Pakistan may become a 'failed state'

[pkpatriotic]

First the good news: analysts gazing into the crystal ball, in what amounts to an exercise in fortune-telling based on intelligence reports, see a diminished global role in the future for the US. But the bad news is that this world could be a riskier, multi-polar place with nuclear weapons, terrorism and expanding populations all posing their own risks. Worse still, in its assessment entitled 'Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World’, the US National Intelligence Council, an independent government body, has reiterated warnings made in previous reports that by this time, Pakistan may be a failed state and indeed may even have vanished entirely from the map in its present form. It also describes Pakistan today as among the countries in the world most hostile to the US, but reverses predictions it had made in the past of increased US dominance over the world. Instead, new players – including China, Russia, India and Brazil are expected to assume a greater role.

It is easy, indeed tempting, to dismiss such grim assessments as nothing more than conspiracy. In 2005, an NIC warning about a Balkanization of Pakistan and a prediction that it could face a fate similar to that of Yugoslavia, had been scoffed at as a CIA attempt to destabilize the country. This may indeed be true. There have been many examples of such attempts to manipulate events within countries. But given the number of international studies that warn of a perilous future for Pakistan, many of which come in from prestigious bodies such as Foreign Policy magazine, perhaps it is time to sit up and pay attention. After all, it is only the most foolish parents who dismiss consistent report cards in red from schools as evidence of bias by teachers without making efforts to address issues that may be affecting their child’s performance.

Our leaders, and indeed other citizens in powerful places, need to play the part of responsible parents. We must use the bleak assessments coming in to try and ascertain how far they are accurate, so that problems can be addressed. After all, the possibility of a breakup of our country is not one that should be taken sitting down. Yet so far, despite the acute economic crisis we face, despite the breakdown in the rule of law, despite grave socio-economic disharmony triggering a wave of crime, despite growing federal discord and despite other signs that are before us of a state having been unable to manage affairs, there is a curious sense of complacency. At times attitudes in Islamabad seem to mirror those of the deranged Roman emperor Nero, who fiddled around as the city burned. Certainly, there seems to have been an inability or a lack of readiness to accept the conditions we face. Life, made up of joy trips abroad, of lavish parties, occasional meetings and of rhetorical statements, continues as usual. There is pretence of normalcy, a willingness to turn a blind eye to issues. But this dangerous, ostrich-like approach will lead us nowhere. We need to lift our heads out of the sand and look straight on at the problems that glare out at us. Not only the government, but other people – particularly those in a position to shape influence – need to act. This includes the media men and women, the writers, the professionals and all those who possess the vision to gaze into the future. As rational people, we all know this future is not set in stone. The image appearing in crystal balls can be changed through intelligent thought and action. Now is the time for such action, before the bleak forecasts of the NIC turn into reality, percepted by the news.

 

[RabzonKhan]

The long view

By Ahmad Faruqui
January 19, 2009

THERE is an abundance of dire predictions about the future of Pakistan and a dearth of rosy ones. The latest dystopia comes from the US Joint Forces Command.

Its Joint Operating Environment report was issued just as the Mumbai attacks were unfolding, which means that the negative effects on Pakistan’s security of that event did not get factored in. Even then, in its worst-case scenario, there was “a rapid and sudden collapse” of Pakistan.

That Pakistan may succumb to a “violent and bloody civil and sectarian war” was made more dangerous by concerns over the country’s nuclear arsenal. Picking up on the latter theme, David Sanger notes in the New York Times that the many threats to that arsenal constitute president-elect Barack Obama’s worst nightmare.

Another dire prediction is from the National Intelligence Council (NIC), a branch of the CIA which conducts such assessments every four years. In Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World, we encounter the following scenario: “The future of Pakistan is a wild card ... the North West Frontier Province and tribal areas will continue to be poorly governed and the source or supporter of cross-border instability. If Pakistan is unable to hold together until 2025, a broader coalescence of Pashtun tribes is likely to emerge and act together to erase the Durand Line, maximising Pashtun space at the expense of Punjabis.”

Eight years ago, just as Pervez Musharraf was arriving on the scene, the NIC had sketched a bleak future. It predicted that by the year 2015: “Pakistan will not recover easily from decades of political and economic mismanagement, divisive policies, lawlessness, corruption and ethnic friction. Nascent democratic reforms will produce little change in the face of opposition from an entrenched political elite and radical Islamic parties. Further domestic decline would benefit Islamic political activists, who may significantly increase their role in national politics and alter the makeup and cohesion of the military — once Pakistan’s most capable institution. In a climate of continuing domestic turmoil, the central government’s control probably will be reduced to the Punjabi heartland and the economic hub of Karachi.”

