Ravages of tunnel vision

Head of PPP Media Cell

Cascade of bloody bombings and killings will continue both in Pakistan and Afghanistan while blaming each other’s proxies across the borders for the massacre against the innocent people who are ultimate victims of the tunnel vision of the leadership of the two countries. The only beneficiaries of their abjectly flawed strategic thinking are the terrorists who are emboldened to unleash terror and blood bath across the length and width of the two countries with temerity and confidence. The recent spate of lethal terrorist attacks inside Afghanistan and now in Pakistan reinforces the tendency of vicious cycle of violence against the people who are at the receiving end. The rhetoric of Pakistan’s stability depends on the stability of Afghanistan and vice versa is indeed the worst type of pretention at the expense of the blood of the innocent people. People are looking up to the respective leadership in a state of helplessness and dismay as when good sense will prevail upon them to contemplate to stop the curdling gory conflict spread over well more than a decade.

After each deadly terrorist attack, the official circles routinely blame the neighboring country in collusion with another neighboring country’s intelligence agency as responsible for the carnage. It is indeed a bumbling bid to cover up their omissions and commissions pointing to dismal level of alertness and intelligence. Is it fair on our part to expect startling bonhomie from the enemy when our adversaries firmly believe that our state institutions are responsible for the killings and mayhem in their countries? It is least convincing argument to defend our case. This scapegoating inclination may stop forthwith because it puts our incompetence in the spotlight allegorical to ‘a tail told with lot of sound and fury signifying nothing’. Mahmood Khan Achakzai while speaking on the floor of the house criticised the LEAs and security agencies for their failure to provide security to Quetta which was hardly a city of more than a dozen streets. We need to put our house in order first and blame others afterwards. 

Time and tide wait for none is equally relevant in diplomacy. The need of the hour warrants Pakistan to pro-actively revisit its Afghan policy focused to promote the cause of mutual peace and security not under pressure but considering it as the only pathway out to the imbroglio. It may be kept in mind that while the international community seems on the Afghan side but is equally keen to see normalisation of relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan. For Pakistan, future of its Afghan policy in the present shape seems problematic. US policy towards Pakistan may be going tough under the Trump administration because of the country’s alleged failure to delegitimise, disrupt and dismantle the Haqqani Network that has found safe havens on Pakistani soil for unleashing a reign of terror of appalling proportion inside Afghanistan.

The Network has been ferociously engaged in such terrorist attacks in the neighboring country as a part of its unprecedented Spring Offensive this year and obviously pushing Washington to take hard line against Pakistan for not doing enough. The media reports emanating from Washington also suggest most probably US new policy will be a paradigm shift containing a possible mix of disruption of Pakistan’s military and economic assistance if not outright sanctions. The resumption of drone attacks by US on Pakistani Fata may be the possibility with intensity and frequency.

The Indian prime minister may press US president during his forthcoming visit to take punitive action against Pakistan for its not abandoning alleged policy of cross-border terrorism. US president may oblige his “friend indeed” to our terrible exasperation.

It vividly suggests the US frustration with Pakistan has apparently crossed the threshold of tolerance so far as its alleged policy of running with hare and hunting with hounds is concerned. It is no more acceptable to US incumbent administration notwithstanding the compelling diplomatic exigencies those had earlier prevailed upon the previous policy makers circumventing them of taking the strong arms tactics. It now may be case of enough is enough? US resorting to arms twisting of Pakistan indicate the administration is no mood of giving benefit of doubt any more so far as Pakistan’s Afghan policy is concerned. Pakistan has been consistently trying to convince the US and the international community that the Afghan Taliban have shifted to inside Afghanistan long ago and as such the question of using Pakistan soil by the Afghan Taliban to perpetrate terrorist activities simply does not arise.

Pakistan’s permanent Representative at the United Nations, Dr Maleeha Lodhi, while addressing the United Nations recently maintained, ‘the problem lies inside Afghanistan not outside Afghanistan’. But, the US administration seems in no mood to take the lenient view.

