Terrorism in Pakistan

Terrorism in Pakistan Mohammad Safdar Social 10-1AP Mr. Brash December 16, 2010 Terrorism is a curse. The War on terror has increased the terrorism all over the world.
One example of this is the situation in Pakistan. Terrorism had a dire affect on Pakistan economy and society. Terrorism has increased the rates of unemployment and poverty. Terrorism is pushing Pakistani severity toward collapse. It has affected the flow of Foreign Direct Investment FDI. It has damaged the Pakistan’s export. Background to the War on TerrorThe War on terror was the U.
S reaction to 9/11. On the morning, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners. The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and many others working in the buildings. Both of the buildings collapsed within two hours, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D. C.The fourth and final plane crashed into a field near Shanks Ville in rural Pennsylvania after some of its passengers and flight crew tried to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.

C. No one was saved from any of the flights. The U. S responded to the attacks by launching the War on Terror, attacking Afghanistan. They believed that Al Qaeda and its founder Osama Bin Laden, who attacked the twin towers were hiding in Afghanistan. After that, the war spread rapidly and it reached Pakistan’s north side.Impact on Economy One of the most significant factors that has been negatively affected by terrorism is Pakistan‘s Growth Domestic Rate (GDP).
Consumers who were used to going out on a daily basis and buying a large amount of goods have been afraid of to do so in recent years. This has caused a large decrease in consumer spending and that has had a very negative impact on Pakistan’s economy. As the GDP growth rate has gone down from 8. 40% in 2004-05 to 5. 80% in 2007-08 and more recently it has reduced to 2. 10% in 2008-09(The Business Exchange).According to experience curves and studies that have been conducted, it has been concluded that it will take the Pakistan economy about 33 years to double its size.
(Oluwatimilehin, 2009) Pakistan’s economy has been negatively effected by the terrorism. The ratio of unemployment and poverty has increased after the terrorism. Population of Pakistan was 168. 23 million by 2009, and out of this 25-30% of population lives below the poverty line but before terrorism it was between 18-24%. Unemployment rate in Pakistan has risen from 7% to 15. 2% after the war on terror.Pakistan is an agricultural country but people are still starving to death (CIA fact book).
One of the reasons for that is smuggling of foods to Afghanistan. Even on the Eid-ul-Azah Muslim’s (festival of sacrifice) there was a shortage of animal for sacrifice because of the smuggling of animals to Afghanistan. Foreign investment (FDI) is the backbone of most of the country’s economy. Foreign investment helps economy to grow at faster rate. Terrorism has greatly affected the foreign investment in Pakistan. Foreign investment is decline to $ 910. 20 Million from $1.
Billion in 08-09. Due to decline in investment poverty and unemployment rises. Poverty has reached to 34. 4% from 30. 5% in 2008-09. Analysts refer to the plummeting foreign direct investment (FDI) as a sign of weakening investor confidence as a result of increase in terrorism. According to the State Bank of Pakistan, FDI has shrunk to $463 million during the first quarter of the current financial year from $1.
117 billion the previous year and that reflect the low risk appetite for long term investment in Pakistan. Security concern largely impact the flow of FDI into a country.If a country is unsafe for investment than investor will move to other safer place. The low investor’s confidence could be dangerous for the Pakistan’s economy. Foreign investors are not the only one who doesn’t want to invest in Pakistan. Local businessmen of Pakistan are also afraid of investing more money under the existing security and economic conditions. (Jamal, Nasir) War on terror has damage the Pakistan’s budget.
An Institute of Public Police (IPP) report called ‘State of the Economy: Emerging from the Crisis’ estimated in May that terrorism has cost Pakistan’s economy a strenuous amount of Rs380 billion in 2008 alone.The cost of power shortages, the second heaviest drag on; the economy, was Rs210 billion. Pakistan’s government is decreasing budget from other main things like health, infrastructure, and education and they are spending most of their budget on security. Despite the government’s claims that education is its top priority, public spending on it after the war on terror declined to 1. 8 percent of the GDP from 2. 6 percent in 1990. Pakistan is becoming failure state because of spending less money on education.