Towards the end of the Musharraf era, rosy scenarios were being mass-produced by his prime minister. Just as political chaos was about to reach a crescendo, 2007 was declared as the Visit Pakistan Year. The bloom on Musharraf’s rose faded as abruptly as it did on Ayub’s Great Decade.

Pakistan’s current situation — not just the dystopian futures painted in the two American reports — is a far cry from the vision of Pakistan ’s founding fathers, Iqbal and Jinnah. They had envisaged a nation that would unite the Muslims, not divide them.

Jinnah laid out a clear prescription for getting there: “If we want to make this great state of Pakistan happy and prosperous, we should wholly and solely concentrate on the well-being of the people, and especially of the masses of the poor. If you will work in cooperation, forgetting the past, you are bound to succeed.”

Alas, the advice to focus on the future was not taken as the nation soon plunged into reliving the battles of the past. The storm over Mumbai will eventually pass but what about the gathering storm in Swat and the full force gale that is blowing through Fata? The tussle between the ISI, the army and the civilian government continues. A new tussle appears to have emerged between the civilian president and prime minister, both of the PPP. There are few signs that the judges will be restored or that the nefarious constitutional amendments dating back to the Zia era will be annulled.

Pakistan, one would think, is destined to limp along from crisis to crisis. That was in fact how Herbert Feldman captioned his history, which surveyed developments in the 1962-69 timeframe. A man who made his mark during that period, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, took power saying he was a man of crises. Unfortunately, the crises got the better of him. The decade of the seventies was the worst in the nation’s history.

Thirty years later, the situation has gone from bad to worse. So it is not surprising to see that some experts do not expect Pakistan to survive by the time 2025 rolls around, at least not in a form that even remotely resembles the nation that exists today.

Those who believe in conspiracy theories will dismiss these scenarios because they originate in the US. However, it is time for Pakistan’s leaders to ponder three fundamental questions. Is a meltdown avoidable? Is it possible to envision a rosy future? What will it take to get there?

To avoid a meltdown, first and foremost, a change in political culture needs to occur. Extremism has to be taken out and replaced with tolerance. The government cannot do this by fiat. The clergy, the academics, the literati and the media — they have to bring this about, from the grassroots up.

Secondly, law and order has to be restored on the streets. It is not possible to envision a rosy future if kidnappings, robberies, murders and beheadings dominate the headlines.

Under such conditions, who will invest in Pakistan? Not even the Pakistanis. Without investment, there will be no growth. Without growth, there will be no reduction in poverty. With poverty comes extremism. To get out of the rut, the nation’s priorities have to shift radically. The number one focus has got to be on human, social and political development and not on religion or the military. This does not mean that people have to become irreligious. They just have to expunge religion from politics. Tolerance of differences should be the motto, since strength comes from diversity.

Nor does it mean that there should be no military. It simply means the military should play no political role. Pakistan is a textbook case where the sole focus on the military has ruined not only the territorial dimension of national security, as it did in 1971 and as it now threatens to do in Fata, but also sown the seeds of discord among the people and the provinces.

Given its talented workforce, Pakistan could one day become a haven for foreign investment. Given its natural beauty, it could even become a tourist destination. But barring a change in its strategic culture, such a rosy scenario cannot be envisioned.

The author has co-edited Pakistan: Unresolved issues of State and Society, Vanguard Books.

 

[A1Kaid]

Pakistan has very bad governance record throughout the decade. We have had leader's that mismanage the country's money, a roller coaster ride with foreign investment, bad economic policies (though PM S.Aziz did try privatization of the private sector)...We have had bombings in our country that frighten foreign investors...Our rupee tumbles down in value, bad education and school quality, poor health care infrastructure...High inflation....Problem after problem after problem...

This is why many Pakistanis sadly have to leave their home country and move to the West...Because there is little opportunity in Pakistan, even for a University educated student it is difficult to find a good career...

Many of the streets are dusty and dirty, we still have donkeys and horses riding on the roads in many towns and the animals leave their excrement on the road, this can easily cause an outbreak of viruses and diseases, when it rains in many parts of Pakistan the flood waters easily rise because there is no proper draining system, when you go to the bazaar there are so many flies flying around the food...

Now we also have these power/energy shortages were the electricity is cut off every two hours or so...

Indeed these are hard times and shameful times...


