TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

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Editorial | 30 Aug 2020

IN yet another vaguely worded statement, it emerged that the Pakistan

Telecommunication Authority has asked video-sharing platform YouTube to
immediately block content that is “vulgar, indecent and immoral” or that which falls
under the ambit of hate speech. The authority has requested that content under these
categories be blocked for users in Pakistan “to prevent repugnant discord”. This new
statement on the government’s objection to YouTube content is reminiscent of the
warning issued to the Chinese short video-sharing platform TikTok in July, when the
PTA ordered it to filter “obscene” content. It also serves as a warning for YouTube
users for whom the memory of the 2012 YouTube ban, which lasted three years, is still
fresh.

Time and again, the PTA raises the issue of alleged obscene or vulgar content, yet fails to
make details of such content public. What exactly is this content and what laws are being
violated? Against this backdrop of secrecy, it is understandable that rights activists are
concerned that these moves may be stealthy attempts at censorship and muzzling of free
expression. As the space for dissent and criticism shrinks in Pakistan — as evidenced by
successive governments passing legislation such as the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act, 2016,
and now eyeing the Citizens Protection (Against Online Harm) Rules, 2020 — it is important
for both the PTA and tech companies to be transparent about their communication and
dealings. In countries where citizens are not well-versed in digital rights and where
authoritarian governments take advantage of this fact, platforms like YouTube must share
information and be accountable to the users that generate profits for them. Their annual
reports ought to transparently tell users what is being restricted and why, instead of simply
aggregating a set of numbers to show how many of these requests were made. Citizens have
a right to know what the PTA is asking YouTube to remove and, if the tech platform is
complying with government requests, users must know the reasons behind its actions.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Polio storm
Editorial | 30 Aug 2020

THE global monitoring body for polio has voiced serious reservations regarding the
prospects for eradicating the crippling disease in Pakistan. In its latest report, the
Independent Monitoring Board has stated in no uncertain terms that cases of both wild
and vaccine-derived poliovirus are about to rise sharply. The report raises concerns
about the strategic and technical capabilities of the Pakistan Polio Programme while
warning that the number of cases could be in the hundreds if mass vaccination drives
do not resume soon. At a time when Africa has been declared polio-free, the IMB report
contains damning revelations about Pakistan’s blundering response to eradicating this
disease. In its no-holds-barred assessment, the document states: “There is every
possibility that Pakistan will be the last place on Earth to harbour this terrible
disease.”

At least 61 cases of wild poliovirus surfaced in the country until July 31, 2020; in the
corresponding period last year, the number was 56. Moreover, in 2018 and 2017, the total
number of polio cases was 12 and eight respectively. The IMB report pinpoints criminal
lapses in the authorities’ management of the Polio Programme, while raising alarm that an
outbreak of vaccine-derived polio is on the horizon. It highlights the transference of wild
poliovirus from its core reservoirs of Karachi and Quetta to the southern parts of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa and Lahore, a situation exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. Besides
calling out the federal government for setting up the National Strategic Advisory Group in
November 2019 and then seemingly forgetting about it, the report also makes special
mention of the Sindh government for not being able to appoint a single qualified medical
officer in the eight super-high-risk union councils of Karachi. In Balochistan, the movement
of people across the Pak-Afghan border renders the situation even more complex. The report
states that vaccination of large numbers of children who traverse the border daily is way
below par, risking transfer of the virus between the world’s two remaining polio-endemic
countries. It stresses the need for a “transformational change” in anti-polio efforts and
greater collaboration with Afghan authorities to curb the spread of the disease. Our
leadership would also do well to seek Nigeria’s advice; the latter country has been able to
win the battle against polio despite also being hit by militancy. There is no time for dilly-
dallying; all caveats and excuses must be set aside to achieve the task ahead.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Port operations
Editorial | 30 Aug 2020

