Experts for people-centric national security paradigm.

ISLAMABAD -- Speakers at a webinar called for internal political stability and people-centric national security paradigm to meet the geopolitical and geo-economic challenges confronting the country.

The vested interest of key individuals runs the internal and foreign policy framework that is actually based on the short-term measures. A long-term integrated and comprehensive national security framework is yet to come out.

The speakers added that the establishment could not be apolitical. It has to watch the state direction and national interests in the context of changing geopolitical landscape.

However, the establishment shall have no political fiddling and interference. The political experimentation has led the country to chaos and internal instability, denting the geo-economic interests.

Say political experimentation led country to chaos, internal instability

The webinar was organised by the Development Communications Network on Saturday. The speakers included former ISI chief retired Lt Gen Mohammad Asad Durrani, retired ambassador Asif Durrani, Bahria University Associate Professor Dr Hassaan Daud Butt, National Defence University Assistant Professor Dr Sumeera Imran and Devcom-Pakistan Executive Director Munir Ahmed.

According to a statement, Gen Durrani said the national security was a comprehensive concept.

'Its three pillars - internal, external and defence are linked to each other. The domestic front is the most important while other two are essentially its projection. A stable structure is built on firm foundations. In terms of national security, it implies strengthening the civil society. The people-centric policies are therefore the mantra we often recite. Devolution or local governments are the doctrine and instrument to implement the policy objectives,' he said.

He said because of the weakness of state structures, it was the private sector that met most of the needs, especially for the masses. Gaps in health and education, for example, are filled by NGOs or through the individual enterprises, he added.

The best illustration of the role of our non-state actors is in the economic field. Undocumented...