A dharna of another kind

The Don Juan of Pakistan now turned right-wing politician, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan put up a good show in Karachi.

His dharna (sit-in) at the Native Jetty Bridge was aimed at choking off NATO supplies headed for Afghanistan in order to protest drone attacks in the tribal areas, even if it meant inflicting losses on the country’s own industries.

Whether or not Mr Khan actually gave any sort of trouble to NATO, he certainly managed to attract a large crowd, in fact bigger than many would have thought he would. The two days of his dharna were perhaps the hottest days of the summer in the city so far. Drenched in sweat, hundreds toiled in the harsh, relentless heat to make Mr Khan’s dharna a success.

So the PTI chief suddenly becomes the crowd-puller. And understandably so… he had the mullah brigade backing him up. And not to forget the buzz about “Immi” of the Pakistan cricket’s golden days recently becoming the new pawn in the hands of our always meddling spy agencies.

Nevertheless, the event was a unique spectacle as people, who are worlds apart, were found side by side for a common cause.

Most of Mr Khan’s followers are the younger lot. So there were a number of young men and women at the dharna acting as cheerleaders for the PTI chief’s mission as if they were at a concert… actually it did turn out be a concert with Ali Azmat and Strings entertaining the participants of the dharna – not a bad thing actually if the youth develop a sense of political awareness (not sure if that was happening in this case) and also make such gatherings more fun than they usually are.

But at the same time, the Sunni Tehreek and Jamaat-e-Islami mullahs were also present there. In fact, even when their leaders spewed their bigoted, spiteful mullah rants, Mr Khan’s jumping jacks continued to party.

So let’s thank Mr Khan for providing us with a sight that we don’t get to see everyday. Two very different lots of the frenzied kind together - one group brainwashed into believing that religion tells you to hate others and the other with minds so cluttered with unnecessary junk that clarity of thought and the ability to reason and reach the right conclusion is gone.

Looking to the East

Fretted about the possibility of the US cutting of its billions of dollars in aid to Pakistan over the Osama bin Laden Pandora’s box, the country’s leaders are desperate to latch onto other options they have – backup plans, one might call them. Plus, they also have to deal with any other intimidating measures that the US might use against Pakistan with the ties between the two countries becoming increasingly marred by mistrust.
Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani rushed off to China to put the Pakistan-China friendship to test. The 60th anniversary of the two countries' diplomatic ties presented the perfect excuse. And as always, the Chinese were quick to oblige. Pledges were made to “infuse new dynamics into the Pakistan-China partnership by enhancing cooperation among entrepreneurs of the two countries”. The Chinese also promised to provide Pakistan with 50 JF-17 fighter jets. But most of all, China defended Pakistan’s role in the war on terror and told the US to respect Pakistan’s sovereignty, like a big brother coming to the aid of his younger sibling and warning the bully to back off.
SO Pakistan has managed to send across a message to the US that the world’s economic powerhouse is steadfastly behind it and the Americans need to realise that they are not holding all the cards.
As Mr Gilani China mission was somewhat of a success, President Asif Ali Zardari didn’t fare that bad in Russia. He was there to win the support of another powerful nation (the mysterious and controversial killing of five Chechens in Kharotabad got anything to do with that?).
During the president’s stay in Russia, both countries agreed to “promote trade, investment and pursue joint projects particularly in the fields of energy, infrastructure development, metal industry and agriculture”.
The president also invited Russia to “invest in regional and trans-regional projects and benefit from Pakistan’s strategic location and investment-friendly policies”.
Considering that the Pakistan-US relations appear to be falling apart and turning into a novel of betrayal and deception, the Pakistani leaders’ strategy to look elsewhere for support isn’t bad. For a country that is being suspected by the West as the epicentre of terrorism, looking to the East is certainly makes sense.

The tiger headed straight for the serpent’s lair

The ‘tiger’ of Punjab roared and growled in Sindh. Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz chief Mian Nawaz Sharif has returned to his confrontational ways, which perhaps suits him better, but this time around, he is up against the very forces to which he owes his political career. His makers, one might say. So here we have a typical Frankenstein situation. The creation turns against its creator.

