In retrospect, the conflagration and massacre of the dark days of war by Taliban’s regime will never fade into oblivion. Afghan people recoil with fear and hatred whenever the sad memories of the militants’ callous actions flash through their minds. Widows still wince at the memory of how harshly their husbands were beheaded and the tearful eyes of orphans bespeak of the regime’s heinous crime. Likewise, the painful wounds of mothers’ hearts are bleeding for missing their dears and the anger of revenge is boiling up inside the victims’ party. The nightmarish image of the bloody incidents and tragic death of innocent people is too difficult to put into words.
Militancy is a chronic problem which takes heavy toll of our nation. The protracted war never ebbs despite the fact that the government made great sacrifices to bring the militants to the peace table. Taliban’s intensified attacks and emergence of self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) deteriorated the security situation. Afghanistan’s urge and peace offering to warring factions fall on deaf ears. The US and NATO combat mission in Afghanistan ended and the war on terror did not bear the desired result.
Civilians are left at the mercy of war and terror since the insurgents indiscriminately spill the blood of combatants and non-combatants alike. With the ISIL’s footing, a number of minority group lost their lives on the basis of their race, color and beliefs and sectarian violence was stoked on a large scale. Moreover, it is feared that the warring parties, mainly Taliban outfit, will increase their inroads unless the peace negotiation comes to fruition – which constantly met failure.
It is self-explanatory that insurgents, mainly ISIL, pigeonhole the public on the basis of their race, color and creed, this view arise from false assumption and radical mindsets, and ultimately use to color the entire country with the same brush. Needless to say, the militants’ radical ideology is based on personal understandings – this will lead to intolerance and justifies their acts of terror. It is believed that many members of militant groups are pawns, rather than religious ideologues, used in political game to pressurize the government.
Pakistan Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz has said in a recent statement that seminaries along the Afghan-Pak border and tribal belts, especially North Waziristan, had become a safe haven for terrorists. He believed that madrasahs run bomb-making factories, terrorist training centers and suicide bombers producers. He said, “In one mosque that I visited, I remember, in Miranshah, from outside we did not see anything. But under the mosque there were a 70-room basement, three stories, in which there were four-five IED factories, four-five suicide training centers, communication network, VIP room, conference rooms, amazing infrastructure.” However, he blamed the Afghan refugees for the tribal belts of Pakistan becoming a hub of terrorism.  Regarding ISIL group, military officials estimated last year that there were between 1,000 and 3,000 ISIL fighters operating in Nangarhar. However, Brigadier General Shoffner stated that ISIL “is primarily contained to one district out of 404 districts within the entire country. Shoffner said that many of them were former Pakistani Taliban fighters “that have changed allegiance to Daesh”. According to Shoffner, those fighters were pushed into Afghanistan by a crackdown on militants in Pakistan. But Shoffner also added that the ISIL group remains a “strategic threat” in Afghanistan.
It does not matter whether the militants were pushed out or in, but both Pakistan and Afghanistan are in the same boat and as members of QCG group, they have to eradicate the terrorists’ safe havens, especially the seminaries that train suicide bombers, brainwash the students and produce explosive devices. In other words, the first and foremost step to be taken, regarding counterinsurgency, should be rooting out the hotbed of terror and militancy that is to say demolishing their basements so as to prevent them from laying further eggs or poisoning more minds.
Since there are many masterminds behind the terrorist scenes, they continue their acts of terror for years and it is possible through establishing madrasahs and poisoning the minds of youths, mainly those who come from poor families. Hence, there are many madrasahs inside and across the border involved in terrorist activities.
Last year, BBC released that spreading Islamic extremism in a girls’ madrasah in Northern Afghanistan has raised concerns among Afghan women regarding the spread of radicalism. The news reports that a madrasah under the name of “Ashraf-u-Madaris” in Kunduz teaches women religious instructions which are in conflict with Afghans’ culture and tradition. It adds that the students are of the view that listening to radio, watching television, taking photo, celebrating the days like teacher’s day, mother’s day, birthday and outdoor work for women are all forbidden. The way of teaching, clothing, and the way of the students’ interpretation from religion have raised the people’s serious concerns and also raised a question that what are the main objectives of the teachers?
According to the news “Ashraf-u-Madaris” was founded by Mulavi Abdul Khaliq and Mufti Sirajuddin, the influential mullahs in Kunduz province, four years ago and presently six thousand girls are studying there. It is further said that the madrasah has also branches in Takhar and Baghlan and it is intended to open some more branches in 9 provinces of the country.  A religious society, which is stuck in traditional thought and fundamental social mores, closes the door to development. This can be seen by glancing over the pages of our history over the centuries. Because our believers were myopic and radical, Afghan society had taken many tortuous paths, missed its destination and has often stepped backwards. Due to past political blunders, the present generation is doomed to suffer. The present insecurity and economic constraints are the legacy of our past errors.  Hence, as Afghanistan has had political ups and downs and people have experienced different regimes throughout the history. We have to move on cautiously. At the least we should not be subjected to cruelties through our religious beliefs or traditional practices. We must notice the sinister faces behind the religious façade and recognize wrong practices masked in moral norms. Our religious values and cultural mores must not be spoiled. Let us learn from the history and practice upon. Of course, we live in a more modern and civilized era than our forefathers ever dreamt about. Now we have many politicians, economists and other educational personalities who can play a vital role for the betterment of our society.  These madrasahs will create serious challenges for the country in near future via spreading hatred and intolerance towards the public beliefs and culture. Currently, it is believed that many suicide bombers are trained in the same atmosphere and our people suffer the outcome painfully. Thus, the Afghan government with the help of the regional countries and international allies has to take serious step in this regard.
As members of QCG, Afghanistan and Pakistan either have to bring the warring factions to the peace table or intensify their counterinsurgency operation, rather than wasting further time and energy. So, terrorism should be rooted out in any possible ways and civilians are not to fall victims anymore.