Contents

Questions ................................................................................................................................................ 6
Interview Mohammad Murtaza ............................................................................................................ 24
The Future of Democracy in South Asia........................................................................................... 28
Why Citizens Must Stay Vigilant (CSS Pakistan Affairs) ....................................................... 28
THE SOURCES OF THE CRISIS ............................................................................................ 28
THE DANGERS OF ETHNO-NATIONALISM ..................................................................... 29
SUBVERTING DEMOCRACY ................................................................................................ 30
WARNING SIGNS ..................................................................................................................... 31
India’s Failed Strategy in Kashmir: CSS Pakistan Affairs ............................................................. 32
Why Talking to the Taliban Is the Right Move CSS Current Affairs ........................................... 33
THE PATH TO PEACE ............................................................................................................. 33
HISTORY’S WARNING ........................................................................................................... 35
Why the India-Pakistan Crisis Isn’t Likely to Turn Nuclear (CSS Pakistan Affairs).................. 35
THE LESSONS OF HISTORY ................................................................................................. 36
A comprehensive analysis on War in Afghanistan- CSS Current Affairs ..................................... 37
Will Sino-US Relations Drive Pak-US Relations? CSS International Relations ........................... 45
Addition of Security Component to BRI – CSS Current Affairs ................................................... 48
Partition of India: Gandhi’s Role – CSS Pakistan Affairs .............................................................. 50
Pakistan’s Dual Threat: CSS Pakistan Affairs ................................................................................ 54
Pakistan’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has insinuated that the Supreme Court’s
decision to disqualify him is a consequence of challenging the military on cross-border
terrorism. Nawaz Sharif’s politics are cynical, but does he have a point? ............................ 54
People who shaped Islamic Civilization- CSS Islamic Studies........................................................ 57
Pashtoon Tahafuz Movement: A rights movement or a new regional agenda .............................. 60
Is Karl Marx more relevant today? CSS General Knowledge ....................................................... 67
Is Indus Water Treaty being Violated by India? CSS Pakistan Affairs ........................................ 69
Highlights of Economic Survey of Pakistan 2017-18 ....................................................................... 70
Highlights of Economic Survey of Pakistan 2017-18 ....................................................................... 70
Pakistan and India must follow North and South Korea: CSS General Knowledge .................... 73
Asian Majorities acting like Insecure Minorities- CSS Pakistan Affairs ....................................... 74
An Alternative to Two-State Solution of Palestine Issue- CSS General Knowledge..................... 76
A.B. Yehoshua, one of Israel’s staunchest fighters for the two-state solution, lays out a
proposal for an Israeli-Palestinian partnership ....................................................................... 76
Authoritarianism in world, Will Pakistan follow? CSS Political Science ...................................... 89
Authoritarianism in world, Will Pakistan follow? CSS Political Science ...................................... 89
Is Pakistan loosing battle for its soul? CSS Pakistan Affairs .......................................................... 91
Democracy in Peril: CSS General Knoweldge ................................................................................. 93
Democracy in Peril CSS General Knoweldge................................................................................... 93
Exclusive: CPEC master plan revealed .................................................................................. 99
Agriculture ................................................................................................................................... 101
Industry ......................................................................................................................................... 103
Fibreoptics and surveillance................................................................................................... 104
Tourism and recreation ............................................................................................................ 105
Finance and risk ......................................................................................................................... 106
Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 107
CPEC opens avenues for agriculture: FPCCI ...................................................................... 109
The China agenda ...................................................................................................................... 110
Silence and chatter ..................................................................................................................... 111
Why attempts to reform Pakistani education fail ................................................................. 113
Education dysfunction................................................................................................................ 115
Time to localise governance .................................................................................................... 115
The China agenda ...................................................................................................................... 117
Joint solution ................................................................................................................................ 119
Ban all terrorism ....................................................................................................................... 120
Chief justice’s challenges ......................................................................................................... 122
‘Urdu medium’ ........................................................................................................................... 124
Ironies of the Afghan war ...................................................................................................... 125
Unpacking deradicalisation .................................................................................................. 127
Pak-India stand-off ................................................................................................................... 128
Austerity measures .................................................................................................................. 130
Much worse to come ............................................................................................................... 131
A healthy nation ........................................................................................................................ 133
Israel’s destiny ............................................................................................................................. 134
Welcoming tourists ..................................................................................................................... 135
Betting on presidential rule ....................................................................................................... 137
Politics of adjustment ................................................................................................................. 138
The roots of extremism .............................................................................................................. 140
A new strategy ............................................................................................................................. 141
Sowing the seeds........................................................................................................................ 143
Winning the peace ...................................................................................................................... 144
Managing security & economy ................................................................................................. 146
Notre Dame lessons ................................................................................................................... 148
Winning with empathy ................................................................................................................ 149
Untimely rains .............................................................................................................................. 151
Bombs & backlash ...................................................................................................................... 152
A recipe for durable peace ....................................................................................................... 153
Trump’s Middle East plan ......................................................................................................... 155
Keynes in Islamabad .................................................................................................................. 156
Questions
Q. Define Toheed and its impact on individual life and society.
Ans.
Introduction
Tawheed means to believe that Allah is the one and only God worthy of worship. It is
sometimes referred to as
monotheism; however; in the purest sense in that no other entity can in any way have the
attributes or be equivalent or even in competition with Allah. All acts of worship that a
person does should be to Allah or for Allah Alone.
For example, the prayer should only be to Allah etc.
Allah Says in Qur’an
Surah Al Anbiya Chapter #21 Verse #25
"And we did not send any Messenger before you (O Muhammad) but We inspired him
(saying): 'There is none who has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah), so worship
Me (Alone and none else)."
Tawheed is the essence of Islam, it is the core of Islam, it is what Islam stands for, and it is
the reason why Allah created us. All prophets and messengers were sent with the message
of Tawheed, the Quran itself is a book of Tawheed, and those who have a firm and correct
belief in Tawheed will indeed be the saved ones.
The Qur`an declares that “Nothing is like Him” (42:11). Allah is omniscient and all-
powerful.
All of Allah’s attributes belong to Him exclusively. He is the first and there is no last but His
oneness. He is the First without anything before Him. He is the Last without anything after
Him. The end is with Him alone, and He is the End. He is All-Existing: with him there is no
end. Allah is now as He was before. He is Eternal.
Significance of Tawheed
Tawheed is the essence of Islam and the mainspring of its strength. All other laws, beliefs
and commands of Islam stand firm on this foundation. Take it away, and there is nothing left
of Islam. Tawheed is the call of all the prophets to their people, it is mentioned in
Qur’anSurah An Nahl Chapter#16 Verse #36
“And verily, We have sent among every Ummah (community, nation) a Messenger
(proclaiming): "Worship Allah (Alone), and avoid (or keep away from) Taghut (all false
deities i.e. do not worship Taghut besides Allah)."
Tawheed is the only reason for the world's creation as Allah Says in Qu’ran Surah Adh
Dheryat Chapter #51 Verse #56
“And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me
(Alone).”
By declaring sincere belief in Tawheed, a disbeliever will become a Muslim. Conversely, a
Muslim will become a disbeliever (kafir) if he rejects any aspect of it. By Tawheed we
achieve salvation from Eternal punishment in the Hereafter, right guidance in this world, and
forgiveness for sins. Tawheed is only belief in Islamic ideology which does not have
forgiveness of its rejection, means Allah will never forgive that person who associate partner
with
Allah. Allah states in the Qur'an:
Surah Nisa Chapter #04 verse #48
“Verily, Allah forgives not that partners should be set up with Him (in worship), but He
forgives except that
(anything else) to whom He wills.”
There is a Sahih Hadith of Prohet Muhammad (pbuh)
Volumn 009, Book 093, Hadith Number 470. Sahih Bukhari Narated By Mu'adh bin Jabal :
The Prophet said,
"O Mu'adh! Do you know what Allah's Right upon His slaves is?"
I said, "Allah and His Apostle know best." The Prophet said,
"To worship Him (Allah) Alone and to join none in worship with Him (Allah).”
Whoever fulfills Tawheed will be admitted to the Garden (Al-Jannah) in the Hereafter. The
Prophet Muhammad has stated: Verily Allah has promised that whosoever does not commit
shirk shall enter Al-Jannah (the Garden in the Heaven) [Al-Bukhari)].
It is the reason for solving peoples' sadness because true happiness will be achieved if
persons realize Tawheed within their heart. They will also never feel psychologically
enslaved even if physically captive. It is the only reason for Allah's pleasure and rewards. In
another aayah (verse) in the Qur'an Allah says:
Surah Az Zumar Chapter#39 verse#7
“If you disbelieve, then verily, Allah is not in need of you; He likes not disbelief for His
slaves.”
Disbelief is nothing but a manifestation of shirk which is the opposite of Tawheed. The
acceptance of all of one's
religious deeds is based upon Tawheed. Allah states:
Surah Al-Imran Chapter #03 Verse #85
"Whoever accepts a religion other than Islam it shall be rejected by Allah
and in the Hereafter he will be among the losers"
Islam is nothing if not an embodiment of the belief in Tawheed. Tawheed prevents man from
eternally remaining in the Hellfire. The Prophet Muhammad stated in an authentic report:
Whoever dies and has so much as a mustard seed of faith in his heart shall enter Al-Jannah.
Effects of Tawheed on Personal Life (Individuals)
When an individual pronounces the testimony: "Ash-hadu allaa ilaaha illAllah wa ash-hadu
anna
Muhammadar- Rasullullaah" (I testify that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah
and
I testify that
Muhammad is His Messenger), believing in it and acting upon it, he experiences a
noticeable change in his life.
By understanding who his Lord is as well as the purpose of his creation, he will be able to
achieve success in this life and the next. This success emanates from the following points:
1- A believer in this testimony can never be narrow in outlook. He believes in Allah, Who is
the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Master of the universe and its Sustainer. After
this belief, he does not regard anything in the world as a stranger to himself. He looks on
everything in the universe as belonging to the same Lord he himself belongs.
2- This belief produces in man the highest degree of self-respect and self esteem. The
believer knows that Allah Alone is the Possessor of all power, and that none besides Him
can benefit or harm a person, or provide for his needs, or give and take away life or wield
authority or influence. This conviction makes him indifferent to, independent on, and fearless
of all powers other than those of Allah. He never bows his head in homage to any of Allah's
creatures, nor does he stretch out his hand before anyone else. He is not overawed by
anybody's greatness.
This attitude of mind cannot be produced by any other belief.
3- Along with self-respect, this belief also generates in man a sense of modesty and
humbleness. It makes him unostentatious and unpretending. A believer never becomes
proud, haughty or arrogant. The boisterous pride of power, wealth and worth can have no
room in his heart, because he knows that whatever he possesses has been given to him by
Allah, and that Allah can take away just as He can give. In contrast to this, an unbeliever,
when he
achieves some worldly merit, becomes proud and conceited because he believes that his
merit is due to his own worth. In the same way, pride and self-conceit are a necessary
outcomes and concomitants of 'Shirk' (association of others with Allah in worship), because
a polytheist believes that he has a particular relation with deities, which does not exist
between them and other people.
4- This belief makes man virtuous and upright. He has the conviction that there is no other
means of success
and salvation for him except purity of soul and righteousness of behavior. He has perfect
faith in Allah Who is Above all needs, is related to none and is absolutely Just. This belief
creates in him the consciousness that unless he lives rightly and acts justly, he cannot
succeed. No influence or underhand activity can save him from ruin.
5- The believer never becomes despondent. He has a firm faith in Allah Who is The Master
of all the treasures of the earth and the heavens, Whose grace and bounty have no limit and
Whose power is infinite. This faith imparts to his heart extraordinary consolation, fills it with
satisfaction and keeps it filled with hope. Although he may be met with rejection from all
sides in this world, faith in and dependence on Allah never leave him, and on that strength
he
goes on struggling. Such profound confidence can result from no other belief than belief in
Allah Alone.
6- This testimony of faith inspires bravery in man. There are two things which make a man
cowardly: (a) fear of death and love of safety, and (b) the idea that there is someone else
besides Allah who can take away life, and that man- by adopting certain devices- can ward
off death. Belief in 'Laa ilaaha illAllah'' blocks and drives away both these ideas. The first
idea goes out of his mind because he knows that his life and his property and everything
else really belong to Allah, and he becomes ready to sacrifice his all for the pleasure of
Allah. He gets rid of the second idea because he knows that no weapon, no man or animal
has the power of taking away his life; Allah alone has the power to do so. A time has been
ordained for him, and all the forces of the world combined cannot take away anyone's life
before that time.
It is for this reason that no one is braver than the one who has faith in Allah. Nothing can
daunt him: not even the strongest tempest of adversity and the mightiest of armies.
7- The belief in 'Laa ilaaha illAllah' creates an attitude of peace and contentment, purges the
mind of jealousy, envy and greed, and keeps away the temptations of resorting to base and
unfair means for achieving success. The believer understands that wealth is in Allah's
hands, and He apportions it out as He Wills; that honor, power, reputation and authority -
everything - is also subjected to His Will, and He bestows them as He Wills; and that man's
duty is only to endeavor and to struggle fairly.
Effects of Tawheed on Collective Life (Social)
Belief in one God has deep impact on the social life of man. This is certain that the basis of
social and collective life is based on justice and equality, and perfect justice and equality is
not possible without the concept of one God and unity of mankind.
Tawheed in Islam is that it implies the equity and unity of all people in their relation with
Allah. Thus, people of different social strata were not created by separate deities with
varying levels of power, since this would violate Tawheed by putting barriers between them.
Instead, social dimension of Tawheed states that the same Allah created everyone, and so
all people have the same fundamental essence. In fact, the noblest person in Allah’s Sight is
the one who is most Allah-conscious. It is mentioned in Quran
Surah Al Hujrat Chapter #49 Verse #13
“O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made
you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise
(each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the
most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all
things).”
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh )said:
“Your Lord is One. You are from Aadam and Aadam was created from dust. An Arab is not
superior to a non-Arab, nor a white person over a black person, except for his/her piety and
righteousness.”
Final Word
We know that all religions in the world preach peace, but even we witnessed violence,
destruction of civilization and values human society. It is just because of that nations in the
world are not united on one base, they have their own
different religion, different God, that is the most focal point which serve as the basic block of
violence and
destruction. Tawheed is only solution for the whole humanity to bring and maintain peace in
the world.
Q. Cold war is considered as the longest peace in history. What factor and events
contributed to this peace.
Ans.
Introduction
A period in international history (beginning soon after the end of the Second World War and
ending in the early 1990s), as well as a description of the overall relationship between the
United States and the Soviet Union during that period. Although the cold war is fast fading
into history, divergent interpretations of its character continue to shape expectations about
some central features of contemporary international relations. For example, those who
expect a world without extreme ideological conflict to be essentially harmonious tend to see
the period of the cold war as inherently antagonistic.
Through the lens of history.
There are three main views about the cold war. Each of them generates a set of discrete
claims about the causes of the cold war, the nature of the cold war, the end of the cold war,
and its legacy in contemporary international relations. Perhaps the most popular view is that
the cold war
was an intense struggle for power between the superpowers. The word ‘war’ implies tension,
armed conflict, and a zero-sum relationship between
the superpowers. The word ‘cold’ refers to the presence of factors that allegedly restrained
the confrontation and prevented a ‘hot’ war.
Conventional historiography is based on a definition of the cold war that assumes a high
level of East–West tension with the threat of escalation to
nuclear conflict. Of course, there is a great deal of debate among those who share this
overall view about who was to blame for the cold war. A common
distinction is between orthodox and revisionist historians.
According to the orthodox argument, the cold war was a struggle between conflicting
universal values. In the West, the concepts of a market economy
and a multi-party democracy were cherished. In the East, single partystatism and a
command administrative economy were highly valued. The
obvious conflict of ideas and obstinate nature of those who defended them were the driving
forces behind the conflict. Within this broad school of
thought, the behaviour of the Soviet Union during and after the Second World War was a
crucial impetus to the cold war. The policies of
containment followed by the United States were defensive reactions to an inherently
aggressive and expansionist enemy. In the absence of nuclear
weapons and the condition of mutually assured destruction (MAD), the cold war might well
have turned ‘hot’ on a number of occasions. Fortunately,
the Soviet Union was unable to sustain its competition with the United States, and this
inability was the main reason for the collapse of the cold war
system. None the less, the timing of that collapse was due in no small measure to the
preparedness of the United States and its allies to match or
exceed Soviet escalations of the arms race. Now that the cold war is over, the United States
dominates the international system. In light of the benign nature of American hegemony,
such dominance is not a matter of great
concern. Revisionists agree with orthodox scholars about the nature of the cold war, but
reverse the focus of blame. Revisionism became popular in the 1960s during the Vietnam
War, but it remains a marginal school of thought within
the United States. Revisionists emphasize the power of the United States during and after
1945. For example, although the United States lost 400,000
lives during the Second World War, the USSR lost 27 million lives. The American economy
benefited from the war whilst the Soviet economy was
almost destroyed. According to some revisionists, Soviet behavior was merely a defensive
attempt to build a legitimate security zone in Eastern
Europe, whilst the United States was trying to reconstruct the international economic system
for its own national interests.
Forces at play
the cold war was a period of American dominance whose legitimacy was based on a
mythical
Soviet ‘threat’. True, the Soviet Union’s inherent economic weaknesses were crucial in
explaining its collapse in 1991, but the end of the cold war could
have occurred much earlier and without the horrendous expense of the arms race. The
postcold war era is a very dangerous time, since the United
States now has no challenge to its military might, nor any political challenge to its own views
about the most desirable international order.
In contrast to the view that the cold war was inherently antagonistic, regardless of who was
the main instigator, an opposing school of thought
suggests that the cold war was (in retrospect) very useful to both sides. For the United
States, it solved the problem of what to do about Germany and
Japan, both of whom were key states in bringing about the Second World War. For the
Soviet Union and the United States, the cold war permitted a
de facto solution of the German problem by freezing the social/political contours of Europe,
both East and West.
The perpetuation of the cold war was also useful for maintaining a strict nuclear hierarchy
between the superpowers and their allies, as well as between nuclear states and nonnuclear
states. The theoretical possibility of nuclear conflict subordinated actual conflicts
within the respective blocs to
the interests of ‘global stability’ ensured by the superpowers. Finally, powerful domestic
interests on each side sustained the cold war.
For example, within the United States, the arms race strengthened sectors of the
militaryindustrial complex, justified intervention abroad, facilitated the
establishment of the national security state, and elevated the Presidency over other
institutions of the US federal government.
On the other side of the Iron Curtain, the cold war justified domestic repression,
subordinated the civilian to the military sectors of society, and
maintained an authoritarian system of government predicated on the demands of geopolitical
‘catch-up’. Although there is some truth in the
main claims of all these schools of thought, they share a tendency to exaggerate the degree
of coherence and foresight in the planning and
implementation of foreign policy. The cold war was a period of genuine conflict and
cooperation between the superpowers. It arose out of a long
period of geopolitical turmoil in Europe, whose internal conflicts eventually subordinated that
continent to two extra-European superpowers with very different social systems and little
diplomatic familiarity with each other.
Some conflict between them was inevitable, and was exacerbated by the tendency of each
to suspect the worst of the other. Also, it should be
remembered that as a period of history, the cold war coincided with the onset of the nuclear
era as well as decolonisation, both of which raised the
stakes in the competition. None the less, despite all the factors that kept the superpowers
apart, they did share some important common interests that
moderated their competition, particularly after the Cuban missile crisis in 1962, when many
feared that a nuclear war would break out. The division of
Europe, arms control, the shared interests in ensuring that real wars in the Third World
would not lead to direct conflict between them; all these factors ensured a degree of
moderation in the cold war.
Final Word
As was demonstrated during the era of détente (relaxation of tensions) in the late 1960s, it
was very difficult for the superpowers explicitly to acknowledge their shared interests in such
a way as to end the confrontation once and for all. In so far as the cold war was a war,
clearly the former Soviet Union as
well as communism were the losers. On the other hand, in an era when the problems of
world order are greater than the capacity of any state to respond to them effectively, and in
light of the evidence suggesting that the cold war relationship could best be described as an
adversarial partnership,
it is important not to exaggerate the fruits of victory for the United States and its allies.
MCQ
1.Who is the Current Federal Minister of State and Frontier Region?
A.Ch. Tariq Bashir Cheema
B. Shehryar Khan Afridi
C. Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar
D. Ghulam Sarwar Khan
2.Who invented the first battery?
A.Alessandro volta
B. Tim Berner
C. Rob Stothard
D. Georges Leclanche
3.Who is the Special Assistant to Prime Minister for Information Broadcasting and
National Heritage?
A.Mr. Pervaiz Rashid
B. Fawad Chaudhry
C. Firdous Ashiq Awan
D. Ms. Marriyum Aurangzeb
4.Who is the Current Interior Minister of Pakistan?

A.Pervez Khattak
B. Shafqat Mahmood
C. Ijaz ahmed shah
D. Shehryar Khan Afridi
5.Who is the Current Federal Minister of Parliamentary Affairs?
A.Noor-ul-Haq Qadri
B. Shafqat Mahmood
C. Muhmmad Azam Swati
D. Ali Muhammad Khan
6.What is Pakistan ranks globally in kidney diseases, say experts at the (SIUT) kidney

diseases causing 20,000 deaths annually?

A.Fifth
B. Sixth
C. Seventh
D. Eighth
7.Recently, the ______ Airways announced that it will be resuming flights to Pakistan from
June 2019, after a 10-year break.
A.British
B. Jet
C. Gulf
D. None of these
8.Which two deadly viruses are reported in Pakistan in March 2019?
A.Gemi and HIV
B. Zika and Small pox
C. Monkeypox and TMV
D. Zika and Monkeypox
9.Whi h ou try’s arpla es akes aerial display o Pakista Day Parade o rd Mar h
2019?
A.Bahrain & Oman
B. Turkish & Chinies
C. Azerbaijan & Srilanka
D. None of these
10.Who is the Current Minister of Home & Tribal Affairs in Balochistan?
A.Zia Ullah langove
B. Sarfaraz Ahmed Bugti
C. Mir Faiq Ali jamali
D. Saleem Ahmed
11.Who is the Current Advisor of Finance, Revenue and Economic Affairs?
A.Muhammad Ishaq Dar
B. Mr. Asad Umer
C. Miftah Ismail
D. Abdul hafeez Sheikh
12.Who was the guest of honour at Pakistan Day Parade on 23 March 2019?
A.Recep Tayyip Erdoğa
B. Mahathir Bin Mohamad
C. Xi Jinping
D. Muhammad Bin Salman
13.Which country was the largest importer of the weapons in the world during 2014 to
2018 ___________?
A.US
B. China
C. Russia
D. Saudi Arabia
14.How many foreigners among 127 were conferred civil awards on 23rd March 2019?
A.16
B. 17
C. 18
D. None of these
15.Which of the following Pakistani girl wins silver at 2019 Singapore weightlifting
championship in March 2019?
A.Neelam Riaz
B. Rabia Shehzad
C. Shazia Shehzad
D. None Of These
16.Which Country will host Asia cup 2020?
A.UAE
B. INDIA
C. PAKISTAN
D. AUSTRALIA
17.Which team makes highest score (238) in PSL-4?
A.Peshawar zalmi
B. Karachi kings
C. Islamabad united
D. none of these
18.Jinnah of Pakistan by Stanely Wolpert was published in__________?
A.1984
B. 1890
C. 2002
D. 1949
19.Stanley Wolpert wrote the books on______________?
A.Quaid Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah
B. Bainzeer Bhutto
C. Z.A. Bhutto
D. A and C both
20.When American president Donald trump out India from GSP Scheme?
A.15 Feb 2019
B. 24 Feb 2019
C. 5 March 2019
D. 1st March 2019
21.Gojra Shorkot Section on National Motorway constructed at the cost of ______?
A.$100 Million
B. $178 Million
C. 178 Million Pakistani Rupees
D. None of the Above
22.Gojra Shorkot Section Motorway is a _________?
A.4 Lane Motorway
B. 6 Lane Motorway
C. 2 Lane Motorway
D. None of the above
23.Gojra Shorkot section Motorway Project under CPEC is of how many Kilometers ?
A.61 Km
B. 81 Km
C. 91 Km
D. None of the Above
24.First Ada Festi al Pakista AFP 9 held i hi h ity of Pakista i Fe 9?
A.Lahore
B. Karachi
C. Islamabad
D. None of the Above
25.Who is the Peshawar-born youngest boy to Win the Storm-2 Abdel Wahed squash
Open 2019 tournament recently, held at Sweden in February 2019?
A.Zeeshan khan
B. Ahsan Ayaz
C. Muhammad Hamza
D. Ruman Ahmed
26.How many radio station are working in the country under the Pakistan Broadcasting
Cooperation?
A.28
B. 30
C. 32
D. 34
27.Which are the only two elements on the periodic table that are liquid at room
temperature?
A.Mercury and Bromine
B. Carbon and helium
C. Nitrogen and Hydrogen
D. Oxygen and Neon
28.What are the three basic units of measurement for the metric system?
A.Metre, liter and gram
B. Centimetre, kilograms and metric
C. Kilogram, mass and energy
D. Kelvin, cd and mole
29.What has o harge, a d is o e of the fu da e tal parti les aki g up a ato ’s
nucleus?
A.Electron
B. Neutron
C. Proton
D. All of Above
30.Who came up with three laws of motion?
A.Galileo
B. Albert Einstein
C. Issac Newton
D. Hubble
31.Diamonds are made up almost entirely of what element?
A.Carbon
B. Helium
C. Methane
D. Nitrogen
32.At what temperature are Celsius and Fahrenheit equal?
A.-40 degree
B. 40 degree
C. -10 degree
D. 10 degree
33.Who is o sidered the father of psychoanalysis?
A.Sigmund Frend
B. Galileo
C. Aristotle
D. Fabrica
34.What is the first element in the periodic table?
A.Hydrogen
B. Helium
C. Nitrogen
D. Carbon
35.Who is the Current IG of Punjab Police?
A.Dr Kaleem Imam
B. Capt. (R) Arif Nawaz Khan
C. Amjad Javed Saleemi
D. Muhammad Tahir
36.Who is the Curre t Chair a of Pakista Ba ks’ Asso iatio ?
A.Muhammad Aurangzaib
B. Aftab Manzoor
C. Arif Habib
D. None of the Above
37.Who is the current Deputy Speaker of the legislative assembly of Azad Jammu and
Kashmir?
A.Sardar Farooq Ahmed Tahir
B. Shah Ghulam Qadir
C. Sardar Amer Altaf
D. None of the Above
38.When the current government assumed the office, Pakistan was ranked at________in
the ease of doing business?
A.137
B. 147
C. 153
D. 165
39.What is current rank of Pakistan in the ease of doing business in 2019?
A.116 among 190
B.125 among 190
C.136 among 190
D.147 among 190
40.Govt Reduces Corporate Taxes From 47 to Just_____________ in January 2019.
A.11
B. 16
C. 21
D. 24
41.on 31st January 2019, Pakistan protests summoning of High commissioner to Delhi
over?
A.Chenab Basin project
B. Quraishi-Mirwaiz phone call
C. I ra Kha ’s speech
D. LOC voilations
42._______ has ee titled the Mou tai Pri es y Pakista ’s ou tai eeri g
community?
A.Samina Baig
B. Selena Khawaja
C. Uzma Shah
D. None of These
43.The Senate Committee on Human Rights passed the draft bill on January-30-2019
raising the minimum age of marriage to_________ years in Pakistan?
A.17
B. 18
C. 20
D. None of these
44.Name the first Sikh Officer who has been assigned charge of Public Relations Officer to
the Punjab Governor first time in history ?
A.Pawan Singh Arora
B. Jagjeet Singh
C. Ajeet Singh
D. None of the Above
45.Saudi Arabia will establish oil refinery at Gawadar at the cost of_____________?

A.$8 Billion
B. $9 Billion
C. $10 Billion
D. $11 Billion
46.Indus water Jeep Race held in January 2019 at which city of Pakistan?
A.Hub
B. Jhal Magsi
C. Swabi
D. None of the Above
47.The lens used in a simple microscope is____________?
A.Concave
B. Convex
C. Cylindrical
D. None
48.The image formed in a compound microscope is_____________?
A.erect
B. inverted
C. sometimes erect, sometimes inverted
D. none
49.He writes ___ ink.
A.WITH
B. IN
C. FOR
D. ON
50.Freetown is the capital of____________?
A.Senegal
B. Guinea
C. Sierra leone
D. Liberia
 CSS SPECIAL

CSS
ICEP Times:
NETWORK
ICEP Please:
NETWORK tell us tell
Please about your-self
us about youryour
your-self education
education
and achievements?
Mohammad Murtaza: Being an only child, I had a lot of time as a kid
which I spent daydreaming or reading. Consequently, I knew a lot of
general things on a range of topics. This has been a defining feature of my life
and has helped me in whatever I've done: schooling at Aitchison, BS
(Hons) at LUMS and now CSS.
(I'm also a trainer and public speaker and have
Worked extensively in the critical thinking
Education and Local Tourism Through The
History Project and my startup
TurrLahore.)
ICEPCSS
ICEP Times: Why: Why
NETWORK
NETWORK did you optopt
did you forfor
'PAS' and to which extent it is unique?
Mohammad Murtaza: To be honest, I
Would have been happy regardless of
The service I got, because wherever you go at the
end of the day it is your contribution and passion
that makes the difference. The fact that I got PAS
was lucky, but honestly, every service has its own
advantages and unique traits.
The good thing about PAS is the variety of tasks
that you are trained to do and the chance to work in
the field as well as behind a desk.
CSS Times:
ICEP What are
NETWORK
ICEP NETWORK the steps
: What are for
the preparation
steps for
for competitive
preparation exams?
for competitive exams?
Mohammad Murtaza: I always advise
my students to divide their preparation into
four steps:
1. Briskly covering the
Syllabus
2 . Consolidating everything
studied (through making notes,
consulting multiple sources, etc.)
3 . Past-paper questions'
practice
4 . R e v i s i o n ( B e t w e e n 1 s t January
and Exams)
In the first step, get some very basic books and
the syllabus and just quickly cover
everything in the syllabus, even if you don't
entirely understand it all. This will help you
see everything that has to be
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 CSS SPECIAL
Covered and make a realistic expectation Preparation regarding books, notes, etc?
of how much time you need. I usually Mohammad Murtaza: Books are now
recommend spending 7 days to cover a old-fashioned and not sufficient alone!
100 mark subject. A good academy can Supplement your study with online resources;
really help you achieve this. Once you're even a simple Google search can help you
done going over the entire syllabus you understand a topic much better than some
can start formalising notes, make one- traditional books. Notes should also be made in
both soft copy and hard copy. I also
pagers for every topic and seek help for
recommend making diagrams, maps and
topics that you don't really understand. flowcharts in your notes to help you
Group study at this stage is also a good memorise them better.
idea. The goal is to There are a large
consolidate your number of
learning. academies for the
Going to a good
guidance of CSS
academy helps
students. Are they
you get a
really helpful for
jumpstart. Make
sure you have a them?
good mentor who Ummm... that's a
can gui de you tough question. I
throughout the can't comment on t h e
process. a c a d e mi e s where I
CSS
ICEP
ICEP Times: What
NETWORK
NETWORK: : Whatisis have not studied, but I
the importance of an think wherever you
academy for t h e go, you should always
students appearing use your own
in CSS? common sense.
Mohammad
Some academies
Murtaza:
E v e r yo n e can h a ve standard
reach the finish notes that they
line, whether they go share with all their
to an academy or not. st udent s. As a
But going to an academy makes the process result, these students d o n 't
much easier. There's a s a yi n g t h a t 'A cr i t i cal l y t hi nk themselves and j ust
smart person learns from his r epr oduce those notes in the exams. This
mistakes, but the smartest person learns leads to low marks as
from other people's mistakes'. Many the examiner can tell that this person is just
people don't go to an academy and then regurgitating what his academy taught him.
have to reappear multiple times in the CSS Whenever you go to an academy, make sure that
exam to crack it. If you go to an academy,
they help you learn how to think and critically
you can learn from the expertise they have
analyse, not just share notes and memories.
gathered over all the years and you can
ICEP ICEP
CSS NETWORK
Times:
NETWORK Did you:join
Did any
youacademy
join any for
academy
CSS
benefit from the mistakes/learnings of
other people. For people who want to ace for CSS preparation? What did you
preparation? What did you prefer between prefer
between
books andbooks
notes?and notes?
the CSS in their first attempt, I strongly
recommend an academy. Mohammad Murtaza: I did join an academy for 6
CSS
ICEP
ICEP Times: What
NETWORK
NETWORK : Whatis is the method
the method for
for CSS months. The biggest advantage I got going to the

(16) 6
CSS 6

(17)
 CSS SPECIAL
academy was that I made a lot of friends who were as optional subjects comes from two things: I. Every
motivated as I am. We were able to channel our energies in optional subject has its advantages and disadvantages,
the same direction and h e l p e a c h o t h e r r e a c h t h e e n d which makes the choice very difficult, for example: IR
g o a l . Consequently, today we are all CSPs and are going
is really short and easy but gives a low score, while
to be in the training together.
Accounting is very long and technical but gives a really
I think, between books and notes I have no preference. One high score; 2. People try to predict the trend, even though it
needs to be pragmatic and see what is more helpful is impossible to say for sure which subject will get good
depending upon the subject, the topic and your style of marks and will subject will suffer or get hit. My advice is
studying. to ignore the trend and set a three step criteria:
CSS
ICEP Times:
NETWORK
ICEP NETWORKMost: Most
candidates failfailEnglish
candidates English Do you have enough time to do justice with
Essay and Précis and Composition papers. the subject? Is the syllabus so alien or
What steps would you suggest to get through lengthy that it will take time away from
these? Mohammad Murtaza: Firstly, work on other subjects? Mohammad Murtaza: Is the
your grammar, spellings and expression. subject score-able? For example: mathematics allows
When you read something good, don't just rush through your you to score 100/100 but Literature and Philosophy can
reading. Pause and reflect on the expressions that you are
never get you very high marks. Try to take subjects that
reading and try to replicate them in your writing.
can score well.
Secondly, we sometimes write very good stuff that only makes
sense to us! We think it is simply written but for a third person, it Sometimes a subject will BE good on one criteria and bad
can be very hard to read. We should always keep the examiner on another criteria. I recommend you balance them out:
in mind when writing for the CSS and make sure that what so one subject that is short, one subject that is scoring,
we write is easy to understand and written so clearly that the one subject that you like, and so on.
examiner doesn't have to struggle to understand it. Sometimes a subject is very scoring but in the
CSS
ICEP
ICEP Times: Students
NETWORK
NETWORK feel
: Students feel confused
confused succeeding years, that particular subject does not yield
while choosing optional subjects but it is good scores. Comment.
This is true. It is a risk factor that we need to be aware of,
the most vital step too. For fresh aspirants,
but there is very little that we can do except pray.
suggest the best method to choose optional Usually new subjects score high or subjects with a lot of
subjects? candidates (like iR) score low. It is a
Mohammad Murtaza: T h e c o n f u s i o n w i t h

