Breaking the siege
The path to breaking the siege begins at home.
By Syed Talat Hussain
PAKISTAN’S military is under siege. Domestically, the media’s protest over the murder of Saleem Shahzad has rallied diverse forces to form a formidable front to bear down on the military high command.
Mian Nawaz Sharif’s renewal of criticism of the army’s role in politics and the puzzling delay in the formation of the judicial commission to investigate the slain journalist’s case, has kept the pot of armybashing boiling. The PPP government has taken the convenient position of staying on the margins, and from the looks of it, is enjoying the sight of the army getting hit.
International pressure is also piling up. Reports of US information on Waziristan sanctuaries being leaked to militants have cemented the image of a mullah-military alliance. No less oppressive is the new debate in the American media about the weakening of Gen Ashfaq Kayani’s command over his own institution.
A New York Times news report last week spoke of the seething anger of top generals and junior officers. Written by Jane Perlez, the report quotes unnamed sources to rub in the point that Gen Kayani is faced with a mutiny of sorts — a coup within, as it were.
All this is happening in the backdrop of repeated violations of Pakistan’s north-western borders where hordes of militants attack villages with impunity, pillage, plunder and retreat to their hideouts in Afghanistan without inviting any punishment, causing further embarrassment to the army.
The deterioration in ties with Washington is adding to the burden of challenges. US officials are demanding more and delivering even less. They think that they have finally nailed the army, and more pressure would eventually get them closer to their goal of making Pakistan a more ‘manageable country’.
This is a serious situation. Unfortunately, so far the response of the military’s top brass has not been up to speed. They have been mostly silent and inward-looking at a time when they should be speaking forthrightly and engaging in the national debate about their role.
Just like the US, but far less intelligently, they are using media proxies to build a counter-narrative to the criticism they face, but without much effect. The bashing season continues unabated. The siege is still tight, the image battered.
Seeing themselves encircled and having to rely on an incompetent government for defence against mounting pressure has made the brass angrier. The controversial press release of June 9 at the end of the corps commanders meeting last week manifested this anger. It was bitter, a sign not of self-confidence but tension and nervousness.
A better, more practical response to these testing times has to focus primarily on the domestic front, which has become the slipperiest ground for the security apparatus. In order to hold firm against international schemes and to ward off blows from without, a conducive domestic environment is a must. Small steps can help build this environment.
First and foremost, the media debate can easily be turned around by candidly answering the questions surrounding Saleem Shahzad’s murder.
This controversy has gone on for too long. Instead of losing steam, it has picked up momentum. Hunching up in the trenches in the hope that the storm will blow over is a vain and wasteful strategy.
If Saleem was killed by the agencies’ goons then it is time to catch hold of them rather than protect them. If the accusation is false and baseless, it should be convincingly countered at the highest level, perhaps by the DG ISI or the army chief himself. Disinfecting the domestic environment of suspicion is absolutely necessary to restore public trust. And this will not happen by issuing belated press releases.
The murder of the youth at the hands of the Rangers can be cited here. The timely removal of the DG Rangers and the IG Sindh has brought to an end a controversy which at one point had started to engulf the whole institution. Saleem Shahzad’s murder case needs similar closure. It cannot be shovelled off into oblivion.
The second step the security establishment can take to soften the siege around it is to do a better job of explaining to the public and public representatives the threat scenario that Pakistan faces.
The debate on the vast array of threats is still a closely guarded secret that is only discussed at corps commanders’ gatherings. Outside, in the public sphere, there is speculation, sensationalism or selective understanding of issues. This holding back of information is least helpful in establishing a connection of trust with the public.
From attacks on Pakistan’s border villages to charges that the army helped the Taliban vacate sanctuaries in Waziristan, everything is enveloped in mystery. No timely official word is ever uttered on these supremely important matters.
In this situation, how can an ill-informed public and public representatives relate to the occasional cry of ‘Pakistan is in danger’ that official quar ters let out? The security apparatus has to become news-active, no matter how bad the news is.
The third and the most important step is for the security establishment to realise the new dynamics in Pakistan. Fast information flow, through the social and mainstream media, has created a vast network of shared values, demands and grievances.
It is next to impossible for any institution to claim or enjoy a special status. No authority is beyond public challenge and scrutiny. Judges, journalists, politicians, businessmen, landlords are all under the spotlight.
Only urban terrorists and criminal groups, who kill inquiry and eliminate dissent, are escaping this examination, but that too is temporary respite. This national movement towards transparency cannot be resisted.
The army cannot afford to be an isolated island of absolute power and pelf. It must seriously revisit its corporate interests and begin to relate to the world outside cantonments. The path to breaking the siege and to dealing with international designs on Pakistan begins at home. ¦
The writer is a senior journalist at DawnNews.