Words of wisdom

April 19th, 2011

Addressing the officers of the Command and Staff College in Quetta, when they visited the Supreme Court on April 16, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry made a statement that the nation must welcome with gratitude. He said that military interventions in politics had been responsible for the stunted growth of democratic institutions in the country and asked the officers to remain subservient to the civilian administration. The constitution itself manifestly states that all executive and judicial authorities shall act in aid of the Supreme Court, by reason of it being the sole interpreter of the Constitution. He said: “If we are to be recognised as a civilised nation in the world, then we must have supremacy of the constitution and the rule of law”.

There are many cogent reasons why he said what he said to the officers. In 2007, his court had clashed with an army chief wearing two caps — that of chief of army staff and president of the state — as a result of which the court had to face banishment. Scores of judges at the level of the higher judiciary and the Supreme Court were either ousted from their offices or chose to not to take oath with President Musharraf. A number of judges were inducted in their place, assuming that replacing judges rejected by the president, in his capacity of army chief and under martial law, would make the whole episode fade from public memory.

But after civil society stepped in and President Musharraf was made to leave, Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and his court resumed office and declared the act of Musharraf as army chief null and void; also nullified were the new appointments made to replace the ousted judges. All these were acts on the part of the judiciary decisively rejecting the interference of the army in the affairs of democratic institutions. The visit of the military officers was the right moment to reiterate the resolve of the Honourable Court to stand on the right side of the Constitution and state the obvious fact that the army is subservient to the elected organs of the state.

There was also a need to assert the transformation of the person of the chief justice who, as a member of the Supreme Court, had legalised the military takeover of the country in 1999, which had resulted in the ouster of the PML-N government of Nawaz Sharif and his banishment from the country. This transformation, brought about by the power of civil society, was also signalled in the rejection by the court of the judges inducted by President Musharraf after he had fired the court and also by the next incumbent government after the 2008 elections. Justice Chaudhry’s strictly constitutional advice that the army remain within the orbit of its constitutional remit, however, throws light on other aspects of the current situation.

The truth is that the Pakistan Army still dominates certain spheres of state activity that should be in the jurisdiction of the elected government. This is not something secret that the nation refuses to discuss. The ‘free media’ in Pakistan carries views of constitutional experts who challenge the dominance of the army in the handling of the country’s foreign affairs. This tendency started in 1988 when army chief Aslam Beg told the incumbent prime minister that foreign and security policies, including nuclear, would stay out of the domain of the civilian government. Then, in 1999, Prime Minister Sharif had to eat the bitter fruit of the Kargil Operation that was carried without fully taking his consent.

There is also the question of institutions other than the army stepping out of their constitutional turfs. The Supreme Court is probably one institution least under the shadow of criticism today, but a part of the legal opinion now thinks that it is too ‘activist’ in its ‘corrective’ approach to the executive in general and the government of the PPP in particular. Since the stature of the politician is still very low, his internecine politics frequently involves reference to the ‘biased suo motu function’ and, indeed, seems to encourage the court to ‘do more’ in its punitive conduct.

It takes two to tango

April 19th, 2011

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s remarks about hoping to normalise ties with Pakistan should lead to both cautious optimism and melancholic soul-searching. When asked by a reporter what five things he would like to achieve in India’s relations with Pakistan, Singh replied, “I think five is too much, if I can succeed in normalising relations between India and Pakistan, as they should prevail between two normal states, I will consider my job well done.” The optimism should stem from the fact that the prime minister seems genuinely committed to peace between the two nations. At the same time, Singh’s remarks are indicative of just how much damage has been done to relations between the two country’s since the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai. There was a period before that when diplomacy had led to relations being just about as normal as was possible. Singh is now reduced to hoping that ties can be reset to the pre-2008 status quo.

However, there is reason to believe that, Singh apart, the Indian government isn’t too keen on building ties with Pakistan. A US State Department cable posted by WikiLeaks suggested that while Singh truly hoped and strived for peace between India and Pakistan, the rest of his cabinet opposed that vision. If his government is not with him, there is very little even the prime minister can do to ensure that his desired policy becomes a reality. For the moment, talks between the two heads of government — as happened in Mohali during the World Cup semi-final and in Sharm-al-Sheikh in 2009 — seem to be the only way to keep the lines of communication open.

Pakistan, too, is making the prospect of peace extremely remote, with the army being the chief hindrance. It should be obvious by now that withdrawing all support for the Lashkar-e-Taiba and taking action against its leadership is a prerequisite for improving relations with India. Yet, the army, as Chief of Staff Ashfaq Pervez Kayani himself has said, sees India as its biggest threat. This attitude does not augur well for peace. It takes two to tango, but neither side appears ready to dance.

Good for Balochistan

April 20th, 2011

The announcement by the army chief that the last of the military battalions posted in the troubled Balochistan district of Sui will be withdrawn within two months is news that will be welcomed by the people of the province. So will General Kayani’s assertion that there will be no further intervention in the province by troops, except with the permission of the provincial government. The deployment of troops in Balochistan has, over many decades, added to the anger and angst which runs through the territory and is added to each time a civilian is stopped at a barricade manned by uniformed personnel. The realisation of the problem had come some months ago, when the central government had ordered the cancellation of new barracks planned for Balochistan. The army chief’s decision takes this further — though he still seems to be somewhat out of step with reality when he speaks of the part played by the army in the development of Balochistan, and especially the educational institutions set up there. This is not a role everyone in the province welcomes.

The issue of Balochistan is not only that of development, but also of the manner in which resources to it are allocated and utilised. It is important for the people of the province to be treated as decision-makers in the process. Had this role been granted to them earlier and greater wisdom exercised by both the military and political leadership in the handling of affairs in the province, we may have averted the crisis we see there now. Of course, much more still needs to be done to redress the grievances of the poeple of the province. That said, the gesture of the troop pullout is a significant one. The expanded recruitment of Baloch youth in the army may also help address the unemployment crisis in the region. But these actions are not enough on their own. There are many complications in the Balochistan situation; positions have become more and more entrenched over the years. Some nationalists are unwilling to consider anything less than complete autonomy. Political dialogue is essential to resolve these issues, and, alongside the military withdrawal, move towards finding lasting peace in a province where chaos prevails for now.