This is just one dark side of Pakistan...

Quite frankly I know the truth and don't care what any of you think about what I just said.

 

[Cheetah786]

hmmm hmmm i am not sure how to tell the Americans them self right now they are kind of failed state them self banks gone belly up stocks crashed almost all sectors of economy going down government debt is 100% of GDP and growing deficit to run in trillion dollars or more.

i am just saying how do they plan to save them self from being a failed state?

 

[niaz]

As someone who has witnessed Pakistan from her birth on the most auspicious day in 1947, I would not call Pakistan a failed state but agree with the title of Roedad Khan’s book “A dream gone sour”. I have witnessed the deterioration of moral values in the society, increase in crime, education standards falling! Corruption has increased and even fake degrees are available. What are the reasons? I admit having a very biased view.

I have heard village mullahs of Deobandi and Braelvi mosques calling each other names, I have personally known a Deobandi mullah arranging young boys to throw stones on the Moharrum procession. Therefore in my opinion lack of education and lack of emancipation of women (50% of the population) are the root causes. The decline has been helped along by the bigoted village mullahs. We had less rapes, less murders, virtually no kidnapping for ransom and no suicide bombings before the likes of bigot Zia tried to make us better Muslims and ISI under Hamid Gul decided to sponsor Islamist terrorists with CIA funding.


I post an article published in today’s News for Hon Members perusal. One may or may not agree with its contents, but it is very well written.

Quote


The state and status of women

Thursday, January 22, 2009
Sarwar Bari

For many years we have been witnessing women being prevented to participate in the electoral process both as voters and candidates. Shamelessly, despite their cutthroat competition, the religious and so-called liberal parties engaged in this fraud. And the Election Commission of Pakistan has never taken any action against this clear violation of its code of conduct. In addition, the state has been ominously silent on the closure and burning of girls' schools and women's colleges in some parts of the country. It also must be noted that recently, when the Islamic Ideological Council announced some pro-women recommendations on divorce, the mullahs aggressively opposed them, while the so-called pro-women parties did not bother to defend the recommendations.

Is it not an irony, especially when the Constitution of Pakistan (Articles 25 and 34) guarantees equality between the two sexes? Let us not forget that Pakistan also signed the Convention for the Elimination of All Kinds of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). In order to achieve the objectives of CEDAW, Pakistan has also launched a Gender Reform Action Plan. In short, it could be concluded that the constitutional and policy framework of the state of Pakistan is externally pro-women, but inwardly it has no shame when its own laws are violated. This hidden contradiction needs a comprehensive analysis. Space constraint allows only a brief examination.

In order to understand this contradiction, we need to understand the social basis of the Pakistani state. The Pakistani state is heavily dependent on mullahs and feudal/tribal sardars for its ideological and political legitimacy, respectively.

The feudals and the tribal chiefs mischievously managed to keep their constituencies backward through conspiracies and manipulation of development policies. As a result, they have been controlling their respective vote banks for so long. Most mainstream political parties, we know very well, often tend to issue party tickets to those candidates who have their own vote banks since most, including the PPP, have small ideological vote banks of their own. It appears that often a combination of vote banks of the party and of powerful individual determines success in election. At the time of allocation of portfolios these powerful feudal/tribal chiefs would often grab crucial ministries. Along with this, they would also hold important positions in the political parties. Thus, they control both the government and the party's policymaking institutions. They use this power as a tool of patronage in their constituencies and within parties. In constituencies their cronies suppress any dissent and resistance and inside political parties they outmanoeuvre any progressive move. Consequently, they have made political parties dependent on them.

They don't take much time to switch their loyalties when a Military General takes over power. Mawaz Sharif was left alone when Musharraf sacked him. This was a replay of 1958 and 1977. Most feudal and tribal chiefs provided readymade political support to legitimacy-starved usurpers. In the presence of such feudal/tribal chiefs no military dictator was afraid of holding of elections. With a little help from the police and revenue departments "positive" results could be achieved. In return, they are given a free hand in their constituencies. The political leaders who were overthrown by the military dictators would once again take back, with all privileges, the positions they had been deprived of ten years ago. In short, these chiefs are the political need of both the civilian and the military dictators.