Unfortunately, the majority of the countries do not take the explanations of Pakistan in this count even on its face value notwithstanding that the country has suffered hugely both in terms of blood and treasure. The world community is skeptical of our sincerity from the core of its heart. It has conveyed its reservations directly whenever our delegates meet them, or through their diplomatic channels.

This is well entrenched perception. It should be rectified sooner the better because its currency may carry serious ramifications for Pakistan as the endurance of the US and its allies is already tipping over the edges. India and Afghanistan are already on the mission to paint Pakistan “as the mother ship of terrorism instead of victim of the evil”. They are winning but we are losing because our support has been pacing downward incrementally. Even Iran has been accusing Pakistan of not stopping the non-state actors’ crossing into their country to perpetrate terrorist activities.

The immediate question that crosses the mind of a neutral observer is that three neighbouring countries cannot be wrong. The presumption of Pakistan as an alleged abettor inexorably will emerge. This context may give food for thought to the otherwise retrogressive bureaucracy to jettison the beaten tracks and try something more imaginative and doable to control the country descending into diplomatic abyss.

Basic responsibility lies on the shoulders of the state institutions of Pakistan to ponder as how to convince the international community that Pakistan is no more harbouring the Afghan Taliban on its soil. Our projection of internal situation of Afghanistan as mainly responsible for the deteriorating security environment has not won many sympathisers for Pakistan at the international level despite the fact major landmass of Afghanistan is under Taliban control. All endeavours of the government of Pakistan have not yielded favourable results so far in this count. The reason is quite simple. Either our case is going by default or we are attempting to dupe the well informed international community and therefore our point of view does not cut across. This is a disturbing state of affairs.

Pakistan is already grappling to survive because the internal threat is posing major threat to its existence. It cannot afford the estrangement of the world because of its direct negative bearings on the war on terror for which wide range of support is pre-requisite. Pakistan desperately needs all sort of support of the world to defeat the scourge the permeation of which has been choking the national life in all possible ways.

The war against terrorism and extremism can only be won with the collective and active support of the international community. Fortunately, majority of the countries of the world has sprung into action in formulating the counter-terrorism policies. They are more than willing to help the states those are frontline states. Pakistan being one of such countries may revamp its campaign against the scourge. The world may be earnestly forthcoming to help if convinced of our unequivocal commitment to obliterate the militant and extremist organisations indiscriminately. At present, their trust level is shaky.

Russia and China also want stability and peace in Afghanistan, knowing fully well its negative spillover may equally prove detrimental to their security and geo-political interests. Both the countries are worried of the terrorist activities in the countries having the potential of destabilising the Central Asian Republics in their backyards and beyond. The whole world is cognizant of the looming threat.

It sincerely wants to obliterate it thoroughly never to revisit again. This genuine realisation may be capitalised on to galvanize the resources and support to evolve coherent counter –terrorism strategy with fool-proof mechanism of implementation. Without the elimination of the scourge no corner of the world will be safe enough offering enabling environment for peaceful living .The terrorists and extremists of all hues should be packed to hell to rot there forever if.

In Pakistan’s perspective, the Parliament being the voice of the people of Pakistan may claim its privilege to formulate, implement and scrutinise the foreign and security policy as its prime constitutional obligation. It’s looking the other way in this regard is largely responsible for all sort of royal mess in the country including the strategic one. The foreign and security policy formulated by the Parliament will have propitious impact for being the policy of the nation in real sense. Collective wisdom is far more superior in its all forms and manifestations as compared to bureaucratic one that has the tendency of running amok. Fixation and myth are their favourite strategy to deal with the complicated problems, annoyingly ending in lamentable denouements.

The Parliament bailed out the government delicately and superbly during the Yemen crisis when Saudi Arabia requested Pakistan’s military assistance to fight Saudi war inside Yemen. PPP has always been ardent supporter and campaigner of the parliamentary role in the formulation and implementation of foreign and security policies of the country. It may be recalled, the army top leadership was twice summoned in the Parliament during PPP previous government to brief the House on the security environment. Is anyone aware of such event during the watch of this government? Yes of course, a delegation of senior ministers of this government did call on the former army chief at his headquarters.

muhammadshaheedi@yahoo.com