Parliamentary problems

April 20th, 2011

In a bid to persuade the IMF to restore the suspended $11.3 billion loan — put on hold because Pakistan had failed to implement reforms deemed by the lending body to be essential, including an end to subsidies and de-regulation of the energy sector — Finance Minister, Hafiz Sheikh, during talks in Washington, stated that parliament was the biggest obstacle in the way of reform. He stressed that while Pakistan wished to be self-sustaining, problems existed such as the failure of the government to obtain parliamentary approval for the reformed general sales tax bill. The proposed measure which, if implemented, would have resulted in an increase in the prices of a number of items, had resulted in a showdown between the government and key allies, leading to a political crisis which threatened at one point to even topple the government. Mr Sheikh, during what appears to have been a somewhat terse dialogue, also highlighted cases against some 4,000 organisations still pending in courts.

The situation is a Catch-22 one. As things currently stand, Pakistan desperately needs the money that the IMF can offer. But, at the same time, for reasons that are obvious, the political parties, notably those in opposition, feel compelled to speak out for hard-pressed people who are quite literally unable to pay out more for utilities or for items used in households every day. Many could have predicted that this situation was bound to arise from the time in 2008, when Pakistan signed its accord with the IMF. At the time, there seemed to be little choice than to do so.

But now we must consider what the solutions could be. Perhaps all major parties in parliament need to sit together to come up with some. This is not an occasion to try and score political points; it is after all easy to criticise and much harder to make concrete proposals. Mr Sheikh mentioned Pakistan’s desire to attain self-sufficiency and move into international markets. It needs to find the means to do so on an urgent basis and move beyond the rather difficult situation of dependency we find ourselves in now.

A most welcome change

April 20th, 2011

President Asif Zardari’s decision to sign an amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code that will give prisoners the opportunity to seek bail if their cases are not adjudicated within a certain time frame should be warmly welcomed. Prisoners who have been charged with crimes that do not carry the death penalty can file for bail if their case hasn’t been heard within one year, while for offenses that are punishable by death prisoners can seek bail after two years. Although all sound judicial systems operate under the assumption that people are innocent until proven guilty, in Pakistan this foundation of justice is circumvented by denying the accused their day in court. According to one estimate, around 77 per cent of our prison population comprises under-trial prisoners. This law, which should surely count as one of the signature legislative accomplishments of the PPP government, will provide relief to those who have been denied justice.

Critics of this amendment to the Criminal Procedure Code will point out that it could lead to many guilty people being freed before the courts have a chance to rule on their cases. This criticism is without merit. Rather, this amendment should be viewed as the government throwing down the gauntlet to the judiciary and telling it that speediness is an essential part of justice. It is now up to the judiciary to hear and rule on cases in an efficient manner. If it fails to do so, the fault will lie with the courts, and not the government, that possibly guilty prisoners can seek bail. To complement this law, the courts now need more judges, magistrates and prosecuting officers to allow them to adjudicate all cases in a timely manner. The amendment also tackles an oft-neglected human rights issue — that of overcrowded prisons. Even convicted prisoners have basic rights and prisons that are teeming with people deny them those rights. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan estimated that Pakistan has a prison capacity of about 35,000 while the number of prisoners is close to 79,000. This new amendment should help narrow that gap.

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Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

How democracy survives

April 21st, 2011

The PPP government in Islamabad, surviving with a thin uncertain majority in the National Assembly, seems to have made a deal with the PML-Q so that it will not have a problem when it is required to show a majority when the 2011-2012 budget will be presented in parliament for a vote. The PML-Q needs a political reprieve, so to speak, if it is to pose a decent challenge to the PML-N. The latter has already managed to make inroads into the PML-Q ranks in the Punjab Assembly, with several MPAs now supporting the PML-N-led provincial government.

The label put on the ‘deal’ — which will give the PML-Q half a dozen ministries at the centre and important slots in the provinces — is that of national reconciliation. So far, this strategy has not worked well for various reasons, many of them emanating from genetic rivalries embedded in the political parties’ thinking. The PPP lost the PML-N as its ally, and has gone on to lose the JUI-F and the MQM too, one completely out, the other out of the cabinet. The big challenge comes from the PML-N, with the second largest bloc of votes in parliament, and from the alliances forming out of parliament among political minnows aspiring to an inspired ‘revolution’.

The ‘deal’ may have many pitfalls in the days to come. The PML-Q is not as monolithic as it was under Musharraf and has memories that still haunt. The Chaudhrys who run it were born as a political faction in rivalry with the original PPP, their family head killed in an ambush blamed on the PPP. After 2008, the PPP called the PML-Q a ‘killer party’ because a letter written by Benazir Bhutto had named one member of the Chaudhry clan as her possible assassin. In Punjab, the party is greatly lured by the charms of the PML-N, which was once the parent party of many who later walked behind the Chaudhrys. It has at least three factions and the PPP-PML-Q ‘reconciliation’ will be haunted in the coming days by clashes within the PML-Q over how to interpret the politics of President Asif Ali Zardari.

The other side of the picture is mostly linked to the shape of politics in Punjab. The PML-Q is faced with gradual demise in the face of the PML-N’s dominance. Its attempts at restoring the party or reuniting all the various PML factions have been ignored by Nawaz Sharif.

The PML-Q base in the Punjab Assembly has eroded through floor-crossing or lota politics, while its residual power in local governments is glowing weakly, as Lahore gets ready to replace the old incumbents who think they were unfairly ousted from their offices. If the Chaudhrys cohabit with the PPP, they will have a chance to shore up their declining support in Punjab and also console the local bodies candidates not yet snagged by the PML-N. But will the Chaudhrys be able to persuade all the factions to rejoin? That is a tough question to answer.