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8

(18)
 CSS SPECIAL
personal decision if you want to convey Mohammad
to take a subject which is Murtaza: The world is
risky. Risky subjects really big and has a lot to
usually give either very offer. The best minds
good marks or very low don't have to rely on
scores. I prefer safe subjects
something external to
that don't get ver y high
marks, but also don't get very help them. Every single
low marks. one of the readers of this
interview are precious -
ICEP NETWORK
C S SNETWORK
ICEP : Can
Times: C an
they have an education
cramming be helpful in
and a lot of potential to
passing the CSS exam?
innovate and do
Mohammad Murtaza: something amazing. If
No. Cramming is not
sustainable. If you have two they are successful in
or three subjects and a CSS, that is very good. If
short syllabus, then you can they can't make it in their
cram. But here we have first attempt, they can sit
almost 11 subjects and a very for the exam again, twice.
vast syllabus. It is better to But it's all in the hands of
learn how to think and apply Allah. Don't take a lot of
your knowledge, rather than
pressure because even if
rote learn or cram.
you don't qualify, it is
CSS
ICEPICEP
NETWORKTimes: Sometimes
NETWORK : Sometimes possible that Allah has
extraordinary another, better plan for you.
students cannot qualify CSSNETWORK
ICEP
ICEP Times: : You
NETWORK are
: You are
CSS while an average proud faculty of ICEP
student gets allocation. Network...your views
Comment? about ICEP.
Mohammad Murtaza: Mohammad Murtaza:
Luck plays a huge role, but it Teaching at ICEP has
is also true that been a wonderful
sometimes good experience: it has a good
students are not aware of the faculty, an amazing
nitty-gritty of administration and great
presentation. It is students who are
possible that you are v e r y passionate and eager to
s m a r t b ut a r e unable to learn. ICEP is slowly
convince the examiner emerging as a centre of
because you w r i t e v e r y CSS preparation in
long, complicated Pakistan and I hope that
sentences. Paper the new and competitive
presentation, clarity and methods of teaching that
organisation o f a n s w e r ICEP is using allows it's
are as important as students to stand out and
knowledge and make a mark on the CSSCSS
understanding. exam and this country
7
(18)
country.
CSSNETWORK:
ICEP ICEP
NETWORK: Times: AnyAnymessage
messageyou wouldlike
you would like 7
(19)
 in the recent past—are all, at least formally,
democracies.
The Future of Democracy
in South Asia But this apparent calm masks major sources
of disquiet. Ethnic and religious tensions are
Why Citizens Must Stay spiking. Politicians are trying to win votes
by attacking independent institutions. And
Vigilant militaries still lurk in the background. South
(CSS Pakistan Affairs) Asia’s experience shows that democracy
On November 14, a fight broke out in the Sri does not seamlessly advance or uniformly
Lankan Parliament. When the Speaker tried retreat. Empowerment in some areas can be
to call a vote, a group of MPs heckled him accompanied by repression in others.
and rushed the podium. A rival faction tried Reforms can trigger new conflicts. Open
to push the hecklers back. Men traded political competition gives the people a
punches. One brandished a knife. A voice, but that voice may be deeply illiberal.
lawmaker cut himself trying to steal the Orderly elections do not preclude political
Speaker’s microphone and ended up in the crises. South Asia’s trajectory shows just
hospital. (CSS Pakistan Affairs) how important it is to seize opportunities to
The chaos was the result of a constitutional fortify liberal democracy when they present
crisis that erupted in October, when the themselves and to confront potential dangers
country’s president, Maithripala Sirisena, before they metastasize.
tried to oust the prime minister and replace
him with a former president, Mahinda THE SOURCES OF THE
Rajapaksa. Lawmakers and citizens
protested; Sirisena dissolved Parliament, CRISIS
until the Supreme Court ruled this Sri Lanka’s crisis has its roots in
unconstitutional; and Rajapaksa, rejected by Rajapaksa’s presidency, which turned
Parliament, refused to step aside. The particularly authoritarian in its second term.
stalemate broke only in December, when In 2009, Rajapaksa ended Sri Lanka’s 25-
Sirisena reinstated the deposed prime year civil war by inflicting a bloody defeat
minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, in the face on the secessionist Liberation Tigers of
of concerted opposition from the judiciary Tamil Eelam (also known as the Tamil
and a majority of Parliament. Tigers). He was reelected by a landslide in
Until recently, Sri Lanka, one of Asia’s 2010, and together with his family and his
oldest democracies, seemed safe from this Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), he
kind of instability. The country’s bloody proceeded to centralize power, expand the
civil war ended in 2009, and its 2015 reach of the presidency, and draw close to
election seemed to signal a new phase of China. Media reports credibly linked
liberalization. But democracy’s gains were Rajapaksa and his allies to corruption and
less secure than they appeared. human rights violations.
Sri Lanka is far from unique in South Asia
in this respect. By some measures, the Sirisena had been a member of the SLFP,
region is more stable and democratic than it but in the 2015 presidential election, he
has been in decades. Violence and unrest unexpectedly defected from it in order to
have subsided. Militaries have left the streets challenge Rajapaksa. With the support of the
and returned to their barracks. Major United National Party (UNP) and other
insurgencies have been contained. As a opposition parties, Sirisena won a shock
region, South Asia is experiencing economic victory. After parliamentary elections later
growth at an average rate of nearly seven that year, UNP leader Wickremesinghe
percent each year. Today Bangladesh, emerged as prime minister. This set up
Myanmar, and Pakistan—countries Sirisena and Wickremesinghe to pursue
governed by hard-line military dictatorships
what they claimed would be an ambitious
reform agenda aimed at curbing executive
THE DANGERS OF
power and addressing the legacies of the ETHNO-NATIONALISM
civil war.
Submerged within Sri Lanka’s political
The government fulfilled some of this crisis is the ethnic unrest that has plagued
the country since the 1950s. Rajapaksa
agenda, most notably limiting the powers of
the presidency that Rajapaksa had expanded. represents a powerful strand of Sinhalese
Buddhist ethno-nationalism that has played a
But Sirisena and Wickremesinghe did not
central role in promoting ethnic violence. He
prove a cohesive team, reform stalled, and
and his supporters played this card when
when local elections were held earlier this
year, Rajapaksa’s party, relaunched as the attacking critics in the most recent crisis.
They argued that Wickremesinghe
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, dominated
represented foreign (mainly Western)
the results. With Rajapaksa resurgent, the
influences and alien cultural values. This
relationship between Sirisena and
Wickremesinghe deteriorated. On October type of problem extends well beyond Sri
26, Sirisena dismissed Wickremesinghe and Lanka: ethnic and religious tensions threaten
appointed Rajapaksa as the new prime other South Asian democracies, too.
minister.
Although elections are now routine across
the subcontinent, and are often broadly free
Within three weeks, the Supreme Court
suspended Sirisena’s dissolution of and fair, ethnic and religious majoritarianism
Parliament. Undeterred, Sirisena and persists. Majoritarian politics are often
Rajapaksa sought to cobble together a driven by a majority-minority complex:
parliamentary majority to endorse Rajapaksa despite representing large majorities in their
countries, politicians and activists argue that
as prime minister. But despite concerted
efforts to bribe and entice members of sinister transnational influences, long-term
Parliament to defect, a majority stuck by demographic changes, and the corruption
Wickremesinghe, who refused to leave the and impurity of cosmopolitan elites
undermine their groups’ power. Like
prime minister’s residence. Citizens massed
populists in the West, they claim that they
in the streets to support Wickremesinghe
alone can protect majority groups from these
against the power grab.
threats—even when those groups are
objectively already dominant.
The standoff lasted for more than six weeks.
Rajapaksa was unable to form a majority in
That strategy has proven an electoral winner.
Parliament, so Sirisena called for elections
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s
for 2019 to try to forge a new electoral
majority. Finally, on December 13, the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party has
Supreme Court ruled decisively against constructed a political machine that followed
Sirisena, who then grudgingly recognized its decisive 2014 victory by dramatically
Wickremesinghe as prime minister. expanding the number of states under its
control. Although it fared poorly in the most
Although the immediate crisis has ended, it
has revealed deep vulnerabilities in Sri recent state elections, in December, the BJP
Lanka’s democracy that are unlikely to go remains the favorite in the 2019 national
away. elections. Hindu majoritarianism has
become a remarkably powerful political
project in India. Although there are still
many Indians who do not subscribe to it, the
quest to give Hindus favored status has
advanced dramatically in recent years. As
the political scientist Kanchan Chandra
has noted, “The idea of India is being stand in defense of the Pakistani Supreme
redefined to mean a Hindu polity.” Court’s acquittal of a Christian woman on
Even before the recent crisis, Sri Lanka’s blasphemy charges, then quickly backed
long war with the Tamil Tigers had its roots down, at least symbolically, after days of
in the rise of Sinhalese Buddhist protests by a religious movement called the
nationalism, a strain of politics that remains Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). Khan’s
deeply influential in the island nation. The government has pushed back on the TLP in
country’s two dominant Sinhalese parties recent weeks, but the dangers and
have tried to outbid each other in appealing temptations of mobilizing exclusionary
to Buddhist nationalism, limiting the Sri Sunni religious majoritarianism aimed at
Lankan political system’s ability to Shiites, Christians, Hindus, and, especially,
accommodate the country’s Tamil and Ahmadis (a Muslim group viewed by many
Muslim minorities. Sri Lanka’s 2015 in Pakistan as heretics and thus
election offered a chance to address such discriminated against) remains.
ethnic tensions, but Sinhalese nationalists
doggedly opposed these efforts, contributing
to the gradual collapse of the reformist SUBVERTING
agenda. DEMOCRACY
Perhaps the most dramatic South Asian case Electoral democracy in South Asia coexists
in which ethno-nationalism has set back uneasily with independent political
genuine liberalization is in Myanmar. De institutions, especially justice systems.
facto President Aung San Suu Kyi has Intense political competition can force
proven a bitter disappointment to many politicians to pay attention to their
international observers because of her failure constituents, ideally making them more
to condemn the military’s brutal crackdown responsive. But this competition also pushes
on the Muslim Rohingya people. But Aung them to politicize courts, bureaucracies, and
San Suu Kyi’s stance reflects public law enforcement. Leading Sri Lankan
sentiment. Many in Myanmar, even those politicians showed a remarkably flagrant
who previously opposed the military, disregard for the constitution during the
support hard-line anti-Rohingya policies. crisis, offering a shifting array of dubious
Myanmar’s 2020 general election will justifications for their actions. Sri Lanka’s
probably see both Aung San Suu Kyi’s judiciary has proven surprisingly robust, but
National League for Democracy and its main it endured a stress test that never should
opposition, the military-linked Union have occurred in the first place.
Solidarity and Development Party, appealing
to heartland Bamar ethno-nationalism. The In Bangladesh, Prime Minister Sheikh
rise of electoral democracy in Myanmar has Hasina’s Awami League dispensed with
allowed supporters of majoritarianism, from procedural niceties in its quest to break its
politicians to monks to social media users, to rivals ahead of the recent general election.
frame the Rohingya as subversive outsiders The Awami League won overwhelmingly,
who need to be eliminated. but the campaign and election day itself
were marred by lethal violence and
Even when ethnic and religious majoritarian allegations of serious electoral irregularities.
movements lose elections, they continue to The government has passed laws restricting
exert street power. Pakistan’s religious free speech, arrested journalists and
parties have largely proven electoral failures. dissidents, and used police to target political
But religious organizations can still tap into rivals. Ironically, the Awami League points
suspicion and bigotry against minority to the threat of religious majoritarianism and
groups to mobilize their supporters. intolerance as the reason for its destruction
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has of the political institutions meant to protect
found this out the hard way. He took a firm rights and provide order: its actions are
necessary, the party claims, in order to hold its weight behind Imran Khan. After his
at bay majoritarian Islamist opposition victory, the military mediated Khan’s
parties such as the Bangladesh National negotiations with the TLP in the wake of the
Party and Jamaat-e-Islami. blasphemy verdict. The army continues to
control a wide array of businesses that give
In India, too, the government has locked it external influence and serve as a source of
horns with, and allegedly interfered in, internal cohesion by providing retired
important national institutions, seeking to military elites with comfortable positions.
shape them to the benefit of Modi’s party. Most important, it is believed to hold a veto
The Central Bureau of Investigation and on significant foreign policy decisions,
Reserve Bank of India have experienced especially those concerning Afghanistan and
dramatic, highly public disputes and internal India, that should be the prerogative of
feuds. Such manipulation predates the BJP elected civilian leaders.
and has a long history in India. But even
elite state institutions now confront what the
political analyst Milan Vaishnav has called a
WARNING SIGNS
“crisis of credibility” as the BJP seeks to These problems—ethnic and religious
hold the commanding heights of state power. majoritarianism, attacks on independent
institutions, and continued military
Several South Asian countries, however, influence—do not outweigh the many
suffer from the opposite problem: rather than advantages of liberal democracy. But South
elected politicians interfering with Asia’s experience shows that progress and
independent institutions, autonomous backsliding can be difficult to distinguish.
militaries can interfere in civilian politics. The conflict between Sirisena and
The military has a stake in political affairs Wickremesinghe in Sri Lanka might never
above all in Pakistan and Myanmar, which have come about if the two men had not
have experienced long spells of military passed important, badly needed reforms to
rule. Both militaries have formally the powers of the presidency after the 2015
withdrawn from direct control of national election. Those reforms proved destructive
politics but continue to wield power. in the short term, but in the long run they are
likely to strengthen Sri Lankan democracy.
Myanmar’s military, the Tatmadaw, controls Myanmar’s opening up has unleashed a
key security ministries and is guaranteed 25 dangerous majoritarianism, but it has also
percent of the seats in parliament. Its brutal contributed to a freer press, more open
campaign against the Rohingya people has political competition, and new possibilities
garnered it new support from many in the for civil society. Myanmar may yet move—
Bamar ethnic majority, who see it waging a if only incrementally—toward fuller
war to protect the country from Bengali democracy. India’s elections remain highly
intruders and meddling foreigners. The competitive, and the BJP cannot rest easy in
military has restricted press freedoms and the face of a reenergized opposition. Even in
continues to wage grim counterinsurgency Pakistan, under the shadow of military
campaigns on Myanmar’s periphery, influence and religious radicalism,
especially in the northeast. After fueling democratic competition still holds out the
Bamar nationalism, the army has proceeded possibility of a government that is more
to take advantage of it by reframing itself as responsive to its citizens.
the protector of the nation, rather than a
tyrannical former dictatorship. Democracy is unambiguously in retreat from
some countries, such as Hungary. That is not
In Pakistan, the military does not even need the situation in South Asia. There the
formal constitutional prerogatives to exert its contradictory nature of democracy’s advance
influence. During the 2018 election, the shows, above all, the importance of
military was widely believed to have thrown vigilance. Those who defend liberal
democracy must do so continually, pushing ceased trying to hasten this moment by
back against rights-denying ideological sending guerrillas over the border to stir up
projects, politicians who undermine jihad—although this week it claimed to
institutions, and institutions that seek to rounding up such militants. India, for its
escape accountability. part, says that Kashmir was lucky to fall to a
secular, democratic country at partition and
The willingness to defend democracy proved not to its violent, narrow-minded neighbour.
essential to resolving Sri Lanka’s But Indian governments turn deaf the
constitutional crisis. Sirisena’s daring power moment people in the valley speak of greater
play could very easily have succeeded. Two autonomy, let alone azadi (independence).
of the key dangers to democracy in South Their efforts at counter-insurgency have
Asia were present: ethno-nationalism and been disturbingly bloody. The conflict has
contempt for political institutions. Sirisena’s claimed 50,000 lives since the 1980s.
goal was to quickly establish facts on the The deafness has been especially
ground that could not be rolled back. But the pronounced of late. When Narendra Modi
concerted mobilization of individuals, civil came to power in India in 2014, violence in
society, and politicians has (so far) the valley was near its lowest level in a
preserved the constitutional order. That quarter century. Perhaps jihadist action
hard-fought success stands as both an would have risen again anyway, but
inspiration and a warning to democracy’s government policies plainly have not helped.
defenders elsewhere. Senior officials have called for the scrapping
Courtesy: Foreign Affairs of constitutional clauses that grant the
India’s Failed Strategy in government of Jammu & Kashmir a few
more powers than those of other states.
Kashmir: Security forces have become even more
heavy-handed. They use shotguns to
CSS Pakistan Affairs suppress angry crowds, thereby blinding
Guns have slipped back into holsters and many protesters with metal pellets. An army
diplomats behind their desks; the Samjhauta officer who kidnapped a civilian and
or “Concord” Express has resumed its strapped him to a jeep as a human shield was
reassuring bi-weekly chug connecting not punished, but lauded and promoted.
Lahore Junction and Old Delhi Station.
Relations between India and Pakistan are Many Kashmiris were further alienated
returning to the normal huffy disdain after a when Mr Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party
week of military brinkmanship. For the (bjp), which had swept polls in Jammu, the
divided and disputed border region of largely Hindu part of the state, first joined in
Kashmir, there is relief. Yet in the Kashmir an opportunistic coalition government with a
Valley, a fertile and densely populated part pro-independence party and then abruptly
of the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir, quit. This allowed Mr Modi to impose direct
this comes tempered with weariness. For its rule from Delhi. Those who had derided
7m inhabitants, most of them Muslim, a Indian democracy as a sham seemed
return to normal means a large and growing vindicated.
pile of frustrations. Some, such as bad
government services and a deepening
shortage of jobs, are familiar to all Indians. Infiltration from Pakistan has been rife. In
Others are unique to the valley. (CSS the words of Shivshankar Menon, a former
Pakistan Affairs) Indian national security adviser, “When they
Pakistan views the valley’s Muslims as think you are in trouble in Jammu &
sundered citizens; its constitution prescribes Kashmir, their temptation is to stir up that
what should happen not if, but “when”, trouble.” Violence began to mount, and with
Kashmiris vote to join Pakistan. And since it the intensity of the government’s response.
independence in 1947, Pakistan has never When guerrillas hole up in villages, the
security services tend to blitz their hideouts. Sure enough, that time is coming. In
Bystanders are often injured in the crossfire December, The New York Times reported,
and their property destroyed. A growing “The Trump administration has ordered the
proportion of the insurgents are local, even military to start withdrawing roughly 7,000
college-educated Kashmiris, not from across troops from Afghanistan in the coming
the border. Huge crowds gather at their months.” The U.S. government and the
funerals. Taliban are reportedly close to agreement on
a partial framework of a peace deal. Now it
It was a local recruit of a group based in is the turn of strategists in Washington to
Pakistan who drove a bomb-packed minivan worry about the wrong thing. They fear that
into a convoy of Indian police in the valley the Trump administration is repeating the
in mid-February, killing 40 and initiating the mistake made by the United States in
face-off with Pakistan. In response, online Vietnam and the Soviet Union in
agitators and even bjp officials goaded mobs Afghanistan: negotiating a troop withdrawal
around India to attack Kashmiris. Omair that leads to the collapse of the U.S.-backed
Ahmad, an Indian writer, despairingly government or a civil war. Former U.S.
remarks, “The Indian right has always seen Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker,
Kashmir as our Kosovo: a land to be loved, a for example, described the negotiations as a
people to be hated.” “surrender.”
In recent weeks Mr Modi’s government has The negotiations do not represent surrender.
escalated the repression in the valley, Nor are they the reason that the United
bringing in extra troops, rounding up non- States is aiming to withdraw its troops; that
violent activists and banning a moderate has long been Trump’s
Islamic group that runs scores of schools, intention. Negotiating in the shadow of a
employing some 10,000 teachers. It has cut predetermined decision to withdraw may not
government advertising in local newspapers, be the best way to run a peace process, but
their main source of revenue. Curfews and the real danger is that, regardless of the
internet shutdowns have intensified. Senior negotiations, Trump will order an
officials speak, alarmingly, of the need to unconditional withdrawal and cut the
“instil India” in locals. assistance that sustains the Afghan state.

