Editorial: Uncivilised outburst

Bilawal Bhutto would be better advised to direct his attention towards meaningful efforts to put an end to terrorism

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, an entitled dynast, has just transformed himself from being a naïve political intern to an unhinged leader shooting his mouth off in the most despicable manner, taking an already discredited diplomacy of his country to a new low. His grandfather and former Pakistan President Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had once bragged about waging a 1,000-year war with India while his mother and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto repeated the call in 1990. In keeping with the long tradition of making anti-India diatribe the core of their national identity, Bilawal, now the foreign minister, resorted to a vulgar personal attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ended up exposing his pathetic ignorance about the ground realities. He should bear in mind that Pakistan, being the epicentre of global terrorism nurturing several deadly terror groups on its soil, is a thoroughly discredited country in the world and is least qualified to comment on elected prime ministers of other countries. Unlike Pakistan where the military bosses dictate the country’s destiny and minorities have no rights, India is an open, free and secular nation and a vibrant democracy where diversity is celebrated and people of all faiths are treated equally. It is time Bilawal learnt some history lessons, particularly concerning his own country and look back at what happened in 1971 and how the formation of Bangladesh was a direct result of the genocide unleashed by Pakistani rulers against ethnic Bengalis and Hindus. About the current history, he should know that no other country can boast of having 126 UN-designated terrorists and 27 UN-designated terrorist entities operating on its soil.

The perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, Hafiz Saeed, Masood Azhar and Sajid Mir, as well as the mastermind of the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts, Dawood Ibrahim, are roaming freely in Pakistan. Cities like New York, Mumbai, Pulwama, Pathankot and London are among the many that bear the scars of Pakistan-sponsored and instigated terrorism. This violence has emanated from their Special Terrorist Zones and exported to all parts of the world. Pakistan FM’s reprehensible comments against Modi and India perhaps reflect a growing frustration over his government’s inability to rein in the terrorist elements. As former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, during her visit to Islamabad more than a decade ago, “if you have snakes in your backyard, you cannot expect them to bite only your neighbours.” Given this reality, Bilawal would be better advised to direct his attention towards meaningful efforts to put an end to terrorism being part of their state policy. A nation that hosted Osama bin Laden and attacked its neighbouring country’s Parliament does not have the credentials to give sermons at the UN Security Council. It also holds the dubious record of being on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) several times.