The alliance will appeal to the visceral politician whose nose for power is always keen. But, in actual fact, it is democracy playing itself out, averting sudden rupture to maintain continuity. Out in the field, there are parties who boycotted the 2008 elections but are now willing to join the MQM and the JUI-F to present an ‘alternative’ to the big parties and to break the bipartisan system run by the PPP and the PML-N, which the establishment no longer favours. There is talk of another Islami Jamhoori Ittehad, put together by the ISI in the post-Zia period to break the hold of the PPP on the political system. The PPP is aware of this possible development; the PML-N is beginning to realise that it could face marginalisation at the hands of the establishment.

The PPP in its weakness has given us some very important constitutional amendments; its administrative debility has enabled the judiciary to compel it to remain within the legal bounds of the Constitution. Its survival in power is a lesson in democracy and its various ways of self-preservation.

Gunning for Greg

April 21st, 2011

For reasons possibly rooted in our psyche, negative news seems always to inspire special delight in our country. The investigative programme, “60 minutes” by CBS, which alleges that many of Greg Mortenson’s claims about the schools he set up in Pakistan and Afghanistan are falsified or exaggerated, has immediately created a stir in the country. Opinion seems to be sharply divided, almost down the middle, with some arguing that Mortenson did at least attempt to help powerless villagers — something most of us in the country have never worked towards — and others accusing him of downright fraud.

The affair highlights several issues. Persons engaged in philanthropy are often targets of all kinds of accusations. Even Abdul Sattar Edhi has not escaped them entirely. But, at the same time, this also highlights the need for a better mechanism in the country to keep a check on philanthropic work in order to establish credibility. There seems little doubt that much of what Greg Mortenson has done is good. It is also true that his heart is in the right place. But for all this, the concoction of events alleged in the documentary cannot be condoned. It should also be noted that well before the CBS cameras began to roll, there were accounts within the country of schools and hostels being run in an unprofessional manner or contracted to outside parties. Talk of other roles played by Mortenson in the key northern areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan frontier abounded. There were accusations alleging that Mortenson was perhaps more than an educator. These add to the CBS allegations. But it is important to keep balance, not to jump to any conclusions and give time for the mists to clear.

It is also important not to condemn too quickly and, instead, give time for the story to unfold. The Mortenson story has inspired millions. We know a significant portion of his work is factual. Children — who once had no schools to go to — can today read, write and aspire to a better future. All this needs to be considered as we assess the controversial documentary and attempt to analyse its allegations logically and dispassionately.

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Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

Crossing the red line

April 22nd, 2011

After the failure of the ISI-CIA meeting in Washington, the Pak-US military top brass, too, has apparently not seen eye to eye on their diverging policies on terrorism. US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen flew in seemingly holding an olive branch and saying the two countries could not afford to allow their anti-terrorism alliance to unravel, but ended up saying things that denote just such an unravelling. Before going in for the important meetings in Rawalpindi, he stuck to the red line often read out to Pakistan: “It’s fairly well-known that the ISI has a longstanding relationship with the Haqqani Network. Haqqani is supporting, funding, training fighters that are killing Americans and killing coalition partners. And I have a sacred obligation to do all I can to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

But he also appended to this his resolve not to let the bilateral equation collapse when he said: “The ability to sustain a very difficult period as we have recently, between Pakistan and the United States, is in some ways indicative of the strength of the relationship. That doesn’t mean we don’t have challenges to continue to address, because we do.” This ‘very difficult’ recent period was characterised by a furore in Pakistan over the arrest of a CIA agent who had killed two Pakistanis in Lahore and the subsequent demand by Pakistan that the CIA cut back on its activities in Pakistan and put on record the functions of American officials coming in on diplomatic passports. The US admiral, in fact, publicly admitted this, saying that it was a “setback” to relations between the two countries.

Part of Pakistan’s response to Admiral Mullen’s remarks, as reported in the press, may not be considered very convincing except to the Pakistanis, 70 per cent of whom express dislike of the US and some even recommend cutting off relations with it. Officials say the Haqqani connection is not there and that “even if you are enemies, you have a relationship”. The upshot is that Pakistan is not willing to change its current policy on North Waziristan and may not be interested in explaining the real reason why it doesn’t want to send in the troops to remove the Haqqanis and other foreign terrorists from there, in that they could be used as bargaining chips when the Afghan chessboard is reconfigured, say, following an American troops pullout. However, sooner or later, the militants who have found a safe haven in North Waziristan will have to be attacked. The more credible part of the response, that the military is too thinly spread since it is operating in other militancy-prone areas, might actually be a more fruitful subject of discussion with the Americans.

The US military chief could not be drawn out on drone attacks, but that is the burning issue in Pakistan on which the military again reiterated its stance, that they are harmful for security and peace in the region. In fact, the military is now backed by all political parties, both in power and those in the opposition. The widening opposition to the drones, coming now also from the PPP and the ANP, has perhaps been crystallised by the virtual non-implementation of the Kerry-Lugar funds after the legislation was passed in 2008. At that time, the fact that it would give a hefty allocation for civilian sectors in Pakistan was much-hyped, but so far only a tenth of the funds have actually made their way into Pakistan.

If Admiral Mullen thinks that both sides will equally strive not to allow the alliance from unravelling, he will have to make sure that advantages from this alliance are equally shared. Also, the Americans have to do something to negate the impression among many Pakistanis that when things get tough for them in Afghanistan, they start passing the buck to Pakistan. For the latter, it is important to separate ‘incapacity’ from ‘strategy’ and come clean on why it is not taking on the terrorists on its soil.

Another atrocity

April 22nd, 2011

Mukhtaran Mai is a winner. We all know this and the realities cannot be changed by the verdict of any court. Since she suffered a brutal gang rape in 2002 on panchayat orders in her village in Muzaffargarh district, as punishment for her brother’s affair with a woman from a powerful clan, Mai has fought back with extraordinary courage. She has emerged as a spokeswoman for wronged women, established schools for girls and refused to allow the powerful to stand in her way. The apex court verdict delivered on April 21, acquitting five of the six men accused of raping her, counts as yet another atrocity against a woman who has suffered the most terrible abuse but refused to surrender her dignity or give up her efforts to help other women find empowerment.

