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Tuesday March 19, 2024

Stop worrying of adversary

Head of PPP Media CellPakistan should jettison the foreign policy of “us” or “them” and pursue it based on bi-literalism. The country should also shun the inclination of feeling too much of India’s ascendance and instead focus on three pronged strategy: build bridges burnt by extremism and terrorism, take bold

By Akram Shaheedi
February 12, 2015
Head of PPP Media Cell
Pakistan should jettison the foreign policy of “us” or “them” and pursue it based on bi-literalism. The country should also shun the inclination of feeling too much of India’s ascendance and instead focus on three pronged strategy: build bridges burnt by extremism and terrorism, take bold initiatives of winning the trust of the international community and normalize its relations with its neighbours with commitment. Let the contentious issues settle through their own powerful dynamics while it should continue its support in consonance with the accepted norms of diplomacy. Pakistan may step in when the situation is ripe but not before. Pakistan should continue to press for the resumption of dialogues because it has strong case.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s present should be of paramount importance; it should wholeheartedly concentrate on in defeating the menace of terrorism and extremism that have brought us at the brink of pariah state. Pakistan should follow the trajectory of promoting its national interests by positioning its geo-political situation in a manner that does not upset other vertically. Pakistan should not only be seen doing as mentioned in the preceding lines but also be seen be doing so faithfully. It should be the cornerstone of the country’s foreign policy. It will take long time to convince the world and the neighbours of our sincere intentions but thousands miles of journey starts with first step and let us take it sooner than later. The first important step is to rope in all proscribed organizations indiscriminately. It has been reported in the leading newspaper of the country that the top commanders in the recent meeting have underscored the importance of ‘blanket operation’ against the forces of extremism and terrorism right across the country. It is good thinking and should be implemented by the government of the day because without this our war against the evil will remain inconclusive.
Pakistan problem has been its big neighbour, India, and it is better to stop treating it as an adversary so overtly and move forward to seek better and honest understanding based on the ground realities. Pakistan needs to take substantive initiatives to convince the world at large of its earnest commitment to peace and security in the sub-continent and beyond. The series of confidence building measures (CBMs) on its part will put pressure on India to reciprocate at the end of the day. Honest peace offensive should be launched with the commencement of trial on daily basis of those who are accused of Mumbai attack.
Pakistan should also reciprocate in granting the status of (MFN) to India that will open the road to peace through trade. Pakistan should also liberalize visa regime for the Indian nationals more liberal than India’s. These major steps as part of peace offensive will be enough to convince the international community of Pakistan’s walking the talk on the path of normalization of relations. Pakistan should not be scared of Indian aggression or “gunboat diplomacy” because the country’s defence is impregnable being a nuclear state. However, it should be moving forward by cutting the cloth according to its measurement. India is a big country with stable political system, sustained economic growth and vast potentials for foreign investments, and foreign investors would turn backward to take plunge in the investors’ paradise.
The policy of confrontation and misplaced competition has hurt Pakistan grievously with no similar consequences to India. Pakistan had suffered grotesquely of Indian ingenuity fabricated to create conditions of implosion. India’s intelligence agencies are paying back through clandestine interventions in Balochistan, low intensity war on working boundaries, and skirmishes on the LoC.
As mentioned above, Pakistan should take CBMs and then take up the matter with India on diplomatic level. Delay in taking bold steps will hurt our national interests and may promote India’s.
Pakistan has to seek out of box solution for the sake of its vital interests. All other options will jeopardize our good prospects in this count. The international community is yet skeptical to believe in us due to our past baggage. World nations would be reluctant to put their weight behind our cause as their economic and political interests are at stake.
Indian strategic planners are conscious of the fact that Pakistan cannot be defeated militarily because of the narrative of ‘mutual destruction’. So, they have changed the tactics to deal with their perceived misplaced threat without engaging in active hostilities leading to full fledged war. But, this policy of India will not be subjected to revision in the absence of sufficient trust building followed by diplomatic flurry on the part of Pakistan. It is better to take the pain of taking the right steps to gain normalization of relations than taking no pain and inevitably ending up with no gains.
US President Obama in his recent visit to India supported for its membership in the Security Council and Pakistan’s crying horse was a foregone conclusion. Pakistan should have kept quiet and let the international community spearhead this campaign which is genuinely concerned about the proposition. Why should we engage in needless and inconsequential pursuits when our opposition may not make the qualitative difference? Why should we engage in needless meddling? A far cry for pre-emption on our part is both futile and tactically harmful.
Pakistan’s elected government should take the charge of governmental affairs and prove itself worthy of it. It should overcome its fear of insecurity.
Today’s security establishment is not in the business of intimidating the civilian government as its predecessors were notorious for. Then security establishment was powerful and arrogant enough to make the civilian governments fall in line. To prove the point it is pertinent to narrate the one event. Former Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani wanted to reciprocate India with the (MFN) as per twice Cabinet decision but could not implement because the same lobby managed the big procession at the Wagha boarder and the government had to backtrack. Ironically, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s favoured commitment to normalize relations with India could not make progress only due to the abject apathy of India. India should be invoked continuously to respond to our peace overtures. Our efforts should not stall in the face of Indian unabated cold-shouldering. India should respond to the resumption of dialogues between the two countries The policy of irritating the giant has hurt Pakistan deeply in the form of dismemberment of Pakistan, occupation of Siachin, embarrassment of Kargil, intervention in Balochistan along with irredeemable losses to our diplomatic and economic interests. If Pakistan had not been following the policy of India’s losses are our gains the country might have been united today and the debacles suffered by Pakistan would have not been inflicted.
The dictators of this country had ruined Pakistan because all debacles of the startling proportion and territorial losses to the motherland are their legacies. They led the country to wars between India and Pakistan; they followed the policy of outsourcing the foreign and security objectives, and they obliterated the political developments in the country and the resultant radicalization and intolerance as the by-products of the same policy. People’s aspirations were trampled upon who were treated like children of lesser gods. The nation was divided on ethnic and religious basis in pursuance of their insidious policy to create political counterweights against the popular political parties.
So long as the civilians do not take the reign of the country in the real sense of the word, the improvement will remain the forlorn hope.
The mistakes of the civilians can be rectified immediately because they operate under the watchful eyes of media and the democratic institutions. They have to pass through a system of ‘checks and balances’ ensuring the continuous adjustments and improvements corroborating to the interests of the country.
The security establishment should also stop in competing with the civilians and accept its supremacy from the core of its heart and assist it in the way as is done in civilized democracies. Luckily, the present security establishment largely understands the importance of the continuity of the political system. Pakistan is bound to gain immensely of this realization.