As for the mullahs, though they played no role in the creation of Pakistan, they managed to assert themselves through the civil bureaucracy, and the rootless (those who had left their constituencies in India) and conservative politicians in the early years of the independence. The Pakistani state was under tremendous pressure from powerful secular and nationalist politicians of East Pakistan, which is now Bangladesh, the NWFP, Sindh and Balochistan. In order to gel the conservative forces against the secular and socialist groups, the term ideology of Pakistan was coined. The Objectives Resolution was their first onslaught against the vision of Jinnah and the people of Pakistan. This was just the beginning of the so-called Islamisation process in Pakistan. It provided the mullahs a power to define and interpret actions and policies of the governments and politicians from the religious perspective. They never stopped afterwards. They continued their theocratic invasion against the society, the politics and the state. Converting the Ahmadia sect a non-Muslim through constitutional legislation was their second major victory. Sadly, in the 1977 election camping, Mr Bhutto made it one of the major achievements of his government. While Bhutto was proudly claiming it, most mullahs were now using the rest of the secular politicians through the platform of the Pakistan National Alliance, a coalition of nine parties against Bhutto. Its main slogan was the introduction of "Nizam-e-Mustafa." The PNA launched its anti-Bhutto campaign. Under pressure, Bhutto banned alcohol and gambling and introduced Friday as a weekly holiday. He failed to appease the mullahs. They wanted Islamabad, not Islam. When Zia imposed his dictatorial rule, he fully used the mullahs against the secular parties, and in return he had to share some power with them. His Islamisation drive tremendously boosted the role of the mullah. These consequences are still being felt today.

For a long time the Pakistani establishment used Islam as a tool for the liberation of Kashmir. This would naturally enhance the status and leverage of mullah in politics and society. Gradually the dependence of the state on the mullah increased. The Afghan jihad further entrenched the relationship between the state and the mullahs. After the withdrawal of the Soviet Union from Afghanistan, the mullahs were trained to fight in Kashmir. The jihadi groups and their patron religious parties were given a free hand to raise funds in the name of jihad, intimidate democratic elements and suppression of women. They played the role very well.

However, the continued subjugation of women is no longer possible as gender awakening is spreading fast. The mullahs see it the greatest threat to its values. Wherever they got some influence, they put women in the four walls of the home. Cases in point are Afghanistan, Swat and FATA. For the feudal and tribal chiefs keeping women under the control of men in the name of honour and traditions is vital as they play a crucial role in the rural and tribal economies. In their view, any alternation in gender power relations and family structure would disrupt the production process. Therefore, any dissent and resistance is crushed brutally and often-local sardars provide full protection to those who commit crimes against women. In return, those responsible for the crimes vote for the sardars. We know very well women voters matter little in election campaigns. The candidates and parties don't approach the female electorate directly. Male members of families who have full control over their women play this role. It is the political economy of gender relations, stupid.

As long as the state is dependent on these two retrogressive forces we will neither see any improvement in the status of women nor in governance in Pakistan. The implementation on the Constitution of Pakistan, the CEDAW and the MDGs will remain only a dream. The unholy alliance of mullahs-feudals and the state will not let us, and the world, have peace.

The democratic forces and women of Pakistan must consider this unholy alliance as the most serious challenge. If women do need to alter the decadent repressive family structure and want to evolve a democratic family they have to organize themselves at local level. They must use their voting power as a tool for gender change. They should form alliances across social groups i.e. trade unions, peasant associations and artisans etc. The women councilors can provide leadership at local level. The CSOs must use intelligently the space that is being created by the Constitution of Pakistan, pro-women policy framework and the commitment of the state of Pakistan, which she has given to the international community under the CEDAW, MDGS and other covenants. A section of media also appears to be pro-rights and democracy. Thus, it could be argued that the required ingredients of a peaceful social change are very much present in the country. It needs a platform. Its birth can weaken the stranglehold of the anti-women forces and their relationship with the state. We must remember that only democratic and enlightened social forces will transform the nature of the Pakistani state.

Unquote


The writer is the National Coordinator of Pattan Development Organisation
The state and status of women

 

[rubyjackass]

strangely.....world( US) is only concerned about pak because it has nukes.........imagine if that were not the case........!
since nukes are the only prob (according to US)........then maybe they would employ a method to get pak rid of them......if 'saving pak'( they are using the term) becomes too hard a task.......!

Kissinger was in power when American policies favoured Pakistan and they saw India with paranoid hatred. His comments against rather insulting India were from that time. And these are the most quoted ones of Pakistani posters here.

THis is present Kissinger.
We can't be sure when he is in his right senses.

 

[duhastmish]

i think if KISSIGER FEARS nothing much anybody can do here. he is entitled to give his own opinion. i read his earlier anti indian articals.

