Pakistan's Army Is the Real Obstacle to Peace

[mehru]

indians agree with his views doesnt mean we love him . lol

and all those views are aired on pakistani channels , i am sure that is because there is demand for his analysis in pakistan as well . so why call us indians his lovers ? lol

And btw there are many other pakistanis whose views we agree with which includes nadeem paracha , ahmed rashid , hasan nisar , tariq ali .
all these are very well known people and their views are somewhat similar too .

it only shows that there is some truth in what mr. sethi and his like say .

We also like many writers like Javed Naqvi, Arundhati Roy and Sarmila Bose. You are right. Truth should be respected no matter how unpopular that is.

 

[Patriot]

Like father..like daughter..
It's amusing to read the anti Pakistan Army rants from people sitting in comfortable chilled rooms - Driving around in Bimmers, Mercedes & other luxury cars.Put these people for one day on duty at any post.They will piss in their pants.A real Pakistani might disagree with some individuals within Army but he will never be against Pakistan Army.The only institution that has kept this country together..

 

[LEGENDARY WARRIOR]

Well as far as Sethi family is concerned; I have come to know that Najam Sethi's son studies in U.S and that is why you will never get an anti-american statement from him .

 

[acetophenol]

the title is misleading.
Pak army is no obstacle to peace. If the pak army and their nukes weren't there, uncle sam would have made
an 'operation pakfreedom'!

 

[Secret Service]

Well as far as Sethi family is concerned; I have come to know that Najam Sethi's son studies in U.S and that is why you will never get an anti-american statement from him .

this sethi family has this problem ...i had talked about Najam sethi and other writers who are promoting this S#!t .

 

[Secret Service]

the title is misleading.
Pak army is no obstacle to peace. If the pak army and their nukes weren't there, uncle sam would have made
an 'operation pakfreedom'!

Not to forget ISI who is defending Pakistan both from US and India .

 

[LEGENDARY WARRIOR]

Pakistan's Army Is the Real Obstacle to Peace

Mira Sethi: Pakistan's Army Is the Real Obstacle to Peace - WSJ.com

By MIRA SETHI

Two months after Salman Taseer, the governor of Pakistan's Punjab province, was assassinated by his own bodyguard for criticizing the country's blasphemy law, the only Christian member of the Pakistani cabinet, Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti, was killed for doing his job—advocating protection of the country's two million Christians.

Taseer's assassination prompted a debate: Was the blasphemy law, introduced by Gen. Zia ul-Haq in the 1980s in his bid to "Islamize" Pakistan, being exploited for mundane interests? Was it leading to witch hunts? Bhatti's death should prompt Pakistanis to ask themselves an equally disquieting question: Does Pakistan have a future as a successful nation state, at peace with itself and the world?

The civilian government's reaction to Bhatti's death has outraged many Muslim and Christian Pakistanis. As after Taseer's murder, it retreated into vague bromides. At Bhatti's funeral in Islamabad, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani vowed to "do the utmost to bring the culprits to justice." There was no mention of who these culprits were (the Tehreek-e-Taliban of Punjab has claimed responsibility), no mention of the ideologies, religious parties and jihadi organizations fueling their actions, and no mention of the blasphemy laws that Bhatti had campaigned against.

But the deaths of Taseer and Bhatti are the outcome not just of the Pakistan People's Party abandonment of the principles that once made it an appealing, popular force. They are the result of a decades-long imbalance in governance and power, which now has the PPP and other liberal and centrist civilians cowering in fear.

The failure of the political classes to initiate democratic, constitutional reform after Pakistan's separation from India in 1947 enabled the military to quickly define "national interest" as an anti-India ideology. This ideology, a type of Islamic nationalism, is one from which the Pakistan military has reaped rich dividends. It has kept civilian politicians on the defensive and the people numbed.

With the onset of the Cold War the U.S. armed Pakistan for its own strategic purposes. When the Pakistani army undertook adventures creating instability in the region—wars with India and attempts, eventually successful, to build nuclear weapons—the U.S. suspended military and economic aid.

But the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 put the Pentagon and the Pakistani army on good terms again. This time, Gen. Zia extracted huge sums from Washington: Pakistan's army was paid billions of dollars in direct correlation to its usefulness in organizing an anti-Soviet Islamic jihad. The '90s saw a nasty separation—aid was suspended again—and a reunion followed after 9/11, when the U.S. needed Pakistan's help in Afghanistan.

Now Zia's "children" have come of age. Extremists of all stripes—the Taliban and the mujahedeen—roam the streets of Lahore and Karachi unchecked by the security agencies who once thought it would be a good idea to arm them. Anger and frustration fueled by inequality are making young Pakistanis turn to religion for answers.

As in Egypt, over 60% of the population of Pakistan is under 25. Unlike Egypt, they want an Islamic revolution, not a democratic one. Salman Taseer's police bodyguard—all of 26 years old—killed him for "insulting" the Prophet Muhammad. (The governor had criticized a manmade blasphemy law, not the Prophet, but his assassin didn't know the difference).

Slowly, the U.S. is beginning to understand that Pakistan's existential confusion is the result of the grand strategic designs of the Pakistani military, an army that has carried out three coups to thwart the development of a democratic political system. In the process, Pakistan's civilian leadership has been eliminated—Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto hanged, Benazir Bhutto, Taseer and Bhatti assassinated—the country dismembered, ethnic subnationalism, regional tension and inequalities aggravated.

The U.S. must support civilian supremacy and recognize the Pakistani army's game for what it is. Alarmed by the idea that if America leaves Afghanistan its U.S. funds will dwindle, the military is loath to crush the Islamist warriors who can be "calibrated" to deliver strategic value to it. Until the U.S. recognizes this, Pakistan's military will continue to hold the world to ransom.

Ms. Sethi, a native of Lahore, Pakistan, is assistant books editor at the Journal.

STATEMENTS WITHOUT FACTS !


If Pakistan Army was supporting terrorists; NO OFFICER WOULD HAVE DIED IN ANY KIND OF TERRORIST ATTACK


What about the terrorist attack on GHQ. What about the terrorist attack that killed Lt. Gen. Mushtaq Baig, Surgeon General of Pakistan Army. .

 

[acetophenol]

Not to forget ISI who is defending Pakistan both from US and India .

but the title says pak army only!

 

[IND151]

wait for trolls

 

[LEGENDARY WARRIOR]

but the title says pak army only!

ISI is a part of Pak Army. . AND NO ONE FROM THEM IS INVOLVED IN AIDING TERRORISTS. .

 

[acetophenol]

ISI is a part of Pak Army. . AND NO ONE FROM THEM IS INVOLVED IN AIDING TERRORISTS. .

I didn't tell that isi is aiding
Terrorists bro!

 

[Secret Service]

but the title says pak army only!

ISI is heart of Pak Army.

 

[acetophenol]

ISI is heart of Pak Army.

Sorry for the mistake!

 

[Leviza]

on Daily basis indians come up with most stupid titles ever,

I say indian army is a real issue in creating peace in Kashmir and in Afghanistan....

 

[Spring Onion]

lolzzzzz so according to daughter of najam sethi Pakistan army wants US and NATO to stay in Afghanistan but on the other hand her father's masters aka Americans are claiming that Pakistan army wants US/NATO out of the region.

so guys when you find any sense in her write up what exactly she is trying to say then let me know. so far she is mixing taseer's killing with US support and so on.