Pakistan on edge
Shaima Sumaya
The three bombings that hit northwest Pakistan, killing 24 people, on
October 24 has brought the death toll to 200 people this month in a
string of militant attacks on military, police and civilian targets. At
the same time the Pakistan Army is determined in its offensive deeper
into Al-Qaeda and Taliban territory close to the Afghan border. The U.S-backed
civilian government is quickly losing the support and confidence of the
Pakistani people. The Pakistani people are growing increasingly
frustrated, angered and impatient.
The Pakistani people as large as they are in population feel
marginalised, isolated and helpless. There is a prevailing feeling of
sadness and hopelessness in the Pakistani people. They feel, as
by-standers not even as an audience to this on going drama of internal
terrorism, US intervention, NRO, power-cuts, inflation, and failing
economy. There are constant comparisons drawn between Pakistan and Iraq,
people are again debating whether Pakistan is better off or worse off
under a military government; people are raising important questions
whether Pakistan can act independently as a sovereign State without US
intervention and many more.
An important point that needs to be made here is that the ongoing
situation in Pakistan is not singular to Pakistan alone, rather the
international community is focused on Pakistan’s progress in the ‘War
against Terror’. It is the fear of the international community that
Pakistan will become a State with failed institutions, terrorism and
lawlessness while being equipped with nuclear weapons and the
international community will be left with no other choice than to
directly intervene and police this unruly State. Hence, there are
efforts being made by the international community spearheaded by USA to
curb this vicious circle of internal unrest and economic turmoil in
Pakistan- the latest example is the ‘Kerry Lugar Bill’. President Barack
Obama recently signed the Kerry-Lugar Bill into US law.
The bill, which was initiated by veteran Senators John Kerry and Richard
Lugar, envisages tripling of non-military aid to Pakistan to an annual
outlay of $1.5bn for five years. The only requirements are
accountability measures placed on the United States executive branch to
ensure that the aid directly benefits the Pakistani people. From the US
point of view, this Act fully recognizes and respects the independence
of Pakistan as a sovereign nation. The purpose of this Act is to forge a
closer collaborative relationship between Pakistan and the United
States, not to dictate the national policy or impinge on the sovereignty
of Pakistan in any way. If the ‘Kerry Lugar Bill’ is studied then it
comes across as a sincere effort on the part of the United States to
help Pakistan fight terrorism and aid the masses that are in dire need
of ‘non-military aid’. The United States obviously doesn’t want the
Pakistani people to be sandwiched between State institutions and foreign
powers in the ‘War against Terror’. One purpose of the ‘Kerry Lugar
Bill’ was to create a feeling faith, trust and confidence amongst the
Pakistani people. The bill seems to have done the exact opposite. Most
Pakistanis view the ‘Kerry Lugar Bill’ as an instrument to compromise
Pakistan’s sovereignty, its actions, and is an attempt by the USA to
‘micro-manage Pakistan’ for $1.5bn a year. The Pakistani people believe
that their weak and failing government has sold their State cheap. There
is a wave of misgivings, rumours, and conspiracy theories from the
Pakistani public to the extent that they are associating the ‘Kerry
Lugar Bill’ as a wider web of a US-Jewish conspiracy to control
Pakistan. For anyone criticizing the ‘Kerry Lugar Bill’ it is important
to read and study the bill first before criticizing it.
There are two sections in the bill, Section 203 and Section 205 that
create serious reservations on the Pakistani side. These two sections
highlight the strength and influence of the Indian lobby in Capital
Hill. Section 203 is making serious demands on Pakistan not recognizing
that Pakistan is fighting a complex war against a diverse enemy with no
time limits in sight. How can Pakistan possibly give the USA guarantees
that it is working and making significant progress to dismantle the
illegal nuclear proliferation networks and is no longer supporting
militant groups? Section 205 is unacceptable to Pakistani security
establishment and its agencies for the text shows serious distrust of
the American security establishment for their Pakistani counterparts and
the Pakistani security establishment as powerful and influential as it
is, feels seriously undermined.
What the USA doesn’t realise is that you don’t win the hearts and minds
of people anywhere in the world with dollars. It is tried and tested
that when the USA wherever in the world has used financial aid to gain
support, it has always failed. Pakistan is an important ally in the ‘War
against Terror’; it is a Muslim State with a powerful army equipped with
nuclear weapons. The Pakistani people are fiercely independent and don’t
appreciate any kind of foreign intervention in State matters. Already,
the credibility of the present civilian government is under contention
due to the infamous NRO- an ordinance that is a result of direct US
intervention in the affairs of Pakistani Government. It is also an open
secret that when a State is in internal chaos then the foreign States
that have ulterior motives intervene into the country’s situation and
try to manipulate the internal unrest in that State for their benefits
and vested interests. The Pakistani people don’t separate the USA from
India, Afghanistan, NATO countries, and Israel. Last but not least drone
attacks and hellfire missles are not improving the situation for the USA
on the ground with Pakistanis. It is so important that Pakistan and USA
work as a collaborative force in fighting the global war against
terrorism. This can never be done effectively unless the USA gathers the
support and understanding of the Pakistani people. But judging from
where the USA stands today, it wants to win the ‘War on Terror’ with or
without the support of the Pakistani public. This is indeed a dangerous
situation.
From the Pakistani point of view, time is of the essence, in every sense
as far as affairs of the State are concerned. Pakistan has to provide
its population protection and security, curb lawlessness and terrorism,
prevent State institutions from failing, preserve democracy and civilian
government, resurrect a failing economy, introduce socio-economic
changes and remain a State that is independent and sovereign. Time is
running out and so is patience from all sides and the list of failures
is growing. The question is can Pakistan create a miracle in an
extremely dismal and hopeless situation? |