Why Talking to the THE PATH TO PEACE

Taliban Is the Right Move U.S. President Donald Trump’s current
policy of negotiation constitutes a break with
CSS Current Affairs the South Asia strategy that Trump
In 2012, while I was serving as senior announced in August 2017. In the speech
adviser to the State Department special laying out the strategy, he hit all of
representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Washington’s war-drunk high notes: “the
I met in Istanbul with a group of Iranian men and women who serve our nation in
scholars and former diplomats. After combat deserve a plan for victory,” he said,
listening to the Iranians protest the United warning, “a hasty withdrawal would create a
States’ purported plans to establish vacuum for terrorists.” “In the end,” he
permanent bases in Afghanistan, I told them promised, “we will win.”
that they were worrying about the wrong
thing. Their problem was not that U.S. Most important to Trump, as always, was
forces would stay forever; it was that, sooner not to be his predecessor: “Conditions on the
or later, they would leave, and the Iranians
ground, not arbitrary timetables, will guide
and their neighbors would once again be
our strategy from now on,” he said.
stuck with a problem that they could not “America’s enemies must never know our
solve. (CSS Current Affairs)
plans or believe they can wait us out.”
The strategy was also supposed to change A negotiated solution was always the only
“how to deal with Pakistan,” which, the way out of Afghanistan, but the military
president said, has “sheltered the same insisted that the United States and the
organizations that try every single day to kill Afghan government should negotiate only
our people.” “That will have to change,” he from a “position of strength,” which was
said. always just over the horizon, defined by a
Soviet witticism as an imaginary line that
There was, however, never any “plan for recedes as one approaches it. The longer the
victory,” and Pakistan’s behavior did not United States waited for the position of
change. If Trump’s decision to withdraw strength, the weaker its actual position
was dictated by “conditions on the ground,” became, so when Trump finally accepted the
it was only because his strategy had failed to inevitable, Washington was hardly in a
alter those conditions. The U.S. military had position to impose terms.
defined government control over 80 percent
of the population as the benchmark for Kabul and Washington had hoped that
success, but in January, the U.S. Department military success would force the Taliban into
of Defense Special Inspector General for direct negotiations with the Afghan
Afghan Reconstruction reported that from government. But there was no such success,
August 2017 to October 2018, the and the Taliban, which reached agreements
proportion of the Afghan population living with the government in 2001 and 2004 only
in areas under government influence or to find the United States unwilling to accept
control remained constant at 64 percent. them, had concluded that negotiating with
“Conditions on the ground” had not the Afghan government without an
improved since the start of the Trump agreement with the United States was
administration, when General John pointless. The Taliban has not ruled out
Nicholson, the U.S. commander in talking to the government, but it insists on
Afghanistan, told the Senate Armed Services first reaching an agreement with the United
Committee that the United States and the States on ending what it calls the
Afghan government were in a “stalemate.” “occupation.” The choice facing Washington
Two years later, Trump’s South Asia in 2018, therefore, was between direct
strategy had not moved the stalemate any negotiations with the Taliban and no
closer to victory. A devastating National negotiations at all.
Intelligence Estimate issued in August 2018
reported that, if anything, the Taliban was Now the two sides are reported to be close to
gaining ground. an agreement under which U.S. forces would
Although Trump is hardly known to accept withdraw and the Taliban would guarantee
intelligence estimates at face value, this one that any future government in which they
confirmed that his original instinct to pull participate would join the fight against
out had been right. Some in the international terrorism. Some critics worry
administration, most likely led by Secretary that the United States will remove its troops
of State Mike Pompeo, convinced the in return for nothing but unenforceable
president to try negotiations before a promises by the Taliban. According to
unilateral withdrawal. Pompeo hired Zalmay negotiators, however, the agreement would
Khalilzad, a seasoned Afghan-American rely not on trusting the Taliban’s promises
Republican foreign-policy figure who had but on carefully sequencing the components
worked on Afghanistan in the Reagan and of the agreement and insisting on monitoring
both Bush administrations. As special mechanisms. The best counterterrorism
representative for Afghan Reconciliation, program would be a political agreement that
Khalilzad was given a few months to stabilizes Afghanistan, puts an end to
negotiate a deal before Trump pulled the incentives to mobilize terrorist support, and
plug. closes ungoverned spaces that terrorists can
exploit. The putative agreement specifies, as
Khalilzad tweeted in January, that “Nothing settlement within Afghanistan. When the
is agreed until everything is agreed, and deadline for cutting off aid to the
‘everything’ must include an intra-Afghan mujahideen arrived, the United States and
dialogue and comprehensive ceasefire.” Pakistan asserted that they would continue to
Those internal Afghan talks, Khalilzad support the mujahideen for as long as the
also tweeted, should be conducted by a Soviet Union supported the Afghan state.
“national, inclusive, and The Soviets withdrew on schedule anyway.
unified #Afghan negotiating team,” and he Over two years later, in September 1991, the
met with groups of women and youth to United States and a collapsing Soviet Union
illustrate what he meant. agreed to stop providing aid to their clients.
That intra-Afghan dialogue is where The Soviet Union collapsed in December.
Afghans, with international backing, can Short of money to pay his armed forces and
defend their rights. The relationship of the feed Afghanistan’s urban population,
troop withdrawal to the dialogue is yet to be Afghan President Mohammad Najibullah
agreed upon, but the U.S. and Afghan resigned and fled in April 1992. According
position is that any timetable for withdrawal to a UN peace plan, an interim government
should be linked to the implementation of formed abroad was meant to replace him,
the political settlement, not just to a but fighters inside Afghanistan had no stake
calendar. in that agreement. The country collapsed
into civil war.
HISTORY’S WARNING Such a scenario could play out again in
Trump could still upend this framework and Afghanistan. The United States could
opt for a unilateral withdrawal and aid cuts. catastrophically reduce its military and
Such a decision could well lead to the financial assistance with or without
collapse of the Afghan government, a negotiations—but the negotiations provide
scenario that recalls the end of the Vietnam the only path to stability after the inevitable
War. The Paris Peace Accords, reached in withdrawal. Trump must allow his
January 1973, provided for the complete negotiators and the Afghan government to
withdrawal of all U.S. forces from South take the time they need to reach a deal that
Vietnam within 60 days. Although they links the implementation of the withdrawal
included provisions for a cease-fire and a agreement to an Afghan political settlement,
political settlement, these were to take place and he must maintain the flow of aid needed
after U.S. forces left. The United States to keep the Afghan state functioning.
failed to make its withdrawal conditional on Courtesy: Foreign Affairs
either, and so neither happened. The South Why the India-Pakistan
Vietnamese government nonetheless
survived for over two years. Only in 1975, Crisis Isn’t Likely to Turn
when a war-weary U.S. Congress cut off all
military and financial aid to South Vietnam,
Nuclear
did Saigon finally fall. (CSS Pakistan Affairs)
In May 1999, an Indian military patrol
A similar story played out after the Soviet stumbled on several groups of Pakistani
invasion of Afghanistan. Under the Geneva soldiers who had set up posts in Kargil, in
Accords of 1988—negotiated by the Indian-controlled section of the disputed
Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Soviet Union, and state of Jammu and Kashmir. Within weeks,
the United States—all Soviet troops would India and Pakistan plunged into in their
withdraw from Afghanistan by February fourth war since 1947. The region’s
1989, and Pakistan and the United States mountainous terrain made land operations
would stop providing aid to the mujahidin difficult, but throughout the fighting the
based in Pakistan by May 1988. Yet the Indian military exercised a surprising degree
accords made no provision for a political of restraint. Indian pilots scrupulously
refrained from crossing or firing over the
line of control, the de facto border in Jammu
THE LESSONS OF
and Kashmir, despite coming under HISTORY
punishing fire from the Pakistani side. The
Kargil War, as the conflict became known, No one can say for sure, but history suggests
ended two months after fighting broke out, that there is cause for optimism. During the
when the Indian military recaptured the Kargil War, India worked to contain the
territory it had originally controlled. (CSS fighting to the regions around Pakistan’s
Pakistan Affairs) original incursions and the war concluded
Analysts generally point to Pakistan’s with no real threat of nuclear escalation.
acquisition of nuclear weapons the previous
year as the cause of India’s restraint. Indian Less than two years later, the two countries
policymakers likely feared that crossing the plunged into crisis once again. In December
line of control would trigger a wider 2001, five terrorists from the Pakistan-based
conflagration, one that could turn nuclear. groups Lashkar-e-Tabia and Jaish-e-
Mohammed attacked the parliament building
That history made it all the more surprising in New Delhi with AK-47s, grenades, and
when last week, on February 26, Indian jets homemade bombs, killing eight security
crossed not merely the line of control but the guards and a gardener. In response, India
international border with Pakistan to strike launched a mass military mobilization
an apparent terrorist camp in Balakot. Not designed to induce Pakistan to crack down
since the war of 1971 had the Indian Air on terrorist groups. As Indian troops
Force carried out a sortie within undisputed deployed to the border, terrorists from
Pakistani territory. The strikes came in Pakistan struck again. In May 2002, three
response to a terrorist attack on an Indian men killed 34 people in the residential area
paramilitary convoy in Jammu and Kashmir of an Indian army camp in Kaluchak, in
earlier in February claimed by Jaish-e- Jammu and Kashmir. Tensions spiked. India
Mohammed, a Pakistan-based terrorist seemed poised to unleash a military assault
group. on Pakistan. Several embassies in New
Delhi and Islamabad withdrew their
nonessential personnel and issued travel
The next day, the Pakistani Air Force hit
advisories. The standoff lasted for several
back. The particulars remain murky, but it’s
clear that Pakistani jets crossed the line of months, but dissipated when it became
apparent that India lacked viable military
control. India scrambled aircraft in response,
options and that the long mobilization was
and each side lost at least one plane during
taking a toll on the Indian military’s men
the ensuing skirmish. Pakistan then
announced that it had captured a downed and materiel. The United States also helped
Indian pilot. ease tensions by urging both sides to start
talking. India claimed victory, but it was a
Pyrrhic one, as Pakistan failed to sever its
Worried analysts now fear that, since India ties with a range of terrorist organizations.
and Pakistan have breached the informal
norm against using air power across the
border, they will be unable to prevent further Now that both sides have gone through the
escalation. Hawkish publics in both motions, neither is likely to escalate any
countries are calling for retaliation. Can the further.
politicians exercise restraint? Other nuclear states have also clashed
without resorting to nuclear weapons. In
1969, China, then an incipient nuclear
weapons state, and the Soviet Union, a full-
fledged nuclear power, came to blows over
islands in the Ussuri River, which runs along
the border between the two countries.
Several hundred Chinese and Soviet soldiers audiences. Now that both sides have gone
died in the confrontation. Making matters through the motions, neither is likely to
worse, Chinese leader Mao Zedong had a escalate any further. Peering into the nuclear
tendency to run risks and dismissed the abyss concentrates the mind remarkably.
significance of nuclear weapons, reportedly
telling Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Courtesy: Foreign Affairs
Nehru that even if half of mankind died in a
nuclear war, the other half would survive A comprehensive analysis
and imperialism would have been razed to on War in Afghanistan-
the ground. Yet despite Mao’s views, the
crisis ended without going nuclear, thanks in CSS Current Affairs
part to the efforts of Soviet Prime Minister Afghanistan has stayed less a homogenous
Alexei Kosygin, who took the first step by state and more a montage of feuding
travelling to Beijing for talks. ethnicities and warring tribes bound by
There’s reason to believe that the current strings of self-interest and foreign
situation is similar. Pakistan’s overweening subservience. (CSS Current Affairs)
military establishment undoubtedly harbors
an extreme view of India and determines Having written nearly two dozen analyses on
Pakistan’s policy toward its neighbor. The Afghanistan since 2010, I can give you two
military, however, is not irrational. In India, good and one not-so-good news today. First
although Prime Minister Narendra Modi has of all, the Afghan war of past 17 years is
a jingoistic disposition, he, too, understands coming to an end. President Barack
the risks of escalation, and he has a firm grip Obama’s words resonate to recall: “I think
on the Indian military. Americans have learned it’s harder to end
wars than it is to begin them.” Secondly,
Another source of optimism comes from Daesh (the so-called Islamic State) has no
what political scientists call the “nuclear future in the region. Similar to my prediction
revolution,” the idea that the invention of in spring 2017 (Radical Islamism:
nuclear weapons fundamentally changed the Understanding Extremist Narrative and
nature of war. Many strategists argue that Mindset) about Daesh’s elimination in Iraq, I
nuclear weapons’ destructive power is so foresee the terrorist group’s total rout in
great that states understand the awful Afghanistan (though it would first need the
consequences that would result from using U.S.-led coalition forces to leave).
them—and avoid doing so at all costs. Read more: Pakistan’s Jihadist cauldron:
Indian and Pakistani strategists are no From national asset to national millstone
different from their counterparts elsewhere. However, one cannot be certain about
Even Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan, Afghanistan’s internal security and stability,
a political neophyte, underscored the taking into account Afghan nation’s historic
dangers of nuclear weapons in his speech ethnic distrust and tribal discord. ‘Washing
addressing the crisis last week. And Modi, blood with blood’ this time some 17-year-
for all his chauvinism, has scrupulously old ‘scores’ need to be settled too. In An
avoided referring to India’s nuclear Account of the Kingdom of Caubul (1815)
capabilities. Mountstuart Elphinstone (the East India
Company’s administrator who negotiated
The decision by India and Pakistan to allow with the Afghan ruler Shah Shuja) had
their jets to cross the border represents a noted, “To sum up the character of the
major break with the past. Yet so far both Afghans in a few words: their vices are
countries have taken only limited action. revenge, envy, avarice, rapacity, and
Their principal aim, it appears, is what the obstinacy.”
political scientist Murray Edelman once Washington’s Revision of Stance
referred to as “dramaturgy”—theatrical Taliban have always been insistent on a
gestures designed to please domestic direct dialogue with the United States and
the departure of foreign forces from surprise visit to Kabul on 9 July 2018, a
Afghanistan to end their insurgency. The graceful exit seems already being planned.
two demands are now being met. Amid The Taliban Factor in Changing Thought
reports of President Trump getting A revision of thought in the U.S. mind has
frustrated with stalemate in the ongoing war, probably occurred after it saw that while a
the U.S. has not only showed its willingness military strategy against the Taliban
to talk with the Taliban and discuss remained unsuccessful, al-Qaeda’s
withdrawal of foreign troops, but the U.S. reincarnation has taken place in the shape of
special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Daesh in Afghanistan.
Alice Wells, has already reportedly met with
the Taliban representatives in Doha, Qatar, While a political settlement with the Taliban
resulting in some “very positive signals.” was always encouraged by all and sundry, it
However, it’s too early to rejoice. belatedly dawned upon Washington that
Washington still seems ambivalent about its “Taliban are part of the social fabric” of the
departure, carrying the stigma of another country, who “believe in the nationhood of
failed war from the “graveyard of empires.” Afghanistan, in contrast to other militant
Eminent British journalist, Christina Lamb, groups like Islamic State,” as noted by Alice
records in her book Farewell Kabul: From Wells, the special U.S. envoy.
Afghanistan to a More Dangerous World: Taliban’s open letter in February 2018
“Maybe we hadn’t been chased out as in addressed to the American people further
previous wars, but Afghanistan would helped in softening the U.S. stance and
always be remembered as a failure, in the developing a better understanding about the
same breath as Vietnam and Gallipoli.” group.
The indecision, or reluctance, if your will, is The Eid-ul-Fitr ceasefire observed by the
reflected in NATO’s Brussels summit in Taliban rank and file further demonstrated
July 2018, pledging to continue to train, its unity of command, putting to rest any
fund and assist Afghan security forces until suggestion of (mainstream) Taliban
2024 – an extension of its earlier infighting or factionalization. A BBC
commitment to contribute US1$ billion study in January 2018 had found Taliban
annually until 2020 at the Warsaw summit in openly operating in Afghanistan’s 70
2016. percent districts, fully controlling 4 percent
While Taliban stick to their list of demand: of the country and demonstrating their overt
1) Withdrawal of all foreign forces from presence in another 66 percent territory (see
Afghanistan; 2) Removal of the names of FDD’s Long War Journal’s interactive map
their leaders from the UN terror-watch list; of Taliban control of districts here).
3) Release of prisoners; and 4) Allowing Foreign Forces’ Disappointing Report
Afghan people to decide their political issues Card in Afghanistan
per their religion, culture and traditions, the Amid quite a few American failures in
U.S. remains preoccupied with the: 1) Afghanistan, the U.S. Special Inspector
Survival of its setup created after 2001’s General for Afghanistan Reconstruction
Bonn agreement, including Afghan (SIGAR) gave a poor report card to the U.S.
government and a democratic constitution; led coalition forces in April 2018 for acute
2) Country going-down in another civil-war deficiencies in the Afghan National Defence
(similar to that of 1992); and 2) Rise of and Security Force (ANDSF). SIGAR noted,
global terrorism from Afghan soil once for instance: “Despite US government
again (after al-Qaeda). expenditures of more than $70 billion in
security sector assistance to design, train,
Read more: Afghanistan’s Managed Chaos: advise, assist, and equip the ANDSF since
US Strategic Regional Designs 2002, the Afghan security forces are not yet
However, with the U.S. secretary of state, capable of securing their own nation.”
Mike Pompeo expressing his readiness to Afghan territory keeps slipping out of the
participate and support the peace talks on his hands of Western-trained Afghanistan’s six
field and one commando corps spread detrimental to Washington’s interests, the
countrywide: 201 Corps, garrisoning Kabul; U.S. deputy secretary of state, John Sullivan,
203 Corps, Gardez; 205 Corps, Kandahar; changed his tone during a visit to Kabul the
207 Corps, Heart; 209 Corps, Mazar-i- same month, clearly conveying to the
Sharif; and 215 Corps at Lashkargah. Afghan leadership that America has no
Moreover the jittery manner in which the intentions of severing ties with Pakistan or
Afghan gunship helicopters killed 36 launching military strikes inside its territory.
innocent villagers, including 30 children and In fact, it had been Pakistan’s army chief,
wounded 71 others at Dasht-i-Archi in General Qamar Javed Bajwa, who told the
Kunduz province on 2 April 2018, Americans point-blank at the 54th Munich
demonstrated the level of training of Afghan Security Conference in February 2018 to
soldiers imparted by the foreign forces. stop blaming Pakistan for its problems in
There had been a rationale behind denying Afghanistan and instead search for the
Afghan security forces the use of gunships reasons for its failures. The Royal United
or fighter jets as they then begin settling Services Institute (RUSI), a leading British
their personal scores, tribal disputes and security think-tank, found the general’s
ethnic feuds themselves. confidence in his celebrated “Bajwa
Lastly, the staggering 1.17 million war crime Doctrine” – standing up against the U.S.
claims collected by the International intimidation, demanding Pakistan to “do
Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague must more.” In his address at the nation’s Defence
have also unnerved the stakeholders in Day in September 2017, the army
Afghanistan. Unlawful and illegal atrocities, chief thundered: “[N]ow … the world must
including killings of unarmed prisoners by do more.”
not only the Taliban and Daesh, but also Pakistan’s defiance worked. Washington not
involving Afghan security forces and only guaranteed to respect Pakistan’s
government-affiliated warlords, the U.S.-led sovereignty and territorial integrity, but
coalition and foreign and domestic spy Alice Wells also acknowledged Pakistan and
agencies constitute war crimes in Taliban having legitimate grievances,
Afghanistan. Under immense international saying, “Pakistan has an important role to
and domestic pressure, investigations have play in helping stabilise Afghanistan.”
already begun in Australia and New In a related development, President
Zealand with the U.S. and U.K., also likely Trump elevated Washington’s ambassador
to come under ICC’s scrutiny. to Islamabad, David Hale, to under secretary
U.S. Rapprochement with Pakistan of state for political affairs, a position which
Having threatened Pakistan with dire grants the diplomat more sway to implement
consequences – including cross-border president’s new Afghan strategy. Mr. Hale,
attacks and hot pursuit operations on who has been performing his ambassadorial
Pakistani soil – Washington has since responsibilities since 2015, seems to have
stepped back from its bully (discussed in my the confidence of Pakistan’s Army and its
last two papers entitled: America’s intelligence establishment as he strongly
Waterloo: ‘Scapegoating’ Pakistan for supports normalization of ties between India
Failures in Afghanistan and Afghanistan’s and Pakistan. The ambassador played a lead
Managed Chaos: US Strategic Regional role in bringing-back Washington-Islamabad
Designs). relations from a breaking point after
In February 2018, seventeen U.S. President Trump slammed Pakistan (while
intelligence agencies had warned the outlining his new Afghan strategy on 21
Congress about a nuclear-armed Pakistan August 2017) followed by his “lies and
slipping-out of America’s influence into deceit” New Year’s tweet, condemning
China’s sphere, becoming a threat to Pakistan for supporting the Taliban.
Washington’s strategic interests in the South Pakistan’s defiance worked.
Asian region. Since an antagonized – and Washington not only guaranteed to
uncooperative – Islamabad remains respect Pakistan’s sovereignty and
territorial integrity, but Alice Wells with the Taliban granting the militia some
also acknowledged Pakistan and political accommodation in the future setup
Taliban having legitimate grievances, of the country. Pointing out
such reconciliation in the past, through
saying, “Pakistan has an important role
which a former rebel leader was not only
to play in helping stabilise accommodated in the political setup in
Afghanistan.” Kabul but his name was also expunged from
the UN terror list, Pakistan’s former
In a rare coincidence, a U.S. drone targeted
ambassador to the U.S., Aizaz Chaudhry
and killed Pakistan’s most wanted terrorist,
stated: “There’s a precedence for this
Mullah Fazlullah, the head of Pakistan’s
[political reconciliation] in the rehabilitation
bête noir, the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, in
of Gulbadin Hekmatyar.”
Afghanistan on 15 Jun 2018. Pakistan had
Criticising the disastrous militaristic
long demanded action against the fugitive
approach of Washington and Kabul,
terrorist who had masterminded one of the
Pakistan’s national security adviser, Lt. Gen.
most heart-wrenching terrorist attacks in
(Ret’d) Nasser Janjua also stated at a
Pakistan killing 132 school children in
seminar: “Afghanistan is a story of pains. It
December 2014. Demonstrating a modified
is a story of injuries. It is a wound of the
outlook towards Pakistan – long accused for
world and also of region which should be
harbouring the Afghan Taliban – not only
healed as quickly as possible. Every
President Ashraf Ghani picked up the phone
investment has been made to win Afghan
to announce the news to Pakistan’s army
war but, unfortunately, we have not invested
chief, but in an equally rare admission U.S.
in winning peace.”
defence secretary, James Mattis, took credit
In my view, the revived bonhomie between
for Fazlullah’s elimination.
Kabul and Islamabad – ending a hostile
Afghanistan-Pakistan Bonhomie
rhetoric and blame-game from Afghanistan
With the change in American attitude
– has resulted from ‘Afghanistan-Pakistan
towards Pakistan, surprisingly, the hostile
Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity’
statements coming from Afghan
(APAPPS) signed between the two countries
officials, blaming Pakistan for every terrorist
on 15 May 2018. Ostensibly approved by
attack on Afghan soil, also stopped. It looks
Washington and Beijing, the APAPPS is a
that a flurry of high-level exchanges – with a
Pakistani initiative carrying seven principles:
few shrouded in complete secrecy – along
1) Pakistan’s commitment toward supporting
with the Pakistan-Afghanistan Joint
an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and
Committee (PAJC), a Track-II diplomatic
reconciliation process; 2) Undertaking
initiative, played a meaningful role in
actions against fugitives and irreconcilable
warming-up their bilateral relations.
elements posing security threats to either
Pledging to make a “fresh start,” the Afghan
sides; 3) Denying use of their respective
deputy foreign minister, Hekmat Khalil
territory by any country, network, group or
Karzai, visiting Pakistan admitted, “Pakistan
individuals for anti-state activities against
is not part of the problem but solution.”
the other; 4) Placing a joint supervision,
I believe, it has been Pakistan’s army chief,
coordination and confirmation mechanism to
General Bajwa’s astute military diplomacy –
realise agreement pledges; 5) Avoiding
mentioned above as the “Bajwa Doctrine” –
territorial and aerial violations; 6) Refraining
and some of his out of box initiatives that
from public blame game, utilizing instead
brought a much needed thaw in the conflict.
APAPPS platform for the resolution of
The general, beyond doubt, has given some
issues; and 7) Operationalize six working
‘extraordinary assurances’ to the other
groups including the ones on security and
parties to the conflict with regards to the
intelligence cooperation.
Taliban, to ensure its ‘niche’ in mainstream
In all likelihood, APAPPS carries some
Afghan politics.
hidden pledges that have brought a sea-
Having huge stakes in Afghanistan, Pakistan
change in Afghan attitude and behaviour. An
has always pushed for a political settlement
obstinate and fire-breathing President Ghani could never have established its
immediately softened his stance. Pleading foothold in the country.
the Taliban to come forward and “save the
country,” Ghani not only offered As highlighted in my
significant concessions to the insurgents abovementioned paper on Islamic
(details here), but also recognized the militia extremism, these terror-groups not only seek
as a political party at the second round of power and prestige through their acts, but
‘Kabul Process’ on 28 February 2018. The some of them genuinely aspire to fulfil
president further climbed down through Prophet Muhammad’s (peace be upon him)
his Eid-ul-Fitr ceasefire offer – prophesy about the last battle of Islam,
unexpectedly reciprocated by the Taliban for the Ghazwa-e-Hind, to be fought in
the first time in the 17-year-old conflict (by Khorasan – present day Central Asia,
Pakistan’s persuasion or arm-twisting). Afghanistan and South Asia. Unsurprisingly,
Another ceasefire is expected at the Eid-al- Daesh in Afghanistan calls itself Wilayat-e-
Qurban on 22 August 2018. Khorasan.
A Collective Front against Daesh Not being an apologist for Taliban, I have
As seen in Daesh’s defeat in Iraq and Syria – always maintained that had the Taliban
and al-Qaeda’s earlier trouncing in given some political accommodation in
Afghanistan – no terror-group can withstand Afghanistan, Daesh could never have
the might of a state, carrying monopoly over established its foothold in the country.
violence. Daesh in Afghanistan is a Daesh’s (anti-Shia and anti-minorities)
combination of three elements: 1) Those sectarian overtone had alarmed the Taliban
militants who retreated from the Middle East right from the beginning. As Taliban’s foot-
and found sanctuaries in the lawless and soldiers began to break ranks to join Daesh,
ungoverned areas of Afghanistan; 2) The Mullah Akhtar Mansour, then Taliban’s
left-over elements of al-Qaeda who, after deputy chief, had warned al-Baghdadi
losing hope in Aiman-al-Zawahiri’s through a letter on 16 June 2015 to stay out
uncharismatic leadership to advance their of Afghanistan.
Islamic cause (sic), swore allegiance to Abu- However, Alice Wells, the U.S. special
Bakr-al-Baghdadi; and 3) The local criminal envoy doesn’t seem to concur with Taliban’s
bands such as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan anti-Daesh hypothesis. During a discussion
(TTP), Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, Lashkar-e-Islam, at the U.S. Institute for Peace she rejected
East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) the notion by saying: The U.S. was
and anti-Shia Jaish-ul-Adal and Lashkar-e- “disturbed by some countries justification of
Jhangavi al-Aalmi. Pakistan’s Zarb-e- the Taliban as a fighting force against the
Azb military operation in North Waziristan Islamic State – Khorasan. I think we see a
(tribal area) in June 2014 had uprooted and tendency to exaggerate the IS-Khorasan
pushed these terror-franchises into threat as a pretext to almost justify a hedging
Afghanistan, only to come together under behaviour.”
the banner of Daesh. Former President Hamid Karzai has,
President Barack Obama had told cadets at however, raised serious questions about the
West Point in May 2014: “[T]oday’s rise of Daesh and extremism in Afghanistan,
principal threat no longer comes from a blaming the U.S. for using Daesh as its
centralized al-Qaeda leadership. Instead, it “tool.” In a surprise move, Washington
comes from decentralized al-Qaeda affiliates further blocked a Pakistani request at the UN
and extremists, many with agendas focused Security Council’s sanctions committee to
in countries where they operate. declare Daesh-linked Jamaat-ul-Ahrar’s
Not being an apologist for Taliban, I head, Abdul Wali (alias Umer Khalid
have always maintained that had the Khurasani) a globally designated terrorist in
Taliban given some political May 2018.
Worried about Daesh’s spillover in its
accommodation in Afghanistan, Daesh
backyard, the Central Asian Republics,
Russia also keeps warning about the among Afghan people towards their
northern Afghanistan becoming a “resting ‘constitutionally-incongruous’ – and corrupt
base” of international terrorism and a to boot – Afghan ‘national unity
“bridgehead” for establishing its government.’
“destructive” caliphate in the region.” Lauding Taliban’s code of conduct –
Russian envoy to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, La’iha – Shadi Hamid, Vanda Felbab-
told the Security Council in June 2018 that Brown and Harold Trinkunas find in their
“[Daesh] has up to 10,000 fighters in its book Militants, Criminals, and Warlords:
ranks, and is already active in at least nine The Challenge of Local Governance in an
out of [Afghanistan’s] 34 provinces … Age of Disorder, that “conflicts over land
constantly consolidating its position in the and water and tribal feuds have escalated
north of the country, turning it into a after the end of the Taliban regime as a
springboard for the expansion into Central result of weak and institutional rule and
Asia.” power usurpation. The post-Taliban formal
In fact, in its naivety and indecent haste to courts have not been able to stop or resolve
crush the Taliban militarily, Washington such conflicts. Worse, the courts became
largely ignored the threat of Daesh spreading corrupt and themselves a tool of land
its tentacles in Afghanistan and becoming a expropriation.” The authors keep noting:
global threat since 2014. United Nations “The Taliban has moved to fill the gap by
Assistance Mission in Afghanistan providing free mediation of tribal, criminal,
(UNAMA) has totaled-up a record number and personal disputes. Afghans report a
of 1,692 fatalities in the first six months of great degree of satisfaction with Taliban
2018, attributing 52 percent of civilian verdicts, unlike those of the official justice
casualties in Afghanistan to Daesh’s suicide system, where petitioners often have to pay
and complex attacks. considerable bribes.”
However, fortunately, the regional countries Despite President Ghani’s peace overtures,
like Russia, China, Iran and Pakistan an intra-Afghan dialogue under his
have woken-up to the threat of Daesh to government remains an impossible
their internal and regional stability. The proposition. Calling the Afghan officials as
extraordinary secret meeting of heads of the foreign “puppets,” Taliban’s spokesman
intelligence agencies of the four countries in Zabihullah Mujahid has already rejected the
Pakistan on 11 July 2018 demonstrated their High Peace Council’s talks offer. The reason
collective resolve to eliminate Daesh in behind Taliban’s reluctance to join
Afghanistan. The huddle took place as a mainstream politics and accept the
follow-up of an earlier meeting between constitution is its undemocratic credentials.
Pakistan’s national security adviser, Lt. Gen Despite Taliban’s grassroots support base in
(Ret’d) Nasser Janjua, secretary of Iran’s the rural areas, the militia knows full well it
Supreme National Security Council, Rear has no chance of winning at the ballot in the
Admiral Shamkhani and secretary of the cities. Thus, until the Afghan Loya Jirga
Security Council of Russian Federation, figures out an alternate arrangement for
Nikolai Platonovich Patrushev in Russia in Taliban’s political representation and power,
April 2018. Afghanistan will stay in turmoil.
Afghanistan’s Internal Squabbling ‘Washing blood with blood’ this time
Three elements remain fundamental for any some 17-year-old ‘scores’ need to be
insurgency to sustain and find its settled too
justification: 1) A grassroots support among
the people; 2) Alienation of masses towards Another hindrance is factionalization among
the sitting government, and, 3) the insurgent groups. With too many
Foreign/outside support. Therefore, even if tongues, you don’t know whom to speak, or
we cross-out the alleged support of Pakistan, how many to please. Though the small
Iran and Russia to the Taliban, there has splinter group led by Mullah Mohammad
been abundant proof of disillusionment Rasool backs peace talks, the Fidai Mahaz
led by Mullah Najeebullah keeps rejecting a Secondly, kicking up a constitutional crisis,
dialogue. Even Mullah Haibatullah a second provincial governor, Abdulkarim
Akhundzada, the head of Taliban’s Khaddam of the northern Samangan
mainstream group stays in two minds under province also defied a whimsical president
pressure from younger fighters who keep by refusing to step down in February 2018.
consolidating their hold over new districts Third, a competent administrator and a
every day. person of high repute, Governor Mohammad
However, fortunately, the regional Gulab Mangal, was also sent packing on
countries like Russia, China, Iran and corruption charges and security deterioration
Pakistan have woken-up to the threat of in the Nangarhar province in May 2018.
Fourth, sparking violent protests Ghani’s
Daesh to their internal and regional
Shaheen 209 Corps
stability. further arrested Nezamuddin Qaisari, a
Furthermore, in his vain effort to establish powerful militia commander and district
Kabul’s central control and to cleanse the police chief of the Faryab province on
Afghan democratic system and improve flimsy grounds.
governance, Mr. Ghani, of late, has been Finally, the president unsuccessfully tried to
sidelining powerful Afghan warlords remove the popular and influential police
accused of human rights abuses and chief of Kandahar, a so-called general
narcotics trade. However, demonstrating named Abdul Raziq Achakzai, only to
lack of political acumen and proper be retorted back: Ghani’s government
familiarity with Afghanistan’s history and “cannot fire me.” Condemned by the Human
culture, a technocrat president has Rights Watch as “Kandahar’s torture-in-
exacerbated ethnic fault-lines. chief” and a notorious drug smuggler, Raziq
had been an unknown foot-soldier trained by
the U.S. contractors only to rise as a local
First of all, having denied his Uzbek vice-
hero against Taliban.
president, General Abdul Rasheed Dostum
Among many of Afghanistan’s misfortunes
to return to Afghanistan from his self-exile
the Ghani-Abdullah national unity
in Turkey for 14 months – after allegations
government will find prominence in history
surfaced of Dostum torturing his political
chronicles. Such an anomaly did not allow
opponent – Ghani had antagonized the
necessary checks and balances to be
powerful Junbish-i-Milli (political party) and
instituted, making the governance fail on all
almost four million Uzbek voters in the
accounts. Under lack of proper oversight of
northern Afghanistan. Despite Sarwar
US$10 billion by 34 donor nations and
Danish, the second vice president,
agencies, SIGAR’s head, John
negotiating Dostum’s return on 22 July
Sopko, found Afghanistan flooded with
2018, the political fate of the warlord of
more money than it could absorb,
yesteryears harbouring presidential
exacerbating corruption and fuelling a
ambitions, who, Mr. Ghani had branded a
drawn-out conflict.
“remorseless killer” in 2009, is still not
Conclusion
clear.
As the Afghan war soon enters its 18th year,
Ghani further stoked ethno-nationalism by
U.S. must be reckoning how laborious it is
impulsively sacking his non-Pashtun
to fight someone else’s war with alien
governors and other senior officials:
culture, history and geography. In the fog of
First, as the president dismissed the
insurgencies and civil-wars the collateral
governor of the Balkh province, Atta
damage cannot be avoided. Yet it brings a
Mohammad Noor, in December 2017, the
bad name to the liberators when immense
so-called “King of the north” eyeing to be
international pressure comes for mistaken-
the next Afghan president, refused to oblige.
identity attacks. While SIGAR’s May 2018’s
Despite handing over the province to an ally
report highlighted U.S. forces dropping
in March 2018, Noor’s insubordination
1,186 munitions in Afghanistan between
demonstrated limits to Ghani’s powers.
January and March 2018, it show a kind of war-fatigue on both sides.
also cited UNAMA’s collected figures of While the Afghan government remains
2017 attributing 6,768 civilian casualties adamant not to budge for power sharing, the
(2,303 deaths) to anti-government forces and ordinary Afghans are fed up with the
2,108 civilian casualties (745 deaths) to pro- prolonged conflict –
government forces. as demonstrated through the 700km long
The shrinking of Afghan security forces by march by dozens of peace protesters from
nearly 11 percent is another indicator of loss Helmand to Kabul chanting slogans such as
of people’s faith in a futile war. The loss of “We want peace” and “stop fighting” during
numerical strength of the Afghan National the fasting month of Ramadan (June 2018).
Defence and Security forces (ANDSF) and Despite more than 100 Muslim scholars
the territory held by them had panicked the from around the world pleading “mutual
Pentagon to the extent that the department of understanding and direct peaceful
defence classified the public data, instructing negotiations” among “Muslim Afghan[s]” at
SIGAR not to release the information. Left the Saudi city of Mecca on 11 July 2018, the
with no choice, SIGAR complainedto the ‘Islamic diplomacy’ is unlikely to convince
U.S. Congress on 30 April 2018 about the Afghan government or the insurgents.
receiving inaccurate data from the U.S. On 7 March 1993, Saudi King Fahd had also
forces in Afghanistan. sponsored a peace accord between the
As the Afghan war soon enters its warring Afghan Mujahedeen leaders, who
18th year, U.S. must be reckoning how all swore at the Holy Ka’ba to end their
laborious it is to fight someone else’s fighting, only to break their vow upon
returning to Afghanistan. Similarly,
war with alien culture, history and
the Trilateral Ulema Conference, a conclave
geography. of Islamic scholars from Indonesia,
In my last paper on Afghanistan (mentioned Afghanistan and Pakistan, denouncing
above), I had concluded that probably it is violent extremism, terrorism, and suicide
America’s long-term strategic interests that attacks as against the Islamic principles on
do not allow it to take leave from the region. 11 May 2018 may also fail to pacify the
However, the time for the U.S. forces to historic vengeance in Afghan blood.
depart Afghanistan has arrived, letting the The killing of 15 Taliban fighters by Daesh
regional countries to tackle – and eliminate – rivals means intensified fighting among the
Daesh. China seems to be seeking a military militant groups in the coming days.
base at Wakhan border in Afghanistan for Considering Daesh a major threat to global
the same purpose. security, effort should be made to reconcile
Notwithstanding, U.S. secretary of state, with the Taliban at priority – who have
Mike Pompeo describing American footprint publicly pledged not to house al-Qaeda
in Afghanistan as a “humble mission” with again or pursue any global agenda – and
objective to leave after “greatly diminishing eradicate the menace of terrorism and
the threat to [U.S.] homeland that may Islamic extremism once and for all from the
emanate from there,” Senator Rand Paul, region.
argued at the secretary’s congressional With elections for Wolsei Jirga (lower
confirmation hearing that now was the time house) – oft postponed since 2015 –
to leave as “all those terrorists in scheduled for 20 October 2018 and a new
Afghanistan and Pakistan” who had presidential election next year, the anomaly
participated in the 9/11 attacks, had been of ‘national unity government’ is going to be
eliminated and some of the soldiers fighting thankfully over. However, the elections are
there were not even born when 9/11 not panacea of Afghanistan’s peace and
happened. stability until the country’s political
The scenes of conviviality and affection seen fundamentals are first corrected.
during the last ceasefire between the Taliban The problem is that historically the
fighters and government security officials ‘differences’ among various Afghan
ethnicities have been treated as ‘disputes’ – It is conceivable the U.S.-Pakistan
not resolved through ‘discussions.’ While relationship will continue to
worries abound about Afghanistan deteriorate, but the question then is
descending into another ethnic conflict or a
whether it would result in a hard or soft
civil-war after the withdrawal of U.S. and
NATO forces, the security ownership taken landing.
by the regional countries should be For its part, Pakistan was eager to ally itself
satisfying. The collective resolve shown by with the leading superpower as a means to
Russia, China, Pakistan, Turkey and Iran boost its defense capabilities. In exchange of
means Daesh will not be allowed to fester military aid, advanced technology, and an
further or spillover into those countries. informal security umbrella, Pakistan gave
Period. the United States access to bases, shared
intelligence, and was formally in the anti-
However, it is the Afghans who have to sort Soviet bloc as a member of both the Central
out their internal issues themselves. At Treaty Organization (CENTO) and
another place in her book Farewell Kabul, Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
Christina Lamb quotes an elderly Afghan (SEATO).
observing pensively, “War never leaves this Read more: Taiwan diplomacy harder than
land.” However, it is time the Afghans bring ever in US-China tug of war
an end to the four-decade long conflict and Due to concerns about the Soviet influence
open a new chapter towards mutual on India and efforts to normalize relations
understanding and harmony, progress and with China, the United States backed
prosperity. For once, Afghans must prove Pakistan in its conflicts with India, even
Alexander Cockburn wrong for reinforcing providing material and moral support to
the myth that Afghanistan is “nothing but Pakistan during the 1971 India-Pakistan War
mountains filled with barbarous ethnics with that led to the independence of Bangladesh.
views as medieval as their muskets.” At the end of the decade, when the Soviets
It was for such redefining moments in the invaded Afghanistan, the United States and
history of nations that T.S. Eliot had said: Pakistan collaborated closely to push them
“What we call the beginning is often the back. Their covert strategy was to encourage
end. And to make an end is to make a a ‘jihad’ against the Soviets and to arm and
beginning. The end is where we start from.” train militants – the mujahideen – to liberate
Afghanistan.
Will Sino-US Relations While this approach was successful in
defeating the Soviets, it did not prepare
Drive Pak-US Relations? Afghanistan for the civil war and chaos that
would follow, as some elements of the U.S.-
CSS International and Pakistan – backed mujahideen’s
Relations morphed into the Taliban, who took over
and imposed harsh, regressive laws.
A Brief History
Since Pakistan’s independence in 1947, it
During the 1980s, Pakistan also made
has had a mixed relationship with the United
significant strides towards developing
States, encompassing several ups and downs
nuclear weapons capabilities. Research
over the decades. Pakistan came into being
suggests that the United States was fully
as a sovereign state, like many former
colonial territories, during the early Cold aware of the program’s developments but
War. The U.S. Cold War grand strategy of unwilling to sanction Pakistan for its nuclear
program due to the prioritization of
containment of communism and Soviet
containing communism and cooperating in
influence shaped its early interactions with
Pakistan. (CSS International relations) Afghanistan. As the Cold War ended,
however, the U.S. incentives to ignore
growing evidence of Pakistani nuclearization
declined, causing a significant downturn in Many in the United States believe that its
relations. failures in Afghanistan stem from Taliban
sanctuaries in Pakistan. On the other hand,
The United States invoked a piece of many Pakistanis attribute this failure to an
legislation known as the Pressler over-militarized U.S. strategy without
Amendment in 1990 to sanction Pakistan genuine efforts at a negotiated settlement.
and further sanctioned it under the Glenn They also blame the United States for
and Symington Amendments in 1998 after it employing a reckless level of force,
conducted nuclear tests. These punitive including drone strikes on Pakistani soil, that
measures dealt a significant blow to has intensified, if not triggered, Pakistan’s
Pakistan’s economy and fostered public domestic terrorism problem.
distrust, and even hostility, towards the
United States. The discovery and assassination of Osama
The United States will continue to take Bin Laden in May 2011 in Abbottabad – a
interest in Pakistan’s stability, and the city home to Pakistan’s military academy –
two countries will still have to caused further damage to U.S.-Pakistan ties.
To many Americans, both of the possibilities
cooperate on certain issues such as
that the Pakistani state was either harboring
counterterrorism, nonproliferation, and Bin Laden or ignorant of his presence were
the security and reconstruction of grounds for a rupture in relations. The
Afghanistan. Pakistani government denied that it had prior
knowledge of Bin Laden’s whereabouts,
Post-9/11 Relations while many Pakistanis were outraged by the
Following the devastating terrorist attacks of raid because they felt it was a violation of
September 11, 2001, an opportunity for Pakistani sovereignty.
rapprochement between the United States As the Cold War ended, however, the
and Pakistan emerged. The United States U.S. incentives to ignore growing
invaded Afghanistan within a month in order evidence of Pakistani nuclearization
to eliminate Al Qaeda and its Taliban declined, causing a significant
patrons. Like an echo of the anti-Soviet
downturn in relations.
jihad, the United States again sought the
cooperation of Pakistan in fulfilling U.S. From the U.S. standpoint, Pakistan had
objectives in Afghanistan. engaged in reckless nuclear proliferation
(discovered with the disruption of the A.Q.
Read more: US-China trade tension Khan network in 2003), worked against U.S.
dominates IMF gathering efforts to stabilize Afghanistan, and backed
It, therefore, waived the nuclear-related international terrorist networks that
sanctions against Pakistan in 2001 and conducted horrific attacks like the one on
formally designated Pakistan a major non- Mumbai in November 2008. Abbottabad
NATO ally in 2004, proceeding to was the final straw and bilateral relations
give billions of dollarsin assistance to the have struggled to recover ever since.
country for support in the War on Terror.
Yet, the two countries’ different visions for From Pakistan’s standpoint, the United
what stable peace in Afghanistan and the States had also contributed to the
broader region should look like hindered full deterioration of the relationship. The U.S.
strategic cooperation. Although Pakistan did appeared to renege on three assurances it
support U.S. efforts in several ways, its had made to the Musharraf government after
ongoing support for the Taliban and other 9/11 on Kabul, Kashmir, and Pakistan’s
related militant groups (whether tacit or strategic assets. The U.S. did not prevent
active) – what some U.S. analysts have Northern Alliance forces from taking Kabul
termed a “double game” – continues to be a after the Taliban fell, and it was never able
major source of tension. to reverse their influence on the Afghan
state, which Pakistan saw as opening space Parallel to the Indo-U.S. alignment, Pakistan
for Indian influence. has been growing closer to China, already its
longtime supporter. Diminishing U.S. aid
The United States also failed to invest has been replaced by the huge influx of
significant effort in resolving the decades- investment and loans from China for the
long Kashmir dispute between India and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a series
Pakistan. And while it did not seek to harm of energy and transportation infrastructure
Pakistan’s nuclear weapons and delivery projects to upgrade Pakistan’s economic
systems, it provided a significant boost to productivity. It remains to be seen to what
Indian capabilities with the Indo-U.S. civil extent China can fully replace the United
nuclear deal signed in 2005 and States in Pakistan, but it seems unlikely that
implemented as legislation in 2008. the U.S.-Pakistan relationship will
completely lapse. The United States will
Read more: US revokes invitation to China continue to take interest in Pakistan’s
over ‘provocative military movement’ in stability, and the two countries will still have
the… to cooperate on certain issues such as
counterterrorism, nonproliferation, and the
The Future security and reconstruction of Afghanistan.
For better or worse, U.S.-Pakistan relations
going forward in the twenty-first century The South Asian “Trilemma” for U.S.
may increasingly be shaped by the role of Strategy
China. China’s rise on the global stage has At some level, there is a fundamental tension
been a major driver of U.S. foreign policy or trilemma between the three U.S. strategic
considerations in recent years. To balance objectives of balancing China, ensuring
against China in the Asia-Pacific region, the nuclear security and strategic stability, and
United States has actively courted India as a preventing international terrorist safe
strategic partner since the early 2000s. U.S. havens. The means to these ends require
strategists believe that India’s favorable aligning closely with India to balance a
geography, population size, rising economy, rising China, cooperating closely with
similarity in institutions and values, and Pakistan, and building up the Afghan state to
formidable military enable and motivate it to eliminate ungoverned spaces, but pursuing
be an effective guardian of the status quo one can undermine another.
international order and a geopolitical
counterweight to China. Read more: China’s vice premier to visit US
As part of this strengthening of U.S.-India for trade talks: White House
ties, the United States has treated India and Aligning with India induces insecurity in
Pakistan differently than in the past, much to Pakistan, resulting in less cooperation and
Pakistan’s frustration. Most notably, the greater reliance on asymmetric assets to
Indo-U.S. civil nuclear deal that was counterbalance a rising India on both its
finalized in 2008 removed significant borders. Cooperation with Pakistan to
obstacles to U.S.-India strategic cooperation enhance its stability foments distrust in both
and gave India access to international U.S.-India and U.S.-Afghan relations,
nuclear commerce despite it not being party slowing both those efforts. And nation-
to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty building in Afghanistan diverts increasingly
(NPT). Because this exception was only scarce U.S. attention and resources away
made for India, Pakistan felt (and China from the challenge of balancing China.
concurred) that the United States
was discriminating against it.
How the United States seeks to juggle or
At the end of the decade, when the resolve these tensions will have a significant
Soviets invaded Afghanistan, the impact on the U.S.-Pakistan relationship in
United States and Pakistan collaborated the long run. Some refuse to acknowledge
closely to push them back. the tradeoff and are loath to think that the
United States, as the sole superpower, its nonproliferation agenda, and in fact was
should have to give anything up. Other actually partially successful given its
strategic thinkers seem to suggest that the objectives. As Miller and Rabinowitz argue
United States should privilege its relations in a 2015 article in ‘International Security’,
with India and Afghanistan and abandon the United States was successfully able to
Pakistan, which may be forming a bloc with set constraints on states with nascent nuclear
China. capabilities, including Pakistan.

By contrast, an alternative strategy might try

Addition of Security
to order U.S. objectives and work to still Component to BRI –
achieve them based on the relative priority
level. For instance, the United States could
CSS Current Affairs
China appears to be shifting gears in its
continue to build the U.S.-India relationship
multi-billion dollar Belt and Road initiative
to balance (though not contain) a rising
(BRI). Long projected as driven by
China, principally through naval
economics and the benefit of infrastructure
cooperation to ensure stability and access to
the Indian Ocean commons. At the same linkages, China appears to be increasingly
time, the United States could continue to adding a security component to the initiative
cooperate with Pakistan to help it develop against the backdrop of President Xi Jinping
positioning of his country as a superpower
into a stable, middle-income country
rather than a developing nation. The
contributing to regional security.
No doubt, abetting India’s rise with material emergence of a security component is not
support will make it harder for the United only highlighted by the establishment last
States to cooperate with Pakistan, but not year of China’s first foreign military base in
Djibouti, but also in its stepped-up security
impossible if it deftly manages second-order
cooperation with Afghanistan and other
consequences with diplomatic tact and
commits to ensuring Pakistan’s minimum- Central Asian nations that border on its
security needs of regional strategic stability. north-western province of Xinjiang. (CSS
Current Affairs)
Because balancing China is the priority, the
United States will not be able to dictate or
get everything it wants with Pakistan, so it China’s security focus is driven by concerns
will have to prioritize what it most values. about national and religious aspirations in
For instance, it could prioritize supporting Xinjiang of Uyghurs, an ethnic Turkic
Pakistan’s own stability and preventing a Muslim group that has long looked
nuclear arms race while downgrading its westward toward Central Asia and Turkey
position on Afghanistan and yielding space rather than eastward towards Beijing. China
to a negotiated settlement closer to what has sought to radically alter Uyghur identity
Pakistan seeks. by introducing a 21st-century repressive
surveillance state that invades the privacy of
Uyghurs and sends tens, if not hundreds of
The U.S. did not prevent Northern thousands to re-education camps where
Alliance forces from taking Kabul after indoctrination is designed to install Chinese
the Taliban fell, and it was never able rather than Uyghur nationalist or Islamic
to reverse their influence on the Afghan values.
state, which Pakistan saw as opening
space for Indian influence. Chinese defense minister Chang
Wanquan vowed to “firmly maintain
History provides a useful lesson for skeptics.
Despite conventional wisdom, even while
Xinjiang’s stability” and “build an iron
the United States was cooperating with wall to enhance border defense.”
Pakistan in the Afghan jihad to bleed the President Xi Jinping reiterated the need
Soviets, it did not completely foreclose on for a “great wall of iron” in March.
China’s security focus on Afghanistan and China also fears that the militants could
Central Asia is intended to counter Uyghur expand from Afghanistan into Central Asia
militants who have moved to the region after and particularly Tajikistan. The Afghan-
the defeats suffered by the Islamic State in Tajik border is 1,357 kilometres long, two
Syria and Iraq and the group’s establishment thirds of which is in Badakhshan, while the
of a base in Afghanistan and the Pakistani Tajik-Chinese borders runs for 414
province of Balochistan. It also aims, kilometres compared to only 76 kilometres
together with efforts to cut off contact along the Afghan-Chinese frontier. The
between Uyghurs and their Central Asian analysts note that Chinese scholars
brethren, to fend off the influence of non- participating in March in a European
violent Uyghur Diaspora groups who have Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR)
been resident in Central Asia for decades. conference doubted whether militants would
be able to infiltrate Xinjiang from
Read more: Pakistan’s financial crisis puts Afghanistan.
OBOR in jeopardy
Uyghur fighters speaking in videos Read more: Belt and Road Initiative
distributed by the Islamic State have vowed attracting car manufacturers in Pakistan
to return home to “plant their flag in China.” Militants have repeatedly targeted Chinese
One fighter, addressing evil Chinese assets and personnel in Pakistan. At least
Communist infidel lackeys,” threatened that one Uyghur was involved in a 2016 suicide
“in retaliation for the tears that flow from the bombing of the Chinese embassy in the
eyes of the oppressed, we will make your Kyrgyz capital of Bishkek while a Uyghur
blood flow in rivers, by the will of God.” gunman killed 39 people in an attack on an
Istanbul nightclub in January of last year.
The Islamic State threats and migration of Chinese security cooperation has so far
East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) concentrated on joint counter-terrorism
fighters from Syria and Iraq to the Afghan operations with Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
province of Badakhshan raises in China’s It first became apparent with reports that
mind the spectre of a return to the 1990s, a Chinese troops were joining their Afghan
period of protests and attacks in Xinjiang, counterparts in patrolling the Wakhan
when the Taliban government allowed Corridor, a tiny strip of Afghanistan
Uyghur militants to operate from its bordering the on Xinjiang.
territory.
China earlier pledged US$ 70 million in aid
China’s security focus is driven by for Afghan counter-terrorism efforts. The
concerns about national and religious Chinese scholars participating in the ECFR
conference said Chinese border control
aspirations in Xinjiang of Uyghurs, an
assistance extended beyond the Wakhan
ethnic Turkic Muslim group that has Corridor to the Badakshan-Tajik border.
long looked westward toward Central
Asia and Turkey rather than eastward One fighter, addressing evil Chinese
towards Beijing. Communist infidel lackeys,” threatened
Some analysts argue nonetheless that China that “in retaliation for the tears that
is more worried that Uyghur militants flow from the eyes of the oppressed,
operating from Afghanistan may pose a we will make your blood flow in rivers,
greater threat to the China Pakistan by the will of God.”
Economic Corridor (CPEC), at US$50
billion plus a Belt and Road crown jewel and China agreed two years ago to fund and
its single largest investment, than to build 11 military outposts and a training
Xinjiang. facility to beef up Tajikistan’s defense
capabilities along its border with
Afghanistan that hosts a large part of the participating in the ECFR conference
main highway connecting Tajikistan’s most said Chinese border control assistance
populous regions to China. China has since extended beyond the Wakhan Corridor
stepped up the sharing of intelligence with
to the Badakshan-Tajik border.
Tajikistan on issues related to political
violence, religious extremism and drug Pan Zhiping, head of the Central Asian
trafficking. Studies Institute at the Xinjiang Academy of
Social Science, argued that “China’s
The Chinese defense ministry announced in approach is always to stabilise bordering
April that China, Pakistan, Afghanistan and countries. If the CPEC links up to
Tajikistan would perform joint Afghanistan, it can ultimately be a gateway
counterterrorism and training and exercises to Iran and the Indian Ocean.”
that focus on real combat experiences. China
and Afghanistan agreed last year to lay a Read more: What is China’s main motive
cross-border fibre-optic cable that like in the behind Belt and Road Initiative?
case of Pakistan could pave the way to Afghanistan and Central Asia, regions that
export China’s model of a surveillance state most immediately impact the security of
to Afghanistan. Xinjiang, are likely to be first steps in what
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
Read more: China uses Belt and Road described as China’s intent of “resolving
investment to shape Pakistan’s political hotspot issues with Chinese characteristics.”
climate Greater emphasis on the Belt and Road’s
“China will strengthen military exchanges security component would also be in line
and anti-terrorism cooperation with with Mr. Xi’s assertion last month that
Afghanistan to ensure security between the China was ready to “lead in the reform of
two nations and the region,” said Xu global governance.”
Qiliang, deputy chairman of China’s Central
Military Commission. Mr. Xu was speaking China scholar Elizabeth Economy said Mr.
in December on the sidelines of a meeting of Xi’s “ambition is most evident close to
the Chinese, Afghan and Pakistani foreign home.” Ms. Economy was referring to
ministers designed to ease tensions between policy in the South China Sea, Hong Kong
Kabul and Islamabad and integrate and with regard to Taiwan. It is becoming
Afghanistan into CPEC. Pakistan has so far equally evident in China’s other near abroad:
resisted sharing CPEC glory with Afghanistan and Central Asia.
Afghanistan.