In a private conversation with then-President Richard Nixon, Mr. Kissinger called Mrs. Gandhi a "BIT*H" and described Indians as "ba#*ards."

But Mr. Kissinger told New Delhi Television he has "extremely high regard" for Mrs. Gandhi as a statesman, adding that she was a "great leader who did great things for her country."
Kissinger Expresses Regret for Anti-Indian Remarks
now i wonder why would somebody care for his comment who changes his stands. Mind you this was not the only incident.

 

[A1Kaid]

Niaz you blame a lot of Pakistan's social and political problems on the "mullahs", but would you accept that a lot of Pakistan's problems are created due to lack of economic opportunity and poor socio-economic status...If you do, then how do you suppose the "Mullah's" also ruin Pakistan's economic progress as well...

Blame must also be assigned to Pakistan's bad leadership, policymakers, and economist...Also the fact we have a territorial dispute for over 60 years doesn't help either, because it leaves us bogged down in a costly struggle...

So I would ask you are you in favor of secularizing/westernizing Pakistan? Do you think that will reduce the power of "Mullahs" in Pakistan?

The fact is Pakistan today is called a moderate-to-conservative "Muslim country" so secularizing Pakistan would be difficult and perhaps unacceptable.


Also even though Pakistan has passed legislative bills on woman's rights, the rights are not seriously upheld and implemented on the ground and household level...

My recommendation is fund and lift education support it aggressively, built large and well endowed schools, finance them, good curriculum based in math, science, world history, Islam, politics, etc...Also teach woman's right.

 

[roopesh]

I can clearly see Pakistan going to kind of failed state. I dont see US stopping war in Afghan in atleast Obama's 1st term. He would pullout from Iraq and deploy in Afghan more strategically important place. Pakistan would continue supporting as Zardari supports US. If pakistan doenst plan for its economic growth it wold create big impact in anothe 4 years.

 

[niaz]

Niaz you blame a lot of Pakistan's social and political problems on the "mullahs", but would you accept that a lot of Pakistan's problems are created due to lack of economic opportunity and poor socio-economic status...If you do, then how do you suppose the "Mullah's" also ruin Pakistan's economic progress as well...

Blame must also be assigned to Pakistan's bad leadership, policymakers, and economist...Also the fact we have a territorial dispute for over 60 years doesn't help either, because it leaves us bogged down in a costly struggle...

So I would ask you are you in favor of secularizing/westernizing Pakistan? Do you think that will reduce the power of "Mullahs" in Pakistan?

The fact is Pakistan today is called a moderate-to-conservative "Muslim country" so secularizing Pakistan would be difficult and perhaps unacceptable.


Also even though Pakistan has passed legislative bills on woman's rights, the rights are not seriously upheld and implemented on the ground and household level...

My recommendation is fund and lift education support it aggressively, built large and well endowed schools, finance them, good curriculum based in math, science, world history, Islam, politics, etc...Also teach woman's right.

I am not a secularist. I believe that any one who believes in five pillars of Islam is a Muslim just as I do. I also believe that Pakistan was envisaged as a state where Muslims would be free to practice their religion without any impediment, it was never meant to be ‘Theocratic State”.

No doubt our leaders have failed us and are as much to blame for the downward slope that Pakistan society has been on since the time of the bigot Zia. Any one, who remembers Pakistan as it was until 1965, would vouch that Pakistan, despite her poverty, was a great country to live in. Life was simpler but far more pleasant. Even until 1976, when I used to travel all over Pakistan as Sales Development Manager for Esso, Pakistan was a safe and a pleasant place to be. I would give anything to revert the time Pakistan was then, only if it was possible.

Mullahs knew that they would never get power in Pakistan thru democratic means. Therefore they co-operated with the bigot Zia, the worst misfortune that Pakistan has ever had to endure. Mullah also got a windfall in the form of Russian invasion and CIA funding. The retrogressive forces, which were always against creation of Pakistan, found themselves awash with US money. They saw it as a chance to find grass root support in illiterate masses. Madrassahs mushroomed over night. Bigotry, sectarianism, ethnicity, language riots, Pathan's massacring Biharis in Karachi, birth of MQM; you name what ever ails Pakistan today and you will find this either worsened or started from Zia’s time on wards. Now we have GOP negotiating with militants. Pray tell me, was there an election in Swat, haven’t these militants used force to capture Swat. Isn’t this a destruction of Pakistan, when small band of militants take over part of your country and you are compelled to negotiate with them. Because these thugs use the name of Islam, most of the country accepts it? Suppose they takeover whole of NWFP next, then Punjab. Where is Pakistan then?

