Synthia Kainath Nur
Recently, a family of five was apprehended from the capital’s Mirpur area due to their involvement in militant activities. They have been secretly propagating the ideology among known people for a long time. A special anti-terrorism unit arrested the 5 including the father, who was a bank official, the mother, their two young sons and their daughter. The police recovered explosives, arms and books on extremism from their home. When the Rab team asked them to open the door they attacked with sharp weapons and even exploded some sort of explosive.
This incident is surely enough to cause concern. Previously, it was mostly the youth who were most likely to become derailed and brainwashed into such unlawful activities. However, the radicalization of a whole family unit is clear proof of how dire the situation is at the moment. Radical militants are now being able to infiltrate the strongest social bonds, i.e, the nuclear family unit. It shows that though militants have been mostly cornered by the law enforcing agencies, some isolated pockets still exist in the country.
Simply apprehending these criminals will not be enough in the fight against terrorism. Yes, the threat that this family posed has been neutralized. But that does not mean much in the big picture. People from both poor and affluent background still get drawn to religious extremism. In order to put a stop to radicalization, we must delve deeper into the issue and figure out exactly what is luring so many people to risk everything they have and fight for these questionable doctrines.
What caused a whole family to decide to leave their comfortable life and invest their everything in this? Surely 5 or 5000 radicalised people cannot win against the state’s military might and machinery. Then why will they risk the safety of not only themselves, but of their loved ones as well? What exactly is the motivating factor here?
This problem is not likely to go away on its own and nor will it be as straight forward as just arresting those involved. In order to cleanse society of this problem, we must also identify how we as a society have fostered an environment for such a movement to be able to take hold. The increasing sectarian ideology and violence in our country is also promoting the rise of radical Islam. Our country was founded on the basis of religious tolerance and cultural harmony amongst our people. During the 1971 war for independence we sacrificed our lives to be able to live in a country which does not discriminate on the basis of religion. Where have those values disappeared?
International terrorist organizations have a vast network and their reach is only increasing because of the spread of internet. These organizations have perfected their recruitment and brainwashing techniques which they implement on vulnerable, frustrated, lonely youths. They make them believe that they are becoming a part of something vital and they are made to feel important. However, the sad truth is that these people are expendable and simply being used for fulfilling a heinous agenda.
Support groups can be set up for the most vulnerable so that they do not have to turn to the wrong people for help. We must be proactive in our fight against radicalization. If we fail to address and resolve these issues which are plaguing us from within, society as we know it might soon face extinction at the hands of this long standing threat.