(Jamal, Nasir) Pakistan’s manufacturing sector recorded the feeble growth in a decade during the outgoing financial year 2007-08.Manufacturing posted a growth of 5. 4% during the first nine months of financial year against the target of 10. 9% and 8. 1% of last year. Extensive manufacturing, accounting for 69. 5 % of total manufacturing registered a growth of 4.
8 % in the current financial year 2007-08 against the target of 12. 5% and last year’s achievement of 8. 6 %. High political tension, worse law and order situation, growing power shortages, cumulative impact of monetary tightening and rising cost of doing business are responsible for poor growth of manufacturing in 2007-08.Longer term view shows us that the manufacturing growth exhibit’s a moderating trend. . From 2000-01, the large-scale manufacturing sector as a result of a becoming fast larger economy, moved from highest point to another and reached its very high point at 19.
9 per cent in 2004-05. During the last three years the large-scale manufacturing sector is showing signs of reasonable along with a subsequent slowing down of the economy and has registered a growth of 4. 8 per cent during the current financial year.The government can play an important role in providing manufactures firms to compete in the world economy by providing technological up-gradation in production and by improving law and order situation. (Zaiby, P. 2009) Pakistan’s trading has been hardly affected by the terrorism and the War on Terror. Pakistan carry most of it trade with the United States and the European Union and in addition, 50% of its exports are to US and European Union.
Nevertheless, due to terrorism threats on Pakistan, government from other countries discourages their citizens to go to Pakistan.Some big companies had interest in purchasing textile and that is the Pakistan’s largest export product, but they have taken their business to the neighbor countries such as India, Bangladesh, Singapore, and Hong Kong because of terrorism. The foreign buyers have taken complete advantage of the situation to produce goods at lower values. Pakistan’s knitwear is better than it competitors but get the lowest rates due to the disapproval of direct contact with outside businessmen. According to sources exports have gone down from $19. 22 billion to $6. billion dollars within the reduction of imports.
The trade balance/shortfall is -4. 5(billion $) and one of the reasons for this is terrorism and terrible government policies. (Oyeleke Oluwatimilehin) Tourism is one of major money making industry for Pakistan, but sustaining terror activities in Pakistan have negatively impacted the tourism business, especially after the terrorism increased in Pakistan. One of the major terror activities that discouraged the tourism was Marriot Hotel attack occurred on 20 September 2008 which left 60 people dead.The Swat valley, once famously known as the Switzerland of Pakistan is under the Drone attacks by US military because they want to kill Taliban militants, and to prevent Taliban from taking control of the valley. In the latest Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report (TTCR) launched on 2009 by World Economic Forum, Pakistan stands at 113, two places down from last year. The reasons for the terrible performance by Pakistan are government sedentary in improving infrastructure facilities and high security concerns of the tourists.
Pakistan earned $200mn from 800,000 in 2007 and last year they were able to attract only 400,000 people and earned half of the previous income. . (Jose Roy, 3/12/2009) Impact on Society The War on Terror has affected Pakistan’s society mentally. It has created confusion among the people that who is the Taliban’s supporter and what they are doing is right or wrong. It has created fear among the people. People are scared of stepping out of their house. They are even scared of sending their kids to the school.
On October 21, 2009 Taliban suicide bombers attacked Pakistan’s International Islamic University in Islamabad which killed 4 people and at least 18 people were wounded in the suicide attack. After the attack, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik told reporters that country was in a state of war. He ordered all the schools and universities to be closed until any other notice. Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik called for national unity and he said we should be standing against these terrorists, and Insha’Allah we will defeat them. (Terror central)Taliban brainwashes kids with vision of virgins. Lt. Col.
