Editorial
National dialogue on terrorism
BNP should be sincere and AL should not give any re-condition
AT long last, Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia has put out a call to all political parties for talks on militancy and terrorism, acknowledging it as a national challenge that can't wait to be addressed except in a wholly concerted manner. However, it remains unofficial. Her public call should be followed by formal invitation for dialogue.The media and the civil society have in so many words been calling for a national dialogue to brainstorm on the unremitting militancy lethally topped off by suicide bombers to salvage the battered nation out of it. We would like to believe that the PM has paid heed to such a counsel after all, even if belatedly, which is a welcome sign. But it is reasonable to conclude as well that she has acted out of a self-realisation at the monstrosity of the problem going out of her government's hands. She can't solve it single-handedly; she does need the cooperation of the opposition. This newly dawned sense of realism on the PM's part is a good point to start building confidence in the public mind about mobilising the whole nation behind the cause. We would also like to believe that her choice of the dialogue path should mark the end of the conspiracy theory that she and her senior colleagues had been vociferously spouting around in ascribing the bombings to a nexus between internal forces and an unnamed country without substantiating such a claim. At first it was the opposition to lay the blame on, then it was burying the head in the sand against the storming militancy, and later came the conspiracy finger-pointing to unidentified sources. But now, with governmental indifference and attribution of conspiracy hopefully out of the way, we should expect a sincere and robust collective endeavour to grapple with the uncontrolled surge in targeted terrorism. For this to happen, Begum Zia must ensure that BNP speaks with one voice; otherwise her efforts will be negated by what others in her party may say. The doublespeak in her party must end and she has to lead the way to make it happen. For their part, it is imperative that the opposition does not set any pre-condition to a dialogue with the government on the crucial issue of terrorism. Let a dialogue be held immediately. People want to see the leaders of both sides sit down and devise a way out of the stranglehold of terrorism. The act of sitting together of both parties will itself help to raise public confidence.
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