Womens Action Forum Supports Military Operation. In its entire activist history, WAF and its members have fought against military rule and its excesses - including atrocities against Bangladesh in 1971, Baluchistan and even in Karachi. They have often been alone in their protest when no other civil society organisation was willing to be critical of military adventures inside the state and incursions into other states in the name of jihad. Therefore, WAF is mindful that the state has had an ambiguous unwillingness to confront its assets in the jihadists whether they are in FATA or South Punjab. It is in support of the political decision to confront these forces through the current operation that WAF supports it because it believes this may finally lead to a severance of military patronage of terrorists. WAF and other civil society organisations have been directly involved in assisting IDPs and affected peoples all through the War on Terror. Therefore it is entirely supportive of and has visited and documented their plight and recommended many policies to the government regarding the state of women IDPs in particular. It is a historical given that WAF members will continue to support and protest civilian casualties in any conflict. Further, the support that WAF extends to any state policy or operation is always conditional to the need for transparency and accountability on the part of the military and political leadership. WAF is also completely open to alternative recommendations that other progressive forces may have to make in the light of this military operation. Perhaps those who claim they are anti-war under all circumstances could advise WAF and other liberal civil society members of what their proposals are for the terrorists war waged against innocent working-class victims. As long as these are not vague, fence-sitting and hollow anti-war slogans only, WAF would be happy to incorporate those into its own position as stated above. Otherwise we end up endorsing the armys own historical ambivalence over fighting our Taliban brothers which many believe, prevented resolution of the conflict a long time ago. Simply asking for transparency is not a position on whether a military operation is needed or not. -- Mahnaz Rahman,
Posted on: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 21:07:08 +0000
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