For heavens sake, Gov’t writ was challenged inside Islamabad by a tiny fraction of the militants in Lal Masjid, but many so called patriots supported these terrorists!

What we need is more education and an environment where our culture can prosper. Where innovation and scientific research can germinate. Our culture includes folk dances such as bhangra, music, Sufis and immortal poetry such as Heer or verses of baba Buleh Shah. Instead what we get is Salafin dogma being rammed down our throat by force.

A serious possibility of a civil war between extremist and moderate forces now exists. If mullahs, Zia and the likes of Hamid Gul are not to blame, then who is the guilty party?

Our economic situation is ruined because of the law and order problem created by the religious terrorists which puts Pakistan on the list as of one the most dangerous places to visit. Thus lot of investment is running away from Pakistan. No doubt ineptitude of the bureaucracy and corruption has also been a major factor.

 

[Patriot]

I am not a secularist. I believe that any one who believes in five pillars of Islam is a Muslim just as I do. I also believe that Pakistan was envisaged as a state where Muslims would be free to practice their religion without any impediment, it was never meant to be ‘Theocratic State”.

No doubt our leaders have failed us and are as much to blame for the downward slope that Pakistan society has been on since the time of the bigot Zia. Any one, who remembers Pakistan as it was until 1965, would vouch that Pakistan, despite her poverty, was a great country to live in. Life was simpler but far more pleasant. Even until 1976, when I used to travel all over Pakistan as Sales Development Manager for Esso, Pakistan was a safe and a pleasant place to be. I would give anything to revert the time Pakistan was then, only if it was possible.

Mullahs knew that they would never get power in Pakistan thru democratic means. Therefore they co-operated with the bigot Zia, the worst misfortune that Pakistan has ever had to endure. Mullah also got a windfall in the form of Russian invasion and CIA funding. The retrogressive forces, which were always against creation of Pakistan, found themselves awash with US money. They saw it as a chance to find grass root support in illiterate masses. Madrassahs mushroomed over night. Bigotry, sectarianism, ethnicity, language riots, Pathan's massacring Biharis in Karachi, birth of MQM; you name what ever ails Pakistan today and you will find this either worsened or started from Zia’s time on wards. Now we have GOP negotiating with militants. Pray tell me, was there an election in Swat, haven’t these militants used force to capture Swat. Isn’t this a destruction of Pakistan, when small band of militants take over part of your country and you are compelled to negotiate with them. Because these thugs use the name of Islam, most of the country accepts it? Suppose they takeover whole of NWFP next, then Punjab. Where is Pakistan then?

For heavens sake, Gov’t writ was challenged inside Islamabad by a tiny fraction of the militants in Lal Masjid, but many so called patriots supported these terrorists!

What we need is more education and an environment where our culture can prosper. Where innovation and scientific research can germinate. Our culture includes folk dances such as bhangra, music, Sufis and immortal poetry such as Heer or verses of baba Buleh Shah. Instead what we get is Salafin dogma being rammed down our throat by force.

A serious possibility of a civil war between extremist and moderate forces now exists. If mullahs, Zia and the likes of Hamid Gul are not to blame, then who is the guilty party?

Our economic situation is ruined because of the law and order problem created by the religious terrorists which puts Pakistan on the list as of one the most dangerous places to visit. Thus lot of investment is running away from Pakistan. No doubt ineptitude of the bureaucracy and corruption has also been a major factor.

Totally agree with you, Sir Niaz.Our Army used religion for strategic interest and built these crazy Talibans for short term AID and weapons.They could have used Northern Areas as a tourist location and earn long term money from it instead of using it as a base of Jihad and cause long term damage to country.Frankly speaking our army leaders and civilian leaders were worried about strategic problems take 71 revenge from india by sending these crazy jihadis into Kashmir and were not interested in economic development.I blame Gen.Zia and the likes of Hamid Gul..

 

[niaz]

First horrifying statistics of Pakistan as published in the Dawn of today

Quote


8,000 dead: is the world aware?

By Muhammad Ali Siddiqi


THE statistics are numbing and mind-boggling and should make any Pakistani sit up: in 2008 the country saw 2,148 terrorist attacks, which caused 6,825 casualties — 2,267 of them fatal.

Suicide attacks alone killed nearly 1,000 people — 967 to be precise — and wounded or maimed for life over 2,000. Of the 63 suicide attacks countrywide, the highest — 32 — occurred in the NWFP, killing and wounding over 1,000 Pakistanis; 10 in Punjab (201, dead, 580 injured), and 16 in Fata (263 dead, 497 injured).