THE recent torrential rains and unprecedented urban flooding in Karachi have
adversely disturbed port operations, causing problems for Pakistan’s international
trade. Activity at the city’s two ports has either slowed down or has been suspended
because of heavy monsoon showers over the last several days, creating challenges for
safe operations and bringing cargo/shipping handling to a halt. Neither port officials
nor labour could reach the ports after the city went under water, leading to delays in
the provision of services such as cargo scanning, deliveries and cargo loading. Since
there has been very limited activity, consignments have piled up, causing congestion.
Exporters have been facing shipment delays for the last 10 days even before the city
was submerged under rainwater and the situation has spawned concerns that the
country may not be able to maintain the export growth momentum seen in the last
couple of months after the government reopened the economy amid declining Covid-19
infections. The gravity of the situation and its potential impact on the nation’s foreign
trade was also acknowledged by the adviser on commerce Abdul Razzak Dawood when
he tweeted, that “it appears that because of heavy rains, particularly in Karachi, our
export consignments are being delayed and, hence, exports may be affected in August”.
At the same time, he advised exporters to bring any difficulties they faced to the notice
of the commerce ministry.

At a time when coronavirus restrictions are being relaxed in Europe and North America,
and buyers of Pakistani manufactured goods, especially of value-added textiles, are
replenishing their depleted inventories, this state of affairs will deal a blow to efforts aimed
at reviving the economy. Successive governments have failed to invest in improving urban
infrastructure and port operations. It is rightly pointed out by business leaders from Karachi
that the rain was not the real issue — the deluge merely exposed the crumbling
infrastructure that has disabled efforts to increase exports. Infrastructure and logistics
bottlenecks are believed by exporters to be a major reason behind the poor export
performance of the country and have increased the cost of doing business in recent years.

According to the Logistics Performance Index, which is an interactive benchmarking tool

created to help countries identify the challenges and opportunities in their performance on
trade logistics and how they can improve, Pakistan ranked 125th among 160 nations in 2018.
In other words, the logistics-friendly profile for Pakistan is nothing to talk about. Indeed,
both the government and State Bank have implemented numerous measures to revive the
stalled economy and enhance manufactured goods exports by mitigating the negative effects
of the Covid-19 crisis on industry. However, such efforts will pay off only partially unless we
start to invest heavily in our trade and urban infrastructure to produce exportable surplus
and efficiently ship it to buyers abroad.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

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 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Reimagining the internet

Usama Khilji | 30 Aug 2020

The writer is director of Bolo Bhi, an advocacy forum for

digital rights.

RECENT attempts to ban applications and the tradition of censoring content on the
internet are rooted in a misunderstanding of the internet in policymaking and
adjudication circles. There is a dire need to reimagine the internet in order for rights
to be protected, the digital economy to grow, and investor confidence to improve.

The internet is a medium unlike any other; attempting to ‘control’ it is impractical,

counterproductive and ineffective apart from being problematic in principle considering the
protections Pakistan’s Constitution offers under i) Article 19 that guarantees the right to
freedom of speech and press freedom, ii) Article 19-A that guarantees the right to
information, and iii) Article 10-A that guarantees the right to due process.

A surprise effort was made in February by the otherwise missing-from-the-scene IT ministry

to get the cabinet’s approval for the Citizen Protection (Against Online Harm) Rules 2020,
under Part 2, Section 37 of the Protection of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), 2016, that deals
with “Unlawful online content”. The Rules were later “suspended” on the orders of the prime
minister after domestic and international backlash. It was an ill-thought-out effort on the
part of the ministry. It showed a blatant disregard for fundamental rights and the well-being
of an economy with an ever-growing tech sector estimated at $3.5 billion that is projected to
double in the next two to four years, with IT exports having crossed the billion-dollar mark
in 2017-18, according to the Board of Investment (BoI).

Companies are more likely to invest here if

there are no threats of measures to block
apps and websites.

The Rules go beyond the scope of powers defined under the already problematic Section 37
of Peca. They require data localisation and local offices of social media companies already
overwhelmed by a plethora of undemocratic requests for state censorship and enforcement
of local rules for social media companies when their universal community standards are
ever-evolving. This makes the situation of internet freedom, citizen’s digital rights, and
industry’s ease of doing business a lot worse, and undermines Digital Pakistan goals set by
the government itself.

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Companies are more likely to invest in Pakistan if there are no threats of arbitrary measures
by the government to block apps and websites; Pakistan’s 2008 blocking of YouTube had
affected the latter’s global access; and the current threats of blocking internet platforms by
the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) make it a not very charming destination
for internet companies.
A fundamental shift in how the internet is imagined in Pakistan requires amending Peca to
delete Section 37 which deals with “Unlawful online content”. It has wide-ranging impact as
a tool of censorship in the hands of the state, and is often abused under the garb of
protecting citizens or national security.

