RESCUING PAKISTAN

WEEKLY INDEPENDENT
October 04, 2001

Taliban and their Pakistani supporters have very little comprehension of the recent developments around them and have no clue regarding the security hazards to Pakistan_________________________

by Dr. S Farooq Hasnat

If one examines the recent statements of Pakistan government functionaries, an impression is given that instead of adopting a clear-cut policy towards Afghanistan, there exists a lack of conviction as well as confidence in Islamabad.

A segment of the population read it as a signal of sympathy for the Talibans while others interpret it as an outright support for the American position against International Terrorism. Another part of the population is of the view that the government in Islamabad accepted the American conditions under duress. There are still others who firmly believe that the decision makers are playing "hard to get" with the Americans.

The reality is that the government wants to keep all parties guessing and satisfied at the same time. There is one danger which goes together with this policy -- that with the arrival of the ultimate, it would annoy all actors in the Afghan riddle and would destabilize the society still further. As a consequence, the people of Pakistan are confused and the apprehensions are regarding the wrong messages being sent to the wrong people. It would become still serious if the international community's perception is not corrected in a positive direction, notwithstanding that on a number of occasions assurances are being made to the international anti-terrorist collision that every effort will be made to go along with the new fight against terror.

From September 11th onwards at least two high-powered delegations visited Kandhar virtually begging Mullah Umar to listen to reason and take appropriate steps to defuse the situation. The latest delegation of September 29th was assigned to convince the Talibans to comprehend the requirements of the changing global realities. The demand also included releasing the arrested aid workers. Although the official circles denied, the delegations had the blessings of the Islamabad establishment and were accompanied by high-ranking military officials including the Director General of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt. General Mehmood. No other than Mullah Umar's teacher formed a part of the good-will delegation from Pakistan.

On their return, one of the companions of the ten-member delegation said, "we did not discuss Osama. He was not on our agenda". While the Afghan Council in Karachi explained: "It is not possible that clerics of such a caliber would make such irresponsible demands, because without evidence, the Americans would never give up a person. So why should we be expected to do that?" Even a list presented of 40 Pakistani terrorists that had taken refuge in the Afghan territory was not entertained.

The recent expressions clearly demonstrate that little progress was made, from Pakistan's perception, in solving the crisis. The enigma is that the similar ideological views pushed the Talibanised Pakistani Ulemas to be more inclined towards Afghanistan. Not long ago, one such leader said on record if a choice is to be made between the two countries, he would choose Afghanistan. Reacting to the second delegation's return, the Foreign Office spokesperson sheepishly admitted: "Both Afghan leadership and Ulema have reaffirmed their commitment to security, safety and integrity of the two neighbouring nations. Both the parties agreed to be in contact with each other and that another meeting might take over as and when necessary". Such casual remarks in the fast moving events, which threaten Pakistan's security, speak volumes for themselves. The official announcement reflects lack of clarity and proper management crisis riddle of the country's policy.

Furthermore, it seems clear that the Talibans and their Pakistani supporters have very little comprehension of the recent developments around them and have no clue regarding the security hazards to Pakistan or alternatively they are getting wrong signals from the Islamabad power circles. It is said by Mullah Umar's critics that the Kabul militia is completely ignorant about the complications of the regional as well as global system and that they operate purely on pre-Islamic tribal traditions. Depriving the girls to attend schools, closing down the television station, prohibiting the women to consult male doctors, even if the disease relates to a complicated brain surgery are just few examples to support the arguments. A glaring contradiction is that if the girls are not educated, then how can lady doctors be produced in the first place. The Tabibans have no answers to these logical questions.

As the Pakistani government was beating around the bush, it was reported that the American and the British commandos were already operating in Afghanistan, a news that was neither denied nor confirmed by the US officials - an indication that the Pakistani efforts to engage the Talibans are of little consequence for the American policy strategists. In parallel but contradictory developments, Pakistan was quick to ban Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, a Kashmir related organization and froze the accounts of the Al Rashid Trust, as desired by the US State Department and the United Nations Security Council's unanimous resolution of September 29th. The resolution said in part: "Freeze without delay" the resources of terrorists and terror organizations". It also put restrictions by demanding from the member countries to "deny safe havens to those who finance, plan, support or commit terrorist acts, or provide save havens".

