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On the night of 13th November, the French capital Paris came under deadliest terrorists attacks and 128 innocent people were killed and more than 100 injured. This was the first time after WWII that France faced such a horrible terrorist attack. The golden triangle of Parisian youth culture bath in blood. There were six separate attacks across the city. France has declared a national state of emergency, messages of condolences have transferred throughout world to the victims. The attacks were concentrated in the center of Paris, on the Right bank, where street burst with life on evening. There gather modish Parisian for drink and entertainment. This is the land of hipster socialist. The attacker targeted the most progressive Paris. While to understand the event with full labyrinth one has to know the ideological roots of Islamic fundamentalism within a specific era in global politics.
There is something more deep rotten in the state of current global politics. Though fundamentalism is madness, yet there is method in it. One must understand that context or method. Nonetheless it does not mean to over focus on method or context and remain quiet apologetic on terrorist madness. But we should collectively condemn the tragic killings of the innocent people. It is also the right time to think beyond the west and east.
Now the problem is not simply to falls in more cultural liberal topic of tolerance and solidarity. The merciless killings in Paris must be understand in the wider web of global socio-economic issues. Unfortunately the global media is also telling the half-truth. The liberal democratic forces also collide with against the so called war on terror. The global economic inequality, military intervention and war repression in Middle East and Afghanistan by the USA and NATO are the real context polarizing Muslim youth. The policy of USA in Middle East is also questionable, on the one hand USA posing herself as a champion of social liberal democratic values. On the other hand USA is the staunch supporter of the gulf most corrupt conservative and retrogressive regimes. These are the some real flaws of the global politics which generate extreme injustices.
Here is core indication of these flaws; Max Horkheirmer had said about Fascism and capitalism already back in 1930s, “Those who do not want to talk critically about capitalism should also keep quiet about Fascism.” The same we can apply to the current scenario of religious fundamentalism, those who do not to talk critically about liberal democracy should also keep quiet about religious fundamentalism.
As leading Slovenian philosopher and psychoanalyst Slavoj Zizek viewed the situation “The greatest victims of the Paris terror attacks will be refugees themselves, and the true winners, behind the platitude in the style of je Suis Paris, will be simply the partisans of total war on both sides. This is how we should really condemn the Paris killings; not just to engage in shows of anti-terrorist solidarity but to insist on the simple cui bono (for whose benefit?) question.’’ We should not allow this atrocity to fuel racism and islamophobia across Europe. Furthermore we should also remember that many refugees are fleeing violence and war. They are not the culprits of Paris carnage but they are the victims of it.
Now after this massacre the state power once again will be increase as in previous all occasions. In the name of security the authorities will curtail democratic freedoms, the security forces will also gains more power and further surveillance legalize. Similar measures were also taken after the Charlie Hebdo killing in January which yet have not served to prevent the recent Paris brutal terror attacks.
Unfortunately within Muslim world there is no such a radical progressive democratic movement to respond these crisis. Because after the 2011 Arab spring the progressive radical forces has been counter the religious fascist.in Syria also the pro democratic forces protested in the favor of more democratic freedom. Soon after this Arab spring the ISIS phenomenon has emerged. The reactionary Saudi Monarchy, UAE, Qatar and Turkey supported the ISIS.USA and the France were also the part of this bloody game. Thus the ISIS, the brutal brand of the Islamic fundamentalism is the result of defeated Arab spring. As here in Afghanistan we also witnessing the similar brutality from more than three decades. Because here also defeated the most progressive event of the Afghan history, the 1978 Sour revolution.
The ISIS and its ideology represent an existential threat to the forward march of civilaztion.The destructive competition of Saudi Arabia and Iran in Middle East further fired the situation. The fact remains that ISIS is the consequences of the wrong choices of US foreign policy in the past. We must learn lesson from Paris tragic massacre. If we not learn lesson, then what Santayana wrote in the life of reason, 1905: “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it’’.
Writer: Sher Jan
The writer is a Kabul based political analyst. He can be reached at
sherjan0077@gmail.com
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