Compiled by the Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies, these statistics do not include those who fell in ‘operational attacks’. According to the think-tanks’ report for 2008, more than 5,500 people were killed or injured in operational attacks (a minimum of 3,182 dead and 2,267 wounded).

What is scary is the steady rise over the years in the number of terrorist attacks and the consequent increase in casualties. In 2006, terrorist attacks left 907 dead and 1,543 injured; in 2007 there was a quantum jump in the figure for the dead — 3,448.

If to those killed in acts of terrorism we add those who died in operational attacks, sectarian and factional clashes and US drone attacks, the total number of civilians and security personnel killed in 2008 comes to a morbid 8,000, with the number of the injured approaching 10,000. The grand total for 2008, thus, comes to 18,000 Pakistani people getting killed or injured in acts of political violence.

Is the world aware of this Pakistani trauma? Going by the doubts cast on our commitment to fight terrorism and the ‘do more’ litany one doubts if we have been able to inform the world what this country and its people have been going through for years. In fact, it appears as if, barring US Vice President Joe Biden and Senator Richard Lugar in America and Foreign Secretary David Miliband in Britain, very few top personalities in the policymaking apparatus in the western world seem to be aware of Pakistan’s plight and the scourge which terrorism has become for us Pakistanis in our daily lives.

Our post-Mumbai diplomatic effort has not been all disaster. It did indeed succeed in convincing the world diplomatic community that Islamabad was not involved in the Mumbai crime. However, Pakistan’s advocacy of its case was characterised by diffidence. It failed to show our justifiable anger over India’s attempt to obfuscate the issue, and often we appeared to be pleading rather than telling.

Has India suffered anything even remotely resembling Pakistan’s trauma as seen in the cold statistics above? The answer is no, but the world evidently doesn’t think so. What the world does is to view the situation in terms of the ‘safe haven’ which is supposed to exist in Fata and elsewhere for the Taliban. That deprives us of the sympathy we deserve.

Luckily for Pakistan, and thanks to the Indian leaders’ obsessions, New Delhi bungled the job from its point of view. India, it became obvious to the world, was seeking international help not against terrorism but for advancing its national interests at Pakistan’s expense. It could have garnered world sympathy if in the aftermath of the Mumbai crisis New Delhi had worked patiently, curbed its anti-Pakistan instincts, focused on terrorism and refrained from launching a diplomatic and media drive aimed at isolating Pakistan. Instead it went over to an unthinking offensive that backfired, Miliband’s plain-speaking coming as a shock to India.

Pakistan must stay the course. The anti-American lobby’s slogans are catchy but hollow. Pulling out of the war on terror could do incalculable damage to Pakistan’s security concerns and come as a godsend for our enemies. Prejudices have no place in the conduct of war and foreign policy. Pakistan cannot afford to be without allies, even if the behaviour of some of our allies doesn’t come up to our expectations, just as ours doesn’t up to theirs. With the change in the White House, we need to exercise greater care and watch. Initial moves aren’t discouraging. The Biden-Lugar bill isn’t everything, but it does show an inkling of the new administration’s mind.


DAWN - Opinion; January 26, 2009

Un Quote

I humbly ask all those Hon Members as well as fellow Pakistani who think that this is not our war but Americas war, are you aware that less Pakistanis were killed in the wars with India. Pakistan’s very survival is at stake!

How many Pakistani lives must be lost to the insane slaughter by Taliban? These people are evil; they don’t give a fig for Pakistan or Islam. These followers of Satan are in it only to impose their will on the silent majority thru the use of brute force. Are we so callous that we have become insensitive to crimes against humanity. There have been so many posts against Israeli attacks on Palestine; no doubt a most heinous crime; but for God's sake, Pakistanis are also Muslims, you have no sympathies to spare for the plight your fellow countrymen?

IMO all those who support these criminals either thru deed, by pen or by contributing money are inadvertently destroying Pakistan. Sincerely hope that people overcome their hatred of the USA and stop aiding and abetting Taliban and Mullah parties directly or indirectly. If any Mullah party had even an iota of love for Pakistan or of humanity, they would be condemning Taliban vociferously. If JI can organize a long March against Islamabad, why not against these devil incarnates in FATA. But JI couldn’t care less for innocent Pakistanis.