China hopes that a resolution of Pakistani- Partition of India:

Afghan disputes would pave the road to a Gandhi’s Role –
Chinese mediated resolution of the Afghan
war that would allow the Taliban to share CSS Pakistan Affairs
power. On a visit to Xinjiang in January, When the All-India Muslim League was
Chinese defense minister Chang Wanquan established in Dhaka in 1906 by leading
vowed to “firmly maintain Xinjiang’s Muslim figures from around the
stability” and “build an iron wall to enhance country, India had just begun to slowly
border defense.” President Xi Jinping transition to self-rule from the British Raj.
reiterated the need for a “great wall of iron” From the outset, the political party’s primary
in March. goal was to protect the interests of India’s
large Muslim minority, especially its elite.
China earlier pledged US$ 70 million Its initial strategy was to use the
in aid for Afghan counter-terrorism demographic weight of the Muslim-majority
provinces in northwestern and eastern India,
efforts. The Chinese scholars particularly the two large provinces of
Punjab and Bengal, to secure larger Muslim including the Bharatiya Janata Party in
representation in the legislature, in the power in India today. The RSS propagated a
executive branch, and in public services in militant Hindu supremacist ideology that
minority provinces, where Muslims were defined the Muslim Indian as the other. M.
most in need of protection. (CSS Pakistan S. Golwalkar, the leader of the RSS from
Affairs) 1940 to 1973, openly declared that “in this
In the end, the 1947 partition of India, which land Hindus have been the owners, Parsis
the Muslim League later advocated, and Jews the guests, and Muslims and
accomplished exactly the opposite. The Christians the dacoits [band of armed
separation cut away the Muslim-majority robbers].”
provinces from the rest of India, leaving Explicit Hindu chauvinism was only of
Muslims in the minority provinces far more secondary importance during the
vulnerable to the will of the Hindu majority. independence movement. The predominant
The division of the strand of Hindu nationalism, in contrast,
subcontinent reduced Muslims’ share of the blended Hindu nationalism with Indian
population from over a quarter in British nationalism far more subtly—by adopting
India to just ten percent in independent Hindu symbols, for example—but without
India, allowing Hindu chauvinists to openly explicitly denouncing Muslims as outsiders.
equate Indian nationalism with Hindu This predominant strand of Hindu
nationalism. nationalism was always a part of the
Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of mainstream Indian National Congress
Pakistan and the leader of the Muslim (known simply as the Congress) and was
League in its final phase, is often assumed to exemplified by nationalist stalwarts such as
have been the one who brought about the activists Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Lala
partition. But some leading scholars, such as Lajpat Rai in the earlier phase and Sardar
Ayesha Jalal, contend that Jinnah never Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first deputy prime
wanted it. According to Jalal, the demand minister, at the time of independence.
for Pakistan was a bargaining chip for
Jinnah that unfortunately took on a Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, the leading
momentum of its own, leading not only to figure of the nationalist movement from
the division of India but also to the partition 1920 until independence, professed that
of its largest Muslim-majority provinces, above all his mission was to bridge the gap
Punjab and Bengal, into two parts. Partition between Hindus and Muslims; yet large
left Jinnah, in his own words, with a segments of the Muslim elite consistently
“truncated or mutilated moth-eaten” considered him to belong to the implicit
Pakistan. Hindu nationalist tradition. In their view,
Partition, however, cannot be blamed on the Gandhi imperceptibly equated Hinduness
Muslim League and Jinnah alone. There had with Indianness by his dress, vocabulary,
always been an explicitly Hindu majoritarian and demeanor and his obsession with the
streak in Indian nationalism that equated protection of cows, considered sacred by
Indian identity with Hinduism and defined Hindus. Consequently, the Muslim elite felt
India in Hindu terms, for example as a their identity under greater threat with
mother goddess akin to Kali and Durga. The Gandhi at the helm of the Congress than
literature that this strand of thinking they had before he became the undisputed
produced was explicitly anti-Muslim in leader of the party.
character. Organizationally it took the form HINDU NATIONALISM AND THE
of the Hindu Mahasabha, an exclusivist MUSLIM ELITE
Hindu party set up to defend the rights and
privileges of the Hindu majority, and the The politics of Indian independence was
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a above all elite politics; the masses had only
proto-fascist paramilitary group that instrumental value. Even in the last elections
spawned a number of other organizations, held in India under the Raj in 1946, only 13
percent of the adult population had the right the political arena and further increased
to vote based on property and income Muslim alienation.
criteria. In the run-up to Indian In 1920, Jinnah, then a senior and
independence, the Muslim elite harbored a thoroughly secular leader of the Congress,
sense of great insecurity connected to strongly opposed Gandhi’s use of religious
history, demography, lack of progress in idioms in politics and warned that “it was a
English education, and other factors. Before crime to mix up politics and religion the way
the Raj, the center of gravity of Indian he had done.” Jinnah believed that doing so
politics was the heartland of northern and contributed to communal polarization. He
central India, where much of the Muslim was also staunchly against Gandhi’s support
elite was concentrated. When control began for the antediluvian Khilafat movement,
to shift to the hands of the East India which sought a restoration of the Ottoman
Company, power shifted as well to the caliphate after its defeat in World War I.
coastal cities of Calcutta, Madras, and Gandhi joined the Khilafat movement to
Bombay, where the trading company had draw the support of the Muslim masses for
established its bases. These coastal cities and his noncooperation movement, aimed at
their hinterlands were dominated by an boycotting all British-created institutions in
emerging English-educated, predominantly India in an effort to gain independence for
Hindu elite who made up the bulk of Indian the country.
administrators in subordinate positions in the For Jinnah, reference to a backward-looking
Raj as well as spokespersons for self- golden age specific to the Hindu or Muslim
government in India. communities from which the other was
excluded was a recipe for division. Jinnah
Whether Muslims’ insecurities at the time of had been the principal architect of the
independence were warranted is beside the Lucknow Pact of 1916 between the
point. They pervaded the psyche of the Congress and the Muslim League, for which
Muslim elite and had to be addressed in a he was called the “ambassador of Hindu-
manner acceptable to community leaders if Muslim unity.” He left the Congress in 1920
India was to remain united. As Gandhi’s in disgust after he was hooted down at the
grandson and leading public intellectual Nagpur session of the party for not referring
Rajmohan Gandhi has succinctly stated, “A to Gandhi as “Mahatma” and for refusing to
journey towards independence that did not endorse the noncooperation policy because
remove Muslim anxieties was bound to lead of his commitment to constitutionalist means
to Partition.” for gaining independence.
Gandhi’s appearance on the scene changed
the character of the national movement from Muslim suspicion of Gandhi increased in
a constitutionalist to a populist one. As a 1932 after his stubborn opposition to the
leader interested in mobilizing the masses, Communal Award of British Prime Minister
Gandhi couched part of his political Ramsay MacDonald. The award granted
terminology in Hindu religious idioms. He separate electorates, or reserved legislative
used the term ram rajya (governance by the seats, to India’s depressed classes, a
Hindu deity Ram), for example, to signify euphemism for the untouchables of the
that a just order would prevail after Hindu caste system, now known as Dalits.
independence. But that alienated much of The Dalits were given the same privilege the
the Muslim elite because it alluded to a Muslims had enjoyed of choosing their own
mythical Hindu golden age before the advent representatives to the legislature in future
of Islam in India. Gandhi’s deliberate elections. The Muslim League accepted the
adoption of the attire of a Hindu holy man, award, but the Congress rejected it. Gandhi
or sant, also repelled large segments of considered the award a device meant to
Muslims. The use of the term mahatma— divide Hindu society and pledged a fast unto
great soul—by Gandhi’s acolytes as his title death to persuade the British to repeal it.
introduced Hindu spiritual terminology into This hunger strike forced B. R. Ambedkar,
the leader of the Dalits, to drop his demand Simultaneously, the Congress, which
for separate electorates for his people, a claimed to represent all Indians, became
decision he publicly regretted in an increasingly Hindu in its composition under
interview to the BBC in 1955. In the same Gandhi’s leadership, which continued
interview, Ambedkar disparaged Gandhi for unofficially even after he resigned from
his unwavering commitment to the caste party membership in 1934. Although the
system, implying that his concern for the Muslim vote at the time was divided among
untouchables was a sham. the Muslim League and numerous regional
Gandhi’s rejection of the Communal Award Muslim parties, the Muslim League
seemed to send a message to the Muslim nevertheless won four times the number of
leaders that he and the Congress were more seats reserved for Muslims—106 to 25—as
interested in promoting a monolithic Hindu did the Congress in the 1937 provincial
bloc under upper-caste control than in elections.
nurturing Hindu-Muslim unity and allowing
Muslims their fair share of power in The Congress, which claimed to represent
independent India. The logic was simple: if all Indians, became increasingly Hindu in its
implemented, the award would have led to composition under Gandhi’s leadership.
parity between Muslim and upper-caste The December 1945 election to the Central
Hindu representatives in the legislatures; Assembly was a major victory for the
Dalit representatives elected through Muslim League, which won all 30 seats
separate Dalit electorates would have held allocated to the Muslims. In the subsequent
the balance. The Muslim elite did not find provincial elections held in 1946, it won an
the Dalits threatening. In fact, they saw them overwhelming majority of 425 out of 476
as potential allies against upper-caste Hindus seats reserved for the Muslim community,
who had mistreated the Dalits for centuries thus demonstrating that it was well on its
and, according to many Muslims, were now way to becoming the sole representative of
bent on dominating the Muslims in a similar the Muslims of India, or at least of its elite.
manner.
A partial explanation for this shift is that in
THE PATH TO PARTITION Muslim perceptions, the Congress
governments in power in most provinces
Soon after Gandhi’s rejection of the between 1937 and 1939 treated the
Communal Award in 1932, Jinnah returned community unfairly. Congress President
from self-imposed exile in London in 1934 Jawaharlal Nehru’s disdain for Jinnah and
to take over the leadership of the Muslim the Muslim League and his refusal to
League. The leader who returned, however, accommodate the league in the provincial
was very different from the Jinnah who government in the United Provinces after the
warned Gandhi about the dangers of mixing 1937 elections, for example, contributed to
religion with politics in 1920. He now the Muslim disenchantment with the
decided to emulate Gandhi. The Qaid-e- Congress. Gandhi, with his immense
Azam (Great Leader), as he came to be influence over the Congress leadership,
known among his followers, eventually could have overruled Nehru but decided not
outdid the Mahatma in his use of religion for to do so. That he had the power to override
political purposes. He argued that Hindus the Congress leadership was demonstrated
and Muslims were not just a majority and a two years later when he forced Subhas
minority community but two distinct Chandra Bose out of his elected position as
nations. This formula became the president of the Congress because Gandhi
steppingstone for the demand for Pakistan found him insufficiently pliable and too
first put forward, although in rather vague radical for his taste.
terms, at the Lahore session of the Muslim Throughout this period, Gandhi remained
League in 1940. the unofficial but undisputed leader of the
Congress. He attended all Congress Working
Committee meetings; no member could be Partition was the result of the cumulative
appointed to the CWC and no decisions failure of the Hindu and Muslim elites to
could be taken by the Congress High find a satisfactory solution to this dilemma.
Command without his approval. This
continued until the spring of 1947, when
Nehru and Patel broke with him, for Pakistan’s Dual Threat:
different reasons, on the question of CSS Pakistan Affairs
accepting the idea of partition.
Gandhi opposed partition to the very end.
Despite his opposition, Gandhi’s earlier Pakistan’s former prime
alienation of the Muslim elite through his
deliberate adoption of Hindu garb and
minister Nawaz Sharif has
vocabulary as well as through some of his insinuated that the
political decisions that they considered pro-
Hindu and anti-Muslim means that he cannot Supreme Court’s decision
be absolved from at least partial to disqualify him is a
responsibility for what came to pass.
consequence of
In the light of historical evidence, only some challenging the military on
of which has been presented here with
specific reference to Gandhi, it would be a cross-border terrorism.
mistake to attribute partition solely to the Nawaz Sharif’s politics are
machinations of Jinnah and the Muslim
League. From the late nineteenth century cynical, but does he have a
onward, one cannot deny the existence of a point?
strong streak among the Muslim elite that
emphasized the distinct identity of Indian At the end of May, Pakistan’s elected
Muslims. This streak of thought resisted assemblies will complete their scheduled
unconditional amalgamation into the five-year tenure and the country will embark
national mainstream, which the Muslim elite on a 60-day campaign to democratically
perceived could become a vehicle for Hindu elect its next empowered national leader.
domination because the latter composed (CSS Pakistan Affairs)
about 65 percent of the population in
preindependence India. (The Aligarh The alternative story, as narrated by three-
Movement founded by Sir Syed Ahmed time former prime minister Sharif, is that the
Khan bears testimony to this fact.) forthcoming general election will decide
whether Pakistan’s democracy will survive
This feeling among the Muslim elite was an Orwellian conspiracy by a domineering
augmented, however, by a similarly strong military to install puppets in his stead.
streak of Hindu nationalism evident from the
same period both within and outside the Since his disqualification, 68-year-old Sharif
Congress. The difference between the two has sought to reinvent himself. The distant,
was that emphasis on Muslim identity, regal prime minister has been replaced by a
because it was a minority phenomenon, populist guardian of the sanctity of the
could be easily labeled separatism, while democratic vote.
Hindu nationalism—especially of the
implicit and subtle variety—could easily His rallying cry – “why was I ousted?” – has
pass off as Indian nationalism because it resonated among supporters of his Pakistan
represented the nationalism of the majority. Muslim League-Nawaz in populous eastern
Unfortunately, this was a conundrum that Punjab province, home to more than half of
the Indian national movement and its the constituencies of the National Assembly.
leaders, including Gandhi, could not resolve.
Recent by-elections and public opinion polls In the aftermath of the massacre of 140
suggest the party would comfortably retain children and staff at an army-run school in
its parliamentary majority, assuming the Peshawar in December 2014, the military
electoral process is not subjected to rigorous publicly committed to no longer differentiate
manipulation. between so-called “good and bad” Taliban.

But Sharif and his supporters insist the fix is On the basis of that solemn promise,
underway by a military-judiciary nexus. parliament warily granted the military
extraordinary powers to expand
Asked to enunciate his claims, however, counterterrorism operations under
Sharif steered the interview towards the National Action Plan.
Pakistan’s growing diplomatic isolation over Pakistan’s international partners, the US in
its failure to prevent cross terrorist attacks particular, also temporarily eased pressure
on neighbouring Afghanistan and India. on the cross border terrorism issue to give
Despite the enormous human and economic the military one last chance to fulfil that
cost of its successful decade-long war promise.
against Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan insurgents,
“we have isolated ourselves…Afghanistan’s In truth, neither Pakistan’s politicians nor its
narrative is being accepted, but ours is not. international partners believed the military
We must look into it,” he said. would live up to its commitment.

“Militant organisations are active. Call them Sharif hoped its failure would empower him
non-state actors, should we allow them to to restart the process of dialogue he had
cross the border and kill 150 people in initiated upon assuming power in June 2013.
Mumbai? Explain it to me. Why can’t we Within months, it had been scuttled by
complete the trial? It’s absolutely the sudden resurgence of militant activity in
unacceptable,” he said, referring to the disputed Kashmir, as fighting between
stalled trial of Jamaat ud Dawa (accused of Pakistani and Indian forces flared there for
being a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba) activists the first time in a decade.
accused of masterminding a three-day The US, too, was biding its time, eager to
terrorist assault on India’s commercial recast the intransigence of the Pakistani
centre in November 2008. military in the context of China’s expanding
role in continental Asia through President Xi
Sharif did not mention the military, but his Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.
insinuation could not have been clearer. He It killed two birds with one stone in May
was adding his weighty voice to the US-led 2016 by staging the drone-borne
chorus which is demanding that Pakistan’s assassination of the Afghan Taliban chief,
generals end their alleged support for Mullah Akhtar Mansoor, as he drove
terrorist groups like Jamaat ud Dawa and the through Pakistan’s western Balochistan
so-called Haqqani Network. province, the focal area of the China-
Pakistan Economic Corridor linking Kashgar
Cynically, Sharif has sought to portray his to the Arabian Sea.
power struggle with the military as a battle
between Pakistani democracy and terrorism As an active partner in a US-led
– indeed, his interview reads like an appeal quadrilateral alliance against the China,
for foreign intervention. India’s Hindu nationalist prime minister,
Narendra Modi, also sought to exploit the
Nonetheless, Sharif has made a powerful situation by covertly fueling a low-
point. key insurgency in Balochistan.
With its competitors circling, China
had nothing to gain from being seen to
support a Pakistani geopolitical policy with a
shelf-life which expired on September 11, misrepresentation of their domestic power
2001. In February, it dropped its opposition struggle.
to a US-led, India-backed move to place
Pakistan back on an international terror President Donald Trump has made no secret
financing watch list. Last month, Xi and of his intention to punish Pakistan for
Modi agreed to explore joint development America’s complete mishandling of the war
projects in Afghanistan. in Afghanistan, and he is being egged on by
However duplicitous their tactics and the warlords of Afghanistan’s manufactured
objectives, the US and India have government.
completely outmanoeuvred the authors of Like Orwell’s characters in “Animal Farm”,
Pakistan’s foreign policy narrative. By if Napoleon and Snowball don’t stop
persisting with it, Pakistan’s military would bickering over the supremacy of two legs or
be as responsible for inviting foreign four, Pakistan’s sovereign interests will end
intervention as Sharif is with his cynical up like Boxer – in the knacker’s yard.
 Muhammad himself was illiterate, his
People who shaped Islamic tradition was steeped in letters. One of his
Civilization- Suras, or Koranic chapters, was called “the
Pen”. By tradition, the first man, Adam,
CSS Islamic Studies fashioned the first pen, and Ali, the
Coverage of violence and Islam often go prophet’s son-in-law and successor, coined
hand in hand. So it comes as a relief to be his own Arabic script.
reminded that historically, culturally and Tycoons and businessmen are present, too:
intellectually, Islam is less a nihilistic creed in the ninth century, as now, manufacturers
than a global civilisation. A new book by were complaining of the Chinese dumping
Chase Robinson, which includes 30 pen- mass-produced kitchenware on their
portraits of significant figures in Islamic markets. Women also make an appearance,
history, is an elegant digest of the many as mystics, courtesans and scholars. Beneath
colourful, creative and technologically the arches of Mecca’s mosques, Karima al-
innovative manifestations that the Prophet Marwiziyya led Koranic study circles for
Muhammad inspired from his seventh- both sexes. After all, she might have noted,
century oases in the Arabian peninsula. many of the Prophet’s companions and
(CSS Islamic studies) preservers of Islamic traditions were
themselves women.
Majestic The Dome of the Rock in
Jerusalem What emerges is a civilisation that was a
The warriors and potentates are there, of marketplace of ideas as well as goods.
course. Starting with Muhammad and ending “Urbanisation and literacy was said to be a
with Shah Ismail 900 years later, they distinctly modern phenomenon,” says
bookend the narrative. But in Robinson’s Robinson, “but that is wrong”. Rather the
telling their martial arts are secondary to Islamic world, he says, epitomised
their aesthetic ones. Muhammad is “globalisation before its time”, “cultural
celebrated not for his battlefield victories but cosmopolitanism”, “a world of cross-
his verse. Abd al-Malik, the caliph who took pollination” and capitalism. Rich from trade,
Cyprus, was better known to Islamic its cities were the world’s finest. In the ninth
chroniclers for building Jerusalem’s majestic century, Baghdad mushroomed as rapidly as
Dome of the Rock and, less appealingly, Manhattan a millennium later, with intrigue,
halitosis so severe it could kill a fly. sex and irreverence no less a part of its
Mahmoud of Ghazni, the jihadist who makeup. Thirty thousand gondolas plied the
conquered the Hindu kingdoms of north- Tigris. Another Islamic capital, Cordoba,
western India, was admired for decorating was the greatest city in Europe and produced
Islam’s eastern periphery with gardens. some of the greatest minds: without the
(“You have strung the wild rose with 12th-century rationalist, Ibn Rushd
patterns of pearls,” oozed a court poet.) (Averroes), whose defence of Aristotelian
Timur, the Mongol “sheep-rustler and philosophy against orthodox theologians
world-conqueror”, built towers of skulls but influenced people like Thomas Aquinas, the
also the soaring, sublime mosques of Enlightenment might never have happened.
Samarkand. Sultan Mehmed II, the Ottoman
conqueror of Constantinople, was “a Through his portraits, Robinson debunks
renaissance man”. two modern myths about Islam. Salafists, the
puritans who dominate 21st-century Islamic
As fascinating as the fighters are the discourse, champion the Prophet
characters in the courts they patronised. Muhammad as the founder of a pristine,
Robinson’s cast includes free-thinking uniform faith which every Muslim should
physicians and biologists, calligraphers, aspire to replicate. In Robinson’s rendition,
cartographers (including Muhammad al- the Islam the Prophet bequeathed was
Idrisi, below), historians and poets. Though amorphous, inchoate and confused. Bereft of
their founder, the Muslim community
squabbled over not just the niceties of law,
but who should rule and how. Muhammad’s
favourite wife and his son-in-law fought
pitched battles over his succession. The faith
was also deeply syncretic: it expanded by
absorbing the traditions of the peoples who
fell under its rule. Its first rulers saw nothing
incompatible between an upright Islamic
existence and wine-drinking. Too often the
source material was too skimpy to answer
basic questions. The literalist Andalusian
politician and scholar, Ibn Hazm, for
instance, argued against the biblical death
penalty for homosexuality, saying that
nowhere was it prescribed in the Koran.
(Ten lashes, he suggested, might be more
fitting.) Only centuries later did the faith
congeal into something akin to today’s
orthodoxy.
The second myth Robinson punctures is one
often propounded by orientalists: that the
tightening grip of orthodoxy led to Islam’s
supposed inexorable decline. In the tenth
century, Abu Bakr al-Razi, a Persian
alchemist and physician, wrote a tractate,
“On the fraudulence of prophets”, asserting
the primacy of reason over revelation and
deriding the prophets as imposters and
storytellers. Only his defence that reason
was a gift of God spared him charges of
blasphemy. The following century, Al-
Biruni published perhaps the greatest
classical account of comparative religion,
citing Greek, Persian and Sanskrit aphorisms
alongside the sayings of the Prophet. Five
centuries before Daniel Defoe, Ibn Tufayl
wrote a story about a boy who grew up on a
desert island. Without revelation, his
metaphor shows, humans develop as rational
beings.
Three centuries before Columbus A world map in the Book of Roger (1154)
reproduction of Muhammad al-Idrisi’s By the 14th century, Islam’s centre of
gravity had shifted to Istanbul, but its courts
continued to attract the world’s leading
Pashtoon Tahafuz
scientists and artists and remained at the Movement: A rights
cutting-edge of medical advances and
military technology. After a familiar bout of movement or a new
devastation, Mongol rule ushered in fresh regional agenda
investments in science, particularly its 13th- Ahmed Khan, (not his original name) waits
century observatory at Maragheh, whose in his car behind a long line of other
findings underpinned Copernicus’s models vehicles, for his turn to be checked. He can
of the universe. Multiculturalism, perhaps spot army soldiers with smart tablets putting
even trans-confessionalism, remained a in CNIC numbers of motorists for
familiar trope of Islamic rule. Alternating verifications. They are probably connected
between Sunni and Shiite rites, the Mongols’ with NADRA records, he thinks. After more
faith felt remarkably fluid. Uljeitu’s vizier than 30 minutes, of increasing frustration, he
was Rashid al-Din, an Iranian-born Jewish reaches the point and was asked to get out
convert to Islam, who assembled a for a physical body search. He finally
warehouse of global researchers near Tabriz managed to cross the check post in about 45
in the 14th century and set them to work on minutes. Ahmed, originally from a rich
“an industrial-sized” history of the world, SWAT landed family and traveling from
the “Compendium of Chronicles”. Its Islamabad was furious. He was not alone,
encyclopaedic breadth is a composite of many others described similar scenes.
texts drawn from Hebrew scholars (Pashtoon Tahafuz Movement)
(apparently translated by Rashid al-Din
himself), Kashmiri monks, Chinese envoys This was a few days after a suicide bomber
and perhaps the most sympathetic account of blew himself at Army’s sports unit, in
Buddha in a non-Buddhist text. More than Sharifabad, in Kabal Tehsil of Swat killing
2,000 miles away in Tunis, Ibn Khaldoun 13 soldiers including a Captain. The attack
penned a social history which for the first in the first week of February was worst since
time ditched the composition of court 2013 and brought back memories of TTP’s
chronicles to examine the causes behind reign of terror. It also brought back those
historical events. check posts that dotted the landscape of
SWAT after the army operation of 2009.
There are, of course, characters closer to the
caricatures of modern-day Muslim Ahmed, the traveler from Islamabad, was
fundamentalists. Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyya, not alone, for feeling the way he felt.
a 14th-century judge in Damascus and Hundreds of others soon took to protesting, a
Alexandria, railed against the Mongols for tribal Jirga threatened a strike and local
favouring Shiism and applying their own MNA, PTI’s firebrand, Murad Saeed, took
yassa law, not Sharia – a sin which, he up the issue in the parliament. Check posts
declared, rendered them apostates. When the disappeared – replaced in many instances by
Sunni Mamluk authorities he favoured Aerial Drones that silently hover over the
overlooked a Christian’s insults against the heads.
Prophet, he agitated the mob to demand his
beheading. A bit-player in his time, the
Salafists have elevated him to centre-stage Manzoor Pashteen in Swat, Why?
today, ranking his teachings alongside the On Sunday, 29 April, Pashtun Tahafuz
Prophet’s in Saudi Arabia’s core curriculum. Movement (PTM) supporters, lead by
Islam’s most zealous detractors and Manzoor Pashteen, staged a rally in a Kabal
practitioners alike could do worse than to ground attracting almost 5000 people. Local
recall Robinson’s other 29 characters too. sources describe Pashteen speaking only in
Pashto, to a crowd that had less than 500
locals (from within 15 Km radius); he
thanked all those who have traveled, on his A PTM supporter claimed that local elite
call, from Kohat, Zhob, Qila Saif Ullah, DI who organized “Pakistan Zindabad
Khan, Swabi, Bannu, South Waziristan and Movement” and its rally are stooges of
even Quetta. Pashteen’s supporters traveled establishment and Saturday rally was
in at least 270 vehicles, mostly coasters, financed. Criticism is valid, since holding
counted at Dargai check post located near political rallies is expensive. But this raises
the Dargai fort. Local politicians claimed the question: who financed Manzoor
that they had told the administration to not Pashteen’s rally and why? This question
let outsiders enter Swat (enjoying peace and becomes even more important because its
tourism) in such large numbers from outside apparent that Pashteen had no local support,
but their protests were turned down. in Swat; he brought his followers from far
flung areas – as he admitted himself – at
Pashteen and others including Mohsin great expense. Why? This 27-year old’s
Dawar spoke about extrajudicial killings, grievances – admittedly genuine – are
missing persons and mistreatment of centered on issues inside the war battered
Pashtoons in Pakistan. Strong words were South Waziristan, where he belongs to one
uttered against army which itself has a huge of the tribes (Mehsud); why is he turning
component of Pashtoons. Rally was mostly a that into a generalized Pashtun victimhood
function of the support it had from all across the country?
Mehmood Khan Achakzai’s “Pakhtoon
Khwa Milli Awami Party” (PkMap) whose Issues in Swat, as locals point out, are very
local leader, Khurshid Kakajee, Senator different from South Waziristan. TTP’s
Usman Kakar and KP President, Mukhtar reign of terror, of public executions and
Yousafzai also addressed the crowds. One floggings, of Khooni Chowk, was quickly
day earlier, on Saturday, another large rally routed by Army action in summer of 2009
was organized, in the Grassy ground which saw one of the biggest heliborne
(Cricket Stadium) by a local movement operations, through attack helicopters, in
which calls itself, “Pakistan Zindabad recent history, around Peochar, a hill resort
Movement” supported by local MPA, Abdul near Mingora. Several hundred young
Hakim, and Abdu Rahim, leader of the Taliban fighters were killed, unaccounted
Traders Association Mingora. Local dead bodies kept floating in river Swat –
politicians with representation in parliaments many still counted as “missing” by their
of KP and Islamabad see Pashteen’s PTM as families. There were reports, and even
trouble makers working on foreign agenda. unconfirmed videos, of extra-judicial
Local elite vividly remember TTP’s reign of killings especially after some SSG
terror and are grateful for peace in Swat, that commandos were beheaded by TTP after
has brought increasing investments and abductions – but the issue died then in 2009.
tourism and are worried that this disruptive Army check posts were troublesome to the
political activity in the name of “Rights local population but were gradually
movement” may drive away tourists that removed. Life returned to normal with
flock Swat and its several adjacent areas in civilian administration, police, judiciary and
three months of summer starting from June. investments.