Yusuf tells us that when they got to that part of the story it was shocking for them. Standing in the middle of what the Pakistani military says was a brainwashing center — for children. According to Pakistani military that children between the ages of 12-18 are turned from innocent youngsters to cold blooded killers, want to blow themselves in pieces as suicide bombers. The discovery of the compound was first reported in Pakistani media on December 2009. Yusuf said his military took it over after three days battle with militants.They use to paint the wall with brightly colour paintings in clear contrast to the barren and harsh landscape surrounding it. Taliban told children that this was what waits for them in heaven.
Each of the painting have river flowing through it. Some of the paintings have people playing in the water and others have women lining the banks. Children were told that these are the rivers of milk and honey, and that the women will be waiting for them in the Jannat (heaven) and they will be live in the company of Prophet Muhammad (P. B. U. H) (January 05, 2010|By Arwa Damon, CNN). Killing is only obligatory when facing warfare and armed combat not when facing kufr.
For this reason, neither women are to be killed nor children, or the elderly, nor the blind nor those worshippers who do not fight, rather do we fight against those who fight us. This was the way of the Messenger of Allah in dealing with the people of the earth, he used to fight those who fought against him until they either entered into the deen, make an agreement or treaty with him or came under his authority via paying the jizya. This is what he used to instruct his armies if they fought against heir enemies, as has preceded from the Hadeeth of Buraydah”. (“Ahkaam Al Udh-Dhimmah”, Vol 1, Page 17). The quote show us that the Prophet Muhammad never allowed the killing of innocent even during the war, than how could the people who kill innocent people will live with his company. He also said that the killing of one innocent person is the killing of whole mankind. The US launched 44 drones attacks in 2009, more than previous year the pinnacles of America’s drone achievement was in August, when they killed Tehreek e Taliban (TTP) leader Baitullah Mehsud.
Despite the fact that they killed Baitullah Mehsud, but they also killed 700 innocent civilians in the attacks. With such a bulky civilian toll and so little to show for it, it is no wonder that Pakistani people have been up in arms over the strikes. On June 22, 2009 the US struck at a house officials called a “suspected militant hideout,” burying a few locals inside. When others people went to the place to rescue them, they launched another missile, killing 13 innocent Pakistanis. When they held a funeral procession on June 23, the US hit that too, apparently on the belief that Baitullah Mehsud might be among the bereaved person.He wasn’t but the attack killed at least 80 more innocent people. (Ditz, January 02, 2010) Madrassas is a college or school where students are taught about Islam.
Madrassa are labeled as the main cause of extremism but they are not stoking extremism or militancy. Fewer than 10% people attend Madrassa in Pakistan. The main cause of the extremism is poor public education. The study report found out that the literacy rate in Pakistan is raised to 56% and it is among the lowest outside of sub-Saharan Africa, and we need to increase the supply of schools in Pakistan.The research found out that the high literacy rate is the main cause of violence and that demand for education inside Pakistan “went beyond the limits of the government’s ability to provide it. In addition, Pakistan’s public school system is “highly corrupt” with teaching positions handed out in return for political favours and teachers are paid low wages. The way Pakistan’s education is set up it is contributing to encourage militancy.
The exclusive focus on Madrassas as a security challenge – which is especially found frequently in the west – needs to be corrected. (BBC, 24 June 2010) To conclude, the war on terror has to be stopped.Pakistan has faced lots of bad things in supporting of the U. S War on Terror and to make this world a safer place, but we have never been appreciated for all the sacrifices that we have make for this world. We have never been appreciated for 3,117 martyred soldiers and 8000 innocent citizens . We have always been told to “do more“. “Do more” is a word that foreign governments use to say that the Pakistan efforts on the War on Terror are not enough.
“Do more” is become a curse for 3,117 martyred Pakistani soldiers and for 8000 innocent citizens of Pakistan.References: Ditz, (January, 2010). US Killed 700 Civilians in Pakistan Drone Strikes in 2009. Retrieved from http://news. antiwar.
com/2010/01/02/us-killed-700-civilians-in-pakistan-drone-strikes-in-2009/ Damon, (2010).