There is nothing new about the sectarian conflicts and subsequent death of thousands in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But who suffers the most in both the countries are none other than Hazaras. The two main radical groups which are actively and consistently engaged in massive killing of Hazaras in Pakistan are lashkar-e-Jhangvi (leJ) and the Pakistani Taliban. In Afghanistan, it is either the Taliban or the ISIS, the latter in recent times. However, the rising number of ISIS attacks on the community is sending a disturbing signal not only to the Hazara community, but also to the State security agencies which have failed to prevent or curb the ongoing sectarian violence. It is too sad that the helplessness of the State in both the countries is bolstering the “all-powerful” image of the jehadis across. These forces will soon turn Afghanistan into a “graveyard of empires” as it is not been recovering to normalcy despite the long presence of the US-led forces since 2001. With a new Government under the leadership of Ashraf Ghani, the Afghans are undoubtedly getting a fresh breath of air in their country. Though he is trying to attract new donors and partners for bringing back the country to first normalcy and then to the much needed developmental trajectory, hardly there is any sign of hope. Whether it comes to torture of Hazaras or targeting the Government forces and the US-led forces, the very upsurge of the insurgents are a direct threat to the survival of the Afghan state. Sources say that the ISIS may not get much leverage in the country as it does not enjoy the support of locals unlike the Taliban and the al-Qaeda cadres. Also, the ISIS losing most of the grounds in Syria and in Iraq may either force its members to target communities like the Hazaras or may selectively plan attacks around the world. What is worrying is the report of the al-Qaeda cadre returning to their old bases in Afghanistan. This will definitely add to the problems of the beleaguered President Ghani and his team. It is against this sombre background, the Ghani Government’s efforts to woo foreign donors on one hand and surviving his precarious National Unity Government on the other could be no less an uphill task.
When it comes to Pakistan, a country bedeviled by terrorist groups and by the State-sponsored jehadi elements, there is hardly any hope for safety of the minority Hazaras. Sadly, the insurgents in Pakistan operate openly and they enjoy a large following in public. With the current clampdown on terrorists and some of their group leaders under extreme pressure from outside, Islamabad is just doing a lip service. The country is fast turning into a terror factory and it is not under the control of the civilian Government. As the terror groups get active support from the state agencies, it would be really difficult for the Government to bring down their nefarious activities sooner or later. Balochistan, the home of the majority of the Hazaras of Pakistan, would be more difficult to return to normalcy, as it is a border province and it has a number of insurgents which are also fighting against Islamabad. Here, the Pakistan Government is facing numerous threats. First of all, it is not committed to ensure safety of the Hazaras and other minority communities; second, it has been treating the Baloch rebels as simply a law and order problem. The genuine grievances of the Baloch people demand immediate intervention from Islamabad. And the rising Hazara killings by Sunni terrorists might force either the community to leave Balochistan or may lose their very existence if the current cleansing continues.
In an article published in the National Geographic, it was noted that “The Hazara, both in Afghanistan and in Pakistan, have been persecuted because of their religious and/or ethnic heritage” (January 16, 2012). Almost half of the Hazaras of Pakistan are living in Quetta, known as a “garrison city”. And therefore it is difficult for anyone and even for the Hazaras to understand why the Pakistani state has failed to protect them for decades. Despite the presence of large security forces in the city of Quetta, it remains a mystery why the provincial Government is not initiating tough actions against the killers. Besides, many experts and observers on Shia rampage in Pakistan say that as the Hazaras are considerably well-represented in the city police forces, it should have helped the community to protect themselves from outside attacks. In most of the cases, the militant groups operate openly and go scot-free every time. What does this meanIJ It demonstrates either the unwillingness of the provincial Government to act or the local security agencies are not equipped enough to counter the dreaded terrorists. It has been observed that after many incidents of gruesome killing of the Hazaras in the past, the community had raised the demand for deploying the Pakistan Army in volatile areas. It means the provincial forces are not that effective and the central armed forces could be of some help to the Hazaras.
The community has been targeted by various hardcore Sunni terrorist groups in both the countries for long. A report by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) notes that most of these terrorist outfits are financed by the Pakistan’s ISI and trained in collaboration with the Frontier Corps and Military Intelligence based in Balochistan Province. Such terrorist groups have a set agenda: spread terror, encourage sectarian violence, killings of Shias, particularly the Hazaras, targeting of the NATO forces and establishments; and to eliminate journalists and lawyers across Balochistan. The reasons behind the state-sponsorship of religious terrorists are not far to seek. When the Soviet forces came to Afghanistan in the 1980s, the ISI helped the opening of numerous religious schools (Madrasas) and training centres so as to use these recruits to fight the enemy. And once they were regarded as a “strategic asset”, they took full advantage once the Soviet forces left the country.
And, make no mistake. America is fighting its one of the most humiliating battles in Afghanistan. The Afghan civilian casualties hit a new high: In 2016, the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) documented 11,418 civilian casualties (3,498 deaths and 7,920 injured) between January and December 2016, an overall increase of three per cent. An appalling number of those casualties were children: 923 deaths and 2,589 injured, again a 2.4 per cent increase over record high numbers from 2015. If this is the state of affairs in war-torn Afghanistan by the end of the last year, the American engagement is certainly going to continue there for indefinite years. And this will force more and more terrorists to ventilate their frustrations against hapless ethnic groups like Hazaras. Today, what the Hazaras are facing is nothing but the impacts of the devilish growth of the Taliban movement and the other jehadi forces just on the pretext of fighting the Soviet forces.
The Hazaras will always be hounded by forces like the leJ, the Taliban and the ISIS, so as to remain relevant in the much competitive world of global terrorism. However, today in Afghanistan the much subdued, ostracised and abused Hazaras are gradually getting strength and voice under the current Ghani regime. For the first time, Hazaras are enjoying ever more elaborate religious holidays and functions and are also allowed to take out peaceful demonstrations against their long-drawn discriminations. But then last year in July, an ISIS-inspired suicide bomber targeted a peaceful Hazara rally and killed more than 80 people in the heart of Kabul. Since coming to power, Ghani has been trying to appease the Hazara community and offering to negotiate the placement of power lines with them. Therefore, the elderly Hazara leaders are completely against any kind of demonstrations as this may fuel sectarian conflict in the country. But the youngsters, activists and the dissident leaders in the community are all up in arms against the sustained humiliation meted out to them by the majority Pashtun community in Afghanistan. Sources say that the ISIS has two factions in Afghanistan: one consists of moderate former Taliban fighters, and others have all come from foreign countries that follow an extremist line. Many Hazara leaders fear that if the second faction grows stronger, then it would be a danger for the survival of their community and for the Ghani Government as well.
Caught between alleged state failure and complicity in attacks, Hazaras are bringing home a sense of utter helplessness in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. All this signifies a continuation of both the countries spiral into their self-destructive road to sectarian violence. Is that so that the State machinery is completely failed in raising its forces against Sunni terroristsIJ Or is it so that both Governments simply want to eliminate the Hazaras from the map of their countriesIJ For now, both seem to be true as the Governments in Kabul and in Islamabad have not been able to stop the persecution of the minority Hazaras.
(The writer is an expert on international affairs)