The government needs to make clear that the right to life of its citizens and those within its borders is its pre-eminent concern, and that it will do everything in its power to protect and defend that right.
It does not matter who the person is, what he or she believes, or what he or she may or may not have said. All these considerations are tertiary. The government cannot allow its citizens to be murdered with impunity, full stop.
There is nothing more. The recent killing and attack, like the ones before them, are an affront to everything we hold dear as a nation and a people. There can be no excuse or justification for murder, and the government must state unequivocally that it will have zero tolerance for such acts.
Nor are words alone sufficient. The government must show that it means business, and send the message that it will hunt down the perpetrators. Justice in these cases must be swift, certain, and severe.
This is not the time for equivocation or to suggest that people need to watch what they say or write. Upset religious sentiments can never be a justification for murder, and the government needs to state this explicitly and with conviction.
It must understand that this isn’t an attack on bloggers or atheists or their fellow travelers. It is an attack on every one of us. It is an assault on our fundamental freedom that, if left unchecked, will widen to encompass us all. It is, above all, an attack on law and order and its own authority that cannot be tolerated.
The government must make clear that it will always defend any person from murderous assault, and that it will always stand with the threatened against those making and carrying out the threats.
The fact that the police have made so little headway in the earlier killing cases is unconscionable, and serves only to embolden the killers and encourage them to strike again.
The fact that the victims -- as was the case in earlier attacks -- had sought but not received police protection, is an inexcusable dereliction of duty.
This matter is deadly serious. The killings and attacks are not isolated incidents, as so shockingly suggested by the home minister.
Downplaying the seriousness of the attacks is no way to convince the public or the killers that the government is committed to doing what it takes to stamp out this threat.
The government needs to demonstrate that it understands the gravity of the situation, and act accordingly. So far we have seen regrettably little evidence on its part of the conviction and resolve necessary to bring an end to these killings.
This has to change, starting now.
