delhi, for obvious reasons, would naturally take extraordinary precautions for the safety and security of Prime Minister Vajpayee8217;s visit. The contrast this would present with his last visit to Pakistan 8212; the now historical Lahore bus journey 8212; is stark indeed. But ours would not be the only country to be concerned about the security of the SAARC summit in Islamabad.

It may be too early to come to any definitive conclusion about the source of the threat to General Musharraf. But what has been known for a long time is the spread of jihadi terror in and from Pakistan. It would be useful to remember that the capital city has the unique distinction of being declared a 8220;weapon-free city8221; by two different governments during the nineties, and these, like General Musharraf8217;s more recent de-weaponisation campaign, got nowhere. Eighteen months before nine eleven and consequent to Pakistan8217;s support to the US war against terrorism, and unlike any American presidential visit, President Clinton flew in and out of Islamabad almost clandestinely for a five-hour visit because of security concerns. Since then a lot has happened on the terror front. The heads of states of SAARC obviously cannot replicate similar precautions though the situation is far worse than that of March 2000.

What we see now is the expansion of a war through terror against the global war against terrorism, not just in Iraq where a surface-to-air-missile hit a US military transport and almost brought it down, but as far apart as Europe, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and the Philippines in which Pakistan has continued to occupy a central place. Given the sophistication and recklessness of jihadi terrorism and the narrow margin of security in which Musharraf survived the two recent attacks, the question that inevitably comes to the fore is: can Pakistan provide the security needed for the SAARC summit? If recent terror attacks are any evidence, Pakistani

intelligence and security agencies are either unwilling or unable, or both unwilling and unable, to provide security against jihadi attacks on VIPs. While specific steps would need to be ensured for adequate security for the summit, Pakistan and its elites would need to reflect on the more fundamental issues that have brought their country to this pass and look for ways to reverse the current trends.