Pakistan asks World: Find Solutions to Root Causes of Terrorism                            
By Madeline Hersiegar 'Pakistan Times' Foreign Correspondent

DAVOS (Switzerland); Pakistan Thursday urged the international community to address the root causes of terrorism and extremism through joint efforts and cooperation for a more effective fight against this menace in the world.

Addressing the plenary session on “The Comprehensive Response to Terrorism” at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum here, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said Pakistan has been taking a number of steps to fight terrorism and is extending full cooperation to the world community in this regard.

He said the world has to understand the real issue behind terrorism.

“It is not related to any religion, culture or areas. It is related to poverty, suffering, removing sense of deprivation and injustice in the world.”

The Prime Minister said the fight against terrorism requires strong coordination between local and international law enforcement agencies and intelligence networks, besides improving the economic conditions of the people.

He said terrorism should not be linked to Islam as due to deprivation and lack of basic facilities there could be reaction among people any where in the world.

The panel discussion in the plenary session was moderated by David Rothkopf, President and Chief Executive Officer of Garten Rothkopf LCC USA.

Besides Prime Minister Aziz, it was attended by David Cameron, leader of Conservative Party of the United Kingdom, Michael Chertoff US Secretary of Homeland Security, and Gijs M. De Vries, Counter-Terrorism coordinator, Council of the European Union, Brussels.

Shaukat Aziz said Pakistan is committed to fighting terrorism as it is not the solution to any dispute and emphasized that there is need to find solutions to the root causes of terrorism on a “fast track.”

He said Pakistan has tackled terrorism very effectively and continues to take many steps to ensure peace in the region and is extending cooperation to the world in this regard.

Referring to situation in Afghanistan, the Prime Minister said there is over 1,700 miles of porous border between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

He said the solution to the problem in Afghanistan lies inside that country and there should be improvement of the economic conditions there.

Referring to the nexus between narcotics production and terrorism, the Prime Minister said it is very dangerous and should be tackled by the world community with joint efforts.

Of Al-Qaeda

The Prime Minister, replying to a question about the whereabouts of Al-Qaeda leaders, said no body knows where they are. He said Pakistan has been taking steps to arrest such elements whenever they are found anywhere on its soil.

He said Pakistan wants a vibrant, prosperous, stable and safe Afghanistan.

Pakistan is fully determined to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestation, he added.

Referring to introduction of modern technology to stop illegal movement of people across the border, the Prime Minister said Pakistan has introduced new and latest techniques of bio-metric to check the movement of the people across the frontier.

He said Pakistan has also introduced Machine Readable Passports so that Pakistani passport could not be misused by extremist and unwanted elements. It has also introduced computerized identity cards.

The Prime Minister said the Pakistan government has taken many measures for socio-economic uplift of the people in the country.

Answering a question about human rights, the Prime Minister explained that Pakistan has passed many anti-terrorist legislation for the guidance of the judiciary to ensure protection of rights of the people.

He said media is free and over 50 TV channels are working in the private sector, the judiciary is independent and people are free to criticize the government on all matters including the issues of fight against terrorism and human rights.

Other speakers at the panel discussion highlighted the importance of the fight against terrorism and underscored the need for strengthening cooperation at the global level.

Inter-faith Harmony, Tolerance

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday emphasized the need of promoting inter-faith harmony, peace and tolerance among different religions and faiths across the world.

He was speaking at a breakfast meeting with the representatives of the Council of Hundred Leaders on the topic “West - Islamic World Dialogue” at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum.

The Prime Minister urged the Council of Hundred Leaders to play their due role in projecting the commonalities and similarities of different faiths.

Highlighting the importance of peace in Islam, the Prime Minister said, it teaches brotherhood, tolerance and mutual understanding among all faiths.

Prime Minister Aziz emphasized the need of addressing the root causes of terrorism and added that the extremist behaviour should not be linked to typecasting of any faith.

“Extremists cannot be linked with any religion and faith”, he remarked.

Referring to the extremist activities in the world, the Prime Minister said it was due to sense of deprivation, poor income levels, injustice and lack of dispute resolutions.

He urged the world community to focus on addressing these issues on priority.

Prime Minister Aziz also referred to the concept of enlightened moderation presented by President General Pervez Musharraf and said it focuses on peace, harmony and tolerance among different faiths and religions across the world.

Meets World Businessmen

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Thursday assured world business leaders that the Pakistan government would continue its liberal economic policies to promote foreign investment in all the fields and provide best possible protection and facilities to the investors.

He was talking to business leaders and Chief Executives of investment companies at a luncheon he hosted for them on the sidelines of the annual meeting of World Economic Forum here at Davos, the skiing resort of Switzerland.

The Prime Minister said Pakistan is moving ahead in the economic sector due to liberal and investment friendly policies of the government adopted in the last seven years. He said the economy has greatly improved due to the consistency and continuity of the economic policies in the country.

Shaukat Aziz said there has been a record direct foreign investment in Pakistan in the first six months of the current fiscal year as Pakistan has received foreign investment of over dollars 3.5 billion which he said reflects confidence in the policies of the government.

The Prime Minister said foreign investment was coming from all parts of the world including USA. UK, China, Europe and Middle East. He said China Mobile has invested over dollars 400 million in cellular phone business as there has been over one million increase in the mobile phones every year and the total subscribers have crossed 40 million figure.

Shaukat Aziz said the leading foreign companies have been investing in Pakistan and some are interested to increase their investment, taking advantage of liberal economic and investment policies.

He said there has been tremendous improvement in the economic sector due to improvement in security, high return and other incentives for local and foreign investors.

The Prime Minister said the role of government has been changed and now it is responsible to prepare and implement policies to improve absorption capacity for investment in various sectors.

He said due to the measures taken by the government, poverty is being reduced and job opportunities are increasing and many companies are now facing shortage of skilled manpower. He said the government has also started various projects to train the young people to fill the skill gap in various sectors.

The Prime Minister said the government is now focusing on improvement of infrastructure and other facilities for the benefit of local and foreign investors.

The luncheon meeting was attended by the representatives and CEOs of leading business companies including Bata Shoe Foundation, Gulf International Bank, Artoc Group for Investment and Development, Metro Cash and Carry International, Emirates Telecommunication Corporation, Citibank, Taib Bank, Gulf Investment Corporation, National Bank of Kuwait, Peremba Group of Companies, Pathfinder Group Dawood Center, Hamza Alkholi Group, Xenel Saudi Company, Goldman Sachs International, Dallah Al Baraka Holding Coca-Cola Company and Bahrain Petroleum Company.●