Section 37 has been abused by the PTA to censor a political party’s website before the 2018
general elections, censor local and international news websites, and send requests to social
media companies to take down content critical of state policies among other content. The
Pakistan government’s requests to Facebook accounted for an astounding 31 per cent of the
total requests from governments received by Facebook globally. The over 10,000 requests to
Google by the PTA in the past decade ironically included a request to take down an open
letter by Pakistani academics calling for an end to curbs on academic freedom in the
country.

Such embarrassing steps make a mockery of our democracy and rights enshrined in the
Constitution. Moreover, they also negatively impact the confidence that Pakistan’s booming
tech industry and efforts of the BoI have garnered as evident from Pakistan’s 28-point jump
in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business ranking in 2020. Arbitrary blocking of
applications this year such as BIGO live, videogame PUBG, and threats of banning popular
video-sharing app TikTok, and a judge’s remarks regarding the potential banning of YouTube
pose a challenge to this developing improvement.

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Without Section 37 of Peca and the “Citizen Protection” Rules under it, citizens still have
adequate avenues of protection. These include Peca’s Sections 10, 11, 12, 16, 20, 21, 22, and 24
that deal with cyberterrorism; hate speech; recruitment, funding, or planning of terrorism;
unauthorised use of identity information; dignity of a natural person; modesty of a person
or minor; child pornography; and cyberstalking respectively. Subsections under Sections 20,
21, 22 and 24 enable aggrieved parties to apply to the PTA for “removal, destruction” or
“blocking” of such information.

Additionally, community guidelines of social networking websites cover wide categories of

harmful content through reporting mechanisms managed by dedicated teams, including
local language moderators, that act upon complaints by users and local civil society
organisations as well as governments.

What are some key aspects of the nature of the internet that are important to understand
before setting forth on internet policymaking? First, the voluntary nature of accessing
content on the internet whereby the user seeks content by actively searching or subscribing
to sources of information. No content on the internet is unavoidable and self-regulation is
easily possible.

Second, the internet is a global repository of information without borders for access to
knowledge and information. Attempts to build walls on the internet and localising it are
ineffective and impact a country’s progress.

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Third, control is user-centric, where internet platforms offer a strong element of control to
the user through the ability to subscribe, unsubscribe, block, mute, set filters for children,
and also report content they find inappropriate to the platform. Action is taken if the offence
is of a serious nature.

Lastly, information technology and the internet is one of the most rapidly evolving fields, so
security of online systems and ways of bypassing them are also ever-evolving. Hence, logic
dictates that policies be based on this understanding, otherwise they risk being short-term
stopgaps. Banned apps and websites even in China are easily accessible through VPNs.

What Pakistan needs is a robust IT ministry that pushes industry and citizen rights-centric
policies that ameliorate Pakistan’s digital transformation, rather than parallel competing and
confusing structures that end up letting draconian and ill-informed paternalistic measures
slip into enforcement to the detriment of the future of Pakistani citizens.

The writer is director of Bolo Bhi, an advocacy forum for digital rights.

usama@bolobhi.org

Twitter: @UsamaKhilji

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Moving beyond the outrage

Abbas Nasir | 30 Aug 2020

The writer is a former editor of Dawn.

OVER the coming days there will be a lot of news, and even greater outrage, about how
tragically Karachi has been let down by all its stakeholders, with its citizens having
been left at the mercy of nature, to fend for themselves.

The justifiable outrage at the collapse of civic services in the face of unprecedented rains will
lead to calls for separating the sprawling and, without doubt, failing metropolis from its
mother, Sindh; equally there will be suggestions that the 18th Amendment is the
fountainhead of all evil.

In a few weeks, the debris from the disaster will be moved from the middle of the streets
and major arteries, and left in piles by the roadside to become a permanent part of the
urban architecture; the majority of the daily-wage-earner population of Karachi will be
overwhelmed by bread and butter issues.

And, of course, people will generally start suffering from outrage fatigue as always seems to
happen and there will be a great risk that the affairs of the city would start slipping to the
default ‘business as usual’ mode, ie nothing is done to address issues that cannot be left
unaddressed any longer.