The attack in the first week of February Read more: What is Pashtun Tahafuz
was worst since 2013 and brought back Movement and what are its objectives?
memories of TTP’s reign of terror. It In recent years’ tourists have thronged Swat,
with such vengeance that it often creates
also brought back those check posts
road blockages. However, Swat Expressway
that dotted the landscape of SWAT kick started in September 2016, with an
after the army operation of 2009. estimated capital investment of Rs. 40
billion, is about to be completed; 81 km
long, 80 meters wide, the highway will
connect areas in Swat with Islamabad- Read more: Pakistan Zindabad Movement:
Peshawar motorway and increase Turning tide against the new wave of sub-
connectivity all over as it stretches from M1 nationalism
motorway to Chakdara; passing through
Pashteen’s Little Heard Meeting with
Nowshera, Swabi, Mardan and Malakand. It
will reduce the three-hour travel time to just DG ISPR?
45 minutes. The road will be 80 meters wide DG ISPR (Inter Services Public Relations)
and will reduce a three-hour travel time to office located in Pindi, not far from British
just 45 minutes – giving a huge boost to Era Hotel Flash man, received an unusual
trade and economy in the region all around call on Feb 8. It was from Manzoor
Swat. Pashteen’s supporters, then doing a protest
in Islamabad, requesting a meeting with DG.
What bothers Swat’s intellectual elite is lack A surprised ISPR team – that had heard little
of effective criminal justice system; those of this “Pashteen” questioned: why Pashteen
who still remember Swat of pre-1969 merger wants to meet DG ISPR? How can ISPR
with central legal authority, point out that help him? PTM supporters – many of whom
local western style courts fail to deliver. had previously met ISPR as part of FATA
Under Wali of Swat, a quarter million Youth Jirga- requested that he wants to
population spread over 8000 sq. Km area, come and discuss his demands in person and
had access to 32 Tehsil Courts headed by this may lead to the end of their ongoing
Qazis that provided for swift, inexpensive protest in Islamabad – centered around the
justice that was rapidly implemented by the arrest of SSP Rao Anwar of Karachi who
state authorities. Currently, an expanded allegedly killed Naqeeb ullah Mehsud.
population, two million strong, is being
served by 12 police jurisdictions and modern Consequently, Pashsten and Mohsin Dawar,
courts that are often marred by inefficiency, along with a total of 15 PTM workers or
lethargy and corruption delaying justice. supporters (including many from SWA,
verified through their CNIC cards) met DG
A PTM supporter claimed that local ISPR. In a meeting that lasted more than 4
hours, they complained of problems in South
elite who organized “Pakistan
Waziristan and presented five demands
Zindabad Movement” and its rally are related to: Arrest of the murderer of Naqeeb
stooges of establishment and Saturday Ullah Mehsud, Watan Card & harsh
rally was financed. Criticism is valid, treatment at Check Posts, land mines,
since holding political rallies is missing persons and compensations for loss
expensive. But this raises the question: of property. During this meeting, they were
who financed Manzoor Pashteen’s rally shown videos of development works across
and why? FATA and inter-dependent regions of KP
(including: SWA, NWA, Khyber Agency,
Local elites point out that failure of criminal Malakand & Swat) and were connected on
justice system and inability to resolve phone with Garrison Commanders (GOC)
property and personal disputes is what had South Waziristan and North Waziristan and
created the space for Taliban to enter with meetings were fixed with them. PTM leaders
their promises of quick justice – and those including Mohsin Dawar subsequently had
issues still exist. But all this is very different those meetings, by around 15thof February,
from the hot molten lava of a wounded and text messages of thanks were duly
Pashtun nationalism which PTM is trying to received in ISPR. It was a result of those
sell to disaffected communities of Pashtuns meetings that Watan Card checking was
wherever they may exist from Waziristan to suspended, check posts were reduced,
Lahore to Karachi. Swat has obviously not measures were taken to reduce waiting time
been a success in this endeavor but its at check posts, separate check posts for
struggle continues and much has to come.
women were promised and efforts are being Khan Niazi was a famous case that
done to expedite removal of landmines. generated global headlines. Locals, however,
The records of this 4 hours long meeting – point out, that when Army allowed residents
and the positions Manzoor Pashteen adopted of South Waziristan to return, in 2015, it
subsequently – helps us to understand that, failed its responsibility in fully clearing the
27 year old, Manzoor Pashteen’s movement areas of these IEDs and several children and
is less about issues inside South Waziristan adults lost their lives. Army sources assert
and more about shaping a larger agenda – that removal of land liens is tedious and
relying upon different changing causes to 100% success is not possible since IED’s
use them as excuses from time to time. From drift from actual locations due to rain and
the first moment, it has been acknowledged, winds. But locals have a point and its
by almost everyone in Pakistan, that these Army’s responsibility to expedite removal of
demands are genuine and they make sense land mines. Also, the compensations of Rs.
and all issues should be addressed step by 400,000/house for repair or reconstructions
step. But when, in the third week of April, offered by federal government through
Corps. Commander Peshawar, Gen. Nazir Political Agents (PA) were insufficient – and
Butt, commented, while talking to media, this needs a better and more generous
that he thinks that demands of PTM are solution.
genuine – and he wants a Jirga to meet PTM
leaders to resolve these issues – many in the Having said this, one cannot ignore the
international media and think tanks context; normalcy and the local residents are
misconstrued that as a great achievement of returning to these areas after more than 10
PTM protests, or rallies, that they are now years, thousands have died anonymously in
being listened – ignoring the basic fact that these areas in hundreds of battles and
they were being listened even before. skirmishes; Taliban always took away their
dead bodies and buried them on their own
Reality is that overall political and and many went on to fight in Afghanistan –
administrative system of Pakistan, a poor so there might not be as many “missing
developing country, is under tremendous persons” or in custody as being claimed. But
pressure because of its 15-year-old war all these issues can be addressed
against terrorism – ever since it decided to professionally one by one – as it happens
side with the US lead war in Afghanistan after the end of protracted wars. Pashteen’s
after 9/11. Pakistan is the only country that continuing rallies, creating the impression
has regained its stability and maintained its that he is not being heard – despite being in
center of gravity after the developments of touch with Army establishment on his own
9/11 – it could have also followed the path request – represent clearly a different set of
of Iraq, Syria and Libya. ambitions. It has also given rise to
suspicions that he and his young crowd
Read more: Is the ‘Pashtun Tahafuzz don’t have a mind of their own but are mere
Movement’ being exploited? pawns in a larger scheme of things.
It is therefore understood that many new
challenges have appeared while winning a It was a result of those meetings that
difficult war. For instance, land mines were Watan Card checking was suspended,
not laid by Pakistan Army but were check posts were reduced, measures
deployed by TTP and its various affiliates to
were taken to reduce waiting time at
check the mechanized movement of a
regular army that moves with armored check posts, separate check posts for
personnel carriers, trucks jeeps and women were promised and efforts are
paraphernalia. Hundreds of soldiers and being done to expedite removal of
officers succumbed to these land mines often landmines.
referred to as IED (Improvised Explosive
devices) in media. Maj. Gen. Sanaullah
Watan Card has also been misrepresented to Baluchistan was lost by Kabul in last quarter
media or perhaps misunderstood. Official of 19thcentury. This is how Baluchistan has
records reveal that Watan Card was initiated large Pashtun population and Mahmood
to help the Temporarily Displaced Persons Khan Achakzai represents a certain
(TDPs) after the 2009/10 operations against sentiment – but mostly misunderstood and
TTP in the agencies on the request of the against the tides of history. Britain
locals of South Waziristan who were developed a modern commercial enterprise
displaced from heights and were relocated to in South of Lahore leading to the rise of
low lying areas in Tank, Bannu, Laki large metropolises like Bombay, Calcutta
Marwat and DI Khan and so on. Displaced and Madras; areas upwards of Lahore were
persons were given money (Rs. mostly frontier of the British empire.
12,500/card/month) food and rations and By 1870’s Rawalpindi emerged as the
these locals insisted that cards be issued to largest military garrison in British India;
them to distinguish those who have objective was to contain threat from north
voluntarily displaced, to facilitate and north west, present day KP had no name
operations, from those who have been living in British minds except calling it: North
outside the agency on their own. Later, after West Frontier Province (NWFP); a term that
2015, army and FC at their posts started irked Pashtun nationalists. After British
using ‘Watan Card’ as an additional ID card withdrawal, rulers in Kabul thought of
to distinguish locals from those who may renewing the old claims. Afghanistan
come from outside. Though, these cards objected to Pakistan’s membership of United
have been suspended now on PTM’s Nations in 1947/48 and encouraged
insistence but it is interesting to point out tribesmen in FATA to rise against Peshawar
that most Afghan refugees in these areas and Karachi. Tribes guaranteed their
have Pakistan’s NIC cards but they don’t freedoms by Jinnah never sided with Kabul.
have ‘Watan Cards” and this may have led In 1960’s when Sardar Mohmmad Daud
to issues in the area. It is believed by the became Zahir’ Shah’s Prime Minister he
locals that Afghan refugees constitute a sent troops across the Durand line into
significant support for Mr. Pashteen. Bajaur Agency to stir an insurgency but
tribes stood with Pakistan and routed the
Afghan forces. Dauod was confronted by
Pashtun Nationalism: Rise & Fall? another Pashtun, in Pakistan: Ayub Khan.
Pashtun nationalism in itself is not a new
thing. Most areas that today constitute north
Field Marshal came down hard against rulers
and north west of Pakistan made the corridor
in Kabul, he shut down Afghan transit trade
through which Central Asian, Turkish and
indefinitely creating a crisis for land locked
Persian warriors – and whatever then
Afghanistan. Issues were somewhat resolved
constituted modernity – entered the vast low
by interventions of Britain and Saudi Arabia
lying plains of Indus and headed south and
but Daud lost his hold on power mostly for
east down towards Lahore or Delhi. For
this crisis – and had to resign in March
greater part of history, these areas, inhabited
1963; Pakistan only then resumed normal
by Pashtuns or related tribes, at least up to
trade routes for Afghanistan, in May 1963.
Indus at Attock, have remained with
Irrespective of these set backs, NAP (now
undefined borders; kingdoms were identified
ANP) of Bacha Khan and later Abul Wali
with the cities they held. Afghan rulers of
Khan continued feeding on to the dream of a
Kabul finally lost Peshawar valley to Sikh
Pakhtunistan; whatever Pakistani
rulers of Punjab in earlier 19thcentury. Once
establishment did from Karachi or
Sikhs lost to British, in 1849 – India’s new
Islamabad it could not suppress the idea. But
rulers moving upwards from South –
strange things happen in history.
Afghans tried their level best, through war
Pakhtunistan died its death in the Afghan
and pleadings, to regain control of Peshawar
war of 1979-87; confronted by the cultural
valley – but lost more territory in every
differences of millions of Afghan refugees,
effort. Most of what constitutes today’s
now in their midst, the natives of the then mother from Waziristan and father from
NWFP (now KP) realized that they – in their Mianwali. And it was the tragedy of Army
outlook on life – are not the same people. Public School in December 2014, in
Pakistani Pashtuns had moved on in the Peshawar, that defined the national moment
process of history deep into Pakistani towards action against Taliban changing
identity, whereas Afghans due to their own Pakistani laws and politics.
peculiar experiences had moved in a
different direction.
Lar o Bar Yo Afghan?
Is this interlocking embedded identity of
Read more: US Interest: Kiss of Death for
“Pakistani Pashtun” now under threat by the
PTM?
antics of Manzoor Pashteen and his mentor
Pashtuns: An Integral Component of Mehmood Khan Achakzai – shouting “Lar o
Bar Yo Afghan” (Up and down, we are one
Pakistani Identity
Afghan nation; an old ANP era slogan
Recently a naïve American writer defined
meaning that from up in Afghanistan down
Pashtuns as a “suppressed minority in
in Pakistani territory we are one nation) in
Pakistan”. This is hilarious. Field Marshal
rallies and ably supported by US led media
Ayub Khan, shaped modern Pakistan from
and think tanks?
1955 onwards laying the basis of its
industrial structure. Yahya Khan, his
successor in power, presided over the end of While they may not succeed against the
united Pakistan; Ghulam Ishaq Khan, force of history and the strength of Pakistani
respected civil servant turned President nationhood, there is much to suggest that
sacked first PM Benazir Bhutto and then PM something like that is being conceived or
Nawaz Sharif and when Nawaz insisted that promoted under the garb of a “rights
he will take President along, it was the third movement”. Read Manzoor Pashteen’s
member of the troika, Gen. Waheed Kakar, twitter handle, connected with his Facebook
himself a proud Pashtun who fired them page, fortunately in Urdu, and you can see
both. Gen. Naseerullah Babar, often that he is far less interested in finding
credited, though erroneously, for the solutions to the local problems and far more
creation of Taliban was a Pashtun who interested in inciting strong emotions of
headed Pakistan’s first civilian lead victimhood around an ethnicity and thus hate
operation against MQM in early 1990’s towards perceived aggressors.
under Benazir Bhutto. From Hashim Khan,
to Jehangir Khan to Jansher Khan to Younas But, no record exists of his taking any
Khan to Umar Gul to “Boom Boom Afridi” position against the hundreds of drone
Pashtun faces have defined Pakistani sports; strikes that targeted FATA; this is a
from Capt. Karnal Sher Khan, Nishan-e- surprising disconnect, because for most
Haider, in Kargil, to Gen. Tariq Khan who Pashtuns the elephant in the room has been
fought in tribal areas, as IGFC, and headed US presence in the region and attacks
Pakistan’s first Strike Corps at Mangla, from against Pashtun identity after 9/11. US
Ahmed Faraz to Jamal Shah, from ageless media and think tank persons have suddenly
Zeba Bakhtiar to unforgettable Marina Khan started to present Pashtuns as an aggrieved
Pashtuns are an integral, proud and assertive helpless minority in Pakistan who are
component of Pakistani mosaic. From Army, somehow dependent upon PTM to regain
Airforce, Central Superior Services, their confidence or win rights.
Corporate Board Rooms to roadside
businesses and from talk shows to film and A Kashmiri writer from Srinagar, analyzing
tv dramas, Pashtuns of all accents are a force the situation, recently wondered if a
inside Pakistan. Imran Khan, the most well- “Pashtun Spring” is being manufactured;
known face of Pakistan across the globe, and we know that “Spring Revolutions”
often not referred to as Pashtun, had his originate and evolve less on ground and
more on media and cyberspace and sudden Read more: Pakistan Army ready to
interest of publications from New York negotiate with Manzoor Pashteen; Corps.
Times, Washington Post, Foreign Policy to Commander calls…
Asia Times Online and many many others
Short-Term and long-term Implications
points towards systematic efforts to create a
“narrative”. BBC Pashto, VOA –Deeva and of PTM?
France 24 all have been overactive – and all What can PTM achieve in near future? PTI –
are state funded broadcasters. This is being sounds different from PTM only for one
reinforced by plethora of newer western web letter- had won in KP, in 2013 elections,
sites that are all using different words but riding on a wave of popularity, a kind of
more or less the same substance, a consistent definite shift in politics. While widespread
message moving from different directions to stories of ANP/PPP corruption did help, but
create and reinforce a mental reality. This is it was mostly a Pashtun feeling – in a war-
further reinforced by teams of activists torn province hard hit because of post 9/11
connected with NGO’s and international events – for Imran Khan who had taken a
media inside Pakistan. strident position against US drone strikes.
ANP and PPP were seen as pro-American
Most in Pakistani media and the and thus not nationalist enough. Both parties
were also hamstrung for being in the
strategic community had seen that
government and did not have that free hand
video – thanks to WhatsApp traffic; to take positon on regional and international
however, it was dismissed as too issues.
ambitious and far too diabolical an
accusation against the American Now PTM, that sounds very similar to PTI
friends. Tarpley is believed to be a (just like TTP sounded similar to TTA;
conspiracy theorist. But then anyone though very different in motivations) is
who disagrees with the mainstream US trying to shape a new kind of “wounded
narrative is declared conspiracy theorist Pashtun nationalism”. And it is merely using
“localized grievances in South Waziristan”
– and has a funny post against him in
disguised under a “Rights Movement” to
Wikipedia. create a bigger political capital; if it
All those, so-called “liberals” inside succeeds it can be in a positon to affect the
Pakistan, who had vociferously demanded overall direction of politics before the
army action against Islamist or religious general elections that are scheduled in end
Pashtuns and supported drone strikes and July 2018. PTI having serious prospects of
“army action” are now shedding crocodile getting around 45-50 seats in Punjab, is now
tears for ethnic Pashtuns. So a full-fledged hamstrung and cannot fully identify with a
effort is going on to add muscle, fiber and “wounded Pashtun nationalism” – and if it
fabric to the narrative of Manzur Pashteen – failed to counter the movement, it may
it had taken Gandhi and Jinnah several years suffer in polls in KP. PTM can throw its
of struggle before getting this kind of “political capital” with any player – perhaps
attention. The serious US think tanker has decision will lie with Mehmood Achakzai
even suggested that Pakistan Army may use whose main constituency lies in Baluchistan,
force against this movement. This is and had hitherto no serious presence in
shocking and, apart from unusual interest, FATA or KP.
represents a “forward development of
narrative” – totally disconnected from Long-term implications?
ground reality. Analyzing this propaganda, In 2014, Webster Tarpley, a controversial
Pakistani authorities should instead be American historian, author and analyst,
worried that any third force may harm any appearing on Russian TV (RT) – Putin’s
PTM rally or leader to manufacture a crisis nemesis for CNN – argued that while
inside and around Pakistan. President Obama is talking of special
relationship with Pakistan, his agencies are into KP – thus setting a stage on which now
planning to create secessionist movements in PTM is dancing. And now both Maulana and
Pakistani Baluchistan and FATA – to disrupt Achakzai are supporting PTM. Nawaz –
the possibility of a new energy corridor that whose daughter recently joined PTM
can connect China with the Middle East. bandwagon – had thus not failed Pakistan on
(CPEC was little heard then). A bemused, one or two counts but on many fronts. But,
Anchorwoman asked how is it even then this is what happens when someone
possible? And Tarpley explained that by suited to be a Mayor of Dina or Kamonkey
agitating Pashtuns living on both sides the becomes prime minister of a 200 million
Pak-Afghan border and forcing an strong, strategically important, nation.
autonomous area between Pakistan and
Afghanistan.
Is Karl Marx more
Most in Pakistani media and the strategic relevant today? CSS
community had seen that video – thanks to
WhatsApp traffic; however, it was dismissed General Knowledge
as too ambitious and far too diabolical an The other day I stood at the grave of Karl
accusation against the American friends. Marx in Highgate cemetery in north London,
Tarpley is believed to be a conspiracy wondering if he has anything say to us
theorist. But then anyone who disagrees with today, 200 years after his birth, on 5 May
the mainstream US narrative is declared 1818. “Workers of all lands unite,” reads the
conspiracy theorist – and has a funny post tombstone. But they haven’t – the solidarity
against him in Wikipedia. Tarpley also of the exploited, which Marx took to be
claimed, several years ago, that US and necessary to end capitalism, scarcely exists.
Israel are encouraging insurgent groups to (CSS General Knowledge)
split Syria in several parts. Today, almost all
world, outside the transatlantic mental “What the bourgeoisie produces, above all,
corridor, can readily understand that US, are its own gravediggers,” he and Friedrich
Israel, and Saudi Arabia tried using Engels wrote 170 years ago in The
insurgent groups to dismantle Syrian state Communist Manifesto. “Its fall and the
and have failed due to the Putin’s unusually victory of the proletariat are equally
muscular intervention. Tarpley’s forgotten inevitable.” Not really: capitalism today is
video clip, from RT, is now again in rampant. In the kind of historical irony that
circulation, on WhatsApp, focusing minds the philosopher Hegel called the cunning of
from Peshawar to Karachi. reason, capitalism has even co-opted its
gravediggers to keep it alive: China, the
Read more: Manzoor Pashteen spoke up in world’s biggest socialist society (if only
Lahore; what’s the solution to their… ostensibly) supplies capitalist enterprises
The real solution for grievances in FATA with cheap labour that undercuts other
lies in its mainstreaming and the best way workers around the world.
forward remains its earlier integration with
KP. A govt. The commission headed by So is Marx finished? Not at all. For me,
Sartaj Aziz, adviser to PM, had submitted a what makes Marx worth reading now is not
detailed report recommending the same. his Panglossian prognoses, but his still
However, despite having a massive demand resonant diagnoses. For instance, he and
from all political parties, FATA members Engels foresaw how globalisation would
and KP government and support from Army work. “In place of the old wants,” they
establishment, Nawaz Sharif kept dragging wrote, “satisfied by the production of the
his feet. His argument was that “not without country, we find new wants, requiring for
Maulana on board”. So Maulana Fazal ur their satisfaction the products of distant
Rehman and Mehmood Achakzai lands and climes.” That’s why Chinese
singlehandedly did not allow FATA merger workers make products we never conceived
would exist, let alone that we would covet, most painfully relevant to us today. By that
and that would convert us into politically term he meant how the ordinary things that
quiescent, borderline sociopathic, workers produce – iPads, cars, even the
sleepwalking narcissists. That’s right – I’m spate of new books commemorating Marx’s
talking about iPhones. 200th birthday – become, under capitalism,
bewitchingly strange. Just as in some
I find it hard to read the first few pages of religions an object invested with
The Communist Manifesto without thinking supernatural powers becomes a fetish for
that I live in the world he and Engels those who worship it, so commodities under
described. “Constant revolutionising of capitalism are accorded magical powers.
production, uninterrupted disturbance of all
social conditions, everlasting uncertainty Marx didn’t foresee Facebook, but he
and agitation distinguish the bourgeois grasped the essentials of Mark Zuckerberg’s
epoch from all earlier ones.” We inhabit a business model
world just like that, only more intensely than When an iPhone is sold, it is exchanged for
Marx and Engels dared imagine. For me, another commodity (generally money). The
these words don’t just capture how Uber, exchange takes no account of the labour that
Deliveroo and the other virtuosos of the gig went into the iPhone’s making, still less the
economy chip away at values and standards fact that some of Apple’s underpaid workers
to make a fast buck, but also how the planet have contemplated suicide in order to escape
is relentlessly despoiled in order to satisfy their lives manufacturing purportedly must-
tax-avoiding shareholders. have gizmos for you and me. “A
commodity, therefore, is a mysterious thing
Consider, as the Marxist professor David simply because in it the social character of
Harvey did recently, São Paulo: a city whose men’s labour appears to them as an objective
economic base is a car industry that character stamped upon the product of that
produces vehicles that spend hours in traffic labour,” wrote Marx.
jams, polluting streets and isolating György Lukács, who profoundly influenced
individuals from each other – a potent the Frankfurt School of thinkers, argued that
emblem of how free-market economies are a new kind of human arises in a world where
inimical to the real needs of real people. commodity fetishism is rampant. Those new
humans are so degraded that buying and
Marx didn’t foresee Facebook, but he selling is their essence: I shop therefore I
grasped the essentials of Mark Zuckerberg’s am. Instead of uniting to end capitalism, we
business model, certainly better than buy more shoes. When JD Sports announced
American senators did at last month’s a 24% rise in profits last month, for me it
congressional hearings. “The bourgeoisie,” felt less like good news for the ailing British
Marx and Engels wrote, beautifully, “has left high street than footwear fetishism propping
remaining no other nexus between man and up the degrading system that Lukács
man than naked self- interest, than callous described. We’ve been took, as Malcolm X
‘cash payment’. It has drowned the most put it, in another context. We’ve been had.
heavenly ecstasies of religious fervour, of
chivalrous enthusiasm, of philistine In such a world it’s easy to collapse, as
sentimentalism, in the icy water of many of the Frankfurt School did, into the
egotistical calculation.” philosophical quietism that drove Marx nuts.
“The philosophers,” he wrote in words also
Facebook, not to mention Amazon and emblazoned on his tombstone, “have only
Google, have made humans into exploitable interpreted the world in various ways; the
assets. Which is some kind of genius. point, however, is to change it.”

But it’s what Marx wrote in Das Kapital in That remains the challenge. We need Marx
1867 on commodity fetishism that, I think, is to help us understand the state we’re in,
though that is only a prelude to the bigger Washington and drew her attention to
struggle, for which his writings are less disputes between Pakistan and India over the
helpful: namely, how to get out of it. construction of hydropower projects
requesting the World Bank to play its role
under the IWT.
Is Indus Water Treaty
being Violated by India? Read more: World Bank concerned over the
macroeconomic stability of Pakistan
CSS Pakistan Affairs The Pakistani delegation, led by Miftah
The government of Pakistan has asked the Ismail and comprising State Bank governor
World Bank for a meeting in Washington, and Economic Affairs Division secretary,
DC for talks on the country’s ongoing water participated in the World Bank spring
dispute with India. This latest demand is an meetings 2018 and attended a number of
addition to the critical affair of water sharing bilateral meetings on the sidelines, the
in the Indo-Pak Subcontinent. (CSS Pakistan Finance Division said in a statement.
Affairs)
The government of Pakistan has asked
Miftah Ismail, Adviser to Pakistan’s Prime
Minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic
the World Bank for a meeting in
Affairs, conveyed Pakistan’s concerns to Washington, DC for talks on the
World Bank Managing Director Kristalina country’s ongoing water dispute with
Georgieva in Washington, and drew her India. This latest demand is an addition
attention to particular concerns over 2 major to the critical affair of water sharing in
Indian hydropower projects, Kishanganga the Indo-Pak Subcontinent.
and Ratle, which Pakistan believes violate
the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty which governs The finance advisor also drew her attention
water-share of the Indus River and its to improvement in the country’s exports
tributaries. resulting from various policy initiatives
implemented by the government.
While the root cause of this calamity is
not the shortage of this natural Georgieva appreciated reforms implemented
endowment but the poor water policy, by Pakistan and assured the bank’s support
in carrying forward the country’s
rapid urbanization, corruption and development agenda with a focus on SMEs,
management, the situation has not been new business start-ups, agribusiness and
helped by the belligerent attitude of greater regional connectivity, the statement
New Delhi. added.
According to media reports, a World Bank The advisor along with the Chairman BOI
spokesman has confirmed receipt of
met with the World Bank’s Ease of Doing
Pakistan’s complaint and saying that the
Business team led by the Acting Chief
World Bank is working with both Islamabad Economist and apprised them of seventy-
and New Delhi for an amicable resolution to
five reforms implemented by the
the dispute. government to improve business and
investment environment in Pakistan.
Earlier, Miftah Ismail, Adviser to Prime
Minister on Finance, Revenue and Economic
Read more: World Bank approves $825
Affairs, on Saturday conveyed Pakistan’s million loan to Pakistan
concerns to the World Bank over India’s He also met with a large delegation of the
non-adherence to the Indus Waters Treaty US multinationals, members of the US-
(IWT). Miftah met with Managing Director
Pakistan Business Council, at the US
World Bank Kristalina Georgieva in
Chamber and invited them to take advantage
of investment opportunities available in low access to safe drinking water and
Pakistan. The Indus Waters Treaty is sanitation. Similarly, the UN has categorized
showcased often as a major success story in Pakistan amongst those few unfortunate
the history of river disputes, not least by the countries where water shortage will
World Bank, which brokered the original destabilize and jeopardize its existence in the
document. The World Bank has a specific next few decades.
arbitration role in the treaty to keep the
dispute settlement process moving when a While the root cause of this calamity is not
party/country is not cooperating to follow the shortage of this natural endowment but
treaty procedures in cases of dispute. the poor water policy, rapid urbanization,
corruption and management, the situation
Pakistan complained that India has violated has not been helped by the belligerent
a World Bank-mandated pause, placed in attitude of New Delhi. Indian Prime Minister
2016, by completing the controversial Modi has openly talked of abrogating the
Kishanganga project. Pakistan states that Indus Water treaty in order to woo voters.
both Kishanganga (330 megawatts) and
Ratle (850 megawatts) contravene the Indus Highlights of
Water Treaty’s restrictions on the
construction of run-of-the-river plants. The Economic Survey of
plants are respectively on a tributary of the
Jhelum and the Chenab rivers. Pakistan 2017-18
 Posted byADMIN
Miftah met with Managing Director  CategoriesECONOMY, IMPORTANT FOR
World Bank Kristalina Georgieva in GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
Washington and drew her attention to  DateAPRIL 29, 2018
disputes between Pakistan and India  Comments0 COMMENT
over the construction of hydropower
projects requesting the World Bank to Highlights of Economic
play its role under the IWT.
Survey of Pakistan 2017-
Pakistan believes that India was able to
construct projects with “faulty design” due 18
to the inaction over resolving the dispute. Following are the highlights of the Pakistan
According to the World Bank, its role in Economic Survey for the year 2017-18
relation to “disputes” is limited to the unveiled by Advisor to Prime Minister on
“designation of people to fulfill certain roles Finance Miftah Ismail here on Thursday.
when requested by either or both of the
parties”.
– The country’s Gross Domestic Product
recorded 13-year highest growth of 5.8 %.
Analysts believe that the case could be
resolved through the appointment of neutral
– Revenues from telecom sector reached
experts. Experts believe that the stance
an estimated Rs 235.5 billion during the first
adopted by Pakistan is justified, but feel
two quarters of FY 2017-18.
there is a lack of seriousness on the Pakistani
side.
– The commercial launch of 3G and 4G
Long Term Evolution (LTE) services
Read more: World Bank grants $300 million
opened new opportunities for revenue
to improve Punjab’s agriculture
generation for the mobile operators.
According to the World Resource Institute,
the country is among the leading five nations
that face extremely high water scarcity and
– The broadband penetration jumped from – Export growth is improving and the
3.7 million to 52 million. extension of the GSP plus status for next two
years by the EU is a positive development.
– During the first two quarters of the FY The exports growth during nine months of
2017-18 telecom sector contributed current year continued unbroken.
estimated Rs 78.62 billion to national
exchequer in terms of taxes, regulatory fees, – National income remained less than
initial and annual license fees, activation tax, expenditures during FY 2018 when
and other charges. compared with FY 2017 which resulted
increase in Saving-Investment gap.
– The agriculture, industrial and service
sectors of Pakistan grew by 3.8 percent. – Net factor income from abroad
increased by 4.17 percent in FY 2018
– Economy continued to benefit from compared to FY 2017.
growth oriented initiatives, including higher
development spending, low inflation, – Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF),
vigilant monetary policy, and CPEC related considered as fixed investment stood at Rs
investment thus providing impetus for 5,099.1 billion in FY 2018 compared to Rs
economic recovery. 4,632.8 billion last year posting a growth of
10.1 percent.
– High and broad based growth in
agriculture sector in last 13 years was – Agriculture sector recorded a
achieved on the back of initiatives such as remarkable growth of 3.81 percent during
expansion in credit to agriculture sector, 2017-18 and surpassed its targeted growth of
better quality seeds and timely availability of 3.5 percent and last year’s growth of 2.07
agriculture inputs. percent.

– Large Scale Manufacturing recorded a – Cotton production stood at 11.935

growth of 6.13 %, highest in ten years. million bales as compared to 10.671 million
bales in 2016-17 and recorded growth of
– Industrial sector growth improved by 11.8 percent.
5.80 %, highest in ten years.
– During 2017-18, rice production
– Manufacturing grew by 6.24 percent, reached historically high level of 7,442
highest in 11 years. thousand tonnes and recorded an increase of
8.7 percent over the production of 6,849
– Services sector witnessed a growth of thousand tonnes last year.
6.43 percent in last two years.
– Sugarcane production witnessed
– Growth of forestry is 7.17 percent due another record production season as its
to high timber production reported by production reached to 81.102 million tonnes
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). by showing an increase of 7.4 percent over
the last year’s production of 75.482 million
– Fishing registered a growth of 1.6 tonnes.
percent compared to 1.23 percent last year.
– Maize crop production stood at 5.702
– Households’ average propensity to million tonnes compared to the last year’s
consume remained fairly constant at around production of 6.134 million tonnes and
85.5 percent at constant prices and around witnessed a decline of 7.0 percent.
82.0 percent in current prices.
– Livestock having share of 58.92 – Core inflation during July-March FY
percent in the agriculture and 11.11 percent 2018 increased by 2-7 percent against the
in GDP, recorded a growth of 3.76 percent 3.8 percent last year.
compared to 2.99 percent during
corresponding period last year. – Pakistan exports had started increasing
as the negative effect has bottoming out.
– Fishing sector having share of 2.10
percent in agriculture value addition and – Foreign Investment picked up the pace
0.40 percent in GDP, grew at 1.63 percent from last year’s level, with both direct and
compared to growth 1.23 percent of same portfolio investment to the gains. Net FDI
period last year. inflows rose 4.4 percent to 2.1 billion
dollars in July-March against 2 billion
– Forestry sector having share of 2.09 dollars during same period last year.
percent in the agriculture and 0.39 percent in
GDP posted a positive growth of 7.17 – Total number of enrolments at
percent against the negative growth of national level during 2016-17 stood at
2.37 percent of same period last year due to 48.062 million as compared to 46.223
higher timber production reported by million during 2015-16 This shows a growth
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. of 3.97 percent and it is estimated to further
rise to 5..426 million during 2017-18
– Fiscal deficit registered decline from
8.2 percent in FY 2013 to 5.8 percent of – The total number of institutes stood at
GDP in FY 2017. 260.8 thousands during 2016-17 as
compared to 252.8 thousands during last
– Current expenditure stood at Rs year and the number of institutes is
2,5445.2 billion during July-December FY estimated to increase to 267.7 thousands
2018 against Rs2,241.6 billion in the same during 2017-18.
period of FY 2017 thus posted a growth of
13.5 percent. – The number of doctors has increased
to 208.007 thousand, dentists 20463, nurses
– Expenditure under PSDP has posted a 103,777 and hospital beds 126.019 in the
growth of 25.4 percent and reached to Rs country during 2017-18 compared to
558.8 billion during July-December, FY 195,896 doctors 18,333 dentists, 99,228
2018 against Rs 445.7 billion in the same nurses and 122,769 hospital beds last year.
period of FY2-17.
– Since the inception Prime Minister’s
– During FY2017, FBR tax collection youth Skill Development program a total
grew by 8.2 percent and stood at Rs 3,367.9 number of 100,000 youth has benefited from
billion against Rs 3,112.5 billion recorded in this program.
FY 2016.
– During July December 2017-18 gross
– Headline inflation CPI, averaged at earning of Pakistan Railways number of
3,8 percent during July- March FY 2018 passenger carried, freight carried and freight
against 4.0 percent in the comparable period tones earning has improved by 26.7 percent.
last year.
– During 2013 to 2018 39 projects with
– Food inflation during July March cumulative capacity of 12,230 MW have
FY2018, is recorded at 2 percent and not been added.
food 5 percent as against 308 percent and
4.2 percent respectively in the corresponding – Up till February 2018 installed
period of last year. capacity of electricity reached 29,573 MW
which was 22,812 MW in 2012-13 thus and South Korea cannot just be achieved by
posting a growth of 30 percent. an agreement between the two countries, and
requires the fulfillment of a denuclearization
– The number of Benazir Income agreement between the U.S and North
Support Program beneficiaries have Korea.
increased from 3.73 million in 2012 to 5.6
million as on December 31 2017. Even if they don’t sign a new accord
for peace, the implementation of
Pakistan and India must agreements already signed i.e the
Ceasefire Agreement and Indus Water
follow North and South Treaty can boost the confidence of over
Korea: 1.6 billion people.
CSS General Knowledge Although Kim categorically clarified that
Dressed in a black safari suit, The North both, North and South Korea, will be
Korean leader, Kim Jong-un garnered media reunited as one country, there remain some
spotlight as he detached from his fellows administrative flaws, obstructing the
and walked, with his traditional grace, to execution of the dreams, which are
shake hands with Moon Jae-in, the South explained below. The Korean War, which
Korean President, The two leaders met on became the core point of Friday’s accord,
Friday, on the South Korean side, to make happened in 1950 when North Korean troops
history. The North Korean leader invited invaded the South. The conflict lingered on
Moon Jae-in to cross the demarcation line for three years before an armistice
into North Korea, posing for pictures as a agreement was inked.
symbol of future peace. (CSS General
Knowledge) However, the absence of a formal peace
treaty was tantamount to an ongoing war in
The smiles and handshakes were unusual for the peninsula. Kim and Moon have vowed to
the political observers, as both sides of the end the war but, with this in mind, there are
borders have been harboring a grudge other players in the peninsula equation
against each other for over six decades. Mr. including, as stated above, the United
Kim marched back to his country after the States, led by Donald Trump, and Xi
first session but his short interaction was Jinping, ruled by China. The viability of the
pleasant, noting, in the Peace House promises made in South Korea will be
guestbook, that ‘a new history starts now, implemented only if the negotiations
An age of peace, from the starting point of between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un
history’. Besides the emotion-laden smiles, prove successful.
the two leaders signed a historic accord
committing them to the complete Read more: Actress kidnapped by North
denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, Korea dies at 91
and pledging to bring a formal end to the Although, Mike Pomoe, the CIA director-
Korean War, which broke out 65 years ago. turned-secretary of state met Kim earlier in
April, confirming the thaw in the ties ruled
The historic accord, also called the by firebrand leaders, the fruit of months-
‘Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, long engagements will only appear after
Prosperity and Unification’, reveals much Trump shakes hands with Kim in May or
about North Korea’s nuclear capabilities, but June. Recently, Kim announced the
falls short of announcing and recognizing suspension of the nuclear program along
the role of the United States and China in with the closure of test sites. However, with
this mission.. It should be noted that this in mind, the North Korean hawks can
improving the relationship between North still cast aspirations over the ambitions of
U.S., especially considering Trump’s Read more: North Korea says historic
behavior towards the Iran nuclear deal. summit opens ‘new era for peace’
Although North and South Korea did not
The ongoing situation of the Iran nuclear face issues concerning terrorism, the accord
deal shows Trump hinting to walk out of the is hailed as a visible sign of grace and sanity
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the international foray. On the same
(JCPOA), just two years after the signing of pattern, Pakistan and India can set aside
the pact. This is raising concerns in contentious issues, for a while, to agree on
Pyongyang, that North Korea can also be some key issues, in a bid to reduce their
subjected to the same duality. The people military spending and look for long-standing
from both sides of the 38th parallel line still peace in the region. Even if they don’t sign a
carry the scars of violence, as over 1 million new accord for peace, the implementation of
individuals lost their lives, yet, eagerly agreements already signed i.e the Ceasefire
hoping for a positive outcome from Agreement and Indus Water Treaty can
President Trump. boost the confidence of over 1.6 billion
people.
Besides the emotion-laden smiles, the
two leaders signed a historic accord Whether or not the accord materializes,
North and South Korean have laid a
committing them to the complete
ceremonial groundwork for many neighbors
denuclearization of the Korean across the globe.
Peninsula, and pledging to bring a
formal end to the Korean War, which Asian Majorities acting
broke out 65 years ago. like Insecure Minorities-
Whether the much-awaited, the interaction CSS Pakistan Affairs
between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un IT IS an unlikely weapon: a scuffed but
goes for or against expectations, the Kim- sturdy Samsonite briefcase, sitting on a desk
Moon meeting is a much-needed lesson for in a big house in a spacious garden in a
the Asia Pacific, especially India and prosperous suburb of Colombo, the capital
Pakistan. The two South Asian neighbors of Sri Lanka. Its owner, shaven-headed,
have fought a devastating war, of the same bare-shouldered, in bright orange robes and
intensity, as the Korean one, and are still closely resembling Shrek, an adorably
being bogged down in a plethora of conflicts grumpy cartoon ogre, looks an equally
ranging from Kashmir to Kargil, Siachin to unlikely warrior. Galagoda Aththe
water problems as well as cross-border Gnanasara says he never travels without the
terrorism to aggression on the Line of case. Smiling, he pats the black plastic lid
Control. and opens it to reveal a heap of well-
fingered papers. “This”, he says, “is my
India and Pakistan have fought multiple evidence.” (CSS Pakistan Affairs)
wars in 1948, 1965, 1971 and the Kargil
conflict, with emotions running high in Mr Gnanasara is a founder of the Bodu Bala
every battle. However, the casualty scale Sena (BBS) or Buddhist Power Force, one of
falls much lower than the Korean War. The several extreme nationalist groups that
nuclear-armed neighbors are, on their champion the rights of the three-quarters of
respective sides, facing challenges from Sri Lankans who happen to be Sinhala-
poverty to lawlessness and corruption, but speaking Buddhists. Sinhalese have
still, refuse to sit down and draw a line of historically dominated the island, a fact
action for peace in future. The North-South forcefully reasserted in 2009 when the Sri
Korea détente should be seen as peace Lankan army brought to a bloody end a 26-
objectives for India and Pakistan, who are year-long insurgency by mostly Hindu
carrying the baggage of history to this day. ethnic Tamils, the largest minority group.
See more pillage, murder, rape and enforced exile.
Mr Gnanasara counts on his fingers the Targeted in occasional riots and ugly local
different threats his people now face: disturbances, Sri Lankan Muslims have
Wahhabist Islam, evangelical Christianity, witnessed nothing of this scale or intensity.
international cultural invasion. Then he The hateful underlying rhetoric is not so
reaches for the briefcase. Here, for instance, different, however. Many of the instigators,
is a six-year-old clipping from an Indian as in Myanmar, also happen to be Buddhist
newspaper, claiming that Islamist terrorists monks. Indeed, the BBS has hosted Ashin
undergo training in secret Sri Lankan camps. Wirathu, a Burmese monk notorious for his
He waves another fading snippet, which inflammatory anti-Muslim rhetoric.
alleges that 33 Sri Lankan Muslims have Chauvinists in both countries borrow from
joined Islamic State. And there is more the anti-Muslim tirades of Hindu nationalists
evidence: photos of an ancient Buddhist in India, whose constant drumbeat of
shrine that he says was destroyed by incitement gives rise to an equally constant
Muslims. stream of ugly sectarian incidents.

