Sunday 18 December 2011

Truth be told

There’s been a startling moment in Pakistan’s foreign policy – a moment that not only crystallizes what this country is about but demonstrates the pitfalls of irregular combat in the age of terror. The moment was tragic and deliberate – a Nato air strike that left 24 Pakistani soldiers dead on a Pakistani base called Salala. Our time with the US has since been reset. America’s just beginning to see Pakistan’s newer tougher face but is it because we have understood the value of life? Not so.

Ten years and 45,000 deaths after it began, the war on terror still commands support at home and backing from abroad – mainly from the Obama administration. However, with rising scepticism on a national level and Pakistan’s questionable policy on drones, its sovereignty and aid, we find ourselves in the middle of a vigorous debate about where our country is headed. About time I’d say. The US war in Afghanistan has deeply affected Pakistan. Mere centimetres away from becoming a failed state itself, Pakistan is trying to disentangle itself from a failed war by raising a new slogan: ‘Give Peace A Chance.’

In other words, the Pakistan government will talk to the Taliban – those who wage jihad against their own people because they’re miffed at the US. I wonder what that means. Will we engage with them on an ideological level? Explaining why killing innocent Pakistanis in mosques, shops and schools is immoral – or will we plead with them to spare us? I don’t quite remember how we got it into our heads that jihad was inextricably linked to violence. Might it have something to do with the actual history and practices of the Taliban? Let’s face it: until and unless we abandon the false narrative of “jihad” as the necessary defence of a desperate land beleaguered by bad guys, we will be in serious danger.

Think the only danger for Pakistan is along its border with Afghanistan? Wrong. There’s a longstanding calamity that is waiting to erupt. If it does, the resulting conflict stands to be more devastating than Pakistan has ever known. The clock for this crisis started ticking in 1970. Balochistan: Pakistan’s aggrieved province. Pakistan’s forty percent where often dead, seldom alive; predominantly mutilated and bullet-riddled bodies of Baloch citizens resurface so frequently that its considered quite usual. What isn’t normal however is that no one wants to talk about it. There are no in-camera briefings within parliament to curb the crisis.

DG ISI doesn’t offer his resignation on not being able to detect ‘outside influence’ that leaves so many of his own people dead. The president doesn’t issue a statement on how he will tackle the extensive and lengthening grievances of the province. Senior journalists don’t burn the midnight oil investigating the reasons behind such atrocities. No man, known for his publicity stunts abroad, writes in the Financial Times to unveil the conspiracy – whether hatched in the presidency or elsewhere. Moreover, ambassadors are not summoned to Pakistan’s foreign office and asked for their opinion on how to view Balochistan. Instead, over a few cups of tea and an elaborate lunch, Pakistan’s future in another country is discussed. How to view Afghanistan is the question. Balochistan. Who cares? How’s that for priority?

Speaking of priorities, it seems that Pakistan’s myriad problems ranging from inflation, to lack of law and order have suddenly taken a back seat. There is only one problem that has Pakistan’s democracy and autocracy at loggerheads – Memogate.

Bless Mansoor Ijaz for being the one to distract this nation from real concerns. It started off with Husain Haqqani ‘dictating’ a memorandum that was delivered to the US government through Mansoor Ijaz, to save the democratic government from a potential army coup. It was later discovered that the military establishment was already rounding up Saudi support for a potential regime change. The debate – instead of focusing on Pakistan’s fledgling democracy and the risk it faces from its own military – has shifted to whether Mr Mansoor’s word will hold true against the new revelations made by General James Jones.

No one is really concerned why Nawaz Sharif moved the Supreme Court on the issue, or whether ordering Husain Haqqani to be put on the ECL before even hearing him out was fair or not. Clearly, even when faced with the most important of issues, we usually keep ourselves occupied with the stupidest ones. Whether this will set the stage for the ouster of this government remains to be seen, but no one is addressing who could want the government out. If the memorandum was indeed penned to woo the admiral for the sake of democracy, why is there no word of support from the democratists in the government? Was the military planning on overthrowing the government or not? If the boys in uniform decide to remain mum – as is expected – why is the government silent? If indeed there was fear that this government was going to be sent off packing, why not say it. It’s now or never.

But even Memogate had its moment of rest. Pakistani actress Veena Malik posed on the cover of an Indian magazine in all her glory, sporting an “ISI” tattoo on her left arm. The Pakistani media was on the story pronto. From the proverbial mullah to the interior minister – it seemed everyone wanted to comment on this obscenity. Before we knew it, Veena’s act was pronounced un-Islamic – ‘100 lashes’ was one proscribed punishment while other respectable nationals filed a petition in court to revoke Veena’s nationality. If a woman who wilfully sheds her clothes needs an Islamic awakening, then what do women and young girls throughout Pakistan who are forced into doing the same deserve? In Fata, women IDPs were forced to have sex in return for a handful of rice. Meanwhile, in Sindh more than 300 women fell prey to karo-kari last year. Not a word from the religious or the “ghairatmand” of Pakistan. Women all over Pakistan are subjected to sexual abuse and our national integrity remains in place. Moreover, an active and thriving blue cinema industry in the country and regular visits to porn sites makes us a proud nation.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry when Pakistanis defend honour by burying it six feet under. We want our sovereignty to be respected but don’t mind harbouring foreign terrorists. We want rule of law but we don’t hold accountable the people charged with upholding it. We want democracy but we cut dictators more slack. We want honesty but will pick and choose our own truth. Maybe then, we deserve what we get.

