Jahangir's World Times First Comprehensive Magazine for students/teachers of competitive exams and general readers as well.
The armed forces of Pakistan are responsible for our defence and are thus, the symbol of our national pride. Any weakness on their part will jeopardise our national security and integrity and for a nation, there can be no loss worse than this.
The lengthy press release issued by the ISPR at the end of the 139th Corps Commanders’ Conference contains many important points, but perhaps its most striking part is that paragraph which states,
Some quarters, because of their perceptual biases, were trying to deliberately run down the Armed Forces and Army in particular. This is an effort to drive a wedge between the Army, different organs of the State and more seriously, the people of Pakistan whose support the Army has always considered vital for its operations against terrorists.
The criticism of the armed forces and their agencies has not been suddenly triggered by the Abbottabad incident of May 2, the brutal shoot-down of Sarfraz Shah by the rangers, the barbaric murder of foreigners in Khrotabad or the gruesome killing of Saleem Shahzad. This criticism has been going on for several years. The current level of criticism seems unusually high because of the dramatic changes taking place all around us. The eye of the camera is an unbiased observer and cannot be accused of having ‘perceptual bias.’ Several decades ago, Iqbal foretold of some drastic changes in the world and today, we are witnessing those spectacular changes with our own eyes. In the wake of the massive political quake in the Middle East, the despotic and dictatorial rulers who have been ruthlessly suppressing their people for decades are crumbling like sand walls. In this rapidly changing world, the old and outdated ideas are falling like autumnal leaves, but the above-mentioned press release indicates that our armed forces are in no mood to adjust themselves to the demands of the new world. They are still harping on the same tune of describing their critics as ‘perceptually biased’.
General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani is a serious and studious fellow, free from the traditional adventurous mentality of army chiefs, keen to keep the army away from political interference and desirous of restoring the public image and credibility of the army. But will he leave the army at the same point at which he got it from Musharraf? It is hard to believe that. All is not yet lost and I still have many high hopes from him. But will these hopes and expectations also end up in smoke?
Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) has described good advice and opinion as a trust and being unfair in this matter as an act of dishonesty. Highly exaggerated praise has always been appreciated by the kings and emperors, but commanders and generals are expected to behave in a different manner. Sincerity demands truth and the greatest truth.
1. The whole country including the army was being roasted up in the so-called war on terror, which Musharraf had imposed on our country to please his American masters, due to which, General Kayani was unable to act independently.
2. Through the courtesy of Musharraf, Britain, United States, some of our Arab friends and even the army had become a party to or at least, a guarantor of the NRO. As ISI chief, General Kayani had also played his part in the creation of NRO on Musharraf’s orders. For this very reason, despite the formation of the PPP government and Musharraf’s exit, General Kayani was unable to initiate some radical change, because the army was also a part of the new set up.
3. Musharraf’s long dictatorial rule, characterized by American domination, had created a wide gulf between the army and the people. The Lal Masjid tragedy, Akbar Bugti’s assassination, state of emergency imposed in November 2007, crack down against judiciary, sacking of judges, bloodbath in Karachi on May 12 and the use of state institutions including the army for political interests, had robbed the army of popular support.
4. Contrary to Musharraf, General Kayani had to deal with a democratic government, a relatively more powerful parliament, an independent judiciary and a very vibrant media. When the Supreme Court ruled that Article 6 would be applied to all those judges who would ratify any undemocratic set up in future or take oath under any PCO, it was the indication of the start of a new age in the country’s history. Similarly, the outspoken and bold commentaries on our independent media also bore witness to the changing circumstances in which the old concept of ‘the sacred cow’ would no longer be valid.
5. When the old dictatorial regimes of the Middle East and North Africa began collapsing as a result of widespread popular uprising, the people of Pakistan also had the feeling that they were not getting the real benefits of independence and that in spite of having a democratic government, all the important decisions were being dictated by the GHQ. It was also felt that some incidents leading to the international isolation of our country were also the result of the stupid acts committed by our army. The close alliance between the army and the United States also became a cause of major discontent among the people.
6. Most of the politicians, especially the nationalists living in Sindh, Balochistan and KPK, who have always been complaining against the army, have often treated the army and Punjab as the two names of the same thing. The same bitter feelings flared up prejudice against the Pakistan army in the former East Pakistan and even today, those who are hostile to the army are even more hostile to Punjab. In these circumstances, Nawaz Sharif’s advice that the army should remain within constitutional limits and that it should stop taking arbitrary decisions and considering itself to be a sacred cow, is becoming a popular demand which cannot so easily be dismissed as ‘perceptual bias.’
Despite all such difficulties, General Kayani took some important steps which showed his keen desire to keep the army away from its traditional political role. Besides his attempts aimed at restoring the public image and credibility of the army, he stated on numerous occasions that no army can succeed without popular support. Restoring peace in Swat is one of his major achievements. In addition to this, he established closer contacts with the journalists, writers and intellectuals and took effective steps for the education and employment of the young people of Baluchistan. Moreover, under his leadership, the army vigorously played its traditional role to provide relief to the victims of the devastating flood.
In spite of all such admirable steps, he failed to give a positive manifesto or a dynamic line of action to the army, which could enable it to reform itself to cope with the new challenges in the changed circumstances. Consequently, the army still retains its traditional mind set, upholds its general attitudes and is inspired by its inherent sense of superiority and domination. It is still actively interested in non-professional activities and is aggressively insensitive to all criticism. It still vigorously pursues pro-US foreign policy regardless of popular discontent, has no effective mechanism for self-accountability, has its own concept of national interests and continues to protect some uniformed men despite their heinous crimes. It still has a hostile attitude towards the media and its agencies are still actively involved in political manoeuvring.
The release of Raymond Davis and the recent incidents in Abbottabad, Khrotabad and Karachi have only served to intensify the public pressure on the army, which has already been an object of criticism for several years. After the completion of his tenure, while General Kayani has been given a three-year extension, our country is passing through the most difficult phase of its history since the fall of Dacca; and this psychological pressure may prove more difficult for him to bear than all the above mentioned difficulties.