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But, please, please don’t let that happen. In your anger and despair, you are right to feel
whatever you do and say whatever you think is right. Beyond that let’s not be distracted by
red herrings — whether of the separate province or repeal of the 18th Amendment.

Let’s not be distracted by red herrings —

whether of the separate province or repeal
of the 18th Amendment.

Slogans that trigger political acrimony, ethnic tension and potential strife can’t deliver
solutions. What is incumbent on us is to hold to account each of those who have failed us
and force them to deliver as they should. No excuses should be entertained.

The PPP has been at the helm in the province since after the 2008 elections and has a lot to
answer for. It has devolved many functions of the local bodies to its own provincial
government and must explain how the various civic bodies directly under it functioned or,
more appropriately, failed.

I promise if the PPP shows half the consideration to Karachi and its citizens that it has often
shown to Malik Riaz and his various projects such as Bahria Town Karachi etc, the
metropolis would take a giant step towards having its status as the ‘city of lights’ restored.

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The MQM is another culpable entity. During the Musharraf era, and even during the PPP
tenure when it held the key to keeping the federal government in office, it could have
accomplished so much but threw it all away.

Water and sewerage infrastructure and an ambitious public transport system that would
work for the multitudes were sacrificed in favour of expensive flyovers, underpasses and
signal-free corridors for the few. Even those worked to a point, eventually delivering
accelerated traffic to multiple choke points.

It was shocking to see images of the artery to the financial heart of the city, I.I. Chundrigar
Road, submerged. Whatever happened to the project which saw storm-water drains built
under the thoroughfare while causing months-long disruptions and challenges to
commuters a few years back?

The less said about the various other dominions that have contributed to transforming the
city of lights into one large garbage dump, interspersed by cesspools, the better. Yes, you
guessed right. The cantonment boards and the DHAs which are autonomous islands within
the metropolis. Many parts of these islands currently seem submerged.

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To say the mess has no solution is wrong. Everyone knows what is possible when decision-
makers are not motivated by outright greed, narrow, parochial agendas or petty politics.
Within Karachi, there is considerable expertise. I don’t need to name names.

Anyone interested in developing a policy aimed at delivering to the millions of Karachiites

will not have trouble locating the wise men and women with enviable expertise and sterling
track records in urban planning and egalitarian solutions to all that ails our beloved city.

In recent days, I have watched architect-urban planner Arif Hasan on Samaa Digital very
articulately describing what the main impediments to draining storm water are. Surely, he is
one among many such experts we have in our midst whose expertise and integrity are both
above board.

Then, of course, there are resource constraints. Former Karachi administrator Fahim Zaman,
appearing on the Dawn News programme Zara Hut Kay, explained how grossly under-
resourced the city was and how that was exacerbating its woes.

In terms of funding, he said, Karachi has one-tenth the budgeted amount of what Mumbai
spends and one-twentieth the resources Istanbul is allocated when its population is smaller.
“And remember this is the budgeted amount. Often there are shortfalls in actual
disbursements.”

Against a rather dismal backdrop of recent days where so many lost their lives and millions
of others had a harrowing experience, there is a ray of hope. After two years of
confrontation with Sindh, Prime Minister Imran Khan called Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali
Shah and the two leaders have pledged to work together to ease Karachi’s pain.

The MQM must join hands. A broken Karachi is not going to be in anyone’s long-term
interest. Once basic faith and civility in discourse is restored and some headway made in
rolling out solutions, the next logical step would be to negotiate the right quantum of
autonomy and resources for the local government.

Consensus legislation must follow. Admirable as it was watching the Sindh chief executive
and his team, as also MQM local elected officials, wading through waist-deep water to get a
first-hand understanding of the challenge and supervising relief efforts, their time is much
better spent developing and executing plans to obviate such emergencies.

Or we’ll be back to square one when the heavens open up the next time. Some experts say it
would take 10 billion dollars to fix Karachi. Let’s see how many billions can be shaved off
that if all stakeholders display political will and a commitment to the cause.

The writer is a former editor of Dawn.

abbas.nasir@hotmail.com

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Witness to Karbala
Qasim A. Moini | 30 Aug 2020

The writer is a member of staff.

ON the burning sands of Karbala 14 centuries ago, mankind’s noblest characters —

represented by Imam Husain, his family members and loyal companions — and its
absolute worst, in the shape of the Umayyad imperial horde, were on display.

