Militants have torched another four girls' schools, this time in Shakardar, Zangi, Dherai Baba and Tahirabad. This brings the total number of girls' schools destroyed in the restive northern areas of the country to a whopping 136. No one has claimed responsibility for this wilful destruction though officials point their finger at Maulana Fazlullah, the Swat commander of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan.
That this charge is believable, given the Taliban views on educating women cannot be denied though there are few takers of their claim that this view can be directly sourced to Islam as a religion.
It is a historical fact that the advent of Islam provided women with greater rights and protection than was granted to them in pre-Islamic Arabia. History also supports the claim that the early days of Islam were marked by many an Arabic woman contributing positively to the religious and literary debate of her time. Thus the rise of Islamic fundamentalism, as is generally referred to in the West, does not comprise of actions by militants that are designed to take us back to the 'fundamentals' of Islam. It is, in contrast, a reflection of two elements: First, of course, the element of illiteracy that is common to several Taliban leaders who therefore quite naturally view education with great suspicion.
It is ignorance strengthened by access to weaponry that has led to attacks on girls schools; and it is also a measure of this illiteracy that led the Taliban leaders to oppose the polio eradication campaign of the government which has been the root cause of the resurfacing of that dreaded disease amongst the children of those living in areas where the Taliban hold sway. The solution therefore lies in a concerted drive to increase education levels in the tribal areas. The realisation of this objective would require large government outlays for education of both boys and girls, inclusive of high security costs initially. It is hoped that the government will not shy away from such expenditure.
Secondly, and more importantly extremism in Islam can be sourced to dictatorships in Muslim countries and their 'unholy' alliance with Western powers that have led to foreign policy disasters. President Musharraf's Pakistan too was a dictatorship and his support for the US was contingent on not only periodically allowing US planes to launch attacks inside Pakistan, which he would later denounce, but also launching military campaigns against his own people which were marked by significant collateral damage fuelling tribal anger against him. This anger has been effectively employed by the Taliban to make their periodic recruitment drives effective.
And recent claims by Maulana Fakir Mohammad, Deputy Chief of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan that they have highly motivated suicide bombers, ranging in age from 10 to 20, are a measure of the Taliban's success in their recruitment drive. Maulana Fakir Mohammad also revealed that the suicide bombers are boys and girls. The inclusion of girls in suicide squads is a disturbing addition and shows the need for urgent remedial measures on the part of the government to reverse the tide.
Be that as it may, it is evident that the government needs to spread the message: if you educate a woman you educate her entire family. An educated woman will not only choke up the recruitment drive of the Taliban, but also help in reducing disease and consequently the country's health costs as well as increase the country's productivity. This is what is required to deal with extremism and only a democratic dispensation can deal with the situation. The coalition has been given a chance to deal with this and it is hoped that they would seize this opportunity with both hands.