A reward for nabbing Hafiz Saeed
April 4th, 2012
The United States has put a price of $10 million on information and evidence leading to the arrest and conviction of Hafiz Saeed, the founder of the banned group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and leader of the Jamaatud Dawa (JuD). He is now on a par with Mullah Omar and the al Qaeda chiefs of Iran and Iraq, all of whom carry the same reward. His brother-in-law and co-founder of the LeT, Abdul Rehman Makki, now carries a reward of $3 million.
Hafiz Saeed is arguably a most powerful man in Pakistan, heading the country’s biggest charity organisation called Jamaatud Dawa (JuD), a new name for the LeT which Pakistan accepts as “not banned”. The JuD runs schools and colleges — from kindergarten upwards — and has actually made a name for itself among the country’s poor caring for populations struck by natural calamities. As the mover and shaker of the Defence of Pakistan Council, a coalition of 40 religious parties and pro-jihad political parties, Mr Saeed is perhaps the spearhead of Pakistan’s non-state actors who will prevent the state from allowing the resumption of the Nato supply route through Pakistan.
The world believes that Hafiz Saeed masterminded the Mumbai attack of 2008 and, led by the US, wants Pakistan to prevent him “from moving freely in the country, freeze the assets of the groups associated with him and stop allowing LeT from acquiring weapons — in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1267/1989”. In Pakistan, the JuD is not considered the same as the LeT (because of the varying nomenclature) and Hafiz Saeed seems to be a highly respected person because of his jihadi slogans against the “enemies of Pakistan”, which at the present moment are the US and India. Of course, the 10-million-dollar reward is going to make him more popular among his particular constituency, since it’s primary uniting ingredient is hate for America. In fact, it will not be an exaggeration to say that for his supporters, Mr Saeed is a national symbol of Pakistan’s defiance of the US. International reports about the “connectivities” of JuD with al Qaeda and Hafiz Saeed’s past associations with the founders of al Qaeda are hardly discussed in Pakistan’s media. The latest revelations made about the various sojourns of Osama bin Laden before his death — in Kohat, Swat, Karachi and Abbottabad are also dismissed without comment.
Why the head money now? Without a doubt Washington has become wary of the gravitation of Pakistan’s jihadi non-state actors to Afghanistan after the exit of American-Nato troops. The US is leaving behind what is rated as the largest Afghan Army in history numbering over 200,000. US Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta has said that the Afghan Taliban are on the run after having suffered reversals inside Afghanistan. What he doesn’t say is that he fears that just as the Soviet Union was defeated by a combination of Afghan mujahideen and Pakistani warriors, this time too Pakistan could infiltrate its non-state actors to achieve the ‘strategic depth’ it requires to feel safe about its northwestern neighbour. What is scarier for the world is the perception that Pakistan doesn’t control its non-state actors hundred per cent, as demonstrated by the Punjabi Taliban fighting the Pakistan Army in parts of Fata.
Pride and honour breed defiance no matter what the odds. Defiance in foreign policy when no one in the world backs you is called isolationism which is another name for defeat in the given international order. When our non-state actors defeated the Soviet Union the world was on our side in the proxy war; in Kashmir the world was not with us, and we were not successful in humbling India. The blowback from the coming ‘victory’ against the US will be far more lethal than the blowback from the victory against the Soviet Union. The problem is not only that foreign policy is being handled by parliament in Pakistan but that foreign policy will be spearheaded by elements who have their own agenda which may not be the same as what is best for the country.
On the road to change in Burma
April 4th, 2012
The day that Burma had long-awaited finally arrived . Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has demonstrated that she is indeed the choice and hope for the future of the Burmese people. Her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), contested polls for the first time since 1990 and won at least 40 out of the 45 seats which were at stake in the by-polls held on April 2. The by-polls were held as a result of four parliamentary members joining the government, thereby vacating the seats to be contested.
While Suu Kyi’s victory will be celebrated around Burma and the world — where she stands out as a heroic figure who has waged one of the longest struggles for democracy in modern times, spening much of the last 20 years under house arrest, barred from taking part in national politics — the question still remains as to whether the victory of the NLD, a party founded by Suu Kyi’s father, will bring any real change. Burma’s parliament, with a lower house consisting of 440 seats and an upper house of 224 seats remains dominated by the army-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, which holds 348 seats in total. Furthermore, soldiers enrolled in the army retain another 156 seats. The result, therefore, will not mean immediate change, but it does send out a very clear signal as to where Burma wishes to head in the future.
The victory also gives Aung San Suu Kyi a chance to raise her voice in favour of faster reforms and a move towards full-fledged democracy. In a country that has known military rule for most of its history, its end in November 2010 was a welcome change for ordinary Burmese. Her success delivers a setback for the ruling party which will inevitably be weakened by NLD’s victory. There is now a greater hope that the principles Suu Kyi fought so hard for may eventually be achieved and the people permitted to have a say in decisions that affect their future and their nation. This is an interesting time for Burma as, the events of the past few days will give new courage to others around the world who are also struggling for democracy, freedom and peace for their people.