Silenced Futures in Peshawar

130 School Children and few teachers were Shot dead in Gruesome terrorist attack in Peshawar. PM declared three days of mourning. World leaders strongly condemned the deadly attack. People and Politicians within Pakistan and across the globe offered deepest condolences and many moments of silence on the dastardly terror attack.
Now, you would ask, how should all this affect me? Or even my family? Or my surrounding? It didn’t happen here.

As a matter of fact, it is YOU who should really be affected. This hour of grief signifies that no one is safe in this nation or anywhere in this world, not even innocent children who were merely having their usual day at school. Just imagine, they simply left from homes that unfortunate morning, dressed up in their regular uniforms and unknowingly bid their last goodbyes to their families, never knowing that they’re not coming back home after school.

It is an issue that should shake YOU to the core, because it was not only those families who were affected, but it was an entire nation, the whole world. This could happen to any one. EVEN YOU. What guarantee do you have that this or anything other attack will never happen to you or your loved ones?

In Islam, there are 3 levels of revolt- highest one being doing something against terror with your own hands, second is speaking against it and the least being that at least you should think of it as bad in your own hearts. There’s hardly any scope to stop it by your own hands unless you are legally in armed forces, and neither will the third one be of much help. The only useful thing that we as humankind can do is raise our voices against the terror crimes and force the law makers to bring some drastic change in the system. A change which will prevent any such calamity to occur in future! This heinous incident is a call for EVERY CITIZEN, rich or poor, young or old, to stand firmly in fight against terror.

Policy wise, there should be more crisper approach to security issues for all educational institutions and other public places across the nation as well as a need to deploy a mass assurance that kids in school will be safe henceforth, so that the fearful parents do not stop sending their innocent loved ones to learn.

This moment of shared pain and mourning is also a call for all those who believe in humanity to join hands to decisively and comprehensively defeat terrorism, so that the children in Pakistan or elsewhere do not have to face a future darkened by the lengthening shadow of terrorism.

by Dr. Aafreen Kotadiya 
MGM University of Health Sciences