Sunday 4 December 2011

White noise Lekin – on the other side

Just a few months ago, the consensus among instrumental leaders and influential thinkers was that operation Geronimo would unleash a wave of global issues and security concerns for Pakistan. Phase one of the response, it was assumed, would send some heads rolling, see some senior intelligence officials convicted for ignorance or compliance or worse, and include the breaking of all ties with the US over their utter disregard for our sovereignty. These were only some of the dire consequences expected by the experts. None of the above mentioned happened. 

What ensued then was entirely predictable: carefully orchestrated jingoistic outbursts, street protests and misguided patriotism. In Pakistan, this is the standard turn of events we witness each time there is an incursion by an overreaching state. By the time we get done with burning effigies of President Obama, stamping angrily on US flags and screaming our lungs out at the infidels – the worst has passed. The protests fade away, the anger subsides and the rest of the violence ends until next time. Moreover, we always find ourselves exactly as we are today: angry, regretful, vengeful and alone. 

Nato strikes on our border check posts are reason for our new-found anger against the US. General Kayani has upped the ante, threatening an aggressive and powerful response should such action be repeated. Meanwhile, a 23-year-old in Lahore was quoted by international news agencies as threatening Nato and the US thus: “If they do something like this again, we are going to turn Pakistan into their graveyard.” I wonder where we are going to find more room to bury dead men in Pakistan. Pakistan is already a graveyard to 40,000 of my people who died at the hands of extremists. Add to that 5000 of our brave soldiers – some who bore the bullet from an infidel’s gun, others who heard “Allah-o-Akbar” before shrapnel pierced their hearts. 

Pakistanis now have one more tragedy to mourn: the deaths of 24 men on November 26 in an unprovoked attack on two military border posts in Mohmand. The American response was too little too late. Chairman of the US military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin Dempsey categorically stated that it was ‘not a deliberate’ attack. Barack Obama meanwhile, deliberately avoided apologising – proving that change is all well until it’s your job that’s on the line. Nato meanwhile, is in the process of reviewing all available evidence including radio traffic and gun tapes to determine what led to this atrocity. They’re still calling it an “accident”. Mind you, accidents can be condoled, not apologised for. Unless you count Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton’s ‘kind’ remarks in the aftermath of a very unkind action and Cameron Munter’s hollow words, there has been no significant acknowledgment of Nato forces’ “unintentional” blunder. 

Pakistan is hard pressed to respond strongly to this latest transgression. It has ordered the US to vacate Shamsi Airbase, blockaded Nato supplies through the Chaman and Khyber passes, and pulled out of the Bonn Conference. Pakistan’s moment of truth has arrived. We are alone. Russia, Iran, China, Turkey and the UAE have condemned the killings of Pakistani soldiers by the Nato forces. But words alone will not help Pakistan. China’s claims of respecting Pakistan’s territorial integrity fall on deaf ears. Our friendly neighbour may give us JF-17s but will it offer military support in the event of open war? Hardly. China’s energies are focused on its quest for economic, not military dominance. However, there is a subtle message for Pakistan: if the relationship with the US ever sours, China may rise to the occasion. From China, with love.

Iran, our neighbour on the eastern border, has issued a joint statement of some 224 Iranian parliamentarians. However, encouragement to move decisively against the US does not translate into aid. Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, custodian of the two Holy Mosques, the man who has topped Newsweek’s top 10 list of the most respected leaders in the world, has still not spoken in Pakistan’s favour. The UAE, meanwhile, arrived in Islamabad not to sympathise with Pakistan, but to intercede on behalf of the US. The UAE allegedly holds leasing rights for the Shamsi Airbase – on the surface to facilitate falcon-hunting for Arabs while sub-letting it to the Americans for their terrorist-hunting drones. While the UAE has deep historic ties with Pakistan, it also has a strategic relationship with the US that dates back to the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The UAE keeps out of other countries’ internal affairs and believes in settling disputes by peaceful means. Will it turn aggressive towards the US? Don’t count on it. 

Turkey, along with fellow Nato members, including Germany and France, extended its condolences to Pakistan and supported the call for an impartial inquiry into the incident. Meanwhile, organisations such as the United Nations, the OIC and the European Union, revealed yet again, that they are ultimately impotent in the face of vested interests. 

For what it’s worth, Pakistan has earned the support of the Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP). Echoing some of our political parties, they, too, are calling for an end to the alliance with the US, goading Pakistan to take revenge. However, almost as an afterthought, they clarify that this does not necessitate peace between the TTP and the GoP. So effectively alienate the US without any guarantee that the Taliban will ever come to the negotiating table. 

The US, meanwhile, is working hard at winning back Pakistan as an ally. Away from the watchful eye of the media, there are reports of back-door diplomacy at play. Pakistan’s long and troubled relationship with Washington has had at least one virtue: it has demonstrated that Pakistanis are paranoid about the American alliance for good reason. The US is impervious to the permanent hysteria of our hourly news cycle and street protests, un-swayed by public opinion a world away. Pakistan, on the other hand, may never let them in on its secret manoeuvres. Let’s face it: no one is buying into our strategic depth and we’re becoming embroiled in a crisis that keeps blowing up in our face. 

We cannot expect any one country or organisation to heal our every wound or to solve every major foreign policy crisis that we find ourselves faced with. The constant demands can be deafening. Yet what we need to do is to shut out the noise around us and concentrate on the essential: reverse our country’s image abroad and refresh its spirit at home. The silver lining? Pakistan’s own people haven’t turned against it. Yet.