From the Husaini camp, there are numerous shining examples that personify courage,
magnanimity and steadfastness in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Leading this
list is Imam Husain himself, who bravely took on the tyrant of his day to save the very
foundation of Islam. Moreover, Bibi Zainab’s stirring khutbas (sermons) in the courts of Kufa
and Damascus shook the throne of Yazid, while Imam Zain al-Abidin’s eloquence and
patience in the face of calamity has few parallels in history.

Yet another sublime example emerges from this venerable camp: that of Imam Muhammad
bin Ali al-Baqir, grandson of Imam Husain and son of Imam Zain al-Abidin. While Imam
Baqir was a minor on the day of Ashura, he was a key witness to this massacre, and played
an instrumental role in preserving and rebuilding the Islamic edifice after the martyrdom of
his grandfather and other family members on the plains of Iraq.

As recorded by late Iraqi scholar Shaikh Baqir Sharif al-Qarashi, quoting ninth-century
historian Yaqubi, Imam Baqir remembers Karbala thus: “My grandfather was killed while I
was four years of age. Indeed, I remember his murder and what hit us during that time.”

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From the Husaini camp, there are numerous

shining examples.

As a child, Imam Baqir was an eyewitness to events that still shake anyone with a conscience
centuries after the fact. Foremost of these was the brutal slaying of Imam Husain. As
mentioned by renowned muhaddith (traditionalist) Shaikh Abbas Qummi in Nafasul
Mahmum — one of the most authentic accounts of the Karbala tragedy — Imam Baqir
relates that his noble grandfather suffered over 320 wounds from lances, swords and
arrows.

But it did not end there. Imam Baqir witnessed Bibi Zainab, his aunts, sisters and other
female relatives — members of the household of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) — treated as
prisoners of war by the Umayyad army and held in unspeakable conditions. Moreover, his
father Imam Zain al-Abidin, also known as Sajjad, was made to march in fetters in the
scorching deserts of Iraq and Syria.

Yet what is truly remarkable is that even after experiencing such harrowing circumstances,
which would have broken even the hardiest of individuals, when Imam Baqir reached
adulthood, he played a vital role in rebuilding the Islamic edifice after it had been severely
battered by the Umayyads.

After Karbala there were severe restrictions imposed by the state on members of the Ahlul
Bayt. Imam Sajjad started rebuilding the infrastructure of Islamic learning in highly testing
times, through his duas and remembering the tragedy that befell his family on Ashura.

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After Imam Sajjad, Imam Baqir built on this foundation and using the mosque of the Holy
Prophet as his base, restarted the process of propagating Islamic sciences in the manner of
his great-grandfather Hazrat Ali. This was all the more important as the Umayyads —
preoccupied with the expansion of their empire and tribal politics — were little concerned
about matters of learning and spirituality, and there was no one, other than members of the
Ahlul Bayt, to fill the void.

The impact of Imam Baqir on Islamic learning can be gauged by the fact that his title means
‘opener’, pointing to the fact that he opened and spread knowledge at a time when Islamic
society was slipping back into the ways of ignorance. While Damascus served as a hive of
imperial politics and intrigue, Madina al-Munawwara, under Imam Baqir’s guidance, once
again became the centre of learning.

Tafsir, hadith and all other branches of knowledge thrived in Madina as men of learning
flocked to Imam Baqir in order to quench their thirst. In fact even the Umayyad emirs
turned to the Imam when unable to answer the great philosophical questions of the day.
After Imam Baqir, his son Imam Jafar al-Sadiq would carry forward this stellar tradition of
scholarship and piety, giving shape to modern Islamic theology as we know it.
In these times of adversity, when most of the globe is enveloped in crises of different kinds
— political, economic, security and health-related — the inspiring personality of Imam Baqir
offers a fine exemplar.

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After Karbala Islamic society was at its lowest ebb, while at a tender age Imam Baqir
suffered an immense personal loss. However, instead of withdrawing from the world this
noble soul used his God-given knowledge and his strength of character to revive the ummah,
all the while keeping alive the tragedy his family underwent so that revisionists were unable
to twist the facts.

Imam Baqir’s life teaches us that in the face of great adversity, those who rely on Allah and
the way of His Prophet stand their ground and illuminate new paths for the benefit of
mankind.

