New Delhi: The international community has understood that terrorism is the instrument of Pakistan’s state policy, and there is bleak possibility of the country giving it up.
The global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog, Financial Action Task Force (FATF), has retained Pakistan on its terrorism financing ‘grey list’. It has asked Islamabad to address at the earliest the remaining deficiencies in its financial system, or it could slip into the ‘black list’.
Pakistan has been on the FATF ‘grey list’ since June 2018 for failing to check money laundering, leading to terror financing. It was given a plan of action to be completed by October 2019. But the country failed to take any concrete action against the terror organisations and their sponsors.
Failure of Pakistan to act against terrorism has made the world realise that the country won’t mend its way and it’s high time to take punitive action against the nation, which rears terrorism in its backyard.
US lawmaker Scott Perry, a Republican Congressman from Pennsylvania, has called for the designation of Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism. The bill moved by him seeks to “provide for the designation of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism, and for other purposes”.
The proposed sanctions include restrictions on foreign assistance; a ban on defence exports and sales; certain controls over export of dual use items; and miscellaneous financial and other restrictions.
Pak game about to end
It appears that the game has ended for Pakistan as the international community led by the United States wants to punish it for spreading terror and preaching hatred.
If the bill moved by the US lawmaker gets approved, Pakistan will join Iran, Syria, Cuba and North Korea as countries which have been designated sponsors of terrorism.
The rulers in Pakistan are caught in a quandary as their tactics of deceit and falsehood are not working. Besides facing the ire of the international community, the leadership is also facing the heat from its own people. The economic scenario of Pakistan is deteriorating with each passing day.
The research carried out to ascertain the reasons for Pakistan’s poor economy has pointed out that lack of good governance, negligence of agriculture sector, market distortion/high rate of inflation, trade deficit dilemma, discriminatory education policies, unfair distribution of allocation and resources in education are just a few causes of the sufferings of the denizens.
During the past 70 years, Pakistani leaders have failed to provide the common masses with basic facilities of life as most of them have been puppets in the hands of its army. Pakistan is under heavy international debt and figures among the poorest economies in the world.
Kashmir card not working anymore
The leaders, who used to sell Kashmir to stay in power, have lost that agenda as the citizens of Pakistan have realised that the propaganda was aimed at diverting the attention from the real issues. They also know that Kashmir belongs to India and their country cannot snatch it.
The recent “Threat Assessment Report” of the United States has warned Pakistan of India retaliating with more force than in the past under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, if it keeps on provoking New Delhi.
Pakistan stands cornered from all the sides. Even the Muslim countries are not looking towards it due to the country using terrorism as an instrument of its state policy.
Decisive action on anvil
The international community seems to have made up its mind to take decisive action against Pakistan and the ground for that is being built. Pakistan cannot get rid of terrorism and the terrorists as it has made them an integral part of the system. Expecting Pakistani rulers to act against them is asking for too much as it’s beyond their competence and authority.
The international community has assessed all the factors and it as on the verge of reaching at the conclusion that imposing sanctions could be the only way out to make Pakistan understand that it cannot rear terrorists in its backyard and send them across the world to disturb peace.
Army generals real bosses
Since 1947, Pakistan Army and its spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) have not allowed any statesman to emerge to lead the country. Whosoever has ruled Pakistan has had to do it under the influence of the army and the ISI.
The army generals have been the real bosses with the politicians acting as second fiddle.
Since 1990, Pakistan has been sponsoring insurgency in Kashmir. The army and the ISI were of the opinion that by garnering local support, they would be able to occupy the Valley within a span of a few years. But the Indian Army and other security forces have foiled all their nefarious designs. They have been made to eat humble pie.
The Pakistan Army generals are aware of the fact that their army cannot match the skills of the Indian Army and winning a conventional war is out of the question. Pushing terrorists into J&K is the only way out and they have been doing it for the past three decades.
World turns hostile towards Pak
The international community has woken up. It’s implicitly and explicitly supporting India in its war against terror in every possible way. The world has understood that concerns expressed by India are genuine and it has to act before a major conflict breaks out in the subcontinent.
Pakistan’s retention in FATF ‘grey list’ is a warning that it can slip into the ‘black list’ and the next step could be designating it as a state sponsor of terrorism.
It could prove to be the last nail in the already ailing economy of Pakistan, where a common man is struggling to make ends meet.
The world has turned hostile towards Pakistan but its leaders continue to be in a state of denial. They are still trying to sell illusions and dreams to their people, just to cling onto power. But the fact is that Pakistan is moving towards oblivion and is on the way to being deserted by the world.
Time is running out for the helmsmen and if they don’t change their policies, Pakistan will be officially declared as a “terrorist state” and the international community will snap all ties with it.
(IANS)
