The evidence so far suggests that Pakistan is ruthless where al-Qaeda is concerned. God know how many hundreds of al-Qaeda-linked individuals have been arrested and handed over to the Americans and many more are being killed in frequent operations in FATA, if indeed those killed are al-Qaeda-connected people. Pakistani and American officials will immensely benefit themselves if they read up the British colonial literature on the Frontier, especially on the point of the reliability of Afghan informers. The Brits found many examples of the same piece of intelligence being fed to British authorities as well as to, say a Faqir of Ipy, collecting cash from both. But where Taliban are concerned, well, the severity of Pakistani action is conspicuous by its absence.

Taliban, after all, were useful Jihadists who helped keep steady pressure on the Indian army in Kashmir. They cannot be treated the way al-Qaeda was. While the latter are foreigners, Taliban are Pakistanis and hail from sensitive areas and each belongs to a large extended family, all of whom are armed. Pakistan government had publicly asked the American authorities not to shun "all" Taliban and to distinguish between extreme and "moderate" Taliban.

One never heard the Americans' reply, though newspapers spoke some months ago about Americans and Karzai government were in contact with "good" Taliban. There were also confirmed reports that an arrangement has been made under which the Taliban were given a role in the maintenance of law and order in certain areas while the troops were to stay inside their camps and posts. For all one knows, the arrangement may still be in force in certain areas. For the reports that Taliban are collecting taxes, trying and executing "evil doers" and virtually ruling certain areas were not denied. If true, it is a victory for Musharraf diplomacy, though the Indians and Afghans will not be happy.

However, the issue of issues for Pakistan today is the prevalence of intolerance, especially religious and political. Taliban power in Balochistan, FATA and even NWFP, is bad news. Law and order in the country leaves much to be desired. There is an insurgency inside Balochistan in addition to what Taliban are engaged in. There is a confused sort of insurgency in FATA areas and Taliban-like ideas are all too popular with the NWFP's MMA government. Taliban are still being idolized; they, or their other like-minded splinters of old Sipah-i-Sahaba -- and Karachi's Nishtar Park outrage was symbolic -- are reminders that the country is dangerously drifting toward much conflict and travail.

What can be done is simple enough, if only the people stop to think. Pakistan's biggest problem is absence of free debate in an organized way. That is not possible except in a truly free and democratic dispensation where the people can actually feel that they have the power to make or break governments without let or hindrance from "agencies."

Primary need is to create this sense of power and responsibility among the citizens. That requires regular changes of government, reflecting the changing popular preferences, enhancing citizens' sense of power and responsibility. Free parliament must ensure good laws and force governments to stay on the straight and narrow.

The system should permit utterly free speech, free political activities and enforce all laws and should themselves obey the law. Administrators should be subject only to law, should implement government's clearly-enunciated policies without fear or favour and keep the armed forces perceptibly subordinated to law and constitutional government.

This is not really a long list to do this or that. Much of it happens in the democracies all the time, though a lot of evil still creeps in through manipulation of public opinion by governments' media policies. Some of it cannot be prevented totally. But its incidence can be exposed through free universities, TUs, most importantly political parties, think tanks, human rights organizations, and other NGOs. Organized political parties, sustained by passionate commitment and rigorous cognition of problems, are a vital necessity, and Pakistan lacks them. Existing political parties are corrupt and scheming cabals (often an individual) and crowds held together by flashy rhetoric or past association. An independent judiciary is central to democracy.

What will this do? Some tolerance will ipso facto result. More will be promoted by laying out a plane playing field for all ideas to be presented, discussed and heard. Rational argument needs to be given a fair chance. Such a political dispensation promotes rational thinking, indeed scientific method of reasoning. Free politics is the solution. Let there be no distraction of military freebooters promoting emotive rhetoric-spouting Mullahs. Let the religious lobby come into politics and sell their religious programs by rational argument, in free competition with truly secular -- all politics is a wholly secular affair -- parties presenting their programs. Citizens will judge. They will opt for the program that enables them to live this earthly existence a little better. Hereafter can be taken care of by regular prayers, fasting and giving Zakat or going on Haj. There is no further Islamic farz for individuals. Secular politics leaves all religious matters to the free choice of citizens.

In this country, people have taken secular politics to mean something anti-religious. This is wholly erroneous. Secularism refuses to pronounce on religion; it does not oppose religion; this is simply outside its scope. Quran or even Hadith nowhere lays down any requirement of running your country like this or that. There is only this social dictum: settle your affairs by consultation. Islam does not prescribe any reward or punishment for a purely non-individual, or collective, action. It is neutral on most social issues. That is the only reality. That is where Mullah politics, of all schools, are simply another secular politics that should be judged on the touchstone of how it will materially and socially affect the citizens' living conditions. But most rhetoric is irrelevant. What is relevant is what the people need and want. Let that be the leitmotif and scope of all politics.

Most important matter in politics concerns who governs: all citizens or an individual. The time has come to make a clear choice. In all Islamic religious politics, the consensus is over a Caliphate, one man rule, a Mullah Umar who will be religious, military and political boss and will make all decisions. This flies in the face of Islam's richly plural reality. There are hundreds of sects and schools, each claims to be the only true Islam. None of these will accept another sect's Caliph. It is a prescription for denying equal human freedoms to all sects and to all men and women, by setting up an absolute dictatorship of one biased man, on the one hand, and inviting interminable strife among all the sects, schools and groups, on the other. No thank you; this is neither practicable nor desirable.

Why not settle for a simple secular democracy that gives something to all citizens, especially the hope of betterment of their life for now. It makes no eternal or para-human promises and it allows for the evolution of political and economic solutions to suit the people.

MB Naqvi is a leading columist in Pakistan.