By USMAN ANSARI
ISLAMABAD — Analysts have largely praised Pakistan’s long-awaited National Internal Security Policy (NISP) that was unveiled Wednesday, but say it will need a concerted effort to produce results and there are still points to consider.
The government had been promising to formulate a new security policy since it came to power in May, but had begun to face criticism that it had no real policy to counter the rampant internal security threats that were beginning to challenge the sovereignty and integrity of the state. This especially applied to terrorist threats by the Pakistani Taliban (TTP), which is largely responsible for the 48,994 Pakistanis killed between 2001 and 2013.
The NISP, the first of its kind in Pakistan, underlines a major policy shift. It provides strategic vision and a mechanism to build the capacity of national institutions (as well as the criminal justice system and legal framework), and for law enforcement agencies to maintain law and order.
Former Australian defense attache to Islamabad, Brian Cloughley, says, “The document is clear enough and enunciates a much-needed explanation of national policy.”
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