But the tiger is simply lashing back in self-defence. He realises that he is not the blue-eyed boy of the military establishment anymore. The spy agencies are up to its dirty old tricks again and devising a script to divide his vote bank in Punjab. Apparently, a part of this ploy is to back up Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan, who appears to be the ideal man in the establishment’s scheme of things. Even though both Mr Sharif and Mr Khan are right-wing, the establishment fears that Mr Sharif might still be carrying the desire of becoming the Amir-ul-Momineen and asserting his authority over all, including military generals.

So Mr Sharif has delivered a few below the belt blows. He said that intelligence agencies need to stay away from politics and quit running a parallel government. He also demanded that the army and its top intelligence agency’s budget be brought to the parliament. Later, he urged the nation to stop treating India as the country’s biggest enemy. Now, he wants military dictators as well as the generals and judges who supported them to be brought to justice.

This is all too painful to the ears of his previous masters, especially the part about India - a major shock for the anti-India hawks perched in Pindi. The tiger is headed straight for the serpent’s lair. Mr Sharif is taking on an adversary that has never been defeated before – on a domestic level, that is. Good luck to him... he will need it.

Exit Osama bin Laden, enter Hafiz Saeed?

Just as Pakistan is trying to rid itself of the spectre of Osama bin Laden and its authorities would like the world to believe that they had nothing to do with al Qaeda chief hiding in Abbottabad for years, perhaps the world’s new most wanted terrorist is already in the making – not in the caves of Afghanistan or the rugged terrain of Waziristan, but in the cultural centre of the country, Lahore.

One would expect someone like Ayman al Zawahiri or Mullah Omar to take over the mantle with bin Laden gone, but it’s Hafiz Saeed, the Jamaat-ud-Dawa leader, who literally promises much.

The Jamaat-ud-Dawa is actually the al Qaeda-linked terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba operating with its new name ever since it was ‘banned’ by the government in 2002.

Recently in Lahore, a gathering of more than 4,000 bearded fanatics, reeking of hate and consumed by rage, cursed the Americans for killing bin Laden and called the terrorist a martyr. There, Saeed, the man allegedly responsible for the November 2008 attacks in Mumbai, uttered the words that Osama's death is the beginning of America’s defeat.

Apart from Saeed’s followers, participating in the gathering were also activists of the country’s right-wing parties. In fact, the religio-political party Jamaat-e-Islami declared that Saeed is the leader of all religious parties of the country.

The Pakistan Army is reluctant to launch an operation against terrorists in North Waziristan and its spooks are quick to whisk away nationalists of Balochistan and Sindh, but here is a man declaring jihad against the US - a country giving us billions of dollars in aid from of its taxpayers’ money - and enjoying complete liberty of doing this in the open.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba was originally meant for the Kashmir jihad. But now it poses as much of a threat to the US as al Qaeda does. It has spread its tentacles not only across Pakistan but to other countries as well.

The powers that be in Pakistan, keeping in view what they believe are ‘strategic interests’ of the country, are unlikely to lay a hand on the terrorist organisation, which has been such a handy tool for them in the past and could still serve them in the days to come.

But is it really in Pakistan’s strategic interests to become increasingly isolated internationally and keep getting closer to being labelled a terrorist state? Perhaps for a mindset that is too anti-India to see anything else beyond, yes.

Setting the tone

Prior to his arrival in Pakistan, US Senator John Kerry made it clear that it won’t be him taking the stick from the Pakistani authorities over the Osama bin Laden debacle and in fact, he would be the one giving it to them instead (strictly in the idiomatic sense of course).
He expected the Pakistanis to make a fuss over the al Qaeda chief hunt in Abbottabad in which the Americans “violated” the “sovereignty” of the country so he went for their Achilles’ heel - aid. He knows where it hurts most and he sent across a reminder that beggars can’t be choosers.
Mr Kerry made it clear that Pakistan can expect a “profound” change in its already troubled relationship with the US if does not mend its ways and become an actual ally in the war on terror instead of continuing to play its duplicitous game.

