Will they, won’t they?
August 19, 2012
The ‘revelation’ that an operation in North Waziristan could never be the result of “outside pressure” may not surprise anyone who has parsed General Kayani’s response to reports in the western media that the army chief had given his word to Isaf Commander Gen John Allen over joint operations in North Waziristan. In remarks released by the ISPR on Friday, Gen Kayani has said that joint Pak-US action in North Waziristan Agency would be unacceptable to the people and armed forces of the country. But missing from the word cloud of the army chief’s denial, however, is a crucial element: the denial itself. In fact, we now have some kind of an acknowledgement from as high an office as that of the chief of army staff that Pakistan may indeed be planning an offensive in North Waziristan. As evident from the remarks released by ISPR, Gen Kayani has not denied that Pakistan is considering the operation; what he has denied is that the operation will take place, whenever it does, because of external pressure. In fact, the army chief went as far as to acknowledge that Pakistan “might, if necessary, undertake an operation in NWA,” but that any such offensive would only be as per a time-frame of Pakistan’s choosing and determined only by internal political and military requirements. In sum, the army chief made Pakistan’s red lines loud and clear: “Pakistan’s national interest continues to be the prime consideration for any decision in this regard.”
While the general’s remarks remain direct, clear-cut and unambiguous at first hearing, when carefully parsed, they are revealed to not be so straightforward after all. Indeed, is the army chief practising the gentle art of the ‘non-denial denial’ – a statement that appears to be a denial of what was alleged but actually isn’t? Questions abound. What is the bottom-line: that Pakistan may finally be planning an offensive but not in order to do American bidding but because it actually and fully understands now the importance of taking on the witches’ brew of militants in North Waziristan? The Americans have been arm-twisting the Pakistanis on a North Waziristan operation for ages, only to be met with protestations about lack of resources and other reasons. What has changed now? Is the Pakistan Army suddenly better resourced and less stretched? Also, reports suggest any operation in NWA will be against the TTP and not the Haqqanis. How will the American military establishment and lawmakers respond to this, given that it is clear the $1.3 billion recently paid has strings attached and no one from Isaf or the US military is really worried about the TTP? Also, while the army chief has dispelled the impression that the Pakistani military leadership gave the US an assurance over joint operations, it is also pertinent to ask if the decision to start the operation – whenever taken – will be taken after involving the civilian government and parliament and generating national consensus or if it will be presented as a fait accompli to the nation. Finally, the crucial question in this will-they, won’t-they debate on an NWA operation remains thus: is the army avoiding a fight in NWA for all the stated reasons – lack of resources, the American’s unreasonable fixation with the Haqqanis, the threat of blowback – or is the real reason that the army does not want to risk the possibly insurmountable political consequences such an offensive may generate for the army itself inside Pakistan? Going forward, let’s hope we get some clear answers.
Slamming suicide
August 19, 2012
The message delivered by President Asif Ali Zardari in Mecca at the fourth extraordinary summit of the Organisation of Islamic Conference last week is an important one. As the president suggested, it is in many ways crucial to the future of the Muslim world. Zardari called for Muslim ulema across the globe to combine voices and deliver an edict, or ‘fatwa,’ against suicide killings. His call of course comes just a day after the damaging suicide attack at the Kamra Airbase, representing yet another threat to one of our most highly protected military installations. We have seen others like it before at other places and at other times. But of course Pakistan is not the only Muslim country to suffer from suicide attacks. They have taken place in many other nations. The message contained within Islam has become badly warped and distorted as a result of the acts of zealots. Sadly, it is this ugly face of Islam which has appeared again and again before the world, and fixed in people’s minds a particular, violent image of Islam. This is sad. We desperately need to break clear of this image and present before the world the true face of Islam as a religion of peace and tolerance. We can wait no longer for this process to begin. Too much damage has been inflicted already. It will take a long time for the scars to heal and vanish.
But we also need to think a little more deeply about the message from President Zardari. Certainly, a universal call from top Muslim leaders and men of learning against suicide attacks would be good news. But would these, on their own, be effective? The fact is that within our own country, leading clerics have already condemned suicide attacks. Their words have had little impact. The extremists are obviously not willing to listen to reason. That much is obvious. Other strategies are also required to deal with this menace.
Bhatta Mubarak!
August 19, 2012
Eid shoppers in Karachi are paying not only for the items they buy but an extra 20 percent in addition to fund traders who say they are forced to pay thousands each day to extortionists and political parties. They have now decided to pass this spending onto the customers as the government and police have failed to protect them or offer them any respite from the extortion menace. According to Karachi Traders Action Committee Chairman Siddique Memon, markets in Karachi pay Rs50 million per day to extortionists and to appease political elements. The All Karachi Tajir Ittehad, meanwhile, says markets have lost 20 billion due to the law and order situation and terrorist threat in the city.
The head of police in Karachi, according to the traders, had agreed to put 5,000 policemen on duty outside shops but only 500 have been posted so far. As a result, traders have been forced to hire some 1,250 private guards to help protect them. The cost of all this is being passed onto the already cash- strapped customers who had already cut down on Eid shopping because of the high prices. The depressing fact is that extortion in Karachi is not a new problem. Yet nothing has been done in all these years to free shopkeepers from this menace. Immediate and meaningful action is the only solution.