Paranoid parking Muslim majorities, too, often resort to

similar abuses. Bangladesh chased non-
In “their” areas, says Mr Gnanasara, streets Muslim tribes into India, and its once large
flow with the blood of slaughtered animals. and prosperous Hindu minority has
Motorcyclists never wear helmets because dwindled alarmingly in the face of constant
Muslims do not respect national laws. They pressure. In the name of orthodoxy,
park haphazardly, so that when you scratch extremists in Pakistan, the original “Islamic”
their cars they have an excuse to attack you. state, have viciously hounded not only
Mr Gnanasara fishes for an even more Christians and Hindus but also Shia
incriminating document. He finds a stapled Muslims, Ahmadis and allegedly
report, with names of a dozen people who unorthodox Sufis.
have converted to Islam in one village. In
the past five years, he exclaims Mukul Kesavan, a perceptive Indian
triumphantly, they have converted no fewer historian, sees this region-wide propensity
than 8,000 people! for majoritarian nationalism as a sad if
natural outcome of the awkward struggle to
When it is pointed out that Sri Lanka has, in build new nation-states. “Every post-
fact, never experienced an act of violence colonial state in South Asia paid lip service
attributable to Islamists, and that at this rate to secular principle in the first decade of its
of conversion it will take the island’s existence before reconstituting itself as a
Muslims about 10,000 years to convert the kind of sole proprietorship run by its
rest of its 21m inhabitants, Mr Gnanasara dominant community,” he laments. This, he
simply shrugs. His hoard of evidence does suggests, has partly been a result of the
not really need to add up. In Sri Lanka, as failure by the region’s mother-ship, India, to
across most of South Asia, surprisingly large live up fully to its own secular ideals, and to
numbers of people among groups that enjoy the moral counter-example it seemed to
overwhelming numerical superiority seem promise against the less inclusive premise
eager to convince themselves that their underpinning the creation of Pakistan. Since
identity is somehow in mortal danger. independence India has wobbled between
two poles: an attempt to build a
Muslims have borne the brunt of such constitutionally bound state founded on
convictions in several countries. The most equal citizenship and pluralism, and what
egregious recent example is Myanmar, Mr Kesavan calls “a second-hand
whose 90% Buddhist majority felt so nationalism derived not from the experience
threatened by a Rohingya Muslim minority of the anti-colonial struggle but the
of barely 1% that it sanctioned burning, majoritarian logic of ethnic nationalism”.
While this struggle has played out violently camp slowly introduced the term
in all India’s neighbours—even tiny Bhutan, “Palestinians,” in place of “Land of Israel
the country that invented “gross national Arabs,” into the public dialogue. The
happiness”, forcibly expelled a big, national camp, as it’s known, which attached
ethnically Nepalese minority in the 1990s— the adjective “liberated” to the territories,
India’s large, messy democracy has gradually insinuated the names “Judea and
managed to contain most of the passion, Samaria” into the national discourse, as
most of the time. These days many Indians natural and legitimate parts of Israel itself,
despair at what often appears to be a rising like East Jerusalem, which joined the
tide of majoritarian nastiness. Imperfect as western section, creating one city.
they are, however, the country’s pluralist In this piece, I will try to avoid the terms
institutions still find ways of pushing back. “left” and “right,” using instead “peace
In a recent ruling, the supreme court camp” and “national camp.” Some left-
thunderingly rejected a lower court’s leaning people, driven by a concern for
decision to separate a 24-year-old woman social justice, have always been active in the
from her Muslim husband on the ground that “national camp,” while many “peace camp”
he had enticed her to convert to Islam. “The activists espouse a liberal capitalist approach
constitution protects personal liberty from that is completely at odds with left-wing
disapproving audiences,” the judgment ideology. Still, beyond the mutual insults in
declared. “Courts are duty bound not to the polemics, it’s widely agreed that the
swerve from the path of upholding our majority of those who identify with the
pluralism and diversity as a nation.” “peace camp” are driven also by saliently
national motivations, and on the other hand,
An Alternative to Two- some in the “national camp” seek equitable
State Solution of Palestine coexistence, according to their lights, with
the Palestinians.
Issue-
CSS General Knowledge That said, it’s noteworthy that in recent
years, despite the virulent tones and the
heated, personal language used by both
A.B. Yehoshua, one of sides, the truly substantive arguments about
Israel’s staunchest fighters the “two-state solution” are becoming more
acerbic – because of the chaotic situation in
for the two-state solution, the Middle East, the lessons of the unilateral
lays out a proposal for an withdrawal from Gaza, the passivity of the
Palestinian Authority and the despair of the
Israeli-Palestinian Israeli peace camp, which has begun to
devote energy to other civil struggles.
partnership But above all, the two-state solution is
On the third day of the Six-Day War, when fading because of the constantly expanding
the conquest of East Jerusalem, the West settlements in Judea and Samaria. Indeed,
Bank and the Gaza Strip had been according to many experts who are familiar
accomplished, I remember myself saying in with the demographic and geographic
a celebratory tone, “Now a state has to be reality, it is no longer possible to divide the
established for the residents of the Land of Israel into two separate sovereign
territories.” (CSS General Knowledge) states. Similarly, the possible partition of
Initially, it was customary to say “residents Jerusalem into two separate capitals with an
of the territories,” not “Palestinians,” and the international border between them is
West Bank and the Gaza Strip were called becoming increasingly untenable.
“territories,” which gradually morphed into
“administered territories,” and in the past 20 For 50 years – during most of my adult life –
years into “occupied territories.” The peace I worked tirelessly for the two-state solution.
In the mid-1970s, I added my voice to those Yesh Atid, Zionist Union and certainly
recognizing the Palestine Liberation Meretz and the Joint List of Arab parties.
Organization as the representative of the The PA and most of the moderate Arab
Palestinian people for negotiations, and I states also advocate the two-state solution,
was a signatory to the Geneva Agreement in which is also the official position of the
the early 2000s. Together with most of the majority of the international community.
nation, I supported Israel’s unilateral
withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and during A solution to the conflict in the form of the
the various intifadas and the expansion of establishment of a Palestinian state
the settlements, I never stopped putting alongside Israel – which seemed fantastical
forward possible ideas for the border and unrealistic 50 years ago – has thus
crossings and the status of Israeli minorities become the cornerstone of the entire
in the future Palestinian state, in an effort to political arena. In the 1970s, Prime Minister
give life to the receding two-state vision. Golda Meir ridiculed the term “Palestinian”
as both a political and identity concept,
In the face of countless frustrations, claiming with irony that she, too, was
generated by both the Israeli government actually an authentic Palestinian. (Indeed,
and the PA, I too, along with the entire with her self-righteousness, stubbornness
peace camp, hoped that the international and shortsightedness, she resembled many
community, and particularly the United Palestinian leaders.) Today, though, right-
States and Europe, would exert economic wing prime ministers employ the term
and diplomatic pressure on both sides so as naturally and meet openly with PLO
to force them to find the way to a historic representatives.
compromise to one of the most persistent
and complex disputes in the world since the Yet, just when the term “Palestinian state” is
start of the 20th century. becoming a staple fixture in the international
sphere, I and some of my good friends who
And in fact, the anticipated moment fought for it for 50 years feel – and I hope I
ostensibly arrived when the official am proved wrong – that this vision is no
Palestinian leadership, and also two right- longer viable in practice. Indeed, it has
wing prime ministers – Ehud Olmert and become only a deceptive and crafty cover
Benjamin Netanyahu – formally announced for a slow but ever-deepening slide into a
their desire to work for the two-state condition of vicious occupation and legal
solution. Before his resignation, in 2009, and social apartheid with which we in the
Olmert initiated a detailed and extremely peace camp – Israelis and Palestinians alike
generous plan for dividing the Land of Israel – have come to terms out of weariness and
into two states. However, according to fatalism.
Olmert, Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas evaded most of the meetings that Accordingly, we must try to examine the
were intended to discuss the plan. As for situation with intellectual honesty and think
Netanyahu, there’s no knowing what he was about other solutions that can stop this
actually thinking in his occasional references process and reverse it. What’s in danger now
to the two-state idea. is not Israel’s Jewish and Zionist identity but
its humanity – and the humanity of the
Yes, there are people in the right-wing Palestinians who are under our rule.
parties who stammer “two states” – among
them a few in Likud, Yisrael Beiteinu, Lengthy and stubborn
Kulanu and even Shas (the ultra-Orthodox If we date the genesis of Zionism to the end
Ashkenazi parties don’t deal with such petty of the 19th century, and if the first new
matters). And, of course, the two-state Jewish settlements in Palestine were being
principle is posited at the center of the built by the Lovers of Zion movement as
political solution proposed by parties such as early as in the 1870s and 1880s, this means
the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is almost 150 the Palestinians and the Arabs reject – but
years old. One’s amazement at the length the fact that the two peoples are effectively
and obduracy of the conflict is only claiming sovereignty over the same territory.
heightened by the fact that it is one of the It’s not only a dispute over a particular
best known and most deliberated conflicts in region, of the kind history is familiar with; at
the world, especially during the past 50 bottom, this is a dispute over full ownership.
years. High-ranking envoys come and go, That the Palestinians rejected the Balfour
and presidents, foreign ministers and prime Declaration is perfectly understandable, and
ministers in both the present and past have not only because Britain did not possess the
tried to resolve it. In 2000, U.S. President moral authority to promise Palestine to the
Bill Clinton set aside everything else to Jews. By the same token, the League of
spend days discussing the intricacies of the Nations and its successor, the United
border between a future Palestinian state and Nations, lacked moral or legal authority to
Israel. John Kerry noted that more than 60 divide a country between its inhabitants and
percent of his foreign trips as Barack a people coming from the outside.
Obama’s secretary of state were aimed at
resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Both the Palestinians and the Jews rebelled
conflict is a regular subject at the United against the British presence in Palestine in
Nations and in many other international the 1930s and ‘40s. For this land does not
organizations. The current American belong to Britain but to its inhabitants, both
president speaks of Israeli-Palestinian peace Jews and Palestinians asserted, in
as a “deal.” It’ll be a long time before that accordance with the universal moral
“deal” is cut, but in the meantime a great imperative by which a land belongs to its
many people have made handsome “deals” occupants and not to the army that conquers
out of this conflict. it.

The deep reason for this state of affairs is, I But the conflict also grew fiercer because of
believe, the singularity of this conflict. To the demographic relations between the two
the best of my knowledge, there is no other peoples, which even today continue to rule
example in human history of a nation that out compromise and partition. The
abandoned its land at least 2,000 years Palestinians rightfully rejected compromise
earlier and wandered across the globe, and and a partition with the Jews in both 1917
then, after millennia, sought (as it became and 1947. In 1917, if only a quarter of the
the target of intensifying hostility) to return world’s Jewish population – meaning around
to that historic homeland, with which it 4 million Jews – had come to Palestine, the
maintained a spiritual and religious Palestinians would not have had a square
connection but to which it had stubbornly centimeter on which to hoist their flag. By
avoided returning for centuries. Thus, at the 1947, there were 1.3 million Palestinians and
beginning of the 19th century, only 10,000 600,000 Jews in the country, but once more,
of the world’s 2.5 million Jews lived in some 12 million Jews were elsewhere, some
Palestine (there were 40,000 Jews in of them homeless Holocaust refugees, others
Afghanistan, 80,000 in Yemen and already a distraught by the intensity and cruelty of the
million in Poland). A hundred years later, at hostility they had endured in the war. Thus
the time of the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the Palestinians’ opposition to the UN
even with the momentum of Zionism, there resolution was clear and natural, as it
were 550,000 Palestinians in Palestine but demanded that they turn over half of their
only 50,000 Jews out of a worldwide homeland to a people that had resided in it
population of almost 14.5 million (data from 2,000 years earlier but that since then had
the Encyclopedia Hebraica). been scattered across the globe.

But it’s not only the late and amazing return Indeed, in 1948, the Palestinians had every
to Zion – which we take pride in and which chance, with the aid of seven Arab states, to
crush the small, nascent, objectively weak weakening the homeland element in the
Jewish community. The deputy chief of staff Jewish-Israeli identity. Abraham, the first
of the army at the time, Yigael Yadin, told Hebrew, was enjoined to leave his father’s
the Jewish community’s leadership that house and his homeland and go to a new
Israel had a barely 50 percent prospect of land, which was defined as a holy land, a
surviving what evolved into the War of designated land given to him in a covenant
Independence. by God. Thus it was not akin to a homeland
Yet even if the roots of this distinctive that was granted to the Jewish people
conflict are understood, we still need to ask naturally, as with every other people.
why it is that after 70 years of Israeli
independence, and particularly after the
vanquishing of the Palestinians and the Arab
states – both in the War of Independence,
the wars of 1967 and 1973 and in the second
intifada – it remains impossible to conclude
this conflict in the way that the entire world
is suggesting: by partition and compromise.

Double defect
Homeland is the first and most important
element in every national identity, whose
other components are built on its foundation:
language, religion, history, culture and in
some cases common origin. Religion and
language can be shared by a number of
peoples, but it’s territory that creates the
distinctive basis of nationality.

Seeking to understand the reasons for the

depth and obduracy of the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict, we discover that it is the defective
character of both the Jewish and the
Palestinian national identities that is causing
the conflict’s exacerbation. And not least,
because the defects are mutual opposites.
Before proceeding, I must point out, in all
fairness, that the singular defect in the
homeland element of the Jewish people’s
national identity is far more serious and
disaster-ridden than the comparable defect in
the Palestinians’ homeland component.

From the dawn of the Jewish people’s

emergence – and it is immaterial whether it
actually took place this way historically or is
only a mythological-religious foundation
that was embedded deep in the national
consciousness – the homeland component of
the Jewish-Israeli national identity has lost
its primary and key role to the religious-
divine component. Certain facts can be
enumerated in the deliberate process of
 generated and did not spring up naturally in
its homeland, the Land of Israel, but in
Egyptian exile.

Likewise the Torah, as a primary element of

the national identity, was not given in the
homeland, in the Land of Israel, but in the
Sinai desert, which is no one’s homeland.
Hence, the promised territory, which is
meant to be a natural foundation for the
nationhood of the people that came out of
Egypt, was not bestowed to it thanks to
conquest or natural growth, but only by dint
of loyalty to God’s laws.

Abandonment or violation of those laws will

bring calamities on the people, of which the
most egregious will be their expulsion from
the Land of Israel and their dispersal among
the nations.

However, because homeland as such is only

a secondary component in Jewish identity,
its loss need not erase and annul the national
identity. The nation that was born in exile
will return to exile and continue to exist
there. The homeland, the territory, is
conditional, and only God is the ultimate
decider. There is no other people in the
world that, after losing – more precisely,
abandoning – its homeland and dispersing
for many centuries to foreign territories
across the world, succeeded, or at least part
of it did so, in preserving its national
identity.

Exile is an immanent and legitimate part of

Jewish identity. For almost 2,000 years, the
vast majority of the Jewish people did not
live in the “homeland” given it by God but
in the homelands of other peoples. The ratio
between the number of Jews who preferred
of their own volition to live outside the Land
of Israel and those who lived there until
Israel’s establishment is astounding and
shocking. For centuries, as much as Jews
around the world vowed to seek redemption
Illustration: Marina Grechanik.
and return to the Land of Israel, and
According to the biblical myth – the
reiterated the verse “If I forget thee, O
formative myth in the Jewish national
Jerusalem” – the Jewish presence in the
consciousness, both religious and secular –
Land of Israel was minuscule, if not
the Israeli-Jewish national identity was not
negligible.
The Jews’ obdurate avoidance of settling in population of up to 4 million at the end of
the Land of Israel is especially blatant the Second Temple period, their number had
among the Jews of the East in the 400 years declined to 1 million by the beginning of the
in which Palestine was under Ottoman rule. 18th century.
Numerous Jewish communities thrived
across the vast Ottoman Empire, from which The most horrific reaction, however, was
many could easily have settled in the Land annihilation, and precisely in places where
of Israel. But the Eastern Jews who moved the Jews’ infiltration into the local national
about between the many communities did identity was extremely deep. From this
not go there. In 1839, according to the perspective, the Holocaust was the hardest
records of the British consul in Palestine, and cruelest catastrophe endured by any
there were only 10,000 Jews in the country, people in human history. In the course of
among them Ashkenazim from Eastern five years, a third of the Jewish people was
Europe. destroyed – not over territory, not because of
their religion and faith, not for their material
The Jews’ tendency to recoil from their true possessions and also not because of some
historic and religious homeland was ideology they espoused uniquely. That
indicative of a disastrous flaw in their terrible debacle, which some of the fathers
identity. Because the homeland element is of Zionism foresaw (“If you do not liquidate
essentially secondary in the Jews’ national the Diaspora, the Diaspora will liquidate
consciousness, they also project this feeling you,” the founder of Revisionist Zionism,
on others, and as such diminish the identity Ze’ev Jabotinsky, wrote), was caused not
value of homeland in other peoples. They only by the unimportance of territory as the
don’t understand that each case of their primary, firm basis in their national identity,
dwelling among other peoples constitutes a but also because of insufficient recognition
deep, danger-fraught infiltration into an by them of its importance in the identity of
identity that does not belong to them. other peoples.
Resorting to an image, we can say that the
majority of the Jews treated and continue to Double barrier
treat the homelands of other people like a Parallel to the Jews’ historic disdain for
hotel chain, and so, together with the territory as the primary basis of national
“Jewish bookshelf,” move from hotel to identity, both of themselves and hence of
hotel according to the changing conditions other peoples as well, we find an opposite
of accommodation. “The Jew [is] Palestinian flaw. For the Palestinian, the
everywhere and nowhere,” Hannah Arendt house, or the village, and not the entire
observed of Jewish existence, and in her territory of Palestine, symbolizes the
private life also manifested that assertion. primary and principal basis for his identity.
The result is that the clash between these
Even though the Jews tried throughout two flaws actually aggravates and sustains
history to behave like good, polite customers the conflict between the two peoples.
in these “hotels,” their very presence
fomented harsh reactions. These took the I cannot pretend to be highly knowledgeable
form of expulsions, bans on their entry and about the intricacies of Palestinian
attempts to change their identity by making nationalism. Still, a perusal of its emergence
them convert or even effectively turns up a process that began during the long
imprisoning them – that is, by preventing rule of the Ottoman Empire. Because the
them from leaving the “hotel” when empire was essentially Muslim, and the
conditions changed there, as was the case, Arabs within it belonged in their perception
for example in the Soviet Union and in to one nation that spoke a single language
Syria. As a result, the wandering between (despite the richness of its different dialects),
places of exile also brought about a dramatic naturally it could not develop and
reduction in the number of Jews. From a consolidate a singular territorial nationality
within clear and defined borders. But after against the Jews, who were fighting for their
the empire disintegrated, in the wake of its lives with their back to the sea. The
defeat in World War I, and consolidated into Palestinians’ basic loyalty was to village and
more clearly defined ethnic borders, the home, not to homeland in the broad sense.
Arab states gradually began to coalesce in Even though the Palestinians outnumbered
the Middle East, under the patronage and the Jews two to one and were bolstered by
with the encouragement of the colonial military aid from Arab countries, not only
powers Britain and France. In this way, the were they unable to eradicate the fledgling
national identities of Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jewish state, they also ended up losing part
the Hashemite Kingdom, Saudi Arabia and of their allotted territory under the UN
Yemen began to develop. partition plan.

But in Palestine the development of the In his excellent new book “The Battle on the
Palestinian nationality remained stuck in the Qastel: 24 Hours that Changed the Course of
face of a double barrier, namely, Britain’s the 1948 War between Palestinians and
military and administrative rule, which was Israelis” (in Hebrew), veteran journalist
supposed to guarantee the implementation of Danny Rubinstein describes an illuminating
the mandate of the Balfour Declaration, and episode that gives vivid expression to the
the increasing arrival of Jews. connection to village and home that
overrides the national interest. During an
Instead of an autonomous national attack by the Palmach, the Jewish shock
administration, like those the Iraqis, Syrians troops – an operation that went partly wrong
and Lebanese gradually began to develop – Abd al-Qadir al-Husseini, the legendary,
when they gained independent states, the revered Palestinian commander, lost his way
Palestinians remained at a level of extremely between positions, and was killed by Jewish
limited self-rule, which was managed within troops. Not realizing whom they had killed,
a framework of clans and village dignitaries, they left Husseini’s body where it lay. The
without concrete power of enforcement. The Palestinians, thinking he had only been
political leadership, too, headed by the wounded and taken prisoner by the Israelis,
Higher Arab Committee under the grand summoned help from the local villages to
mufti, lacked truer legitimacy among the rescue him. A thousand fighters responded
Palestinians, besides which the population immediately to the call and recaptured the
also included Christian Palestinians and village of Qastel and its fortress, inflicting
Druze. severe casualties on the Jewish forces.
Hussein’s body was found and taken to
Of course, if the central national government Jerusalem for a magnificent burial. The
is feeble and limited, and lacks a tradition of Palestinian fighters who remained in the
concrete national authority, as existed in the newly liberated village were ordered not to
past, the smaller units – villages and families leave Qastel until new troops had arrived to
– become the focal points of national replace them. However, the Arab villagers,
identity. The national consciousness that who with great effort captured the strategic
expresses itself in a sense of belonging to the outpost that was to determine the fate of the
whole homeland is diminished and siege of Jerusalem, ignored the order and
weakened. The situation was further within a few hours returned to their villages
compounded after 1948, when the and homes, just a few kilometers from the
Palestinian nation was split among five site of the battle. Effectively, they handed
countries at least: Israel, Jordan, Egypt, over Qastel to their enemies without a fight.
Lebanon and Syria. Their loyalty and attachment to their villages
trumped their overall national identity.
Following the British departure, the village-
clan structure was one of the factors that led To this day, Rubinstein writes, 70 years after
to the Palestinians’ failure in their war the 1948 war, the Palestinians define
themselves in the alleys of the refugee homeland, and insist on condemning
camps according to their villages of origin, themselves to a shameful life of refugeehood
which remain the heart of their identity. Yet within 10 or 20 kilometers of their original
the Palestinians who inhabit the refugee homes in Ashdod or Ashkelon, from which
camps in the West Bank and Gaza Strip are they fled or were expelled, transforms the
not actually refugees, but only displaced rusting keys of their lost homes into basic
persons still living in their homeland. symbols of Palestinian nationhood, which
Whereas the Israelis – who were in any case for its part needs to confront Jewish
relatively small in number – who in the 1948 nationhood. The latter people, in the
war were forced by the Palestinians to leave meantime, after 2,000 years of drifting
their homes in the Etzion Bloc, Atarot, around the world, was seized by biblical
Neveh Yaakov, Beit Ha’arava and the Old longing, and, not satisfied with controlling
City of Jerusalem never considered the 78 percent of Palestine that was
themselves refugees, only displaced persons recognized as the State of Israel after the
who remained in the homeland, and they War of Independence, also needed to gnaw
immediately integrated into other locales. away at the remaining 22 percent – the West
Even the Palestinians who left or were Bank and the Gaza Strip – that had remained
expelled from Palestine to Lebanon, Jordan, in Palestinian hands.
Syria or Egypt in 1948 could have
theoretically returned to the areas of the The combination of these two substantive
homeland that were ruled for the next 19 defects – expressed through the degrading
years by Jordan and Egypt. It wasn’t until penetration of the Palestinian identity
after the 1967 war, when Israel closed the through the settlements established in the
borders to them definitively, that they territories, counterpoised to the sacred
became true refugees. Palestinian principle of the return of the
refugees to their homes within Israel proper
The insistence on seeing one’s home or – is what makes compromise and
village as the primary and almost exclusive conciliation so difficult to achieve. The
source of national identity – through the cruelty and absurdity of both sides are well
refugee’s “personal right” to return to his illustrated in the Israeli settlement project in
original home – exacerbates and sustains the the Gaza Strip, which ended – and not by
conflict. On top of which, the United chance – with a total Israeli defeat on the
Nations, through its UNRWA relief agency one hand, and with an absurd and destructive
(perhaps because of repressed guilt at the response of the defeated, who instead of
partition plan), granted refugee status to the building and rehabilitating Gaza following
Palestinian refugees’ offspring, too, even its liberation from the cruel occupation,
today, to members of the fifth generation. started to fire missiles and dig tunnels.
Yes, a Palestinian has the right to long for
the moment of Israel’s destruction, when he Reverse demography
will be able to return to his village or to the Egyptian President Anwar Sadat noted in his
home of his forefathers, just as the displaced memoirs that he arrived at the decision to
(not refugee) settlers from Gush Katif in the launch the 1973 war when Israel started to
Gaza Strip can dream of the moment when settle civilians in Sinai, in the area known as
that area will be reconquered and they can the Rafah salient or the Yamit district, which
rebuild their homes, which were demolished was meant to act as a kind of civilian buffer
by the Israel Defense Forces in 2005. But (totally untenable) between Sinai and the
the question must be asked: What happens in Gaza Strip. Given that the expropriation of
the meantime? conquered territory for the purpose of
settling foreign citizens is the deepest
The fact that refugees have lived for 70 possible infringement of national
years in miserable, difficult camps in Gaza, sovereignty, it’s clear that the only
which is after all part of the Palestinian legitimate response to this can be war. The
decision to establish the Rafah salient was The demographic balance of forces that
made in 1972 by the Labor Party secretariat, existed between the two peoples at the time
in what’s known as the “Galili document” of the Balfour Declaration – half-a-million
(drawn up by cabinet minister Israel Galili), Palestinians in the face of the almost 15-
which was approved unanimously by million-strong Jewish people – slowly began
ministers, MKs and others, some of them to change. This was due not only to the
ardent socialists who were members of Holocaust, which annihilated one-third of
kibbutzim and moshavim. Ten years later, the world’s Jews, but also to natural growth,
Defense Minister Ariel Sharon carried out and to the benefits derived by the
the evacuation and demolition of Yamit for Palestinians by virtue of their shared life
the sake of the peace agreement with Egypt, with the Israelis. What still seemed natural
which was signed with the Likud and possible (though not moral) about
government. realizing the concept of Greater Israel in
1967 was increasingly difficult a hundred
It’s true that in 1977, when Labor transferred years after the Balfour Declaration and 70
power to Likud, there were only 3,000 years after the UN partition resolution.
settlers in the West Bank, in contrast to the
nearly 400,000 Israelis who now live in the The demography began to reverse itself, or
settlements of Judea and Samaria. Still, it more accurately to swing like a pendulum.
was Labor that imparted the moral and Yasser Arafat, the Palestinians’ chaotic
political legitimacy to the settlements, leader, with his deceptive and self-righteous
though that legitimacy was accompanied by talk of Palestine as a “secular, pluralistic and
a sly principle of “settlement only in areas democratic state” – after the return of the
not dense with Arabs.” That principle was refugees to their homes within Israel, of
easy enough to implement in the Rafah course – was seized by dread following the
salient because the 10,000 Bedouin who had waves of immigration to Israel from the
lived there were forcibly evicted from their Soviet Union starting in the late 1980s and
homes, their crops uprooted and their fields the multiplication of settlements in the
transformed into construction sites for the territories. He agreed, then, to sign the Oslo
new Israeli settlements – which were thereby Accords, which recognized Israel as a
not established in an area “dense with distinct state. But he began to trample the
Arabs.” agreement through terrorist attacks, which
intensified in the second intifada, besides
But in the Gaza Strip, where the Gush Katif which Israel also still hesitated about leaving
settlements were built (also by a decision of the territories, and the settlements not only
the Labor Party), it was more difficult to failed to stop expanding, but grew more
maintain the sanctimonious principle of deeply rooted.
settlement in places not “dense with Arabs.”
Accordingly, when Likud, and particularly The Gush Katif settlers, who waited in 2005
its active religious-Zionist wing, came to for soldiers to evacuate them while the
power, the principle of the prohibition of laundry tumbled in the machine and the
settlements in such locations was dropped. chicken roasted in the oven, taught the
After all, the Gush Emunim movement Jewish people a lesson for the future: how
noted, for 2,000 years Jews had lived in arduous and terrible it will be to try to
places that were “dense with goyim” without evacuate settlements in Judea and Samaria.
losing their Jewishness. Then why, in the The evacuation of the 8,000 Gush Katif
Land of Israel of all places, would they shun settlers cost the state about 10 billion shekels
such places when the IDF was safeguarding ($2.85 billion in current terms). On top of
and protecting them from the “denseness”? which, the Palestinians in Gaza explained to
The trouble was that the “denseness” only the world, via missiles and underground
intensified. tunnels, that for them the evacuation of
Gaza, far from being an end to occupation,
did not contain even a hint of the start of In 2016, on the first anniversary of the death
separation and conciliation. of former minister and MK Yossi Sarid, his
widow, Dorit, asked me to speak at a
But we still have the relatively successful memorial event for him at the Tel Aviv
story of coexistence in Israel between the Museum of Art. This was a few weeks after
Jews and the Israeli Palestinians, despite all the publication of my proposal to grant
the harsh vicissitudes experienced by both residency status to 100,000 Palestinians
sides over 70 years: the wars, the occupation living in Area C, in order to reduce
after the Six-Day War, the intifadas, the somewhat the malignancy of the occupation
military government and the land in at least 60 percent of the West Bank –
expropriations. Still, it appears that the namely, in the area in which all the Israeli
citizenship that was forced on or granted to settlements lie. A few people in the peace
the Palestinians in Israel upon the conclusion camp were panic-stricken by this idea, for it
of the War of Independence in 1949 created was inconceivable that a veteran of that
a stable, concrete base for relations between camp should put forward a suggestion whose
the majority and the minority in the Jewish hidden implications could be interpreted as a
state, with its large national and non- prelude to Israeli annexation of Area C. The
territorial minority of 20 percent. principle of two states within the post-1967
borders is sacrosanct to the peace camp, and
Even an outside observer with a lofty sense anyone who engages in heretical reflections
of human morality would give both sides – is taking his dovish life in his hands.
Israeli Jews and Israeli Palestinians – high Nevertheless, in my remarks to a hall packed
marks for the wisdom of coexistence they’ve with activists – whose camp I have belonged
developed during the state’s 70 years of to since 1967 – I called for an attempt to be
existence. There’s the Palestinian-Israeli made to examine other modes of thought as
judge who sentenced a former president of well. It is in fact becoming clear to many
Israel to a prison term, and in so doing who are well informed about both the
helped establish an Israeli moral standard; situation on the ground and the official
the Palestinian director of the Nahariya contacts with the Palestinian governing
hospital, who in that capacity helps set authorities that separation into two sovereign
Israeli medical codes; the Druze commander states is becoming increasingly difficult and
of a combat brigade during the 2014 Gaza complicated. Indeed, some already view the
war; the Palestinian-Israeli ambassadors and idea as little more than an illusion designed
consuls-general around the world; the to quell the conscience, while making do
Palestinian intellectuals, scientists and high- with plays, films and novels about the
tech people, and the talented Palestinian- Israeli-Palestinian problem.
Israeli artists of all kinds who amazingly The fact is that recently, ideas have been
steer a course between the codes of the two raised in both the national camp and the
peoples. All these people show that despite peace camp about various sorts of
the difficulties and injustices, the Jewish federations and confederations, along with
majority has succeeded, vis-a-vis a fairly plans for “two states in one homeland” and
large population group, in maintaining other notions. I consider all these to be
cooperation and life together amid the highly positive efforts amid the conceptual
Middle Eastern chaos. With all the stagnation that has seized large segments of
grievances and allegations of both sides, and the Israeli public, and certainly many
in particular on the part of the Palestinian political circles. It’s true that wherever a
minority, there is still a foundation that’s new idea leads, a land mine, real or possible,
right for the shared fate to which we brought will immediately go off beneath you, but the
ourselves with the late and partial return of apartheid process that is striking deep roots
the Jews to their historic homeland. in our life is far more dangerous, and
uprooting it will soon be impossible.
Partnership, not peace
 Palestinians in our midst. We are not
Americans in Vietnam, the French in
Algeria or the Soviets in Afghanistan, who
one day get up and leave. We will live with
the Palestinians for eternity, and every
wound and bruise in relations between the
two peoples will be engraved in the memory
and passed on from one generation to the
next.

In order not to leave things at the level of

reproof alone, I will take my life in my
hands and set forth a draft proposal that,
though replete with countless problems and
obstacles, is still a capable of being realized,
in my opinion. I will stress that I am not
offering a blueprint for a peace plan with the
Palestinians, still less for a “historic
reconciliation” or a “declaration of the
termination of claims.” It’s not my intention
to propose something that is impossible and
is used, by both sides, as a kind of excuse to
torpedo any possibility of an agreement. I
am proposing lines for thought about how to
stop the apartheid process in principle, and
at a certain stage to reverse it. Accordingly,
this is a unilateral plan intended for Israel
that perhaps anticipates the possibility of a
modicum of cooperation on the part of the
Palestinians, who have also despaired of the
two-state solution.

Therefore, instead of talking about peace or

a settlement or conciliation, I suggest that
we use the term “de facto partnership.”
That’s a less ambitious but more practical
term, and the amazing fact is that there has
long been security cooperation between
Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank.

The lines of thought that follow are intended

also to serve as a challenge and to encourage
other initiatives, different but welcome, if
they are indeed intended to fight or diminish
the “cancer of the occupation,” which has
long since begun metastasizing to other parts
of the body politic.
Illustration: Marina Grechanik.
As I emphasized at the start of this essay, it
First, the plan relates only to the West Bank,
is not the Jewish or Zionist identity that I
or Judea and Samaria. It is not intended for
fear for, but something more important: our
the Gaza Strip, which is now effectively a
humanity and the humanity of the
sovereign Palestinian territory, properly
armed, administered by an independent The holy places in the Old City of Jerusalem
government, and with an open passage to would be administered jointly by the three
Egypt and from there to the world. great religions.

The plan requires an absolute halt to the Israel’s form of government would be
building of new settlements and to the changed from a parliamentary to a
expansion of existing ones, but does not presidential regime. The president will be
require the evacuation of any, apart from the elected in a general election, similar to what
dismantlement of unauthorized outposts, exists today in the United States and other
which are illegal even by Israeli law. countries. The intention here is to reduce the
deceptive and manipulative dependence of
The eastern border of the Land of the executive branch on the legislative
Israel/Palestine would remain under full branch.
Israeli control. The security checks at the
crossing points to Jordan would continue to The country would be divided into districts,
operate as they do today. each of which would send two
representatives to an upper legislative
Residency status would be offered to all chamber, without connection to the size of
residents of the West Bank, and in its wake, its population (like the U.S. Senate).
within five years, also Israeli citizenship,
including all the attendant rights and The districts would be granted more
obligations. autonomy in the realm of municipal laws,
and of course in all matters related to
Proper compensation of land or money education, culture and especially religion.
would be arranged for private Palestinian
land in the West Bank that has been The electoral system for a lower chamber
expropriated by Israel since 1967. would be changed from proportional
elections to regional elections, in order to
In Jerusalem, citizenship would be offered enhance the efficacy of the districts (like the
immediately to all Palestinians already electoral system in Britain and other
possessing residency status, which was countries).
granted in the wake of the annexation of the
eastern part of the city and its surrounding
villages in 1967.

The security measures and checkpoints

would remain in place as needed, but in
principle, free movement of Palestinians into
and around Israel would be permitted, as it is
permitted today to the Palestinian residents
of Jerusalem and to a significant portion of
the Palestinians residing in Judea and
Samaria.

A sincere option, active and generous, would

be proposed for the rehabilitation of the
refugees, whether in new communities or by
expanding existing Palestinian locales.
 The ID card of the new Palestinian citizens
would state “The Israeli Palestinian
Federation,” but in terms of rights and
obligations would be identical to the Israeli
ID card.

The (Jewish) Law of Return would remain

intact, but with more stringent examination.

The return of Palestinian refugees from

outside Israel-Palestine would not be
allowed, other than within a strict
framework of family unification.

A request would be made to the members of

the European Union and to the world’s other
countries for a generous loan/grant for the
welcome process of annulling apartheid and
for rehabilitating the refugee camps in new
cities.

The Israeli-Palestinian federation would ask

to join the existing European community as
an associate member bearing a special
status.

Nonviolent partnership
These are all general lines of very
preliminary thought, filled with tough
problems and complicated to implement, and
which would invite no end of opposition
from both the Palestinian and the Israeli
sides. But at heart, they are thoughts that
grope toward the possibility of creating a
nonviolent partnership between Israelis and
Palestinians.

Jewish identity (however it is interpreted)

existed for thousands of years as a small
minority within large, powerful nations, so
there is no reason for it not to exist also in an
Israeli state even though it contains a
Palestinian minority so large that it can be
termed a binational state. Consider the fact
that in 1967 there was not even one
Palestinian in Jerusalem the capital of Israel,
Illustration: Marina Grechanik. whereas now, 50 years later, 300,000
The security forces of the Palestinian Palestinians live there. Has Jerusalem’s
Authority, with which reasonable Jewish identity declined or grown? Many
cooperation now exists, would be united would say that the Jewish identity of
with those of Israel in a joint police force.
 Jerusalem has only increased, and certainly
has not diminished.