Hearing Mai’s appeal against a Lahore High Court verdict which overturned a death sentence delivered against all six perpetrators, the Supreme Court upheld the order ruling the men be released. Only one, Abdul Khaliq, serving a life sentence is to remain behind bars. The members of the panchayat who meted out the awful punishment also escape penalty. The message that goes out for the future is clear: Rape victims, even those willing to speak out, have no power and stand little chance of attaining justice.

The court, of course, is constrained to act only on the basis of information put before it. Women’s rights groups who have criticised the ruling have also noted that flawed and indifferent police investigations often determine court actions. For the police, rape and other crimes against women are almost never a priority.

This is all the more true when victims, like Mai, lack status. The investigative procedure, too, has many loopholes. The saddening verdict reveals all this and exposes the ability of courts to stand by victims. We can only hope now that this case will result in the process being amended so that other victims can be spared the long ordeal of Mukhtaran Mai, who now also faces a threat from the five men set free by the court.

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Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

Moin Akhtar (1950-2011)

April 23rd, 2011

April 22 was the day laughter died. Moin Akhtar, one of the most beloved comics and actors ever to grace the stage and television screens of Pakistan, passed away at the age of 60. It is nearly impossible to do justice to his versatility. Be it through satire or mimicry, slapstick or song, Moin Akhtar had a comedic range that will surely never be matched in Pakistan. He was awarded both the Sitara-i-Imtiaz and the Pride of Performance by the government, but the true measure of his genius will be shown by the emptiness we all feel at the news of his passing.

Moin Akhtar made his debut at the young age of 16, wowing audiences with his stand-up comedy on a variety show on state-owned television. For the next 40 years, he never stopped making us laugh. It is impossible to list the sheer number of memorable performances he delighted us with but among the highlights were TV shows Bandar Road se Keamari, Eid Train and of course Rosie, where he did the Pakistani version of Dustin Hoffman’s Tootsie. Apart from his acting, which encompassed television, movie and theatre, Akhtar was renowned for his impersonations. From Waheed Murad to Dilip Kumar, he had a knack for mimicking the celebrities of our time, although he played it strictly for laughs with nary a hint of malice. It is a testament to his genius that no matter what character he played, whether in drag or playing off stereotypes, he remained gracious and charming, never resorting to vulgarity or cheap laughs.

Despite being the consummate showman, Moin Akhtar never hogged the limelight. In fact, one his greatest assets was that he brought out the best in those around him. Few will forget his partnership with Anwar Maqsood and Bushra Ansari on the sketch comedy show Studio 2½, and his later interview show Loose Talk with Maqsood. His work with Umer Sharif on stage shows like Buddha Ghar Pe Hai and Bakra Qiston Pay was so legendary that it has become a staple fare to watch even now.

Terrorised teachers

April 23rd, 2011

The Taliban may have been vanquished but they still lurk ominously in many areas, perhaps waiting for an opportunity to strike back. Warnings of this have come in from many places. But what is as dangerous as the militants themselves is the dark legacy they leave behind. Classrooms in many parts of the conflict zone stand vacant — teachers are no longer willing to teach because of the threats meted out in the past. A report in this publication spoke of a group of veiled teachers in Swat who were threatened with knives by militants during their reign over that region. The trauma has meant all but one of the teachers has given up the profession.

There are many others like them. Reports coming in mention continued threats, schools are still being blown up and international humanitarian agencies say the existing security situation further holds back education, especially for girls. This is nothing less than a disaster in a part of the world where barely three percent of women are literate, according to official figures for Fata. NGOs active in the area believe the actual rate could be even lower.

The Taliban have left behind deep shadows that continue to darken the lives of the people. A vigorous effort needs to be made to drive these shadows away. The fear of people that the militants will return needs to be eradicated. The best way of doing so is to work towards development and to actively promote education. Programmes of this nature have been highly successful in some regions. It is vital that they be expanded; offering literacy to women is important to the uplift of communities. This, in turn, can happen only if teachers can be persuaded to return to the classrooms and, by doing so, also help dispel the fear that exists among both female pupils and their parents, preventing many from continuing the learning that is crucial both to their own future and to their communities.

Blast at a gambling den

April 23rd, 2011

It is hard to know where to place the blame for the blast that killed 19 people at a gambling den in Lyari. Was it, as a senior officer of the Sindh Police’s Criminal Investigation Department claimed, the result of a fight among the gamblers? Or could it be merely the latest round in Lyari’s long-running gang war? At this time, it is also not possible to rule out the fact, especially given the target, that religious militants were behind the blast. If indeed the police officer is correct in his hunch, then this attack can be written off as a one-off incident. Certainly, the police can be blamed for the fact that this gambling den was still operational even though it had been raided and shut down a few months ago.

It is the other two possibilities that are far more frightening. Of the two, it is far more likely that this attack was a fight over turf between rival gangs. Just this month, the Lyari Town office of the City District Government Karachi was attacked with a hand grenade while workers of political parties have been murdered in a round of target killings. Even though the Rangers have carried out raids in Lyari, as yet there have been no significant arrests and the raids seem more like a show of force than an action meant to yield results. The Counter-Terrorism Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department has been operating in Lyari for some years, but with precious little visible success beyond the arrest of a gangster from the Arshad Pappu gang, last month. Also, the massacre at a scrap market in which 13 people were killed happened not too far from this neighbourhood and its gangs were accused by some of involvement.

Lyari has never been known as a hotbed of religious fundamentalism so it is unlikely that the Taliban or its associates were behind the attack. For now, it is wiser to concentrate on the criminal gangs operating in Lyari. The problem here is that the biggest gangs have the support and protection of various political parties, all of whom are loath to give this support up. In return for their political patronage, these gangs can act as enforcers for political parties in Lyari. As long as this relationship lasts, violence in Lyari will continue unabated.

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Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

The tragic case of Mukhtaran Mai

April 24th, 2011

The decision by the deputy speaker of the National Assembly on April 22 to disallow any discussion on the Supreme Court’s verdict on Mukhtaran Mai is most unfortunate, especially given that it was PPP MNA Sherry Rehman who wanted to speak on the matter.

