A long and graceful life

These were originally remarks at a recent memorial meeting: a galaxy of Pakistani luminaries have paid truly exceptional tributes to the late Sartaj Aziz Sahib (former finance and foreign minister of Pakistan) which he thoroughly deserves.

To quote some of them without naming them, Quaid-e-Azam’s Pakistan “finally died with the late Sartaj Aziz Sahib.” Although Quaid’s Pakistan died in Dhaka more than 50 years ago, Sartaj Sahib was “one of the last surviving soldiers of the Pakistan Movement who dedicated 70 years of his life to nationally and internationally serving Pakistan.”

During this extended period, Sartaj Sahib distinguished himself as “a civil servant par excellence, an international diplomat who commanded huge international respect and influence, a politician of unimpeachable integrity” which we all know is a rare commodity in our beloved country. He was also “a respected academic and educationist, and an economic expert” who played a key role in devising the current international architecture for food and agricultural expertise, advice and development.

He was indeed a polymath, a person whose excellence spans a whole spectrum of fields.

At home, Sartaj Sahib served as finance minister, foreign minister, and adviser on foreign policy to the prime minister. He headed a whole range of national commissions to make critically important recommendations on the apportionment of the Indus Basin waters, food security, Fata reforms including its integration into Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, reforms in Gilgit-Baltistan, and the National Water Policy for the management of water resources, etc.

Unfortunately, his recommendations were by and large ignored by the political and power decision-making elites of Pakistan as a result of which instead of being a stable and rapidly growing democracy the country is where it is today. While the elites respected Sartaj Sahib’s abilities and sincerity, they saw their anti-national self-interests in side-stepping his recommendations.

I came to know Sartaj Sahib through diplomatic colleagues who were close relatives of his and later when he was foreign minister and adviser on foreign policy. During the run up to the nuclear tests of 1998, Sartaj Sahib – while completely supportive of developing a nuclear deterrent – warned the government of the consequences of the step for the extremely vulnerable economy of the country.

The US and India were already well aware of Pakistan’s nuclear capability. Reportedly, the then US president Bill Clinton offered a $5 billion low interest loan (essentially a grant) if Pakistan refrained from testing. Accordingly, Sartaj Aziz advised deliberation and patience which insecure political leaders ignored. The economic consequences of leaders prioritizing their survival in office over the national interest are still with us.

After the Kargil conflict began, I visited Islamabad from Delhi, where I was serving as high commissioner, and Sartaj Sahib insisted I accompany him to a meeting at the GHQ where he encouraged me to give a very frank briefing on what I thought would be the final outcome of the conflict – which I did.

He then visited New Delhi where Jaswant Singh, the Indian foreign minister, received him at the airport out of personal high regard despite his government’s reluctance to receive him at all because the two countries were practically at war so soon after PM Vajpayee’s historic visit to Lahore.

Sartaj Sahib sought to negotiate a way out of the crisis that had negated the achievements of Vajpayee’s visit. The Foreign Office was once again cleaning up the mess after the political and power leadership had made one miscalculation after another. India, however, insisted on prior withdrawal from Kargil for any negotiations to be possible. (Subsequently, the prime minister of Pakistan who had just played host to Vajpayee had to visit Washington to ask for US intervention to facilitate a withdrawal.)

Despite disappointments, Sartaj Sahib’s smiling countenance, his realistic optimism, his kindness, his acute intelligence combined with his disarming modesty, and his generosity of spirit towards younger colleagues left an indelible impression on all of us.

While unfailingly loyal to his political party superiors, he never flinched from frankly telling them about the likely harsh consequences of unwise policies – a quality which probably denied him the honour of serving Pakistan as its president, which was Pakistan’s misfortune.

Sartaj Sahib was indeed a “living legend” as one prominent think tank of Islamabad named him. His unwavering belief in the universality of Islamic principles, democratic good governance, strong and accountable institutions operating within the limits of the constitution, and the broadening of the concept of the nation to accommodate the diversity of its peoples guided him throughout his life. This shall be an inspiration for generations to come who will, InshaAllah, realize the Pakistan of his dreams which he sought so diligently to build throughout his long and graceful life.

The writer is a former ambassador to the US, India and China and head of UN missions in Iraq and Sudan. He can be reached at: ashrafjqazi@gmail.com