Warning Islamabad that it might run the risk of losing some of the billions of dollars in aid after the discovery that bin Laden was living in the city of Abbottabad for so many years, he advised the Pakistani authorities to give a rest to the monkey business of finger-pointing.
Let’s face it. The US and Pakistan are stuck in a bad marriage where a divorce at this stage will hurt them both. They will have to continue sharing the same bed whether they like it or not. The US needs Pakistan for its campaign in Afghanistan and the latter needs the billions of dollars flowing in from the former. For the Americans, Pakistan is a shoe that hurts, but one it cannot do without… not for now at least. It needs it to go the distance. As for Pakistan, it can’t let go of the habit of biting the hand that feeds.
Since 2002, Pakistan has gobbled up more than $20 billion from the US. Where has all that money gone and what is the financial crisis all about if all those dollars came in is another issue.
With Mr Kerry setting the tone for his meetings in Islamabad, one can imagine who will be calling the shots. One can expect some official statements similar to ones that condemn drone attacks. But what is actually said and done is quite different.

A blown opportunity

The hopes of those anticipating that David would finally take on Goliath were dashed with the civilian government caving in to the supremacy of the men in khakis. The high expectations fizzled out with a whimper and it turned out to be nothing more than a pathetic, gutless show.
In the aftermath of Osama bin Laden’s death, the civilian government, which has never been in the driving seat, finally had the opportunity to set things straight and exert its control over the army and its intelligence apparatus.
But for gains that are petty if the larger picture is taken into consideration, the government went on to support to the military and its spy agencies up over the bin Laden debacle.

In a marathon joint session of the National Assembly and the Senate meant to put for forward tough questions to the army and intelligence heads about that singular event responsible for bringing so much embarrassment to the country, the parliament unanimously approved a resolution condemning the US’ bin Laden mission as a “violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty”. The resolution expressed “deep distress” over “the campaign to malign Pakistan”, without appreciating its “immense sacrifices in combating terror”. However, the parliamentarians also demanded an independent probe into the late al Qaeda chief’s episode.
During the session, Inter-Services Intelligence Director General Lt Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha admitted that there was an intelligence failure and said that he was prepared for full accountability.
However, our frail civilian set-up is nowhere prepared to take the bull by the horns. To sum it up, another opportunity has gone to waste no thanks to the self-centred bunch of weaklings that call themselves our leaders.
In addition to all this, its is interesting to note what Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz chief, Nawaz Sharif has been up to recently.
He had earlier demanded an independent investigation into bin Laden's killing, and is now calling for the army and intelligence agencies’ budget to be presented in the assembly.
He said that intelligence agencies’ should not be involved in making foreign policy and neither should they make alliances and divisions among political parties. He is right, but nevertheless, his criticism is laced with his own motives as he is aware of what the ‘spooks’ have been up to weaken his position in Punjab.

The real culprits

As expected Osama bin Laden has struck back… or more correctly, his disciples, who he spawned from his cauldron of hate, have made their first major move in their efforts to avenge the death of their leader.

At least 80 people were killed and 140 injured in two suicide attacks on a paramilitary police training centre in the Shabqadar tehsil of Charsadda.
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakstan has claimed responsibility for the attack, which is another addition to the long list of sacrifices that Pakistan has had to make in the war on terror.
But the question is that are the Taliban the only ones responsible for these heinous crimes. These fanatics with their distorted beliefs were brainwashed into doing this. This is what they are supposed to do – soldiers of hate only doing the job they were trained for. The real villains are the people who created them and are continuing to abet them. Despite the fact that the Taliban have killed thousands of Pakistanis, these people, who are convinced that they are more “patriotic” than the rest of us and are the final line of defence for the country, still have a soft spot for these cold-blooded murderers and continue to protect and support them.
They are the ones who should be held responsible for the death of so many innocents. Their everlasting obsession with the “Indian threat” has turned them into a threat for Pakistan that is much greater than what India poses. Their anti-Indian sentiments have ignited the flames that now engulf Pakistan itself.  Perhaps, they also believe that the presence of the Taliban and al Qaeda operatives in Pakistan would ensure that the dollars keep flowing into the country so that the defences against India can be propped up. This doctrine has put us on the path of self-destruction and we need to mend our ways immediately.