The Supreme Court decided earlier this week to uphold a Lahore High Court verdict that had acquitted all the accused in Mukhataran Mai’s gang rape in 2002, except one. The gang rape was ordered by an illegal panchayat of Meerwala in Muzaffargarh, Punjab, after which an anti-terrorism court in Dera Ghazi Khan sentenced five of the six accused to death. The fact is that a powerful local tribe has been able to prevent its men from being punished by the justice system. The powerful in our society can first cause a delay in justice — nine years in this case — and then cause a miscarriage of justice through manipulation of the lower ranks of the police.

Mukhtaran Mai is one of many women who have to put up with violence at the hands of men and are forced to keep quiet because the investigative-judicial system is biased against them. Because of ‘anticipated injustice’ in Pakistan’s judicial system, Mukhtaran Mai was made into a global symbol of an abused woman, a challenge which she accepted. Unfortunately, the state became defensive about the publicity and support she got from all over the world; it also manifested a clear conservative bias against the women’s rights movement in Pakistan, which is demonised by powerful religious lobbies.

There was more than ‘anticipated injustice’ in the Mukhtaran Mai case. This was the impunity of the powerful, seen in relation to the terrorist elements in Pakistan which are supported by sections of the state. According to official statements, no terrorist caught after horrendous acts of killing has been punished. Those who view our judiciary politically say that the kind of out-of-the-box jurisprudence applied by the courts to matters such as the NRO will never be applied to Lal Masjid and Mukhtaran Mai. This view holds that the judiciary has always been drawn from a largely conservative legal community and it tends to agree with religious constraints to justice when it comes to women, while tacitly accepting the reign of the powerful in society.

The Supreme Court had intervened after the Federal Shariat Court in 2005 contested the jurisdiction of the Multan Bench. It heard the case and, agreeing with the Multan Bench verdict, ordered the release of the accused. Mukhtaran Mai went in appeal and the latest decision has come after over five years of hearings. Now, in 2011, two of the three judges on the bench have decided to go along with the earlier findings while one judge thought the Court could have taken a more pro-reform view and focused more closely on the notorious methodology of registering an FIR in areas where feudal power trumps justice all the time. The Musharraf government — illegal in the eyes of the Court — pitted itself against this wronged woman and put a ban on her travel abroad. If the liberal elements in Pakistan had stood behind the so-called ‘liberal reforms’ of Musharraf, this was one case that they did not support his government on. Alas, the Supreme Court’s latest decision will be seen as being supportive of Musharraf’s policy of hiding the truth of women’s disabilities in Pakistan from the world.

The judiciary takes the position that its power is not only derived from the Constitution but also from civil society, which stood up for the judges dismissed by Musharraf and finally got rid of the military ruler through street agitation. But civil society also includes women and their rights must equally be defended; more so because Pakistani society needs reform before it learns to treat women as desired by the Constitution. And the Court remains the guardian of the Constitution. If the Honourable Court is today dubbed as being ‘activist’ in favour of the people, let it be clear that it is not the Court of the conservative elements simply because they are powerful.

Drones and diplomacy

April 24th, 2011

As diplomatic relations between Pakistan and the US become increasingly tense, with sharp jibes being exchanged as the usual placid phrases of diplomacy are dropped, more drone strikes in North Waziristan have worsened matters. The aircraft rained down their deadly cargo of bombs in North Waziristan, chiefly around the Mirali area. Key US officials have, in recent days, made it clear that the Haqqani network, led by the aging Jalaluddin Haqqani and his sons, is based in this region. As ties have become more and more strained, the US has also not minced words in accusing the ISI of working with the Haqqanis — close allies of the Pakistani intelligence apparatus since the anti-Soviet war in Afghanistan during the 1980s, when Jalaluddin emerged as a key mujahideen hero.

Today, Washington believes the network, which commands wide respect among other militant forces, is engaged in attacks on US troops stationed across the Durand Line. While there has been some effort to patch over the differences, with Army Chief General Kayani also stressing Pakistan was doing all it could against militants, the acrimony between the two sides, notably since the Raymond Davis affair earlier this year, has been impossible to hide. It has also exposed the fact that the militants are not a homogenous group and that Pakistan sees the so-called Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan as its key enemy.

There are many issues here. On a humanitarian basis, the deaths of 25 citizens, some of them women and children, in the latest drone attacks is a tragedy. There can be no doubt that such attacks complicate the task of combating militancy for Pakistan by increasing anti-US sentiment. The question of our sovereignty arises, too, and the hard fact of life is that, at this juncture, doing without the US is no easy matter given that our bank balance hardly inspires confidence. Washington and Islamabad need to work together towards solutions. Unless these are found the situation will only worsen and add to the militant menace which has taken a massive toll on Pakistan and its people. It is in our interest that we eradicate the problem so that life in our country can move on.

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Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

Fishermen prisoners: Worthy proposals

April 25th, 2011

The India-Pakistan Judicial Committee, comprising four retired judges from each country, has recommended that prisoners who have completed their sentence should be sent to their home countries without delay. It has also said that the tedious process of determining nationality — a factor that often keeps people from either country in jail for a very long period of time even after sentences are over, should be quickened. This will, of course, come as extremely welcome news to the fishermen, other inadvertent border-crossers and prisoners currently behind bars in either country. Often, the circumstances of their arrest are not clear, they are given long sentences for no good reason and even when released are unable to return to their home country, either due to lack of travel documents or lack of money.

Being held abroad, with no access to family for years and often in a hostile environment, can only add to the punishment endured by these individuals — some of whom are guilty of no crime other than misjudging where the border lies. In past years, the red-tapism for which Pakistan and India are well-known has held up their release for months or years. In some cases, only intervention by human rights agencies has enabled them to return and their plight to be taken note of.

The recommendations of the committee are to be welcomed. There is no need for so much human suffering. The visit by the committee to jails in all major cities and the provision of consular access to some in need of advice also indicates how much there is to gain at the human level by improving relations between India and Pakistan. Many gains can be made, as has happened in the case of the prisoners. We now also need formal mechanisms to deal with cases of juveniles and those guilty only of petty crimes. The progress made is encouraging. Let us hope it can be built upon to make things even better in the future and end the unnecessary suffering inflicted on various categories of people as a result of the strained ties between the two nations which share a great deal in common.

