Pakistan's Taliban Generation

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Pakistan's Taliban Generation

Monday July 27 at 10 pm ET/PT & Sunday August 2, 2009 at 8 pm ET on CBC Newsworld

Award-winning Canadian-Pakistani journalist Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy investigates how the war on terror is creating a generation of child terrorists in her homeland.

Obaid-Chinoy travels across Pakistan to investigate how far the Taliban has infiltrated her country: In the north, she finds Pakistan’s army, backed by the Americans, locked in a deadly conflict, killing thousands of Pakistani troops and civilians and displacing hundreds of thousands.

At a refugee camp in Peshawar, Obaid-Chinoy interviews two teenage boys who are best friends. Their local madrassa was hit by American missiles—while children were studying inside. One now wants to join the Taliban. But the other blames al-Qaeda for the attacks and wants to join the army. Driven into enemy camps, both boys pledge to kill the other if they face each other on the battlefield.

Obaid-Chinoy visits a valley in the northwest of Pakistan called Swat, which was, until 18 months ago, a peaceful tourist attraction. She goes to one of 200 schools that have been destroyed by the Taliban. Amongst the ruins, she meets two former pupils, young girls who are angry that they are now forbidden to have an education and resentful that they will soon have to wear burqas.

Obaid-Chinoy investigates how the Taliban are recruiting younger and younger fighters for this campaign. She meets a 14-year-old boy who’s desperate to become a suicide bomber, determined to travel anywhere where there are a lot of infidels and blow himself up. Obaid-Chinoy is shocked by what this all means for Pakistan. This new generation, brutalized and radicalized by poverty, indoctrination and war, may be Pakistan’s future.

Produced and directed by Dan Edge for October Films.