The writer is a member of staff.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020

 TODAY'S PAPER | AUGUST 30, 2020

Enemy within
Zarrar Khuhro | 30 Aug 2020

The writer is a journalist.

BRENTON Tarrant, the white terrorist who murdered 51 people at a mosque in

Christchurch, New Zealand, has finally been sentenced, but the ideology that guided
his murderous actions is only gaining strength.

His manifesto, The Great Replacement, was derived directly from alt-right and white
supremacist forums where there is a deeply held belief that the white ‘race’ is undergoing a
genocide. The mongrel races are outbreeding us in our own lands, they say, and point
towards the influx of refugees and immigrants as part of this plot which, in their view, is
aided and abetted by the white ‘race traitors’ who make up the ruling liberal class of
Western nations.

It is a call to arms that was answered not just by Tarrant, but also by Anders Breivik and
Alexandre Bissonnette among many others, who saw themselves not as terrorists but as
soldiers in a cosmic war for survival. Despite being self-trained and having no military
experience, they claimed a combined body count of over 130 souls. What might they have
achieved if they actually had been trained by a professional army?
This is not a hypothetical question: there has been a steady stream of news that points
towards the increasing inroads white supremacist organisations are making into Western
militaries and police forces. Why these groups would target military personnel for
recruitment is obvious: trained soldiers bring expertise when it comes to planning and
carrying out terror attacks and can also provide intelligence, access to deadly weapons and a
great deal of credibility to such groups. And after all, when the main deployments of
Western armies happens to be in non-white countries, where killing people of colour is
literally your job, the ground is already prepared for radicalisation.

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What if they had been professionally

trained?

In 2009, the US Department of Homeland Security released a report on the threat of domestic
right-wing terrorism and noted that every surge in Ku Klux Klan membership — from the
1860s to the present day — immediately followed the end of a foreign war. It warned that
“right-wing extremists will attempt to recruit and radicalize returning veterans in order to
boost their violent capabilities”. The report was met with outrage from US veterans,
conservative pundits, politicians and media outlets and was shelved, but remains
nonetheless true.

Take Frazier Glenn Miller, currently jailed for the murder of three people at a Jewish centre
in Kansas. A Vietnam war veteran and former Green Beret, he founded a group called the
White Patriot Party, members of which would dress in fatigues and parade on streets while
bearing arms.
He also received funding from a larger group known as The Order, and paid $50,000 for
weapons — including anti-tank rockets — stolen from a US military base. He was a fervent
recruiter who specifically targeted active-duty soldiers, even paying them to train his forces.

Then there’s Marine corps veteran Christopher Hasson who wrote his own Breivik-inspired
manifesto calling for “focused violence [to] establish a white homeland” in the US by killing
selected judges, politicians and media personnel.

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These are just two examples of many, but all those pale in comparison with what happened
in the elite German special forces unit called the KSK.

Earlier this year, this entire unit — deployed in Afghanistan since 2001 — was disbanded
after it was found that far-right extremists had infiltrated its ranks. Some 500 German
soldiers were being investigated, with 20 of them belonging to the KSK. The accusations stem
as far back as 2017, when KSK members gave the Nazi salute at a party. Later that year, a
KSK sergeant-major was found in possession of Nazi paraphernalia as well as weapons and
explosives. At least 48,000 rounds of ammo and 60 kilograms of explosives are also ‘missing’
from KSK inventories.

Last year, an investigative report revealed that Canadian soldier Patrik Mathews — trained
in explosives and firearms use —was a member of a neo Nazi group called The Base which
aims to start a race war, and videos are available detailing how Mathews planned to poison
water supplies and derail trains in order to start a civil war in the US. Exposed, he was
discharged from the army and fled to shelter with his comrades in the US, and was
eventually arrested.
More disturbing though is the case of naval officer Boris Mihailovic, who was suspended
after anonymous hackers revealed him to be an active member of a violent Nazi website
called Iron March. After an investigation lasting only a few months, this extremist soldier
was reinstated and returned to active duty, with the Canadian navy declaring him magically
deradicalised.

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And just now, former FBI agent Michael German has penned a report laying bare the
extensive links between law-enforcement agencies in the US and white supremacists. For all
the billions the West spends on wars abroad, they have yet to realise that the real enemy is
within.

The writer is a journalist.

Twitter: @zarrarkhuhro

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2020