Similarly, Israel within its pre-1967 borders

is a country containing a large Palestinian
minority, which possesses some distinctive
merits of its own. The Palestinians have
been natives of this homeland for
generations, most of them also know
Hebrew and are familiar with the Israeli
codes and share them. It would be possible
to create a reasonable partnership with them
for the benefit of both sides – a human status
quo that grants civil status to every person.

The proposal put forward here, and many

other proposals that are now under
consideration and discussion by people from
across the political spectrum, raise serious
problems, but there is always hope that
partnerships will be able to moderate the
obstacles in attempts to cope with them.
Let’s not forget that all these plans are, after
all, attempts to extricate ourselves from the
Authoritarianism
principal moral quagmire into which we are
relentlessly sinking.
in world, Will
At the same time, in spite of everything I’ve Pakistan follow?
written here, if a political force can prove to
me, in words and in deeds, that it would still CSS Political
be possible to achieve a separation into two
states, of a sort that both sides would accept
officially, I will follow it through fire and
Science
The twenty first century has seen the rise of
water.
authoritarian governments throughout the
Authoritarianism in world. Western countries and West
dominated International organizations have
world, Will Pakistan always emphasized on the virtues of liberal
democracy but the world doesn’t seem to be
follow? CSS Political buying it. The preachers of liberalism were
stunned when the USA elected a right wing
Science isolationist candidate as their president. US
is considered to be the champion of
 Posted byADMIN democracy throughout the world but the
 CategoriesCURRENT AFFAIRS, LOCAL election of President Donald Trump
ISSUES, SOMETHING NEW highlighted the changing mindset of not only
 DateAPRIL 10, 2018 the American, but of the world. (CSS
 Comments0 COMMENT Political Science)

Nationalism is on the rise throughout the

world. While it was already present to some
extent in the rest of the world, the western
examples are the most prominent ones since followed by Pakistan’s placement in FATF
the west has already been considered as an grey list.
ideal example of countries living and
working in harmony. The United Nations Fewer stakeholders mean fewer people
(UN) was formed by the western countries to negotiate with and quicker decisions.
to promote harmony among nations after the
World War 2. European Countries united US is also putting a great amount of pressure
with each other to form the European Union on Pakistan to act against the Afghan
(EU) and some countries in the EU adopted Taliban, a move that Pakistan’s current
a common currency the Euro, forming the economic condition cannot afford. On the
Eurozone. other hand, India has increased ceasefire
violations along the Pak-India Line of
Read more: Democrats: We are Defined by Control (LoC), mounting even more
what we Defend pressure on Pakistan. Right wing politics is
However, the whole concept of liberalism, also on the rise in neighboring India which
international harmony and peace is under has consequently provoked the rightist
threat as right wing parties are on the rise in sentiments within Pakistan and in turn gave
almost every European Country. The rise to further nationalism.
departure of England from European Union,
movement in Catalonia for separation from In the present situation of international
Spain and Greece’s movement for pressure and isolation, Pakistan has only one
withdrawal from Eurozone all hint that the way forward to look towards for support and
idea of liberalism is crumbling . The rise of that is China, which is investing more than
nationalism can be observed from BJP’s 62 billion dollars in Pakistan in the form of
ascend to power in India, Putin’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). The
authoritarian regime in Russia and rightist, nationalistic and authoritarian
Erdogan’s government in Turkey. government is bound to influence Pakistan
and its ideologies. China will also support
Recently, Pakistan’s neighbor China passed the right of an autocratic government in
an amendment to remove the term limits for Pakistan because it would make the dealings
the President and Vice President, allowing with China smoother since democracy
President Xi Jinping to stay in power for requires pleasing of all stakeholders for any
life. He is considered to be the most decision. Fewer stakeholders mean fewer
powerful Chinese leader since its founding people to negotiate with and quicker
father Mao Zedong. China is apparently a decisions.
‘democracy’ but with its one party system, it
cannot be considered a democracy by any Internal Situation of Pakistan
definition. China is also Pakistan’s partner in The internal political situation in Pakistan is
the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor equally volatile, the founder and former
(CPEC). chief of the ruling party PML-N was ousted
by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on
External Situation of Pakistan 28th July 2017. This move triggered a clash
The 71 year old history of Pakistan has seen between the state institutes with each
four dictators who ruled for a combined 31 claiming to be the supreme and hurling
years, almost half of the history of Pakistan. accusations at each other of transgressing
The changing political landscape of the their powers. There is a popular notion in the
world is bound to affect the internal politics country that if the ruling PML-N comes into
of the country. Pakistan has long been under power in both houses of the Parliament, they
the patronage of US and US dominated will enact legislature to curb the powers of
monetary institutes but Trump’s presidency the judiciary.
has changed the situation. US military aid to Read more: CPEC: Is the sovereignty of
Pakistan was banned earlier this year, Pakistan being compromised?
If such a situation arises, the whole
democratic process would come under threat Is Pakistan loosing
in the country. Either the PML-N will enjoy
absolute power in the center without any battle for its soul?
question and accountability, or the military
will be asked to intervene to prevent any CSS Pakistan
chaos within the country. In either case,
democracy will not survive and an autocratic
regime will be formed.
Affairs
This story perhaps describes best what’s
happening in Pakistan today
What the future holds in store for
Pakistan? A grandfather tells his grandson there are
The current political situation is very two wolves inside us, always at war with
different from the past where pressure of each other. One is a good wolf, which
foreign powers prevented the intervention of represents things like kindness, bravery,
military on numerous occasions. The US is love, honesty and good. The other is a bad
no longer giving any aid to Pakistan so it is wolf, which represents things like
unlikely that the country will come under dishonesty, evil, greed, hatred and fear. The
their pressure. The International Monetary grandson thinks for a second and then asks
Fund (IMF) also puts a condition that the his grandfather, “Grandfather, which one
country should have a democratic wins?” (CSS Pakistan Affairs)
government but Pakistan might be able to
evade it too. US president Donald Trump is
“The one we feed!” says the grandfather,
also known to have a soft side for military
gently!
regimes so they might not oppose any
military intervention vehemently.
One couldn’t help but think of this story, as
the reaction, both for and against The
Read more: World’s Top Financier on Trial:
Supreme Court decision, disqualifying
Conviction for Lagarde Would Jeopardize
Nawaz from holding party office, set social
IMF…
media ablaze.
Even though the situation in Pakistan is ripe
for an authoritarian regime to takeover, it
might not happen. If the politicians prove Many who represent the so-called thinking
responsible enough to avoid any internal intelligentsia poured scorn on the judgment.
political crisis, the external situation can be Some calling it a judicial coup. Others
handled by the democratic leaders. But the sarcastically and highy inflammably,
question that is being asked in the rest of the questioning if Nawaz’s appointment of the
world is also being asked in Pakistan, is a Army Chief was also null and void. Many
liberal democracy the best form of said this would further strengthen Nawaz.
government in the world? Only time will Some went as far as to say that that this
tell. handed Nawaz the 2018 election on a platter.

Whatever perverted logic they may

espouse to support this evil man, their
inability to stand for good against evil,
for truth against dishonesty is
inexcusable!! We must reflect deeply
before this evil wolf devouring others,
devours Pakistan!
But none of these good people of Pakistan
for a second reflected and said that it was the
absolutely right legal decision and it was the But more importantly they blacken the soul
only morally correct decision. None of these of Pakistanis by feeding their wolf of evil,
good people said. Bravo! Thank God, for dishonesty and greed.
once our courts had the spine and the guts
and the chutzpah and the courage to stand up In their mindless, irrational insanity and
to the highest and the mightiest in our land, anger for the Army, who they think is
and say enough is enough and no more! behind Nawaz’s ouster, they will support a
criminal and a looter and a plunderer. And
They did not say that thank God, even the they will tarnish the Army, the Supreme
most powerful in the land are finally getting Court and attempt to destroy Imran. His
their comeuppance. They did not say that third marriage becomes a nuclear option. His
being elected to public office is not a license Lodhran loss the devil’s dance around a
to loot and plunder at will, for over 35 years. sacrifice.

Read more: Nawaz Sharif disqualified once Read more: Lodhran elections result was
again! revenge by the public: Nawaz Sharif
They did not say that a person who willfully,
How low have they fallen?
consciously and deliberately, destroyed
What has happened to this society? What
every institution in this country, except the
has happened to our sense of right and
Army and the Supreme Court, was finally
wrong? What has happened to our ability to
being held accountable! They did not say,
differentiate good from evil? By what value
thank God this man is being put away and
system can the good thinking people of this
we will be spared the possibility of his
country support the loot and plunder of
daughter being foisted on us.
Nawaz and his rampant and whole scale
destruction of all our institutions?
They did not say that we are happy that the
evil committed by our spineless, prostituted
By what logic can people question the
parliament to save a crook and a criminal,
decision of the Supreme Court in
has been overturned. They did not say that
disqualifying a person to hold party office if
our high and mighty cannot get away scot
he or she is disqualified to hold public
free, as they have done in the past. They did
office?
not say that finally Nawaz will be held
accountable even if he was legally elected.
While I admired Salman Akram Raja’s
masterful defence beautifully articulating
One doesn’t blame the poor and the Nawaz’s fundamental rights, it was
helpless. For to them all that matters is appalling to see how the whole moral edifice
sheer survival. But those who stand was being destroyed by this man! How
with Nawaz and against the Supreme Western concepts of fundamental rights
Court, with full stomachs and were being offered to upend the highest
education and awareness, they are the moral code of all times. Truth and honesty!
real evil that has prostituted the soul of
Pakistan. They did not say that thank God, even
the most powerful in the land are
But what they did say embarrasses, finally getting their comeuppance.
humiliates and insults not just them or their They did not say that being elected to
so called intellect and their families and the public office is not a license to loot and
names they carry and the legacies they will
leave, they also tarnish the name of other
plunder at will, for over 35 years.
people of good sense. Pakistan’s battle for it’s soul is as much a
moral one as it is a legal one. If the law
subverts morality, integrity, ethics, then
throw that law into the garbage heap. Burn
the building and the people who enact laws Democracy in Peril:
that honour crooks and imprisons morality.
CSS General
Burn them who will legislate to defend a
thief and make it easier for other criminals to
Knoweldge
be elected to public office, but are deaf and
 Posted byADMIN
blind to the tens of millions of our poor and
 CategoriesIMPORTANT FOR GENERAL
exploited and hungry, bereft of health care,
KNOWLEDGE, SOMETHING NEW
education, employment opportunities and
even hope!

Burn those who exploit the helplessness of

these poor wretched people, held ransom to
a system of patronage, to get elected again
and again.

Read more: Nawaz Sharif hoping to

transform Sindh “if given the chance”
One doesn’t blame the poor and the helpless.
For to them all that matters is sheer survival.
But those who stand with Nawaz and against
the Supreme Court, with full stomachs and
education and awareness, they are the real
evil that has prostituted the soul of Pakistan.
Democracy in Peril
Whatever perverted logic they may espouse
to support this evil man, their inability to
CSS General
stand for good against evil, for truth against Knoweldge
dishonesty is inexcusable!! The inestimable E.J. Dionne Jr.
describesHow Democracies Die as an
We must reflect deeply before this evil wolf “urgent book” that offers “a brilliant
devouring others, devours Pakistan! diagnosis of the most important issue facing
our world.” Certainly, the topic is an urgent
one, in this age of Trump, and the book is
definitely interesting and provocative. But it
is also deeply disappointing. It might be
compared to picking up a recommended
book on Alzheimer’s disease in anticipation
of reading about an announcement of a
genuine cure and finding instead a checklist
of symptoms and some hortatory advice on
how to stave off further decline. (CSS
General Knowledge)
Levitsky and Ziblatt teach at Harvard, where
Levitsky specializes in Latin American
politics and Ziblatt in European. That
explains why they draw their central
examples of democratic decline (or even
death) from that region. We read a great deal
about Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and
Alberto Fujimori in Peru, both of whom communications techniques to make
created havoc in what had been reasonably themselves the center of political attention.
democratic countries. Juan Peron’s If coupled with inchoate “charisma,” every
Argentina also comes in for some president thus becomes a potential autocrat
discussion, as do current leaders in Ecuador in a way that is far less true even of powerful
and Bolivia; there is relatively little prime ministers.
discussion of Brazil, perhaps the most
important country in South America, which If one accepts Linz’s view, the answer might
is certainly undergoing its own turmoil. The require quite drastic changes in the
central point, though, is to offer lessons that American constitutional system and not, for
can be drawn from looking at these (and example, simply the election of a “better”
some other) countries. They concentrate not President in 2020. Trump’s own autocratic
on autocrats who come to power through tendencies can be shown to build on many of
military coups or revolutionary takeovers of his predecessors, both Democratic and
existing governments, but, rather, on leaders Republican. Levitsky and Ziblatt, for
who successfully navigated the existing example, are generally quite critical of
political system in order to achieve the Franklin Roosevelt on the occasions they
highest offices available via democratic mention him, for violating the unwritten
means. Subsequent to election, the autocratic norm of the two-term limit and then for
leaders in question consolidated their power engaging in highly controversial uses of
and fundamentally changed the tenor of the presidential authority in the realm of both
constitutional order, distinctly for the worse. domestic and foreign affairs. It has become a
The most important lesson, perhaps, is that notorious truth that recent presidents
“institutions alone are not enough to rein in especially, in often justified frustration about
elected autocrats.” an ever more dysfunctional Congress, have
pushed the envelope (and then some) of
Lurking beneath their argument, though executive power. But the “autocracy” that so
unfortunately undeveloped, is the possibility worries Levitsky and Ziblatt is more than the
that presidentialism itself, in contrast to simple pushing of envelopes and consequent
parliamentary systems, generates a tendency potential overreach. Presidential character
toward autocracy. This theory is associated and psychology count for a great deal.
with Juan Linz, the distinguished Yale
political scientist who died in 2013. Linz Early on the authors present a checklist of
compared prime ministers to presidents. actions that should serve as “behavioral
Prime ministers, however powerful, are warning signs” of autocratic tendencies: “1)
always vulnerable to the discontent of the rejecting, in words or action, the democratic
coalition that put them into power. Think rules of the game, 2) denying the legitimacy
only of the unceremonious firing of of opponents, 3) tolerating or encouraging
Margaret Thatcher, perhaps the most violence, and 4) indicating a willingness to
important peacetime British Prime Minister curtail civil liberties of opponents, including
of the past century, by members of her own the media.” What makes their book so
party in 1990 when they decided she was no important—and widely discussed—is the
longer an electoral asset. question of whether these warning signs are
present with regard to the current President
Presidents, however, are on an entirely of the United States. Their answer, as one
separate track. With fixed terms, they are can easily imagine, is “yes.” “A politician
relatively invulnerable to legislative who meets even one of these criteria is cause
unhappiness, save for the prospect of for concern,” they assert, but Donald Trump
impeachment, which, at least in the United in fact meets all four. We should therefore
States, has been resorted to very rarely. be very concerned. But their critique goes
Moreover, presidents across the world are well beyond personalities. Like Thomas
often able to take advantage of modern Mann and Norman Ornstein in their 2012
book It’s Even Worse than It Looks, slim book, only 231 pages of text before
Levitsky and Ziblatt are scathing in their footnotes. Although written by academics
description of an accommodationist drawing on their deep expertise in
Republican Party that has basically rejected comparative politics, it has a tendency
what they describe as the two most toward the superficial, leaving a significant
fundamental requirements of a functioning number of unanswered questions in its wake.
democratic political order: first, a genuine Consider a basic problem presented by the
willingness to tolerateoppositional views title itself. What exactly constitutes a
and their proponents and second and “democracy”? Every President from
crucially, an equal willingness Woodrow Wilson to Barack Obama has
to forbear from using all of one’s legal committed the United States to some version
power when that would predictably generate of a worldwide “democracy project.” That is
widespread opposition and resentment. after all why, roughly a century ago, the
Every practicing lawyer knows that United States entered the catastrophic war in
insistence on exercising all of one’s legal Europe under the rubric of making “the
rights is almost a sure sign of a precarious world safe for democracy.” But what is
relationship, whether one is thinking of a entailed in supporting “democracy” and,
marriage, a business partnership, or, in fact, therefore, being able to describe a given
governments in two- or multi-party states. country as becoming more, or less,
For example, as a constitutional lawyer, I “democratic”? Consider Winston Churchill’s
think that the Republican majority in the oft-cited quote that “democracy is the worst
Senate had the legal authority to behave like form of government except for all those
louts and refuse even a hearing to President other forms that have been tried from time to
Obama’s nominee to succeed Antonin Scalia time.” The problem is not that Churchill is
on the Supreme Court. But I equally believe necessarily wrong, but, rather, that there are
that it was one more sign of the decay of the so many different forms of government that
American constitutional order, which does, can, under one plausible theory or another,
as Levitsky and Ziblatt argue, depend on be described as “democratic.” This means
compromise and accommodation even if, by that they can be compared with one another,
stipulation, one would have a right to do favorably or unfavorably, depending on the
otherwise. Yale Law School professor Jack metrics that one focuses on.
Balkin has coined the term “constitutional
rot” to refer to a number of recent There are 51 constitutions within the United
developments in American politics. He is States, and
referring most basically to the willingness to it is easily possible to describe the national
shatter long-established norms of what Constitution as the least democratic of them
Levitsky and Ziblatt call the “unwritten rules all.
of American politics” in order to achieve Is the United States a democracy? Yes,
what James Madison would have denounced we’re taught; but as a matter of fact,
as the narrow and selfish goals of one’s own democracy was not a word favored by those
“faction.” The GOP treatment of Judge who framed our own Constitution in 1787;
Merrick Garland—independent of whether many were explicitly critical of the term,
they had a duty to vote for his confirmation which for them represented rule by the mob.
after holding traditional hearings and Benjamin Franklin famously wondered if we
listening to his supporters—exemplifies such could keep the “republic” that had been
rot, even if was not illegal or envisioned in Philadelphia, and Article IV of
“unconstitutional.” the Constitution purports to guarantee every
state within the Union a “Republican Form
There are valuable things to be learned of Government.” A “republic,” argued
in How Democracies Die. Yet I came away Madison, would ultimately trace its
feeling disappointed. Some of it derives, no provenance back to “We the People,” but,
doubt, from the fact that this is a relatively crucially, they (or we) would play an
astonishingly small role in actual Moreover, and more importantly, one can
governance, which would be done by argue that these are not only offenses against
“representatives.” As he wrote in Federalist democratic political theory, but also at least
63, “The true distinction” of the new system partial explanations of the widespread
of government created in Philadelphia “lies alienation that most Americans, of all
IN THE TOTAL EXCLUSION OF THE political persuasions, feel from the national
PEOPLE, IN THEIR COLLECTIVE government.
CAPACITY, from any share” in actually We have Trump, just as we got George W.
making specific decisions of policy. (The Bush, because of the Electoral College. And
capitalization, incidentally, is Madison’s.) one cannot possibly understand the recent
The Constitution, though “ordained” in the tax bill without grasping the importance of
name of “We the People,” unlike almost all the fact that the majority of Americans, who
subsequent state constitutions written in live in the largest nine states, have a total of
America (and many new constitutions 18 senators, while the minority that live in
written abroad), deprives the people of the the 41 remaining states have 82 senators.
ability to engage in even a scintilla of what Some of the features in the tax bill can be
is often called “direct democracy.” Consider explained in terms of standard plutocracy,
only the initiative and referendum found in support for constituency interests, or even,
many countries and in at least 26 of the possibly, sensible revisions of tax policy.
states within the United States (the most But the decision to go after deductibility of
famous, or infamous, being California). Or state income and property taxes, for
think of what American politics might be example, has nothing to do with protecting
like at this very moment if, as in California constituents or even lining the pockets of
or Wisconsin, the electorate could initiate a contributors. Instead, it represents a new
recall election of the President. There are 51 twist in the American culture wars and
constitutions within the United States alone, polarization, in which those who basically
and it is easily possible to describe the hate the cosmopolitan states where most
United States Constitution as the least Americans live actually seek to cripple their
democratic of all of them. Does this matter? ability to fund important social services.
Obviously, there is a vast academic literature This return to a raw form of sectionalism is
on this question, though one gets no hint of yet another way in which one can see
its existence—and of the controversies similarities between our contemporary polity
embedded in the literature—in How and that of the 1850s. But the main point is
Democracies Die (or, perhaps, transform that the Senate, unlike the House, whatever
themselves). What we get, instead, is an its own problems, provides no real
almost treacly concluding encomium to protection for the majority of Americans
“democracy” written by the essayist E.B. who live in a small number of states. The
White. I have my own dog in this hunt House obviously has its own problems, most
inasmuch as I published a book in 2006, Our often analyzed in terms of partisan
Undemocratic Constitution, that set out the gerrymandering, but in fact derived from the
significant deviations of the U.S. requirement, thanks to a congressional
Constitution from any plausible twenty-first statute of 1842 (and not the Constitution),
century notion of democracy. Similarly, that representatives be elected in single-
Robert Dahl, the greatest political scientist member districts. This often ensures that
of the late twentieth century, published an millions of Americans simply feel
important book in 2001, How Democratic is unrepresented because the winners in these
the American Constitution? His answer was single-member districts are concerned only
not very; Dahl especially stressed the almost with their fellow political partisans—their
bizarre Electoral College and, just as “base”—and not at all the opponents who
importantly, the totally indefensible United may well present no serious electoral threat.
States Senate, the most malapportioned We would be far better off adopting some
legislative chamber in the entire world.
form of multi-member districts with block the worst GOP programs; in no way
proportional representation. will it portend the ability of even a
Democratic House and Senate to pass their
Perhaps most Americans can ignore the own legislation and surmount a Trump (or
indefensible Senate, the consequences of our Pence) veto.
electoral system for the composition of the Want to read more articles regarding CSS?
House, the Electoral College, or the near The authors state that the real protection of
impossibility of amending the Constitution American democracy, such as it is, lies not
and be indifferent to the fact that the in “Americans’ firm commitment to
constitution of the state within which they democracy, but, rather, the gatekeepers—our
live is considerably more democratic. Most political parties.” It is the “normalization” of
defenders of what we think of as “American political conflict between two large-tent
democracy” would focus on the fact that we parties that has allowed our history—with
conduct regular elections and enjoy the the obvious and all-important exception of
peaceful transfer of leadership. Some would 1861—to feature the peaceful transfers of
point to the surmounting of the Great power among those who would govern us.
Depression in the 1930s and then the But, as already suggested, something is now
successful prosecution of World War II as rotten in the state of our party system,
added reasons simply to celebrate the particularly within the Republican Party. I
Constitution. Those are no small matters, but write this review on the first day of the first
do they suffice in the twenty-first century? government shutdown in American history
Trump and his Republican minions are not to occur when the same political party
threatening to cancel the upcoming midterm notionally controls both Houses of Congress
elections, about which Democrats feel a and the presidency. Perhaps one wishes to
considerable optimism. In fact, one can blame the Democrats for the failure to
argue that the GOP zeal to pass some of compromise, but that failure gains purchase
their most reactionary programs is triggered only because the Senate operates under the
by justified fear that they will return to the rule that the votes of 60 senators are, with
state of a minority party in 2019. For most of few exceptions, necessary to move a bill
us, though, that is scarcely enough to forward to a vote. Levitsky and Ziblatt
overcome our foreboding. discuss this and take note of the fact that
recourse to filibusters has now become a
Is it possible, for example, that one reason standard part of the way the Senate operates,
for the rise of Trumpismo is the justified but what they don’t do is offer a systematic
belief by millions of Americans that the discussion of whether we are overall well or
national Constitution designed in 1787 ill served by this particular aspect of
creates so many veto points—which we “American exceptionalism” that disallows
admiringly and often unthinkingly label as majorities in the Senate from actually
“checks and balances”—that it regularly governing. Of course, one has to recognize
generates legislative gridlock with regard to that there may often be no correlation
addressing any of what one might believe to between majorities in the Senate and
be our most challenging problems? majorities in the national population, given
Wherever one is located on the political the fact that Wyoming counts the same as
spectrum—left, right, or center—one cannot California and Vermont is the equal of
possibly believe that Congress will Texas.
adequately meet the challenges we face Moreover, one would like considerably more
today. There is a good reason, for example, discussion of the limits of “toleration and
that the overwhelming majority of forbearance.” The authors admirably
Americans have little regard for Congress recognize that the victims of such
and believe that the country is headed in the “forbearance” in the past have often been
wrong direction. And a Democratic victory vulnerable minorities, most notably African
in 2018 will guarantee only the ability to Americans, who were asked to do a lot of
forebearing for a very long time. One reason with some valuable analysis. The idea of
for contemporary “polarization,” in contrast what might be termed “autocratic character”
with the 1950s and even ’60s, is the fact that is important, and other countries offer
the electorate is now remarkably more cautionary warnings about the ability of
inclusive than was the case then, prior to the skilled demagogues to be transformative in
Voting Rights Act of 1965. But we are also almost entirely negative ways. I have no
living with the consequences of the 1965 doubt that they are correct in their basic
repeal of the 1924 immigration legislation. diagnosis of the dangers facing the United
That earlier legislation was designed to States as a democratic society.
preserve America along what we might But I think they end up all too American, as
today describe as “Trumpian” lines; northern it were, by a refusal to address the
Europeans received far more favorable possibility that at least part of our dilemma
treatment than other potential immigrants. is traceable to what might be called “fault
Thankfully, that is no longer the case, but it lines in the Constitution” that, just as their
is foolhardy to deny that one reason for our geological analogs, can wreak havoc. Even
increasing polarization is the consequences if we do not yet have effective ways of
of having become far more heterogeneous predicting earthquakes, we are aware of their
along lines of race, ethnicity, religion, and possibility and can engage in a variety of
language. important preventive measure designed to
limit their consequences. But that requires
We have always operated under a regime of becoming aware of the potential dangers.
“identity politics,” but in the past there was Our reverence for the Constitution,
thought to be a single hegemonic identity, unfortunately, works to infantilize our
summarized in the language of my youth political dialogue and therefore to limit the
under the acronym WASP. As we have contribution even of such a heartfelt warning
become more truly pluralistic and diverse, as How Democracies Die.
the nature of American identity is a subject
of increasing contention, revealed most
dramatically, perhaps, in the sometimes
violent disputes about public monuments
and what they represent. To their credit,
Levitsky and Ziblatt caution against a
critique, like that identified with Mark Lilla,
that would reject “identity politics” in the
name of bread-and-butter economics
inasmuch as this would often have the
practical consequence of averting one’s gaze
from continuing discrimination, injustice,
and indignity. But the recognition that
“forbearance” might have its limits is
fleeting. One awful possibility, left
undiscussed, is that the United States, which
now reaches from Maine to Hawaii and
contains 320 million people, is just too large
and multi-faceted to be effectively governed
by any reasonably democratic political
system.
Levitsky and Ziblatt certainly capture very
well the mood of the moment, especially
among those likely to identify with Dionne
and the general politics of this journal (as I
do). How Democracies Die is a quick read
 Exclusive: CPEC The shortened version is dated
master plan revealed February 2017. It contains only broad
Details from original documents laying brushstroke descriptions of the various
out the CPEC long term plan are “areas of cooperation” and none of the
publicly disclosed for the first time. details. It was drawn up for circulation
Khurram HusainUpdated Jun 21, 2017 to the provincial governments to obtain
02:17pm their assent. It is 30 pages long. The
LONG TERM PLAN 2017-2030 only provincial government that
received the full version of the plan is
 Plan eyes agriculture the Punjab government.
 Large surveillance system for For instance, thousands of acres of
cities agricultural land will be leased out to
 Visa-free entry for Chinese Chinese enterprises to set up
nationals “demonstration projects” in areas
ranging from seed varieties to irrigation
technology. A full system of monitoring

T he floodgates are about to open.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived in
and surveillance will be built in cities
from Peshawar to Karachi, with 24
hour video recordings on roads and
busy marketplaces for law and order.
Beijing over the weekend to participate A national fibreoptic backbone will be
in the One Belt, One Road summit, built for the country not only for
and the top item on his agenda is to internet traffic, but also terrestrial
finalise the Long Term Plan (LTP) for distribution of broadcast TV, which will
the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. cooperate with Chinese media in the
[See next tab for details on how the “dissemination of Chinese culture”.
plan was made].
The plan envisages a deep and broad-
Dawn has acquired exclusive access based penetration of most sectors of
to the original document, and for the Pakistan’s economy as well as its
first time its details are being publicly society by Chinese enterprises and
disclosed here. The plan lays out in culture. Its scope has no precedent in
detail what Chinese intentions and Pakistan’s history in terms of how far it
priorities are in Pakistan for the next opens up the domestic economy to
decade and a half, details that have participation by foreign enterprises. In
not been discussed in public thus far. some areas the plan seeks to build on
a market presence already established
by Chinese enterprises, eg Haier in
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and household appliances, ChinaMobile
Turkish President Recep Tayyip and Huawei in telecommunications
Erdogan at the One Belt One Road and China Metallurgical Group
summit in Beijing. — APP Corporation (MCC) in mining and
minerals.
Two versions of the Long Term Plan
are with the government. The full In other cases, such as textiles and
version is the one that was drawn up garments, cement and building
by the China Development Bank and materials, fertiliser and agricultural
the National Development Reform technologies (among others) it calls for
Commission of the People’s Republic building the infrastructure and a
of China. It is 231 pages long.
supporting policy environment to
facilitate fresh entry. A key element in The plan states at the outset that the
this is the creation of industrial parks, corridor “spans Xinjiang Uygur
or special economic zones, which Autonomous Region and whole
“must meet specified conditions, Pakistan in spatial range”. It’s main
including availability of water…perfect aim is to connect South Xinjiang with
infrastructure, sufficient supply of Pakistan. It is divided into a “core area”
energy and the capacity of self-service and what they call the “radiation
power”, according to the plan. zones”, those territories that will feel
the knock on effects of the work being
But the main thrust of the plan actually done in the core area. The core area
lies in agriculture, contrary to the includes “Kashgar, Tumshuq, Atushi
image of CPEC as a massive industrial and Akto of Kizilsu Kirghiz of Xinjiang”
and transport undertaking, involving from China, and “most of Islamabad’s
power plants and highways. The plan Capital territory, Punjab, and Sindh,
acquires its greatest specificity, and and some areas of Gilgit-Baltistan,
lays out the largest number of projects Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, and
and plans for their facilitation, in Balochistan” from Pakistan. It has “one
agriculture. belt, three passages,
 the Chinese government as well as the
China Development Bank. The plan
and two axes and five functional also offers to maintain a mechanism
zones”, where the belt is “the strip area that will “help Chinese agricultural
formed by important arterial traffic in enterprises to contact the senior
China and Pakistan". representatives of the Government of
Header photo courtesy Reuters. Pakistan and China”.

Agriculture The government of China will “actively

strive to utilize the national special

F
funds as the discount interest for the
loans of agricultural foreign
or agriculture, the plan outlines investment”. In the longer term the
financial risk will be spread out,
an engagement that runs from one end through “new types of financing such
of the supply chain all the way to the as consortium loans, joint private
other. From provision of seeds and equity and joint debt issuance, raise
other inputs, like fertiliser, credit and funds via multiple channels and
pesticides, Chinese enterprises will decentralise financing risks”.
also operate their own farms,
processing facilities for fruits and
vegetables and grain. Logistics — Reuters photo
companies will operate a large storage The plan proposes to harness the work
and transportation system for agrarian of the Xinjiang Production and
produce. Construction Corps to bring
mechanization as well as scientific
It identifies opportunities for entry by technique in livestock breeding,
Chinese enterprises in the myriad development of hybrid varieties and
dysfunctions that afflict Pakistan’s precision irrigation to Pakistan. It sees
agriculture sector. For instance, “due its main opportunity as helping the
to lack of cold-chain logistics and Kashgar Prefecture, a territory within
processing facilities, 50% of the larger Xinjiang Autonomous Zone,
agricultural products go bad during which suffers from a poverty incidence
harvesting and transport”, it notes. of 50 per cent, and large distances that
make it difficult to connect to larger
A full system of monitoring markets in order to promote
and surveillance will be built in development. The prefecture’s total
cities from Peshawar to output in agriculture, forestry, animal
husbandry and fishery amounted to
Karachi, with 24 hour video just over $5 billion in 2012, and its
recordings on roads and busy population was less than 4 million in
marketplaces for law and 2010, hardly a market with windfall
gains for Pakistan.
order.
However, for the Chinese, this is the
Enterprises entering agriculture will be main driving force behind investing in
offered extraordinary levels of Pakistan’s agriculture, in addition to
assistance from the Chinese the many profitable opportunities that
government. They are encouraged to can open up for their enterprises from
“[m]ake the most of the free capital operating in the local market. The plan
and loans” from various ministries of
makes some reference to export of and Gwadar in the first phase, then
agriculture goods from the ports, but Karachi, Lahore and another in
the bulk of its emphasis is focused on Gwadar in the second phase, and
the opportunities for the Kashgar between 2026-2030, Karachi, Lahore
Prefecture and Xinjiang Production and Peshawar will each see another
Corps, coupled with the opportunities storage base.
for profitable engagement in the
domestic market. Asadabad, Islamabad, Lahore and
Gwadar will see a vegetable
The plan discusses those processing plant, with annual output of
engagements in considerable detail. 20,000 tons, fruit juice and jam plant of
Ten key areas for engagement are 10,000 tons and grain processing of 1
identified along with seventeen specific million tons. A cotton processing plant
projects. They include the construction is also planned initially, with output of
of one NPK fertilizer plant as a starting 100,000 tons per year.
point “with an annual output of 800,000
tons”. Enterprises will be inducted to “We will impart advanced planting and
lease farm implements, like tractors, breeding techniques to peasant
“efficient plant protection machinery, households or farmers by means of
efficient energy saving pump land acquisition by the government,
equipment, precision fertilization drip renting to China-invested enterprises
irrigation equipment” and planting and and building planting and breeding
harvesting machinery. bases” it says about the plan to source
superior seeds.

In each field, Chinese enterprises will

The plan shows great interest play the lead role. “China-invested
enterprises will establish factories to
in the textiles industry in
produce fertilizers, pesticides,
particular, but the interest is vaccines and feedstuffs” it says about
focused largely on yarn and the production of agricultural materials.
coarse cloth. “China-invested enterprises will, in the
form of joint ventures, shareholding or
acquisition, cooperate with local
Meat processing plants in Sukkur are enterprises of Pakistan to build a
planned with annual output of 200,000 three-level warehousing system
tons per year, and two demonstration (purchase & storage warehouse,
plants processing 200,000 tons of milk transit warehouse and port
per year. In crops, demonstration warehouse)” it says about
projects of more than 6,500 acres will warehousing.
be set up for high yield seeds and
irrigation, mostly in Punjab. In
transport and storage, the plan aims to
build “a nationwide logistics network,
and enlarge the warehousing and
distribution network between major
cities of Pakistan” with a focus on
grains, vegetables and fruits. Storage
bases will be built first in Islamabad
One of the most intriguing countries, regions and international
organizations, jointly prevent and crack
chapters in the plan speaks of
down on terrorist acts that endanger
a long belt of coastal the safety of Chinese overseas
enjoyment industry that enterprises and their staff.”
includes yacht wharfs, cruise
homeports, nightlife, city
Industry
For industry, the plan trifurcates the
parks, public squares, country into three zones: western and
theaters, golf courses and northwestern, central and southern.
Each zone is marked to receive
spas, hot spring hotels and specific industries in designated
water sports. industrial parks, of which only a few
are actually mentioned. The western
and northwestern zone, covering most
of Balochistan and KP province, is
Then it talks about trade. “We will marked for mineral extraction, with
actively embark on cultivating potential in chrome ore, “gold reserves
surrounding countries in order to hold a considerable potential, but are
improve import and export potential of still at the exploration stage”, and
Pakistani agricultural products and diamonds. One big mineral product
accelerate the trade of agricultural that the plan discusses is marble.
products. In the early stages, we will Already, China is Pakistan’s largest
gradually create a favorable industry buyer of processed marble, at almost
image and reputation for Pakistan by 80,000 tons per year. The plan looks
relying on domestic demand.” to set up 12 marble and granite
processing sites in locations ranging
In places the plan appears to be
from Gilgit and Kohistan in the north,
addressing investors in China. It says
to Khuzdar in the south.
Chinese enterprises should seek
“coordinated cooperation with The central zone is marked for textiles,
Pakistani enterprises” and “maintain household appliances and cement.
orderly competition and mutual Four separate locations are pointed
coordination.” It advises them to make out for future cement clusters:
an effort “seeking for powerful strategic Daudkhel, Khushab, Esakhel and
partners for bundling interest in Mianwali. The case of cement is
Pakistan.” interesting, because the plan notes
that Pakistan is surplus in cement
As security measures, enterprises will
capacity, then goes on to say that “in
be advised “to respect the religions
the future, there is a larger space of
and customs of the local people, treat
cooperation for China to invest in the
people as equals and live in harmony”.
cement process transformation”.
They will also be advised to “increase
local employment and contribute to
local society by means of
“There is a plan to build a pilot
subcontracting and consortiums.” In safe city in Peshawar, which
the final sentence of the chapter on faces a fairly severe security
agriculture, the plan says the
government of China will “[s]trengthen
situation in northwestern
the safety cooperation with key Pakistan”.
For the southern zone, the plan “China can make the most of the
recommends that “Pakistan develop Pakistani market in cheap raw
petrochemical, iron and steel, harbor materials to develop the textiles &
industry, engineering machinery, trade garments industry and help soak up
processing and auto and auto parts surplus labor forces in Kashgar”. The
(assembly)” due to the proximity of ensuing strategy is described
Karachi and its ports. This is the only cryptically as the principle of
part in the report where the auto “introducing foreign capital and
industry is mentioned in any establishing domestic connections as
substantive way, which is a little a crossover of West and East".
surprising because the industry is one
of the fastest growing in the country. Preferential policies will be necessary
The silence could be due to lack of to attract enterprises to come to the
interest on the part of the Chinese to newly built industrial parks envisioned
acquire stakes, or to diplomatic under the plan. The areas where such
prudence since the sector is, at the preferences need to be extended are
moment, entirely dominated by listed in the plan as “land, tax, logistics
Japanese companies (Toyota, Honda and services” as well as land price,
and Suzuki). “enterprise income tax, tariff reduction
and exemption and sales tax rate.”

