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Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Has Pakistan's Civil, Military leadership failed totally? - By Ansar Abbasi (The News, 3 May 2011)

Courtesy: Daily "The News", 3 May 2011

Has our civil, military leadership failed totally?
By Ansar AbbasiISLAMABAD: When they told us he is a great Jihadi hero, we treated him like a prince. When they said he is the main architect of 9/11, we blindly believed them and cursed him. When they stated he is the world’s top “terrorist”, he instantly became a terrorist for us too. And now they claim they have killed him within Pakistani territory and have thrown his body into the sea, we also took it as the gospel truth and are jubilant because they are delighted.
Pakistan is really a sold nation. We have truly become America’s voice. We have no decision of our own. We have stopped thinking and acting independently, and we can’t believe Pakistan can survive without Washington’s support.


It was President Obama, who made the announcement of one of the “most successful” operations during his tenure. He confirmed that the US Special Forces conducted the operation against what is claimed as Osama bin Laden’s hideout, just adjacent to Pakistan’s top military academy Kakul in Abbotabad. Our Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani termed it a “great victory” hours after Obama’s announcement but did not feel, even slightly, about the flagrant breach of Pakistan’s sovereignty by the US forces.
The Americans say it was an operation, carried out by 25 US Marines in two fighting helicopters, one of which was shot down but not even a single Marine was injured or dead. We and our rulers buy everything that Washington sells without raising any fundamental question. From which part of Pakistan these helicopters flew and where were the US Marines stationed. Did they come from across the border? In any case, Pakistan’s sovereignty was breached yet again, but it did not bother any of the government or military leader.
According to reports, while the American Special Forces opted to conduct the operations, the Pakistani soldiers were made to cordon off the area to ensure no one interrupted it. A leading Pakistani journalist claims that the operation was a shock for the Pakistan Army, which was not informed prior to it.
Within weeks of the shame Pakistan earned over the Raymond Davis episode, this is yet another serious case of national humiliation that we have attracted at the hands of our civilian and military leadership. Why did the president and prime minister allow foreign troops to conduct a ground operation within Pakistan? Certainly, by doing this they have not violated the oath of their office.
While the political leaders have been generally seen as a “sold commodity”, what is now left for Pakistan’s military establishment to say. Within 48 hours of Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani’s statement that the dignity and honour of Pakistan and its people would not be compromised to achieve prosperity, the get-Osama operation was conducted by the US Marines. The nation was in the process of gradually healing up the deep wound inflicted by Davis’ release in a shameful manner that it received a yet another much deeper wound.
It does not matter whether the operation was conducted with the cooperation of the Pakistan Army leadership or without its information, in both cases it’s a charge-sheet against the military establishment. Why should we raise and sustain the world’s seventh largest Army, costing more than Rs600 billion per year, if it could not or does not counter such a foreign invasion?
If Osama was considered a terrorist by the Pakistani government just because of being convinced by Washington’s propaganda, then why was not he apprehended by our own forces? He should have been tried and sentenced here if he was doing anything in violation of the law of the land.
Osama was branded a terrorist by the US after his alleged involvement in the 9/11 attack, which resulted in the killing of a few thousand innocent Americans. So, the principle is that those who kill innocents are terrorists. Therefore, if Osama was a terrorist for his alleged involvement in the 9/11 episode, then following the same principle why the US, which is responsible for killing more than a million innocent Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan, is not termed a terrorist state?
If Osama, without a trial, could be condemned and killed, then why the killer states involved in the assassination of innocent Muslims in Indian Held Kashmir and Palestinians — India and Israel — are not declared terrorist states for killing innocents.
The Pakistani leadership might have thought that it would pocket more dollars in exchange for the latest shame earned for the nation. But in reality Pakistan might soon find itself between the devil and the deep sea. Instead of getting dollars, the whole world has already started discussing Pakistan as the epicentre of terrorism. And what al-Qaeda and Taliban would do with Pakistan is anybody’s guess.

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