 

[RabzonKhan]

Confronting the reality

Monday, February 02, 2009
by Talat Masood

Pakistan is being frequently characterised as a “failed,” “failing” or at best “fragile” state. In the latest world ranking of failed states by an influential US think tank it has been placed ninth and every year or two it has been climbing a few notches. Intelligence estimates by several countries indicate serious reservations about Pakistan’s future. Of course, many among us would discard such categorization a part of a broader conspiracy by the Indo-US-Zionist lobby to undermine Pakistan. Or consider it “unfair,” as Prime Minister Gilani said at the Davos forum. The fact, however, is that alarm bells are being sounded because the world fears that a nuclear state in the midst of internal turmoil could lead to grave consequences.

Some of the country’s most crucial challenges are the rising power of Taliban in FATA and Swat, simmering nationalism in Balochistan, the faltering economy, weak state institutions and poor governance. Of foremost importance would be the quality of leadership that would be provided during these challenging times.

Each of these determinants is interlinked. For example, the rise of militancy would further push the economy into a downward spiral, which in turn would weaken governance and reduce the ability to deal with the militants. In short, failures or successes in any of these areas would be mutually reinforcing, thereby weakening or strengthening the state.

When countries are faced with major challenges political and military leaders have to lead from the front. It is indeed regrettable that our civilian leaders have not once visited FATA or Swat. For that matter, even General Musharraf, though otherwise full of bravado, never visited the troops in FATA.

Many of the rightwing political leaders and media are not prepared to own the war, and stress that it has been imposed by the US to advance its strategic interests. But the fact remains that it is now our problem. This confusion, coupled with hostility to the US, is creating misunderstanding within the leadership and the people and also raising tensions between Pakistan and the US.

Moreover, building institutional capacity is critical for the success of counterinsurgency operations. The Army and the Frontier Corps have to be further trained and equipped for counterinsurgency. There has been some progress, but a lot more has to be achieved if tribal elders and all those willing to support government efforts are to be protected and the writ of state established. The government so far has been unsuccessful in crafting political will for combating the insurgency and depends mostly on what the Americans or the army leadership has to say.

The fight against the insurgency will also require improving the economy, reforming the educational system, streamlining the Madrassa education and strengthening the judiciary and the police force. In the media war militants have proved to be highly subtle and effective. Security forces have been unable to technically jam the FM transmitters or physically destroy them making it so easy for Mullah Fazalullah to spread a reign of terror.

The quality of governance will be a major factor in shaping Pakistan’s future. Both politicians and military rulers have been smart at capturing power but unable to transform political power into good governance. The cry for Sharia and Islamic rule is a manifestation of how people have lost faith in the present system of justice and law enforcement. If the current state of governance is any indicator the future is indeed bleak. The PPP and the PML-N, the two main political parties, instead of competing in areas of governance are locked in intrigues and efforts to destabilise each other. In all fairness, the Punjab government is demonstrating the desire for improved governance, but whether it will be allowed to continue is a matter of speculation. At the centre and in the provinces there is less of institutional governance and more of ad hocism and patronage.

The external dimension is equally crucial. If we are able to normalise relations with India in the coming years it will give a huge peace dividend. Peaceful borders would mean better prospects for the economy, less expenditure on defence and more on development. It will also deprive the militant of his motivation in Punjab. But this cannot happen unless a bold and fundamental shift in the Kashmir policy takes place, in which Pakistan relies solely on diplomatic and political tools for resolving issues with India and forsakes the use of proxies. In the past non-state armed groups may have served certain foreign and strategic objectives have now become a huge liability and need to be abandoned. And jihadi organisations not only have to be banned but demobilised and disarmed.

No one expects that the multiple challenges that Pakistan faces will be resolved soon. What is needed is to set the country in the right direction and take courage’s steps to address the long standing problems, even if it means a total reversal of past policies.

The writer is a retired lieutenant-general. Email: talat@comsats. net.pk

 

[jeypore]

But this cannot happen unless a bold and fundamental shift in the Kashmir policy takes place, in which Pakistan relies solely on diplomatic and political tools for resolving issues with India and forsakes the use of proxies. In the past non-state armed groups may have served certain foreign and strategic objectives have now become a huge liability and need to be abandoned. And jihadi organisations not only have to be banned but demobilised and disarmed.

Very interesting wordage, The reason the jihadi organisation has to be abandone now is they are turning against Pakistan. The old saying is becoming true for Pakistan "live by the sword, die by the sword." I just hope the reliazation is just not to late, or there will more chaos in the south east region.

 

[RescueRanger]

Sorry fell asleep reading the opening article... Same old tripe!