Shootout in Dir

April 25th, 2011

A two-day shootout between security personnel and militants in Lower Dir has shown once again that government claims of having defeated the militants are hollow. It is ironic, then, that Chief of Army Staff Ashfaq Parvez Kayani said in a speech on April 23, that the military had broken the back of militants linked to al Qaeda and the Taliban. The fighting in Dir, which claimed the lives of 14 security personnel and 20 militants, directly contradicts Kayani’s assertion. Despite having claimed last year that Dir has been cleared of all militants last year, it is clear that the local police and paramilitary forces are engaged in a struggle to the death with the militants. The operation in Lower Dir began after militants, believed to have crossed over from Afghanistan, attacked a check post in Jandulmayar. This prompted the security forces to impose a curfew.

Until the security forces have regained complete control in Dir, they will not be able to claim victory over the militants. The district shares borders with Swat, Afghanistan and Bajaur Agency and so has become a strategically vital area for the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP) Swat chapter, whose leader Maulana Fazlullah was driven out of Swat and into Nuristan, Afghanistan. With the TTP Swat chapter now looking to regain a foothold in Pakistan, militants from the group will surely first try and build a base in Dir before moving on to Swat. It is essential that this growing menace be nipped in the bud immediately, otherwise there is a danger that the successes of the Swat operation from 2009 will be undone. For now, the focus in the war against militants seems to be North Waziristan Agency. Most US drone attacks target alleged militants in the area and the Pakistan military is being pushed into carrying out a major operation there. Without denying the importance of North Waziristan, the latest attack in Dir shows that it would be folly only to concentrate on one area. The government and the military instead need to develop a holistic strategy that would deny militants safe havens and launching pads for attacks in any area of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa.

Power politics

April 25th, 2011

Right after the cricket diplomacy at Mohali, we now have power diplomacy — with the potential to bring the subcontinental neighbours closer together. Pakistan’s commerce secretary, who is due to meet his Indian counterpart in Islamabad at the end of the month, says India has offered to sell surplus power to Pakistan. The spirit behind the offer is generous, given that India suffers an 11 per cent power deficit itself. Loadshedding is a term familiar to the residents of New Delhi, just as it is to those who live in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar or other places in the country. However, India does have a surplus in some grids at certain times of the year and may be willing to pass this on to energy-starved Pakistan if a deal can be formalised. The technical practicalities will need to be worked out and a formal proposal also needs to be put on the table.

But beyond all this, the willingness expressed by New Delhi to help out in difficult times is encouraging. Acquiring power from India may prove to be cheaper and simpler than the other options Pakistan has. The power offer — provided it materialises — also indicates how much there is to gain for both Islamabad and New Delhi if they can work out ways to develop closer cooperation between them. There is, of course, a big gap that separates an offer, especially one that seems to have been informally made, from the actual signing on paper. But it is important to initiate efforts to lay strong planks over this gap, especially if this can help us overcome a problem that has crippled our industry. If this indeed happens, a huge step forward would have been taken and the future opened up for closer cooperation in all kinds of other areas where the two countries could work together to solve some of the problems they share such as cross-border smuggling, terrorism and intrusion into each others international waters by fishermen.

__________________
Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

Fighting the militancy

April 26th, 2011

Addressing the graduation ceremony of the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul on April 23, Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani said that “the armed forces have been successful in breaking the backbone of the militants”. The big message in his speech was the optimism the general expressed about his ongoing campaign against terrorists aligned with al Qaeda, whose presence the ISI in August last year declared as “the top internal threat to the country”. He clearly wants the nation to shed all misgivings caused by the recent demonstration of a mismatch between the declared objectives of the US in Afghanistan and the Pakistan Army in Pakistan.

There is no doubt that the nation and General Kayani stand together, but this unity is related to the recent quarrel between General Kayani and the US military command over how Pakistan should tackle its side of the war against terrorism. The political scene is no different. Politicians of all stripes stand behind Kayani in his refusal to blindly obey the advice of the US military leaders on how Pakistan should proceed with its strategy against terrorism.

Unfortunately, the country’s internecine politics has also taken advantage of Kayani’s defiance. One example is the drone-related statement of Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif before his China visit, which sought to compete with the more outspoken anti-American stance of the so-called Islami Jamhoori Ittehad being created against his party.

Not too far removed from General Kayani’s statement in Kakul in terms of time, the Taliban hit back in Lower Dir in the Malakand Division, causing unacceptable casualties in a region that many in Pakistan thought was pacified by the army. The case of Bajaur is even more remarkable in the sense that the army operation there has been covered by the media and the Taliban threat there has also been pushed back. Some observers insist that, at night, sections of Bajaur fall back into the hands of the Taliban. The three-year ongoing war against Mangal Bagh — the warlord of Khyber Agency with effective outreach into Peshawar — is also hardly over yet.

The Pakistan Army is operating against the terrorist warlords in Orakzai and Mohmand. If you count the successful hits the army has achieved against the militants over the past few months, the terrorists have clearly lost hundreds of their killers. Yet it is very difficult to say that the two agencies have been cleared of all militant threats to the nation; and that includes the normally administered cities of Bannu, Kohat and Hangu, out of which Kohat is Pakistan’s major air force base as well as a cantonment.

So can we say that the back of the Taliban militants has been broken in Pakistan? First, let us be clear about the meaning of the phrase. It doesn’t mean that terrorism has come to an end in Pakistan; it means that terrorism has suffered major damage, after which it will not be able to rise to its former levels of violence. Can we say that we have reached a stage where the way forward will only be characterised by victories against the Taliban and al Qaeda?

General Kayani may be faced with problems of military logistics and other strategic complications but one element of the conflict he has perfectly under control,and that is civilian opinion about how he should proceed against terrorism in the coming days. There is no doubt that the high level of anti-Americanism in Pakistan is indirectly a support to his position which is now increasingly distant from the strategy that the Americans want to follow.

