President stresses justice, dignity, sustained support for terrorism victims

ISLAMABAD, Aug 20 (APP): President Asif Ali Zardari has called for a coordinated, survivor-centred system of support for victims of terrorism, stressing that assistance to affected families was a matter of justice, human dignity and national responsibility rather than charity.

In his message on the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism, observed on August 21, the president paid tribute to all those who lost their lives to terrorism and expressed solidarity with survivors, families and communities whose lives had been permanently affected by violence.

The president said Pakistan had paid an enormous price in the fight against terrorism, with tens of thousands of people, including children, political leaders, armed forces personnel, law enforcement officials, first responders and public servants, losing their lives over more than two decades.

He recalled the sacrifices of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, the innocent children and teachers of Army Public School Peshawar and countless other Pakistanis who had fallen victim to terrorism.

“Even today, our citizens and security personnel continue to make sacrifices, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan,” he said, saluting their courage and expressing solidarity with every family that had lost a loved one to terrorism.

The president categorically stated that no religion, faith, sect, ideology, grievance, cause or political objective could justify the killing of innocent people.

He called for terrorism in all its forms and manifestations to be condemned without distinction, urging the international community to ensure that no territory was used to perpetrate terrorism against another country.

He also stressed the need to prevent terrorist organisations from receiving sanctuary, financing, weapons, logistical assistance or any other form of external support.

The president emphasised that remembrance must lead to responsibility and recovery, noting that victims and survivors often continued for years to suffer physical injuries, psychological trauma, loss of livelihood, interrupted education and social isolation.

He said their suffering could not be addressed merely through immediate relief or one-time financial compensation, adding that victims deserved empathy, medical and psychosocial care, education, rehabilitation, legal assistance and livelihood opportunities to rebuild their lives with dignity.

“Pakistan remains committed to strengthening a coordinated and survivor-centred system of support,” he said, adding that technology should be responsibly harnessed to make information, assistance and rehabilitation services more accessible to victims and their families.

Referring to this year’s focus on victim-led digital initiatives, the president said government institutions, healthcare and educational institutions, civil society, the private sector, media and development partners must work together to ensure sustained support for victims and their families.

He stressed that the suffering of victims should not disappear from the national conscience merely because it had disappeared from the news cycle.

President Zardari further called for addressing the extremism, intolerance and hatred that allowed violence to take root, saying social, ethnic and religious discrimination was often exploited by extremists to spread hatred and division.

“Terrorism cannot be defeated by security measures alone,” he said, underscoring the need to build a society where young people were protected from radicalisation and differences in ethnicity, religion, sect or political belief could never become a justification for violence.

He said terrorists had targeted Pakistanis across provinces, communities, faiths and institutions but had failed to break the nation’s resolve.

“The sacrifices of our people belong to no single province, ethnicity, sect or institution. They are sacrifices made for Pakistan as a whole,” he said.

The president urged the nation to remember those lost to terrorism, stand with those continuing to bear its consequences and renew collective determination to defeat terrorism while building a peaceful, tolerant, pluralistic, compassionate and resilient Pakistan.

He prayed that Allah Almighty grant eternal peace to the departed, strength and patience to their families, and bless Pakistan with enduring peace, stability, prosperity and national cohesion.