Afghanistan’s future

Pakistan’s position in the international arena has seen better days. Now our country is viewed as a pariah state responsible for sponsoring terrorism across the border. Despite the military establishment’s denials about not having any decisive influence over the Taliban and therefore a critical impact on Afghanistan’s future, Pakistan’s overt and covert support to the Afghan Taliban is no secret. In an interview, Major-General Athar Abbas, Director General (DG) of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said that Pakistan has “not been informed and not been taken into confidence on a possible roadmap or a practicable shape of the [Afghan] reconciliation process so far”. He was also critical of the BBC documentary about Pakistan’s double game in the war on terror. “We consider that report highly biased, it is one-sided, it does not have the version of the side which is badly hit or affected by this report. Therefore…it is factually incorrect,” Major-General Abbas said. Nobody expects that our military establishment would admit to playing this double game but to think that the world would buy their ‘denials’ is also naïve to say the least. On the other hand, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton faced tough questions from the US House Foreign Affairs Committee over the State Department’s willingness to negotiate with the Taliban. “So which is it, Madam Secretary, crackdown or negotiate with the Haqqani network or a little bit of both?” asked the Republican committee chair. “It is both. We want to fight, talk and build all at the same time,” answered Ms Clinton. It seems that even in the US, there are reservations about the Afghan reconciliation process.

While the Obama administration wants to reconcile with the Afghan Taliban, in Pakistan it has increased the frequency of drone strikes. This might be their way of pressurising the Afghan Taliban to come to the negotiating table while also trying to end Pakistan’s support for them. But drone strikes have not worked to the US’s advantage. It has increased anti-American sentiment in Pakistan and the militants and the right wing forces have taken advantage of this sentiment. Negotiating with the same Taliban the US helped dislodge would result in dire consequences for not just Afghanistan and Pakistan but the entire region. We should not forget that the Taliban are a barbaric force. If they are back in power in Afghanistan, there is no guarantee they would not host al Qaeda again. They have already provided sanctuaries to the Pakistani Taliban and once back in power would not hesitate to do so again. Pakistan cannot afford a Taliban rule once again despite the distinction given to them by our military establishment.

What is now needed is a new approach. The obvious way to bring back peace in the region is to adopt a three-pronged strategy. One, withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan. Two, eliminating safe havens on both sides of the Durand Line and sending the militants back to their countries of origin. This will end proxy jihad and bring stability back to the region. Three, end interference of all regional and world powers in Afghanistan and let the Afghan people settle their own affairs. It would eventually lead to Afghanistan returning to its 19th century status of a buffer state, with the significant and beneficial new factor that it can now act as a trade and energy corridor for the region.

(my editorial in Daily Times)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Persecution without reason

Universities all over the world tend to hire people with a sound academic background as they want the best for their students. The Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan did the same when they hired Dr Ghazala Anwar as Deputy Dean of Usul-ud-Din (Islamic jurisprudence) at the women’s campus of International Islamic University (IIU) in Islamabad. Dr Ghazala earned her PhD in philosophy and religious studies from the Temple University (USA) in 1993, with teaching and research interests in Islamic jurisprudence, gender issues, Sufism and sexuality. She was appointed at the IIU under the Foreign Faculty Hiring Programme after her application was reviewed by a Peer Review Committee of scholars. Dr Ghazala Anwar has been part of a movement that has been trying to fight for the just treatment of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Intersex and Questioning (LGBTIQ) Muslims. The movement does not preach to others to become homosexuals, but asks Muslims to be tolerant of these “sexual m...
Read more

The myth of September 6, 1965

Every year we Pakistanis celebrate September 6th with a lot of ‘national fervour’ and laud the armed forces for being ‘victorious’ against the Indian forces back in the 1965 war. The state commemorates the ‘Defence Day’ by holding various ceremonies and special programmes. Milli naghmay (patriotic songs) are aired on the local television channels and radio stations, while the newspapers bring out special supplements to mark the day. This is all very well, but I wonder if our people know that in actuality we are not celebrating a victory. Not only did we lose militarily in 1965 – state propaganda aside – but we also lost our national unity in the process. Forty-two years down the road, ours is a country that is on the verge of dismemberment, again. August 1947 gave birth to two independent states, India and Pakistan. It also gave birth to territorial disputes that haunt both South Asian neighbours to date. Kashmir is one of the main disputed territories. The two infant states fought a ...
Read more

Bitter truth

Sindh Home Minister Dr Zulfiqar Mirza is a loose cannon and, if rubbed the wrong way, will fire away. At the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), Dr Mirza was hit by a barrage of complaints by the city’s industrialists and traders for failing to give them adequate protection. Obviously stung by the criticism, he said that “people cast votes for extortionists; they should now talk to their elected representatives for law and order”. Dr Mirza pinned the blame for the deteriorating law and order situation mostly on the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). “Dr Imran Farooq was murdered in London, but buses of Pakhtuns were torched in Karachi. Did Asfandyar Wali kill Dr Imran Farooq?” asked Dr Mirza. He went on to allege that when “they [the MQM] want to kill any Pakhtun, Sindhi, Punjabi or Baloch in Karachi, they go about executing their plan methodically”. What Dr Mirza said is politically inappropriate given that the MQM is a coalition partner of the PPP government both at the Cen...
Read more