Dean Najam Talks to NPR on School Massacre in Pakistan
Prof. Adil Najam, Dean of the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, was a guest on On Point, the syndicated morning show on National Public Radio (Dec. 17), where he discussed the reaction in Pakistan to the horrible massacre of schoolchildren by the Taliban. The terrorist attack on a school in Peshawar left more than 130 people dead, including more than 100 Pakistani children.
Najam, who happened to be currently travelling in Pakistan, spoke to NPR from Islamabad and described the mood in the country as one of grief, pain and anger. He pointed out that this has triggered uncommon political and social unity against the Taliban and raised the possibility of increased and more concerted action against extremism in the country. Prof. Najam said that the “visceral anger” that this dastardly incident has triggered in Pakistan is is remarkable in a country where terrorist attacks and violence had become so common in the last decade. He felt that this is because of the magnitude and sheer brutality of this attack, but also because of the fact that the targets of the attack were children.
The Pardee School Dean said that the Pakistan has recently undertaken a major offensive against extremists and this was a retaliation to that offensive. However, the political and societal reaction to the event may mean that this will backfire on the Taliban. The key test, however, is of political maturity and leadership and whether Pakistan’s bickering politicians can rise above their petty squabbles to demonstrate real statesmanship in this time of national tragedy.
A recording of the full program will shortly be available here.