A panel of academics and South Asia experts from around the world explored the prospect of a rebrand of Pakistan away from an ideology of jihad and terrorism, while praising Bangladesh for the progress it had made since its liberation in 1971.
‘Reimagining Pakistan: A Global Perspective’, organised by the Jammu Kashmir Study Centre UK think tank in London recently, highlighted that Pakistan’s so-called “jihad strategy” dates back to 1947, with Bangladesh successfully managing to break free.
"Well done to Bangladesh for overtaking Pakistan in development," David Vance, a writer at AltNewsMedia, said during the discussion.
“Pakistan is like a shark in the region… It is an existential threat to its neighbours in the region and countries beyond. The UK should stop all aid to Pakistan,” he said.
The panellists were in general agreement that Pakistan risks becoming increasingly isolated in the wake of its recent greylisting by the global money-laundering watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) unless some urgent steps are taken and that China could act as a counter-weight, given its own economic interests in the region.
“Pakistan has a unique opportunity to reposition itself as a leader in the region… but it needs to rebrand the country away from the ideology of jihad,” said Seth Oldmixon, from Liberty South Asia, an independent group promoting political pluralism in South Asian.
“It [Pakistan] has been consumed by this ideology and its long-term interests lie in reimagining the country or it risks becoming increasingly isolated and economically destitute,” he said.
Dr Christine Fair, a Georgetown University professor of security studies with a focus on South Asia, informed the gathering that the Pakistani High Commission in London had tried to coerce the venue of the panel discussion into cancelling the event.
“That is reflective of the kind of state it is,” she said, also calling on the US to cut off all aid to the country because aid is "toxic".
"The longer it stays on the grey list, it gets to bargain with the international community using the threat of terrorism,” she said.
Other panellists, including Pakistani journalist-in-exile and Founder of safenewsrooms.org Taha Siddiqui, highlighted the pressure on the media in the country but expressed hope that voices are on the rise against such a crackdown.