No threat to Saudi Arabia, Pakistan should stay away: MPs

ISLAMABAD: A consensus has seemingly emerged within the ranks of the opposition members in the joint sitting of both the houses of parliament as they again asked the government on Wednesday to play the role of a mediator and peacemaker in the Yemen conflict instead of becoming a party to it by sending troops on the request of Saudi Arabia. They said that there existed no immediate threat to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan should lend its diplomatic and moral support to her.
On the third day of discussion on Wednesday, the opposition legislators were on the same page and wanted Pakistan to help in mediation and peacemaking to end the conflict.PPP’s Parliamentary Leader in the Senate Saeed Ghani sought the government’s clear stance on the Yemen conflict saying it seemed the government did not want to present the real facts before parliament. “The issue cannot move forward unless parliament is apprised of the facts,” he added.
He asked why the joint sitting was convened when the prime minister had stated that all the details could not be shared in an open forum. At the same time, the PPP senator also agreed for calling an in-camera session to discuss sensitive issues.
He also objected to the absence of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs and National Security Sartaj Aziz from the proceedings saying that he should have turned up to listen to the suggestions of parliamentarians.
PTI leader Dr Shireen Mazari was of the opinion that Pakistan should remain out of the war in Yemen because it was not about Saudi Arabia’s territorial sovereignty or integrity as was being portrayed, rather it was a civil conflict inside Yemen.
“The Pakistan Army troops should not be sent anywhere just to fight other countries’ wars. Our brave soldiers are already fighting a war in the country and they cannot become fodder for foreign wars,” she opined.
Senator Saeed Ghani emphasised that the government’s stance on Yemen was not clear. He said the government should share each and every thing with parliament on the Saudi-Yemeni conflict. “An in-camera session of parliament should be held for more open discussion on the issue,” he added.
Dr Shireen Mazari said Pakistan had to decide as a nation if it wanted to be a part of this civil war or stay out of this war and strive for peace. “If we want to strive for peace, we will have to stay neutral and should not become a party to this conflict,” she said.
She said if there was any threat to Makkah and Medina, it would be our responsibility as Muslims to protect them. But there was no such threat,” she said.Dr Shireen Mazari said that Pakistan should learn from mistakes it had committed in the past. “After 9/11, we pledged to provide them (the Americans) logistical support, but we opened everything up for the CIA and Blackwater,” she said.
She was of the opinion that the government should learn from history, defend the country, not the entire Muslim world.She said the PTI’s policy was clear on the issue as the military was already overstretched. “This is not our war. We will not turn our army into camel fodder for others’ wars,” she said.
She said that Pakistan should oppose this principle of the ‘coalition of the willing’ and bypassing the UN Charter. “Just like the US, Saudi Arabia is forming a coalition of the willing. Why did Saudi Arabia not go to the United Nations?” she asked.
She also raised the question of return of Pakistani ambassador from Yemen prior to the evacuation of all the Pakistanis from the war-hit Yemen. “Why did the Foreign Office not investigate the return of Pakistan ambassador from Yemen and whether was anyone made accountable for it?” she added.
She also questioned why Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif did not place all the facts before parliament and why this secrecy was.Dr Shireen Mazari said it was the right of the nation to ask why the Pakistani flag was seen among the flags of the coalition countries when no formal decision had been taken on joining the Saudi-led offensive in Yemen. “We request the defence minister to state the facts on issues instead of political point-scoring,” she said.
Talking about the remarks of Khawaja Asif on the return of the PTI to the assemblies on Monday, Dr Shireen Mazari demanded of the National Assembly speaker to expunge his remarks, terming them ‘un-parliamentary’.
The National Assembly’s Speaker, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, replied if he found any un-parliamentary words, he would expunge them.
Senator Syed Muzaffar Hussain Shah of the PML (Functional) voiced concern over the prevailing situation in Yemen. He said Saudi Arabia had legitimate apprehensions about the situation in its neighbouring country as it did not want a hostile government in Sanaa. He pointed out that Pakistan had excellent relations with Saudi Arabia which had always extended political, diplomatic and financial support in the hour of need.
He said that Pakistan should not become a party to the conflict but at the same time it was Pakistan’s moral responsibility to say that Pakistan should do whatever was possible to strengthen the defence capabilities of Saudi Arabia.
He proposed that a peacekeeping force of Islamic countries should be sent to Yemen to ward off the warring factions. He said the Pakistani troops should be made a part of this peacekeeping mission.
Syed Tahir Hussain Mashhadi of the MQM said that Pakistani troops were already engaged in a difficult war against the terrorists and Pakistan could not afford to entangle them in another war.
He said Pakistan enjoyed a special stature in the comity of Islamic countries and it should work for bringing the Muslim countries closer. He said Pakistan should make efforts for a ceasefire amongst the warring factions in Yemen and also send humanitarian aid there.
“Except the US and Israel, no one has reaped benefits from the Arab Spring. An independent, sovereign state of Yemen has been attacked in a pre-emptive military strike by another independent state. The Saudis are asking another independent Muslim state for military aid,” he said.
The senator said that Saudi Arabia was not under any threat adding that Saudi Arabia was having a large army and abundance of weapons. “Then why is it asking Pakistan for help?” he questioned.
Lt General (retd) Senator Abdul Qayyum of the PML-N said Pakistan was a strong country and it should play the leadership role in defusing the situation in Yemen. He said a peacekeeping force under the umbrella of the United Nations should be sent to Yemen after the ceasefire there.
He also proposed that an OIC meeting should be held to find a durable solution to the Middle East crisis. He said if any Muslim country was playing a proxy war in Yemen, it was not doing any service to the Muslim Ummah.
Senator Muhammad Ilyas Bilour of the ANP said the government should work with other Muslim countries for the revival of peace to Yemen.He said if peace was not restored in Yemen, it could become a hub of Daish and al-Qaeda.
Usman Khan Kakar of the PkMAP said the Yemen crisis was a sensitive issue and the Islamic countries and the United Nations should play constructive roles for a peaceful settlement of the issue. He said in the present circumstances, the holy sites in Saudi Arabia faced no threat. “Therefore, we should not send troops to Saudi Arabia,” he added.
He said parliament’s decision on the Yemen situation should be implemented in letter and spirit.Iftikharuddin of the All Pakistan Muslim League said that Pakistan’s policy on the Yemen crisis should be framed keeping in view the national interests. “We should act carefully and become part of a peaceful solution to the issue,” he added.
He said Pakistan should also take on board the neighbouring countries for evolving a consensus policy on Yemen.