Security has become a major problem

Security of Pakistan as well as of citizens has become crucial for the future of the state.

It has come to pose a challenge for both the government and the people in Pakistan.
Prior to the emergence of current situation, many people believed that Pakistan had to counter only the external threat. Now the internal threat too had become crucial. Rather this demands as much vigilance as the external threat.

The security and the well-being of the country now depends how best it deals with these two threats.

The events that followed Sept 11, 2001 have changed the situation all over the world.


Former Germnan Chancellor Schroeder had rightly said that the world would now be different. He said it would certainly not remain the same.

Violence has hit the country hard. Some say it is on decline but many others strongly challenge this argument. They say it is not on decline rather it is on rise.
Whether it is on rise or decline, people have begun to live with it as a dreadful part of their life.

All the people being aware of the menace keep thinking how best they could meet the challenge. They put forward different strategies. On one point they all agree that the problem of security demands immediate and prompt attention of all.

It appears that something has gone wrong somewhere. People do not feel themselves safe and secure as they did about ten years ago.

Everybody has to be on guard. Officials or private citizens, elderly or youth, men or women now feel compelled to take precautionary measures.

The security agencies constantly advise the people to remain alert. They should report to the police if they feel suspicious about any person in the area.

Similarly, they had better keep themselves away if they find anything by the roadside that might arouse their suspicion.

Some people go so far as to say that they do not know when they leave their homes whether they will be able to return or not.The common men find his life, property and unfortunately sometime even his honor at risk.

The reasons for the situation having deteriorated to such an extent are varied and many in number.

The spread of militancy practically to all parts of the country has been the main reason for giving rise to fear and insecurity.


The militancy has unleashed terror in many forms. These include bomb blasts, suicidal bombing, target killing kidnapping for ransom and street violence and robberies at gun point.

Bomb blasts and suicidal bombing from Khyber to Karachi have made the people think more about their safety. Such incidents as these can make anybody become an easy target and it could occur anywhere.

This fear has begun to haunt the people at homes, the streets in their offices and you name any other place, they feel it there.

According to reports, 87 suicide attacks took place across the country last year. Nearly 1300 people were killed in these attacks. This figure is an increase of about forty percent in comparison with the preceding year.

About fifty bomb attacks occurred in the final quarter of last year. Around 500 people are reported to have lost their lives during this period.

The number has been on the rise during the year 2009 itself.Most of these attacks have been carried out by teenagers.

According to the report of Dawn News hundreds of teenagers have been trained to be used as suicide bombers.

The personnel of security forces have suffered heavily in such acts but neither the women nor children were spared.

The educational institutions especially those in the NWFP have been attacked by militants. They have been very harsh against the schools for girls.

About 100 schools for girls were destroyed alone in Swat. The militants had taken over Swat. The life there stood paralyzed.

The whole world felt shocked. The place was a major attraction for tourists from home as well as abroad. But the tourists had stopped going there. Everything had come to a halt.Pakistan had to take action.

Pakistan army came to the rescue of the country. It launched operation to take back the land well known for its scenic beauty.

The armies succeed in taking it back but many of its brave soldiers had to render the supreme sacrifice of their life to restore the writ of the state.

The common citizens too had to pass through agony.About two and a half million local people had to leave the area during the military operation against militants. They moved to safer places and had to live in tents during the menacing heat of summer. They became to be known as Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) - refugees in their own country. What more horrible situation could be there?

However, it goes to the credit of the Pakistani Nation that it stood united to meet the challenge.

The Internally Displaced Persons did return to their homes after the Army took back Swat, but could life remain same for the people. No, it would not be possible.
Life from now onwards would be new for them and thus their conduct and their attitude would also be different.

The threat to life and property has also had its effects on economic and social life of the people.

The military operation also had to be conducted in South Waziristan. It had become the stronghold of militants and the State had to take action to restore its writ. It was launched last October and though militants have been driven out from large areas, the military operation has not ended as yet.

Action also has been taken in the Orakzai Agency and other places of the Federally Admisitered Tribal Areas. Never before has military action ever been taken on such a large scale in the history of FATA which stretches over a period of hundreds of years.

This alone adequately describes the serious situation that prevails there.