Washington: Terming it as a wake up call, Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar, has said that Taliban attack on teenage rights activist Malala Yousufzai, could possibly be a turning point in her country.
"Today, for us (Pakistan), it (attack on Malala) could be possibly a turning point. I would keep my fingers crossed on that.
"And what we have in front of us is a war between two different sets of futures, one that Malala Yousafzai represents, a bright, young, dynamic girl who fought for her right to education and the right to live as a normal citizen," Khar told the CNN in an interview.
"And the other, which is trying to be imposed by this particular band, which is that of an extremist sort and of a terrorist sort," she added.
"In Pakistan today, Malala Yousafzai has probably done what many military operations could also not achieve. She has put it as a black-and-white question.”
"She's put it as either you're with the future that she represents or you are with the future that they are trying to impose. And what you see is only fringe elements who are trying to justify it," Khar said.
"To me, the dangerous sign over here is that these people, after they attacked her, felt that they could fairly justification for an act like this. That has been rejected by all Pakistanis.
"That, to me, is a confidence building measure. That, to me, is something which gives me confidence for the future of Pakistan," she said in response to a question.
"This is a wakeup call, to not only people in Pakistan, but people all over the world, that we have a clear and present danger in terms of people who choose to use violence as means to, you know, follow whatever they consider to be their agenda.
To what extent they will go they have revealed in this particular incident," Khar said.
Raising the issue of safe heaven across the border in Afghanistan, the Pak Foreign Minister said that for the past two years, Pakistan has been urging both the Afghan Government and the ISAF forces to take this matter seriously.
PTI
First Published: Friday, October 12, 2012, 10:01