Notions of Grievance and Jihadi Terrorism
14 Jul, 2009 · 2903
Sanjay Pulipaka argues that a solution to the Kashmir problem is not going to solve the menace of jihadi terrorism emanating from Pakistan
There seems to be growing eagerness among some members of the international community to solve the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan at the earliest. This eagerness purportedly stems from the belief that solving the Kashmir dispute will help in addressing jihadi terrorism emanating from Pakistan. While the effects of solving Kashmir dispute may indeed be salutary, it will not put an end to jihadi terrorism in South Asia.
The Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan is more than six decades old. However, jihadi terrorism in Pakistan gained strength only in the 1990s. The political and social infrastructure that was created by various national/international actors to fight the Afghan War and the infusion of religious fundamentalist approach to politics, starting with Zia-ul-Haq, laid very strong foundations for the emergence of jihadi terrorism in Pakistan. Therefore, solving Kashmir dispute will not automatically alter the trajectory of Pakistan’s internal political process. Moreover, the Kashmir dispute is just one element in the global ambitions of the jihadi terrorists operating from Pakistan. For instance, a few months ago the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Gordon Brown, stated that 75 per cent of terrorist cases being investigated by the British police have links to Pakistan. Similarly, the spokesperson for the Taliban in Pakistan had reportedly stated that they would help and protect Osama Bin Laden if he seeks their help, which suggests Pakistan’s jihadi terrorists’ compact with global terrorist groups. Given these global ambitions, to expect that the resolution of Kashmir dispute will end jihadi terrorism in Pakistan is naive
In the past few years, India has been rocked by numerous terrorist attacks. There are reports that unlike the recent Mumbai attacks, some of them have been perpetrated by jihadi terrorists emanating from India. It is being argued that the “shame / humiliation” that Muslims in India experience due to relative inequality in an economy that is registering decent growth is the prime reason for terrorist activities by a few fringe fundamentalist groups. Such an understanding is partial and it does not capture the complex factors that propel violent actions. Large scale terrorism is not a natural trajectory for all societies/communities experiencing relative inequality. Large scale terrorism requires an ideology that legitimizes use of violence and is also dependant on constant supply of money, material, and training facilities. Pakistan is providing all such essential ingredients in abundance to disgruntled elements in India.
Jihadi terrorism emanating from Pakistan revolves around notions of grievance. It perpetuates based on historical memory of perceived or actual crimes that have been committed against their co-religionists. However, historical memory is sometimes selective and it can also be constructed to meet the political needs of certain groups. The question is not if a given ‘historical grievance’ is real or imaginary. The question is how we deal with it. Do we deal with a real or an imaginary historical wrong in a manner that successive generations get bogged with its memory? Or do we empower a community/nation to free itself from the shackles of historical wrong in the process of seeking justice? The answer for such questions can be located in the political process of a given country.
If the existing political process becomes ideologically bankrupt, then political leaders will dwell on historical wrongs in a manner that bitterness festers for a long time. That’s exactly the approach of the ideologues of jihadi terrorism in Pakistan. They are desperately seeking grievance for their narrow political ends. Hence, they pick a wide range of ‘grievances’ from Bosnia, Iraq, Chechnya and so on. It is interesting that ‘grievances’ articulated by jihadi terrorists in Pakistan do not highlight faults within their society. Moreover, they do not have a substantive plan that ensures social and economic justice in their society. This grievance based dogmatic approach to politics is seeking to create a non-reflective mindset which tends to ignore the complexities of various social and political events.
Therefore, anti-terrorism efforts which will strengthen the notions of grievance must be avoided at all costs. More importantly, anti-terrorism efforts, to be successful, must aim at de-legitimizing the grievance based dogmas that perpetuate violence. Various international agencies and countries that are advancing large amounts of financial assistance to Pakistan must monitor, if their assistance is contributing to delegitimization of grievance based violence. As long as we do not mount full scale campaign to delegitimize grievance based violence, our success in fighting terrorism will be partial.
The Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan is more than six decades old. However, jihadi terrorism in Pakistan gained strength only in the 1990s. The political and social infrastructure that was created by various national/international actors to fight the Afghan War and the infusion of religious fundamentalist approach to politics, starting with Zia-ul-Haq, laid very strong foundations for the emergence of jihadi terrorism in Pakistan. Therefore, solving Kashmir dispute will not automatically alter the trajectory of Pakistan’s internal political process. Moreover, the Kashmir dispute is just one element in the global ambitions of the jihadi terrorists operating from Pakistan. For instance, a few months ago the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Gordon Brown, stated that 75 per cent of terrorist cases being investigated by the British police have links to Pakistan. Similarly, the spokesperson for the Taliban in Pakistan had reportedly stated that they would help and protect Osama Bin Laden if he seeks their help, which suggests Pakistan’s jihadi terrorists’ compact with global terrorist groups. Given these global ambitions, to expect that the resolution of Kashmir dispute will end jihadi terrorism in Pakistan is naive
In the past few years, India has been rocked by numerous terrorist attacks. There are reports that unlike the recent Mumbai attacks, some of them have been perpetrated by jihadi terrorists emanating from India. It is being argued that the “shame / humiliation” that Muslims in India experience due to relative inequality in an economy that is registering decent growth is the prime reason for terrorist activities by a few fringe fundamentalist groups. Such an understanding is partial and it does not capture the complex factors that propel violent actions. Large scale terrorism is not a natural trajectory for all societies/communities experiencing relative inequality. Large scale terrorism requires an ideology that legitimizes use of violence and is also dependant on constant supply of money, material, and training facilities. Pakistan is providing all such essential ingredients in abundance to disgruntled elements in India.
Jihadi terrorism emanating from Pakistan revolves around notions of grievance. It perpetuates based on historical memory of perceived or actual crimes that have been committed against their co-religionists. However, historical memory is sometimes selective and it can also be constructed to meet the political needs of certain groups. The question is not if a given ‘historical grievance’ is real or imaginary. The question is how we deal with it. Do we deal with a real or an imaginary historical wrong in a manner that successive generations get bogged with its memory? Or do we empower a community/nation to free itself from the shackles of historical wrong in the process of seeking justice? The answer for such questions can be located in the political process of a given country.
If the existing political process becomes ideologically bankrupt, then political leaders will dwell on historical wrongs in a manner that bitterness festers for a long time. That’s exactly the approach of the ideologues of jihadi terrorism in Pakistan. They are desperately seeking grievance for their narrow political ends. Hence, they pick a wide range of ‘grievances’ from Bosnia, Iraq, Chechnya and so on. It is interesting that ‘grievances’ articulated by jihadi terrorists in Pakistan do not highlight faults within their society. Moreover, they do not have a substantive plan that ensures social and economic justice in their society. This grievance based dogmatic approach to politics is seeking to create a non-reflective mindset which tends to ignore the complexities of various social and political events.
Therefore, anti-terrorism efforts which will strengthen the notions of grievance must be avoided at all costs. More importantly, anti-terrorism efforts, to be successful, must aim at de-legitimizing the grievance based dogmas that perpetuate violence. Various international agencies and countries that are advancing large amounts of financial assistance to Pakistan must monitor, if their assistance is contributing to delegitimization of grievance based violence. As long as we do not mount full scale campaign to delegitimize grievance based violence, our success in fighting terrorism will be partial.
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