In short, even at this critical hour, the Pakistani establishment does not have a coordinated Afghan policy, nor is there any desire of having one. In fact it never had a long-term strategy on the Afghan situation ever since the withdrawal of the Soviet Union. Time and again it was being advocated that external interference in Afghanistan has always met with failures. But those who said the loudest themselves violated this basic principle.Pakistan under Benazir Bhutto's second tenure never hesitated to interfere in the Afghan affairs, a tradition that was carried on by the successive governments. These regimes nourished and encouraged the Talibans in their civil war against the Northern Alliance, caring little for the growing civil rights violations and ignoring the vital interests of Pakistan. Even today, a mind set is visible in the Foreign Office and amongst the various sections of the ruling elite, that Pakistan must obstruct any settlement, which would dislodge the Talibans from Kabul. They regard it as a perfect model for preserving Pakistan's security interests. However, the reality is far from what the Pakistani elite perceives. As a direct result of interfering in the Afghan affairs, the Pakistan society had to confront at least two evils - first in the form of branding ourselves with the terrorists and the second related to the ideological decay in our society. The first is reflected in the worldwide suspicion of Pakistan's involvement in international terrorism - thus isolating Pakistan, both in the regional as well as in its international environments.

Most dangerous of all the Pakistani status as a responsible nuclear power has come under strict scrutiny. Even in the hour of dire security risk, no regional country is prepared to establish close diplomatic coordination with Pakistan and the government is finding it extremely difficult to invite itself even to the friendliest of the friendly Muslim community of nations. Pakistan's contacts have not exceeded beyond telephonic conversations. On the contrary, the rest of Afghanistan neighbours have established Afghan related contacts with the regional nations. To illustrate, Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi visited Lebanon, Syria and above all Egypt with whom it does not enjoy cordial relations and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members stepped up their coordinating efforts as well and same goes for the Central Asian Republics.

The other adverse fall out of interference in the Afghan affairs distorted the traditional Pakistani society, hitting at its ideological roots, notwithstanding the gun and drug culture. The Pakistani society was constructed on the premises of love and peace. The Sufis and poets like Shah Abdul Latif Bhatai, Khwaja Ghulam Farid, Waris Shah, Khushal Khan Khattak, Bullay Shah and many others preached message of love, kindness, compassion and tolerance. Under the influence of these saints, the Pakistani society knew no other norms but of Islamic tenderness - until a few decades back the Talibanisation started to take its roots in the pure land. While the successive governments looked the other way, the pre-Islamic creed of religious cults and gangs introduced hate, murder and bigotry in the minds of the Pakistani youth. Murder and attacks on the mosques of those who resisted this alien creed became a common occurrence. Taking advantage of rampant poverty and unemployment, the youth were taken from their mothers' laps, brain washed and dispatched un-prepared to the war-zones, where either they disappeared or their dead bodies arrived home. All this was done in the name of jihad and Islam. The Talibans had declared their civil war with the fellow Muslim Northern Alliance as a holy war by issuing a Fatwa in this regard.

Inculcated by the Talibanised Mullas of Pakistan, this poison of hate devastated families all around Pakistan. The love and compassion gave way to the new language of extremism and terrorism. The language of firearms became a fashion of the time and the Pakistani society gradually lost its honor, dignity, sanity and above all its balance. Our society finally succumbed to the alien culture and habits. Different networks established by the Talibanised Pakistanis have close contacts with the Talibans and probably with Osama bin Laden as well. In order to regain its honour and to get rid of the culture of hate and bigotry, the honorable solution for Pakistan would be to keep away from the internal affairs of Afghanistan. We must adopt a rigid "hands off policy" on Afghanistan. Already we are being accused of colonial tendencies towards our Western neighbour. Dr. Stephen P. Cohen, an American expert on Pakistani affairs, in a recent interview, vividly said that Pakistan has been following a policy of colonization in Afghanistan. Along with that, the military government should make all efforts to eliminate militancy from the Pakistani society. No matter how much we cooperate with the Americans, any weaknesses on the part of the rulers would seriously jeopardize our nuclear as well as missile facilities. If the Americans felt that the government in Islamabad is too weak to protect the facilities from Pakistani extremist groups, they would not hesitate to damage our very precious assets. Already a hint has been given in a September 30th CNN interview of General Pervaiz Musharaf. It was asked that would he destroy the nuclear installations, if they were in the danger of falling in the hands of the militants?

We must understand that Osama bin Laden has a limited agenda, as his concern remains the American troops stationed in the Arabian Peninsula. He has no concern with the welfare of Pakistan or its integrity. In all prudence, the government of Pakistan should be clear that keeping any links with the Talibans and their “ Honored Arab Host” can seriously jeapordize our national interests.