Most analysts have written to back the stance General Kayani has adopted, but one consistent supporter, considered Pakistan’s foremost authority on the conflict, wrote this on April 24: “Sooner or later, Pakistan’s security forces would have to launch operations in North Waziristan, not only due to persistent US demand but also on account of the fact that this tribal agency has become the centre for militants attacking targets all over Pakistan.” The current lull — despite the Lower Dir raid — could be a typical breathing space that the al Qaeda-Taliban combine needs to get its next batch of explosives and suicide bombers in place.

Long division

April 26th, 2011

The Punjab chief minister, rather unexpectedly, has made what he says is a ‘personal’ statement on the growing calls for more provinces to be created in the country by carving them out of Punjab. While Shahbaz Sharif has said that his brother will put forward the formal party line, he has also said that if Punjab is to be bifurcated, the same should happen in Sindh, with Karachi and its population of over six million turned into a separate province as well. This seems like rather a tit-for-tat suggestion to an issue that has nothing to do with notions of revenge. Turning Karachi into a province – or, in fact, a kind of urban city state – seems to be neither practical nor desirable. For one, such a move would remove from the rest of Sindh its main port, while there is also no real demand for Karachi to be separated in this fashion. All major parties with a strong standing in the province — the PPP, the MQM, the ANP and the Sindh nationalist parties — have immediately rejected the move.

This is in major contrast to the situation in Punjab. While the PML-N sees the call for the separate province of Seraikistan to be created as a move by the PPP and the MQM to cut into its vote bank in the province where it holds most strength, it cannot deny the fact that the demand for a separate Seraiki province has existed for years, and is based around cultural and lingual factors which distinguish the region from the rest of Punjab. Furthermore, south Punjab does not fare well in terms of funding allocations, and that perhaps explains its backwardness compared to the central and northern districts of the province. For administrative reasons too, creating new, smaller units may not be an unwise move; it could conceivably bring many benefits and also even out the sense of dominance felt in the three smaller units vis-a-vis Punjab. This factor has, through the decades of the country’s existence, had much impact on harmony. The PML-N, as a party which takes pride in its patriotism, should also consider these factors and think beyond the narrow issues of electoral politics or the question of conspiracies it seems to believe are being hatched against it.

__________________
Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

WikiLeaks and the ISI

April 27th, 2011

It seems WikiLeaks will do more damage to US-Pakistan relations than had been earlier estimated. The latest batch of secret US documents circulated among the top institutions in Washington say that America began suspecting the ISI of playing a double game while Musharraf was in power. They report that a number of “Guantanamo detainees confessed to working with the ISI and the Pakistani military in facilitating al Qaeda and the Taliban.”

The link between ISI and terrorist organisations has not been established by evidence beyond doubt. Most allegations do not have corroborative evidence. And most of the instances mentioned in the cables date back to 2003-2007, before there was a change of command in the country.

However, by 2007, the year Musharraf was deposed, the US had listed the ISI among 36 terrorist groups and it is likely that it is still listed in the current Threat Indicator Matrix of the US. Earlier this year, suspicions that the CIA was running a network of agents in Pakistan became a reality, with the arrest of Raymond Davis in Lahore. The CIA and ISI, post-Davis, have got their two governments at loggerheads in the months before the American withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Director-General ISPR Major-General Athar Abbas has been cautious and, when queried, has asked for an official stamp of US ownership of the ‘leak’. His response was measured and correct: “It appears to be an effort at instigation. We will not issue official statements on documents that we do not know the authenticity of. Let the Pentagon comment and then we will see.” The truth is that, after US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen’s remarks accusing the ISI of being involved with the Haqqani network a few days earlier in Islamabad, the stamp of authority — some would say arrogance — is almost there. If and when more corroborative assertions come officially, it will be time for Pakistan to decide on the next step.

Bits and pieces of evidence had been piling up in the past, including facts in the latest indictment of two Pakistani American nationals, David Headley and Tahawwur Rana, at a Chicago court, along with four Pakistanis in Pakistan (one linked to the army) involved in ‘pre-operation’ spying in Mumbai before the 2008 terrorist attack. The Americans have never minced words over their finding that Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) was involved in the attack. They have consistently demanded the banning of the successor outfit, Jamaatud Dawa. Pakistan has resisted the ban and Interior Minister Rehman Malik has admitted that the prosecution of the LeT men being tried in Pakistani “has been slow”.

From General Hamid Gul to General Mahmud, the ISI has been led by a number of chiefs who thought differently of al Qaeda from the ordinary Pakistani. The chiefs of the ISI who were not of the same mould, too, have not seen eye-to-eye with America because of a mismatch of policies over India. Secular chiefs such as Aslam Beg and and those seen by many to be sympathetic to the cause of the militants, such as Hamid Gul, both types have always cautioned the Pakistani nation against being friendly with America. Just as the Americans equate ISI with Hamas, Pakistani officials have often accused the CIA of working in tandem with Mossad and RAW. What has been a covert spy war under the garb of friendship now threatens to come out into the open. No one in Pakistan is going to offend the ISI. The opinion is going to be overwhelmingly in favour of cutting off ties with America. But if any rogue elements are involved with the militants, they must be stopped by the government or the military.

Imran Khan has sent another cannonball across the American bow: After one month, he and his anti-drone tribal processions are going to stop Nato supplies from reaching Afghanistan. This is Pakistan’s challenge: That America needs it more than it needs America, despite the steep economic downturn predicted for Pakistan, including a plummeting rupee and a manufacture breakdown accompanied by the collapse of law and order. TV channels are already accusing mainstream political parties of being less enthusiastic about the drone row. This is correct: The parties with chances to rule Pakistan don’t want to escalate the ISI-CIA crisis to a point of no return.

Attacks on navy buses

April 27th, 2011

Until just a year ago, it was widely believed that Karachi had been spared the wrath of the militants, possibly because the city was the main hub of fundraising for these groups. But now there can be no doubt that militant cells in the metropolis have been activated. Yesterday’s twin blasts at navy buses in Baldia Town and Defence Housing Authority Phase II are only the latest in a series of attacks to rock Karachi, following deadly explosions at the Abdullah Shah Ghazi shrine and the DIG Crime Investigation Department (CID) late last year. It is believed that roadside explosives were used in the two blasts, killing four people and injuring as many as 50 others. A third bomb was found and defused in Baldia Town.

