Terrorism in India
What can be said about the Mumbai attacks?
First, it’s over. At least, the actual attacks and counter-attacks are. Now there will be clean-up, both physical and emotional.
And there will be an attempt to figure out the best way to respond. Let’s just acknowledge that there is no good way to respond.
As I wrote previously, there are immense implications to whatever response is taken. Everyone is getting some blame, and the two nuclear power countries seem more than willing to point fingers rather than try to deal with the real issues.
The real issue is that too many people in both countries are willing to believe the worst of each other. It helps to remember that the country of Pakistan was founded because, once the colonial power was thrown-off, the Muslim minority of the Indian subcontinent feared political under-representation (leading to official oppression) of Muslims. The rather hurried separation led to several provinces being disupted – particularly Kashmir and Jammu.
The point being that there are people living in India who believe that Pakistan is really nothing more than a breakaway section of India. And others feel that Pakistan will never be free from fear until they push India back – who knows how far? Mahondas Gandhi, for all his greatness, could not hold together two people who would rather die than live alongside each other.
What is needed is restraint. Anything that leads to more violence and destruction means that the terrorists win. It’s hokey to say that “there is not path to peace; there is only the path of peace”; but never has it been more true. What is needed is a leader in India and a leader in Pakistan to say, “I will not fight a war for no reason. There is enough suffering in this world without me adding to it.” What is needed is a joint effort at eliminating lawless morons who are trying to pull the temple down around them – while simultaneously shoring up the temple.
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