Countering Militancy in Pakistan: Domestic, Regional and International Dimensions

3-4 August 2009

The University Club, Hackett Drive, The University of Western Australia, Perth

The Centre for Muslim States and Societies at The University of Western Australia hosted a two day international symposium on 3rd- 4th August, 2009 which drew on the expertise of academics, practitioners and international relations experts from around the world. They explored ideas on how to counter militancy in Pakistan on a sustained basis. The growing militancy in Pakistan and its implications for the regional and global stability has been attracting intense attention from policymakers, practitioners and analysts around the world. The specter of Taliban gradually extending their control over Swat and neighbouring areas have intensified fears of militants gaining access to Pakistan’s nuclear assets. While Afghanistan had remained the focus of attention for countering the agenda of Al-Qaeda in the region and the world, the changed scenario in Pakistan is now shifting attention towards the second largest Muslim country in the world.  Questions are being asked about the linkages between Pakistan’s social and political structures, and domestic and foreign policy outlooks to the agenda of countering militancy. The interest effectively encompasses more that merely containing militancy to finding long-term solutions that can ensure that Pakistan regains stability and that militants and militant ideas are countered on a sustained basis. The United States has reflected this emerging trend by submitting the Pakistan Enduring Assistance and Cooperation Enhancement (the PEACE Act) to the House of Representatives on 3 April 2009. The Obama Administration is also exploring some instant measures aimed at combating militancy within Pakistan. The Australian Government has also been keen to support the civil society in Pakistan so as to build capacity against underdevelopment as well as counter militancy. Other regional and global actors have shared these concerns while exploring ways to support Pakistan. The global concern has been mirrored within Pakistan: the civil society and various sections of the government have voiced concerns and opposition to the growing menace of militancy in the name of Islam. Their suggested responses to the emerging threat, however, extend beyond what is being considered by the outside world. The opinions within Pakistan are by no means unified. While some focus on Pakistan’s domestic and foreign policy, societal trends, democratic deficit, and economic conditions as contributors to empowerment of militancy, others search for explanations in the drone attacks by the US troops stationed in Afghanistan and ‘international conspiracies’.  But there is unanimous agreement among the large majority of Pakistanis that the country is going through the most crucial phase in its 62 years of existence.

The symposium addressed the following questions:

• What are the causes of growing militancy in Pakistan?
• What role do socio-economic and political trends play in sustaining militant ideas in the country?
• What factors explain the continued presence of militants in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Swat and Baluchistan?
• How can militancy be countered in Pakistan? Do we need country-specific or regional approaches, or does the answer lie in a combination of the two? What does this mean for the Indo-Pakistan relations as well as Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan?
• What role can external actors play in the process of countering militancy? Does this need to be limited to economic assistance or do answers necessitate a more nuanced approach? And what kind of approaches do we need?
• How do we empower the civil society at the grass-root levels so that temporary gains can be turned into sustainable successes that support Pakistan, the region and the world?

International & Australian Speakers included: 

• Professor  Mohammad Waseem, School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences, Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS)
• Dr Pervaiz Iqbal Cheema, President of the Islamabad Policy Research Institute
• Ms Farhat Taj, Research Fellow at the Center for Gender Research, University of Oslo
• Mr Haider A H Mullick, Senior Fellow, Joint Special Operations University, USA
• Dr. Jakub Zajaczkowski, Erasmus Program Coordinator at the Institute of International Relations, University of Warsaw, Poland
• Professor Bharat Karnad, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, India
• Dr Smruti S Pattanaik, Research Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis, India
• Prof Mumtaz Ahmad, Professor at Hampton University, Virginia, USA
• Prof Riaz Hassan, Australian Research Council Professorial Fellow at Flinders University, Australia
• Dr Ayesha Siddiqa, Independent Political and Defence Analyst, Pakistan
• Dr Musarrat Jabeen, Associate Professor International Relations, University of Balochistan
• Mariam Abou Zahab, Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, France
• Prof Syed Tahir Hijazi, Professor at Comsats University  Islamabad, Pakistan
• Prof Michael Humphrey, Head of the School of Sociology & Anthropology, University of New South Wales
• Professor Amin Saikal, Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, Australian National University
• Dr Christopher Snedden, Senior Lecturer, School of International and Political Studies, Deakin University
• Professor William Maley, Foundation Director, Asia Pacific College of Diplomacy, Australian National University.
• Dr Aneela Babar, Asian Studies Masters Programme, Monash University
• Professor James Trevelyan, School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Western Australia 
• Dr Adeel Khan, University of New England
• Mr Moeen Cheema, Australian National University

Symposium Convener:

Prof. Samina Yasmeen

Director, Centre for Muslim States and Societies

The University of Western Australia

Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009

Phone: +61 8 6488 4554

Fax: +61 8 6488 4558

Email: cmss@uwa.edu.au