While it is too early for the police to apportion blame for the attacks, it may not be a coincidence that the blasts took place just a day after the CID had arrested a leader of little-known terrorist group al Mukhtar for a blast at a gambling den in Lyari on April 21. Police chief Fayyaz Legahri claimed that the group had links to the Taliban in South Waziristan and that the arrested suspect, Yaqoob Commando, had received training there. If there is indeed a link between the arrest and the naval bus attacks, it shows how the militants are capable of reacting and taking revenge with extreme swiftness.

There will inevitably be talk of security failures but, as Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah pointed out, it simply isn’t possible for more than 25-30 per cent of vehicles to be checked. Thus, even though the chief minister confirmed that they had prior information of threats in the city, it simply isn’t possible to thwart these attacks without specific intelligence. Additionally, the bombs in Baldia Town were hidden in rocks, making them hard to locate, while navy buses are clearly marked and hence easy targets. Blasts such as these can only be prevented when intelligence agencies know exactly when they are going to take place and who is planning on carrying them out. That, sadly, is lacking in Pakistan, making repeat attacks all over the country a virtual certainty.

__________________
Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga

Petroleum preferences

April 28th, 2011

As talks get underway between the commerce secretaries of Pakistan and India in Islamabad, the petroleum ministry has made a suggestion that would not only render the talks truly useful but also benefit many people in the country. The ministry has proposed that petroleum products be imported from India and cement and chemicals exported to it. A ‘most-favoured nation’ status for India has been proposed to facilitate this exchange. Previously, Pakistan’s commerce secretary, Zafar Mehmood, ahead of the arrival in the country of his Indian counterpart Rahul Khullar, had also mentioned an Indian offer to sell to Pakistan the power it urgently needs. This matter, too, is likely to come up during the two-day discussions.

The proposal by the petroleum ministry makes a great deal of sense and could benefit both countries. Indeed, the ministry believes Pakistan could meet its total diesel need of 4.4 million tons by bringing it across by road from India. Significantly, diesel currently costs Rs92.90 in Pakistan and Rs75.56 in India. Petrol prices are also significantly lower. The advantages of this to the people of our country are quite obvious. Indeed, it is nothing less than a tragedy that while diesel and furnace oil are on the list of items that can be imported from India, this has not happened due to political factors. The physical proximity of both countries, of course, makes it easy — and cheap — to bring across items by road or ship.

The provision by the ministry that India facilitate the export of cement and chemicals from Pakistan in exchange seems fair. There is much to be gained by developing trade ties. Concrete evidence of gains could also help change mindsets and as such lessen the influence of the hawks who hold back the building of closer relations. The petroleum ministry proposal lays down the advantages in just one area. There are certainly many more in other spheres. For the sake of the people of both countries these, too, need to be identified and ways found to take advantage of them by building better trade links.

Aafia Siddiqui and WikiLeaks

April 28th, 2011

Die-hard supporters of Aafia Siddiqui have maintained her innocence from when she was arrested in Ghazi in 2008, where she was caught in possession of chemicals, through to her trial in New York City in 2010, where she was handed down an 86-year sentence for shooting at her US interrogators. However, the latest revelations from WikiLeaks show that she was part of an al Qaeda cabal plotting to smuggle explosives into the US, and that she volunteered to manufacture biological weapons. This is unlikely to dampen the ardour of her vociferous supporters, but for the rest of us it should now be abundantly clear that Aafia was deeply tied to al Qaeda.

Much of the information in the WikiLeaks files concerning Aafia comes from testimony from 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was waterboarded nearly 200 times in Guantanamo Bay. It is possible that he may have agreed with everything his interrogators demanded of him because of the torture methods employed. Still, the coincidences are far too damning to buy the story that Aafia was trapped in a web of US conspiracies. According to the cables, Mohammed’s nephew, Ammar Baluchi, who was allegedly married to Aafia, was the person who asked Aafia to work on manufacturing biological weapons. The file of Guantanamo detainee Saifullah Paracha, another cause celebre in Pakistan, says that Aafia opened a PO box in the US as part of a plan to smuggle explosives into the US. That Paracha’s son was in possession of the key to that box is again damning for Aafia.

This is not to say that the US has handled Aafia’s case according to international norms. Her whereabouts since her disappearance from Karachi in 2003 till she was arrested in 2008 in Afghanistan remain a mystery and she may well have been illegally detained by either the US or Pakistan. She has also never been charged with or tried for terrorism in a court. In the court of public opinion, however, she should now be considered guilty.

Acid test

April 28th, 2011

Women legislators from across the political spectrum have united behind the Acid Control and Acid Prevention Bill 2010, which a National Assembly standing committee has recommended should be implemented. The law, which lays down far tougher penalties for the perpetrators of acid crimes, was originally proposed by the PML-Q’s Marvi Memon. Women MNAs believe it could have a significant impact on reducing the growing incidents in which corrosive substances have been hurled on victims, most often women, leaving them badly disfigured and, in some cases, blinded for life. It is apparent that we need to take action against this crime — which has often been carried out to settle the most petty scores or to take revenge over perceived slights related to matrimonial issues. Beyond the horrific tragedy involved in the act itself, we should also think about what such acts say of the society we live in and the inhumanity that festers within it.

There is little doubt that the law is urgently needed. Much, however, depends on its implementation. As far as the statute books go, there are already restrictions on the sale of acid and other similar substances. Yet almost everywhere in the country they can be bought without restriction. A similar pattern exists in the matter of other crimes, notably those committed against women. Despite the presence of laws, those carrying out honour killings, rape and other offences only infrequently end up behind bars. The introduction of laws is important. But the passage of legislation needs to be combined with many other measures to make society a safer place for women. These range from the implementation of laws to greater empowerment of women.

It is, of course, a positive step that women legislators from all parties have combined forces to back the bill. This is one advantage of having more women in assemblies. But we hope that the men from their parties will also back the law. Violence against women is not an issue only for women, but for every responsible member of society.

__________________
Kon Kehta hy k Main Gum-naam ho jaon ga
Main tu aik Baab hn Tareekh mein Likha jaon ga