One of the CPEC transport routes. —

AFP Chinese troops march as they take
Gwadar, also in the southern zone, “is part in Pakistan Day military parade. ─
positioned as the direct hinterland AFP
connecting Balochistan and Fibreoptics and
Afghanistan.” As a CPEC entreport,
the plan recommends that it be built surveillance
into “a base of heavy and chemical One of the oldest priorities for the
industries, such as iron and Chinese government since talks on
steel/petrochemical”. It notes that CPEC began is fibreoptic connectivity
“some Chinese enterprises have between China and Pakistan. An MoU
started investment and construction in for such a link was signed in July
Gwadar” taking advantage of its 2013, at a time when CPEC appeared
“superior geographical position and to be little more than a road link
cheap shipping costs to import crude between Kashgar and Gwadar. But the
oil from the Middle East, iron ore and plan reveals that the link goes far
coking coal resources from South beyond a simple fibreoptic set up.
Africa and New Zealand” for onward
supply to the local market “as well as China has various reasons for wanting
South Asia and Middle East after a terrestrial fibreoptic link with
processing at port.” Pakistan, including its own limited
number of submarine landing stations
The plan shows great interest in the and international gateway exchanges
textiles industry in particular, but the which can serve as a bottleneck to
interest is focused largely on yarn and future growth of internet traffic. This is
coarse cloth. The reason, as the plan especially true for the western
lays out, is that in Xinjiang the textile provinces. “Moreover, China’s telecom
industry has already attained higher services to Africa need to be
levels of productivity. Therefore, transferred in Europe, so there is
certain hidden danger of the overall It also seeks to create an electronic
security” says the plan. Pakistan has monitoring and control system for the
four submarine cables to handle its border in Khunjerab, as well as run a
internet traffic, but only one landing “safe cities” project. The safe city
station, which raises security risks as project will deploy explosive detectors
well. and scanners to “cover major roads,
case-prone areas and crowded
places…in urban areas to conduct
— AFP photo real-time monitoring and 24 hour video
So the plan envisages a terrestrial recording.” Signals gathered from the
cable across the Khunjerab pass to surveillance system will be transmitted
Islamabad, and a submarine landing to a command centre, but the plan
station in Gwadar, linked to Sukkur. says nothing about who will staff the
From there, the backbone will link the command centre, what sort of signs
two in Islamabad, as well as all major they will look for, and who will provide
cities in Pakistan. the response.
The expanded bandwidth that will “There is a plan to build a pilot safe
open up will enable terrestrial city in Peshawar, which faces a fairly
broadcast of digital HD television, severe security situation in
called Digital Television Terrestrial northwestern Pakistan” the plan says,
Multimedia Broadcasting (DTMB). This following which the program will be
is envisioned as more than just a extended to major cities such as
technological contribution. It is a Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi,
“cultural transmission carrier. The hinting that the feeds will be shared
future cooperation between Chinese eventually, and perhaps even
and Pakistani media will be beneficial recorded.
to disseminating Chinese culture in
Pakistan, further enhancing mutual Tourism and recreation
understanding between the two
One of the most intriguing chapters in
peoples and the traditional friendship
the plan is the one that talks about the
between the two countries.” The plan
development of a “coastal tourism”
says nothing about how the system will
industry. It speaks of a long belt of
be used to control the content of
coastal enjoyment industry that
broadcast media, nor does it say
includes yacht wharfs, cruise
anything more about “the future
homeports, nightlife, city parks, public
cooperation between Chinese and
squares, theaters, golf courses and
Pakistani media”.
spas, hot spring hotels and water
sports. The belt will run from Keti
Judging from their Bunder to Jiwani, the last habitation
conversations with the before the Iranian border. Then,
government, it appears that somewhat disappointingly, it adds that
“more work needs to be done” before
the Pakistanis are pushing the this vision can be realized.
Chinese to begin work on the
Gwadar International Airport, The plans are laid out in surprising
detail. For instance, Gwadar will
whereas the Chinese are feature international cruise clubs that
pushing for early completion “provide marine tourists private rooms
of the Eastbay Expressway. that would feel as though they were
‘living in the ocean’”. And just as the various factors affecting Pakistani
feeling sinks in, it goes on to say that politics, such as competing parties,
“[f]or the development of coastal religion, tribes, terrorists, and Western
vacation products, Islamic culture, intervention” the authors write. “The
historical culture, folk culture and security situation is the worst in recent
marine culture shall all be integrated.” years”. The next big risk, surprisingly,
Apparently more work needs to be is inflation, which the plan says has
done here too. averaged 11.6 per cent over the past 6
years. “A high inflation rate means a
rise of project-related costs and a
— AFP photo decline in profits.”
For Ormara, the plan recommends
building “unique recreational activities” Efforts will be made, says the plan, to
that would also encourage “the natural, furnish “free and low interest loans to
exciting, participatory, sultry, and Pakistan” once the costs of the
tempting characteristics” to come corridor begin to come in. But this is no
through. For Keti Bunder it free ride, it emphasizes. “Pakistan’s
recommends wildlife sanctuaries, an federal and involved local
aquarium and a botanical garden. For governments should also bear part of
Sonmiani, on the eastern edge of the responsibility for financing through
Karachi, “projects like a coastal beach, issuing sovereign guarantee bonds,
extended greenway, coastal villa, car meanwhile protecting and improving
camp, SPA, beach playground and a the proportion and scale of the
seafood street can be developed.” government funds invested in corridor
construction in the financial budget.”
It is an expansive vision that the plan
lays out, and towards the end, it asks
for the following: “Make the visa-free Illustration by Sana Nasir/Herald
tourism possible with China to provide It asks for financial guarantees “to
more convenient policy support for provide credit enhancement support
Chinese tourists to Pakistan.” There is for the financing of major infrastructure
no mention of a reciprocal projects, enhance the financing
arrangement for Pakistani nationals capacity, and protect the interests of
visiting China. creditors.” Relying on the assessments
of the IMF, World Bank and the ADB, it
Finance and risk notes that Pakistan’s economy cannot
In any plan, the question of financial absorb FDI much above $2 billion per
resources is always crucial. The long year without giving rise to stresses in
term plan drawn up by the China its economy. “It is recommended that
Development Bank is at its sharpest China’s maximum annual direct
when discussing Pakistan’s financial investment in Pakistan should be
sector, government debt market, depth around US$1 billion.” Likewise, it
of commercial banking and the overall concludes that Pakistan’s ceiling for
health of the financial system. It is at preferential loans should be $1 billion,
its most unsentimental when drawing and for non preferential loans no more
up the risks faced by long term than $1.5 billion per year.
investments in Pakistan’s economy.
It advises its own enterprises to take
The chief risk the plan identifies is precautions to protect their own
politics and security. “There are investments. “International business
cooperation with Pakistan should be as diversify the risks faced by Chinese
conducted mainly with the government enterprises entering Pakistan.
as a support, the banks as
intermediary agents and enterprises as In some areas the plan seeks
the mainstay.” Nor is the growing to build on a market presence
engagement some sort of brotherly
involvement. “The cooperation with already established by
Pakistan in the monetary and financial Chinese enterprises, eg Haier
areas aims to serve China’s diplomatic in household appliances,
strategy.”
China Mobile and Huawei in
The other big risk the plan refers to is telecommunications and China
exchange rate risk, after noting the
severe weakness in Pakistan’s ability
Metallurgical Group
to earn foreign exchange. To mitigate Corporation (MCC) in mining
this, the plan proposes tripling the size and minerals.
of the swap mechanism between the
RMB and the Pakistani rupee to 30 Gwadar receives passing mention as
billion Yuan, diversifying power an economic prospect, mainly for its
purchase payments beyond the dollar capacity to serve as a port of exit for
into RMB and rupee basket, tapping minerals from Balochistan and
the Hong Kong market for RMB bonds, Afghanistan, and as an entreport for
and diversifying enterprise loans from wider trade in the greater Indian
a wide array of sources. The growing Ocean zone from South Africa to New
role of the RMB in Pakistan’s economy Zealand. There is no mention of
is a clearly stated objective of the China’s external trade being routed
measures proposed. through Gwadar. Judging from their
conversations with the government, it
Conclusion appears that the Pakistanis are
It is not clear how much of the plan will pushing the Chinese to begin work on
be earnestly followed up and how the Gwadar International Airport,
much is there simply to evince interest whereas the Chinese are pushing for
from the Pakistani side. In the areas of early completion of the Eastbay
interest contained in the plan, it Expressway.
appears access to the full supply chain
of the agrarian economy is a top But the entry of Chinese firms will not
priority for the Chinese. After that the be limited to the CPEC framework
capacity of the textile spinning sector alone, as the recent acquisition of the
to serve the raw material needs of Pakistan Stock Exchange, and the
Xinjiang, and the garment and value impending acquisition of K Electric
added sector to absorb Chinese demonstrate. In fact, CPEC is only the
technology is another priority. opening of the door. What comes
through once that door has been
Next is the growing domestic market, opened is difficult to forecast.
particularly in cement and household
appliances, which receive detailed Addendum: Apropos a story titled
treatment in the plan. And lastly, “CPEC master plan revealed”
through greater financial integration, appearing in Dawn on May 15,
the plan seeks to advance the Minister for Planning, Development
internationalization of the RMB, as well and Reform Ahsan Iqbal has said that
CPEC’s Long Term Plan is not a 2015, where it gathered dust for a
project document, rather it “delineates few months. Under prodding from
the aspirations of both sides”. the Chinese government, a team
from Pakistan met their
“It is a live document and both sides counterparts in Beijing on
[China and Pakistan] have an November 12th, 2015 and gave their
understanding to modify it as per the feedback. A “special bilateral
need besides reviewing it periodically,” meeting” was held on Dec 2nd, and
Mr Iqbal claimed on Monday. the plan finalized on Dec 29th. It
was then agreed by both sides that
HOW THE PLAN WAS MADE final signatures of the highest
The LTP was begun in November authorities, in Pakistan’s case the
2013 (see detailed timeline in Prime Minister, would be obtained
previous tab), when the National by March 31st. That deadline was
Development and Reform missed, and the signatures are
Commission (NDRC) of the expected to be placed now that the
Government of China asked the PM is in Beijing.
China Development Bank (CDB) to
compile a detailed roadmap to In the meantime, a small formality
guide the engagement with Pakistan asserted itself. For the plan to be
that had begun in May of that same finalized, the assent of the
year. For the next two years, till provincial governments was
December 2015, the CDB worked required. For that purpose, a
with teams from the NDRC, as well second draft was prepared that
the ministries of Transport, National could be shared with the provincial
Energy Administration and China authorities. That draft is 31 pages
Tourism Planning Institute to long and significantly watered down
develop a detailed plan to be with all details removed, containing
implemented over the next 15 years, only broad brushstroke
till the year 2030, that will open the descriptions of the “areas of
doors for Chinese enterprises – cooperation” that both countries
private and public – to enter every have identified.
area of Pakistan’s economy.
The original plan drawn up by the
President Xi Jinping and Prime CDB is 231 pages long, and is an
Minister Nawaz Sharif overlook the astonishingly detailed roadmap of
signing of agreements between the the pitfalls and opportunities that
two countries. — AFP Chinese enterprises can expect as
Chinese expert teams made they venture into every area of the
multiple visits to Pakistan and economy and society. It contains
Xinjiang during this period, drawing specifics of what is going to be built
up a detailed picture of the situation by the Chinese over the next
in every area, prioritizing those that decade and a half, and its detailed
will come first, and identifying description of Pakistan’s economy
“hidden dangers”, bottlenecks and and its attendant risks shows
risks that should be anticipated clearly that the Chinese are fully
along the way. aware of what they are getting
involved in.
The report was first transmitted to
the Government of Pakistan in June
 conglomerates and food giants making long-
CPEC opens term China plans. They expect the country
is going to be the biggest growth driver in
avenues for future.

agriculture: FPCCI Similarly China, the world’s largest importer

Bureau ReportUpdated September 02, 2017 of vegetables, gets 50 of these imports from
the US and Brazil. “In the world of
PESHAWAR: The Federation of Pakistan international trade, shorter distances can
Chambers of Commerce and Industry provide a strategic advantage through lower
(FPCCI) Regional Chairman on transportation costs. But for perishable
Horticulture Exports, Ahmad Jawad has items like food, such proximity can translate
said that the China–Pakistan Economic into yet another edge.
Corridor (CPEC) provides Pakistan a
godsend to increase its agriculture The official also added that during transit
exports to China. over long distances, food items faced higher
risk of spoilage and contamination. Because
China is the world’s largest importer of of this, not only additional cost is incurred for
agricultural products, and Pakistan has to preservation and packaging but often
grab its due share through revisiting the exporters have to make use of extra
Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the pesticides to increase shelf-life of food.
two countries. “Pakistan, being China’s neighbour,
therefore enjoys a unique advantage and
In a statement issued on Friday, Mr Jawad
CPEC provides an unprecedented
said that “in 2015 China imported $160
opportunity to capitalise on that,” he said.
billion worth of agricultural products.
However, Pakistan’s share in these exports Mr Jawad further mentioned that agricultural
was minuscule - less than half a percentage development is one of the seven areas of
point - despite having a large agrarian base cooperation under CPEC, wherein China is
and a shared border with China.” specifically interested to explore areas like
cotton productivity, efficient irrigation and
With a population of 1.3 billion people,
post-harvest infrastructure along the CPEC
China consumes almost $1 trillion worth of
route. However, Pakistan’s agriculture
food every year. With increased
sector priorities vis-à-vis CPEC would
urbanisation and rising incomes, Chinese
remain unclear.
consumption patterns are also changing,
and demand for high quality imported food The government’s primary role should be to
items is growing at a pace much faster than remove tariff and non-tariff barriers for
population growth. Domestic consumption is agricultural trade with China. “CPEC has set
expected to grow by another $500 billion in the stage to renegotiate Pak-China Free
the next 10 years. Trade Agreement and Ministry of Commerce
should demand better tariffs for its
According to a FPCCI official, it takes about
one acre of arable land to feed an average agricultural exports,” said Mr Jawad.
US consumer. With the present population,
China only has about 0.2 acre per citizen, Furthermore, he said there was a need to
which is going to be far short of future rationalise sanitary and phytosanitary
requirements, considering the evolving restrictions, food and safety inspection
demand. requirements and standards.

He also said the world is therefore keenly The private sector and agri-entrepreneurs
focusing on China, with international should become the trailblazers and start
exploring viable market opportunities in the Pakistan’s army chief who is reported to
Chinese market and forge partnerships with have discussed the further development of
international firms to get a foothold. defence and security cooperation between
the two countries at very high levels in
Beijing. The decisions for intensified security
cooperation will no doubt be affirmed by the
The China agenda prime minister and Chinese leaders.
Munir AkramOctober 28, 2018
The two countries need each other’s support
The writer is a former Pakistan ambassador on the political challenges they face at
to the UN. present. China will expect Pakistan’s
support on its maritime disputes in the South
NEXT week, Prime Minister Imran Khan China Sea, on the One China Policy and
will visit China, Pakistan’s primary Taiwan, and on the separatist threat from
strategic partner. Uighur extremists in Xinjiang.

The visit will take place at a critical moment Given the concerted Indian and US pressure
in global politics. A new Cold War has been and threats against Pakistan, there is need
declared by the US against China and for more vocal Chinese support to Pakistan
Russia. The world order established after on its core security challenges. China
the Second World War is being dismantled should condemn the threats of force and
by the Trump administration. The US and economic pressure on Pakistan; call for a
other major countries no longer feel peaceful resolution of the Jammu and
constrained by international law from the Kashmir dispute in accordance with
unilateral use of force, pressure and international law; and oppose all threats to
intervention against smaller states. The disrupt the CPEC project. China’s
global trade regime is being torn apart. The contribution is also essential to promote a
financial system is under stress. political settlement in Afghanistan including
by support for its development and
In these turbulent times, Pakistan’s incorporation into the CPEC and Belt and
relationship with China provides an essential Road network.
anchor for its security and foreign policy and
the foundation for its socioeconomic The prime minister’s agenda in China is
development. China meets Pakistan’s likely to be focused on economic issues.
defence requirements; it is building Despite the most welcome Saudi financial
Pakistan’s infrastructure; it is a bulwark support secured during the prime minister’s
against aggression by India and bullying by tactically smart participation in the Saudi
the US. investment conference last week, Pakistan
still requires a generous financial injection
from China. This may come in various
There is need for more forms: dollar deposits, soft loans,
vocal Chinese support to commercial credit, currency swaps and
enlarged CPEC commitments. China can
Pakistan on its core also positively influence the negotiation and
approval of the IMF package sought by
security challenges. Pakistan.

Although Pakistan-China relations are rock The prime minister has been invited to
solid, in the current geopolitical China’s trade expo in Shanghai as a ‘guest
circumstances, when both Pakistan and of honour’ and will lead efforts to showcase
China confront threats and pressure from Pakistan’s export and production
their adversaries, it appears essential to capabilities.
elevate their strategic partnership to an even
higher level. Unfortunately, these capabilities are
currently limited and must be enlarged
The prime minister’s visit to China was through appropriate trade and industrial
preceded a few weeks ago by that of policies. China can play a crucial role in this
process, for instance, through a conscious Both Pakistan and China have expressed
endeavour to relocate some of its non- openness to third country participation in
competitive manufacturing capabilities and CPEC. Saudi investments in Gwadar will
those facing new Western trade barriers to come alongside the CPEC projects. Some
Pakistan. The joint development of Western companies are already
Pakistan’s agricultural sector and export of participating in and profiting from CPEC
agricultural commodities and processed projects. General Electric has supplied
goods to China also offer potential for turbines for three gas-fired power plants in
expanding bilateral trade and accelerating the Punjab (whose ‘teething problems’ have
growth and employment in Pakistan. delayed their start by almost a year). Four
Thar Coal projects will also use GE turbines,
It appears essential for the prime minister to hopefully, with better results.
set at rest any doubts regarding Pakistan’s
commitment to the CPEC. This is the It would be useful for Pakistan and China to
‘flagship’ of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and establish a transparent and inclusive
Road Initiative (BRI). If the US and its mechanism to accelerate CPEC
friends, including India, are successful in implementation eg by prioritising CPEC
sabotaging CPEC, it will constitute a major projects, agreeing on terms of financing,
foreign policy setback for China and its overseeing timely execution and keeping the
leader as well as for Pakistan. public and parliament informed.

The BRI is vital not so much for China as for The anticipated strengthening of the
the developing countries. The World Bank strategic partnership is not designed as an
has estimated that developing countries alliance against any third country (unlike the
need an investment of over $100 billion in US-India relationship explicitly meant to
infrastructure annually. The US and the ‘contain’ China). But the reinforced
West are unwilling or unable to finance this; Pakistan-China partnership will enable both
China is doing so. Western opposition to countries to more confidently confront the
BRI is essentially a ‘dog-in-the-manger’ multiple challenges they face in an
approach. Criticism of BRI as ‘debt increasingly turbulent world. The Chinese
diplomacy’ is a misplaced extrapolation of pictogram for ‘challenge’ also means
the West’s century-old strategy to ‘capture’ ‘opportunity’. It is thus that Chairman Mao
the resources and compromise the leaders declared: “There is great disorder under the
of poorer nations. Chinese lending for heavens; the situation is excellent!”
government projects is provided on
extremely soft terms.

All the projects under CPEC were selected

Silence and
by successive Pakistani governments. The
Gwadar port, road and rail links, oil and gas chatter
pipelines, were identified during the Afiya S. ZiaOctober 28, 2018
Musharraf government. The power projects
were added by the PML-N government. The writer is author of Faith and Feminism
Most of these projects will help advance in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s industrialisation and economic
expansion. WHAT is it with PTI ministers and their
fixation with pop music? Is it an attempt
As already agreed, CPEC’s scope will be to pose as trendy, or have they been
broadened in future. The Special Economic cranking up the music to drown out the
Zones can provide the avenue for rapid growing criticism?
industrialisation and export expansion.
CPEC can also incorporate ‘social The informalisation of governance was
infrastructure’: education institutions, obvious when the new government was
healthcare facilities, garbage and sewage sworn in and an outlandish guided tour was
treatment plants, public amenities, housing televised by a journalist who embedded
projects, environmental protection projects. himself in the bathtub of the Prime Minister
House. The biscuit austerity drive, selling off
of the family buffaloes, and the first lady’s minister to use Twitter to broadcast both her
account of a simple old-Mother-Hubbard- casual opinion and official stances at the
living-in-a-cupboard life, have all been props same time. Let’s not be lulled by the falsity
of a new optics policy that is befitting of that social media is some great equaliser —
reality TV rather than political purpose. Such there is a big power differential between
informality has encouraged the casualisation ISPR tweets and those of children of a
of political chatter. lesser god.

Meanwhile, in the real world, a select and Social media is guided less by journalistic or
inept accountability process has undermined democratic norms and more by
judicial authority which, in turn, is wielding randomness. Responsive politics means
unrestrained power. The legacy of the that officials tweet that notice has been
lawyers movement is officially buried. taken, which leads keyboard warriors to
Incessant talk about rolling back the NFC applaud their watchdog role or take
and (treasonous?) TV talk shows attacking satisfaction in venting their daily outrage.
the 18th Amendment are in stark contrast to The sheer speed of things means there is
the blackout of people’s resistance no patience or interest in following up —
movements in the tribal areas and a media either by way of reporting or investigation.
that has decided to observe voluntary Can any of us recall or has anyone followed
silence. up on the multiple cases we have tweeted
about over the last year?
Social media is guided It is not the efficacy of social media that is
more by randomness suspect, but the wisdom and depth of its
politics. Most often, a trail of uncollected
than democratic norms. debris follows crusaders as they move on to
new cases and causes with high-speed
This causes anxiety in those who see things clicks. When political crises peak, social
through a longer lens. In these strange media activism becomes akin to armchair
times, satire, memes and tweets have chatter or actually silences dissent due to
become more than supplementary political deflection.
commentary — they have become parallel
drawing room chatter, too. While Humanising rights in Pakistan is serious
entertaining, this does not bode well for work. There is a dire need to rethink the UN-
journalism, activism or democratic norms. template approach. Fata is at a postcolonial
crossroads. All human and women’s rights
The recent Twitter exchange between commissions should be holding mass
Minister for Human Rights Shireen Mazari consultations, drafting policies to maximise
and singer Momina Mustehsan signifies legal and economic benefits for women,
new-age politics in Pakistan. The minister minorities and the marginalised in the
tweeted her dislike for the “horrendous” merger. There is a need in all provinces for
Coke Studio remake of a popular old song, centres for violence against women like the
which led to the singer’s defensive objection one in Multan. Special courts or special
which included a quote from Spiderman. It rapporteurs on sex crimes are desperately
doesn’t matter if you have no idea what it needed in an abyss that is the justice
was about. The point is that this system for women.
‘conversation’ itself flags a new mode of
constituency engagement with its own The judiciary needs specialised training on
specialised references and jargon. cybercrimes and how to adjudicate in a way
that balances freedoms and protection. The
Mustehsan’s objection to the minister’s cost benefit of a specialised human rights
harsh judgement as a form of ‘bullying’ and police requires calculation. Expanding the
‘hate speech’ reflects the millennials’ sense force rather than burdening a limited one by
of quick injury. Any criticism about their constant donor-driven ‘capacity training’ is
choice of clothes, belief system and lifestyle not going to cut it.
causes offence. However, the singer has a
point about whether it is appropriate for a
Slugging out accusations and online chatter invisible brick wall. Understanding this is
gets attention (just like large ceremonial crucial.
human rights seminars), but they do not
engage or challenge the state directly. It’s Education is a confusing term because it
time to let the free market take care of has a broad range of meanings. But at the
consumer products and retain informal extremes lie two fundamentally different
chatter in the drawing rooms. Public office types — traditional education and modern
should be exclusively and urgently tackling education. Like oil and water, they do not
the horrendous record of human rights mix together however vigorously shaken.
abuses and rigorously implementing policies
at state levels and across real, rather than This is not to say that one is superior to the
virtual communities. other, but they have different teaching
methods, exemplars, and sources. Most
importantly, they have totally different goals.
Why attempts to Traditional education — Christian, Jewish,
Muslim, and Hindu — seeks to prepare the
reform Pakistani student for a better afterlife. Its epistemology
begins with the appropriate holy texts, the
education fail primary source of knowledge. Knowledge
Pervez HoodbhoyUpdated October 27, 2018 comes by revelation and thus
unchangeable; the content is fixed until
The writer teaches physics in Lahore and eternity.
Islamabad.
Modern education, on the other hand, is 100
ONE hears that there’s now yet another per cent secular and this-worldly. It
government task force, this one for shamelessly changes content according to
“improving education standards”. How need and circumstance, caring only about
many such bodies have we seen over the the here and now.
decades? So many, in fact, that
Islamabad’s bored education So, for example, a school student is taught
bureaucracy hasn’t even bothered to about global warming today but 20 years
keep all the records. ago this was not so. Entire new disciplines
keep popping up; for example, computer
None — including the ones I was once part science and biotechnology were born just a
of 20-30 years ago — has led to even few years ago.
slightly improved reading, writing,
comprehension and arithmetic skills. Faced Every attempt to modernise
with dismal statistics, the typical reaction is:
Pakistan must spend more on education. education has run into an
Well, who doubts that?
invisible brick wall of culture
But countries spending less per student
have better educational outcomes than
and conservatism.
Pakistan. Reducing corruption, eliminating
ghost schools, and ensuring teachers come Teaching methods and the student-teacher
to class would be welcome developments. relationship also differ sharply between
But this too is insufficient. traditional and modern. The traditional
teacher is an authoritarian who may not be
Creating well-functioning educational questioned and is socially authorised to
institutions suitable for the modern age inflict physical punishment when needed.
requires more than just money and good
governance. Unlike hospitals or airports, Critical thinking — vital for modern learning
they are the result of particular cultural and — is discouraged. Obedience is rewarded. It
ideological choices. So far every attempt to is considered a prime virtue in our schools,
modernise education has run into an colleges and universities.
Pakistanis overwhelmingly prefer traditional during the colonial period. Nineteenth-
education. A survey in 2003 conducted century Egypt seethed with such debates.
around the Rawalpindi area by Matthew
Nelson, professor at the University of On the Indian subcontinent, Sir Syed Ahmad
London, discovered a whopping 41pc Khan saw lack of modern education as the
preference for the statement: “A good primary reason for the misery and poverty of
school is a school that creates good Muslims after the failed 1857 uprising.
Muslims. In other words, good schools Braving conservative backlash, he was
provide students with strong values and successful in encouraging a section of
strong religious beliefs.” A mere 10pc Muslims to learn science and English.
approved the case for evidence-based
modern education. Since those times, things have changed
somewhat. Today’s religiously conservative
Less affluent sections of Pakistani middle-class Pakistanis do recognise the
immigrants in Britain have similar connection between modern education and
preferences. British public schooling is free, worldly success. Hence most do not send
buildings are adequate, corruption is not a their children to madressahs. Instead, they
problem, a single language of instruction seek out hybrid schools, which resemble the
(English) dominates, and other immigrants old system but with patches grafted from the
use the system successfully to improve their new.
skills and economic status.
Although a step forward, hybridisation is
But Pakistan-origin British children have often awkward. Old and new are put through
math and reading skills lower than those of a meat grinder; that which emerges is in
whites or Indians. In fact, they are at the low mangled form. For example, local biology
end of all ethnic minorities in Britain. That’s textbooks published under state supervision
because many Pakistanis fear their children typically have a chapter on Darwinian
will lose their religious moorings and evolution. But that same book’s introductory
therefore choose to home-school their chapter ridicules evolution as anti-religious
children or send them to faith-based and not to be taken seriously. Where does
schools. that leave the poor student?

This mirrors the situation back home. The state, in seeking to establish its
Pakistan has countless madressah and legitimacy, uses education as a tool for
home-educated hafizes. Their commitment indoctrination. This has turned Pakistan into
to memory of the holiest of texts is entirely a more conservative country than most
laudable, and is socially rewarded. other Muslim countries. Even as it abdicates
Unfortunately the notion that memorisation its basic responsibility by outsourcing
equals education carries over from the education to private hands, the state
religious domain into the secular. nevertheless remains vigilant against the
penetration of secular ideas into the system.
This creates absurdities of the highest order.
Although parroting buys little elsewhere in Western intellectual products, particularly
the world, Pakistan’s math and science critical thinking and the scientific method,
hafizes are richly rewarded. They top the are considered dangerous. Therefore even
exams of local examination boards, all science subjects, sprinkled onto a substrate
without achieving any understanding of their of belief, are taught without using the
study material. Many eventually finagle their scientific method.
way to top administrative positions while
others become highly paid university The middle ground between traditional and
professors who reinforce the ratta system. modern education is still being sought. Until
such time that there is a clear separation of
Which kind of education should a Muslim religious and secular educational content,
society encourage? Traditional or modern? and unless fear of being overwhelmed by
This question created friction between the secular ideas is consciously overcome,
traditional ulema and Muslim modernisers education outcomes in Pakistan will stay just
as they are. More task forces won’t help and must be carried out urgently — both in
unless they specifically address this issue. the capital territory and the provinces. And
yet, while good intentions may be there, it is
difficult to detect the will to do the work
Education required.

dysfunction Time to localise

EditorialOctober 28, 2018

AS first visits go, particularly for a governance

government that has been at the helm for Faizaan QayyumOctober 29, 2018
only a few months, it should come as
reason for grave concern. A few days The writer is a PhD student in
ago, the federal education minister, urban/regional planning at the University of
Shafqat Mahmood, made his inaugural Illinois.
visit to the Federal Directorate of
Education. The latter oversees the URBAN governance and local
operations of 423 public-sector governments (LGs) are the new
educational institutions in Islamabad. buzzwords in policy circles. Indeed,
FDE directors informed him that some devolution of power has long been
30,000 children are out of school in the ignored as a constitutional principle, and
capital. The dysfunctions do not end this conversation is long overdue.
here. Control of the FDE was transferred
to the education ministry only recently; Any discussion on LGs must include several
earlier, it had been under the Capital components. Critical elements include
Administration and Development structure and powers of various agencies
Division that has now been abolished. It and the role of the civil service. A third,
seems that the education oversight body albeit ancillary, component is property taxes
lacks a permanent — or even temporary to finance LGs. It is important to remember
— director general given that its interim that these are not separate problems. They
head was asked to relinquish charge. In are intricately connected to one another,
addition, there are challenges such as and success can only be achieved by
the ongoing litigation between Piera, the reforming LG and governance in the same
regulatory body for private educational vein.
institutes, and the latter themselves, over
fee hikes. There is also the concern that An insistence on treating LG, civil service,
a large number of private schools are not and property tax together is easy to
even registered with Piera. conceptualise. We have seen at least two
separate committees on LG and civil service
The state of disrepair that is evident in the reform. Both are heavily staffed by civil
educational sector in the capital is far worse servants — and, indeed, bureaucrats will be
in the provinces with their larger populations instrumental in the performance of new
of school-age children. The provinces have systems that may be formulated. The third
not stepped up to the responsibilities of the component — taxes — is a little trickier. For
autonomy they won via the 18th now, think of it like this: if elected LGs have
Amendment. Earlier this year, for example, to rely on local property taxes for most of
the KP education department revealed after their expenses, long-standing problems of
a comprehensive, year-long survey that underreported property values can be
more than 1.8m children were out of school solved politically.
— 23 per cent of them aged between five
and 17 years. And earlier, Unicef reported
that in Punjab some 9.2m children were If done well, LGs can help
detached from the school network.
Meanwhile, the situation remains abysmal in improve governance,
both Sindh and Balochistan. This is a
shocking situation. Reforms are necessary
transform the civil service
 by the state of Massachusetts. The broader
and solve lacunae with mechanism has useful lessons for us.
property valuations. The most important takeaway is this: a
LGs must truly localise governance through metropolitan area does not have to be a
the following basic principles: maximum centrally managed, monolithic entity. Such
devolution, public representation, sprawls are impossible to manage centrally
continuous technical capacity building and and cause our cities to miss out on the
reasonable financial independence. The advantages of large, connected markets
debate today largely concerns the levels at even as challenges of megacities continue
which these governments will operate and to mount. Lahore’s and Karachi’s tehsils, for
the responsibilities they will bear. example, can be independent town
Neighbourhood councils, smaller even than governments. Regional planning bodies can
urban union councils, represent a good start coordinate between and incentivise
by devolving political decision making to the individual governments to adopt plans and
smallest possible scale. projects that benefit the whole region, and
also manage common services like urban
This brings us to the second principle, which transit (note that these tehsils are just an
requires more thought. Where final example and can be redrawn).
decisions are made will directly determine
the political culture of our cities. Executive The third principle — that of technical
bodies that are too small-scale run the risk capacity building — ties back to the original
of never accomplishing anything of national proposition of looking at LG and civil service
or regional significance. At the same time, reform together. Decision-making power
centralised decision-making at the city or must rest with elected representatives. The
provincial level can tarnish the democratic job of bureaucrats should be to advise these
character of these governments by drowning representatives with technical knowledge,
out local voices and introducing not to make executive decisions. This shift
inefficiencies. in role would necessarily require constant
training and updating of technical
In our context, then, we should look at knowledge, alongside in-depth knowledge of
localities in addition to neighbourhoods as the locality and region that they are
more reasonable units for governance. assigned to serve. When tied with
Consider Chicago, for example. The performance-based incentives and constant
contiguous metropolitan area extends over oversight by governments locally or at the
at least two dozen cities and towns, each centre, bureaucracy can transform from a
with a population greater than 50,000 and its colonial extractive project to one of
own elected government. An overarching democratic service provision.
body — the Chicago Metropolitan Agency
for Planning — plans for the whole Property and local taxes form the last link in
metropolitan area. Executive decision- this chain of reforms. LGs around the world
making power, however, stays with rely on a mix of property tax, local sales tax
individual cities or towns, and CMAP and directed funding from the centre to
encourages compliance by extending function. Once taxes become a determinant
financial, technical and other incentives to of performance, local bodies would be
individual LGs. All of these bodies operate heavily incentivised to reassess property
within a larger framework formulated by the values. Increase assessed values to collect
state of Illinois. more revenue and perform for the average
voter, or risk annoying the rich voter — this
Chicago is the largest contiguous would be the political question that local
metropolitan area in North America, but it is bodies would face and sort out on their own.
not an exception. Boston is in reality more
than 50 individual cities and towns, each Any suggestion for reform must be
with its own government, all coordinating contextualised, and its exact parameters
with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council determined before it can be enforced. Rural
areas may present unique challenges, for
and operating within a framework developed
example, and thus require completely
different strategies. We are in no hurry to
revamp the system in half-baked ways — There is need for more
any political government would do well to
think long and hard before committing to
vocal Chinese support to
specific measures. If done well, LGs can Pakistan on its core
help improve governance, transform the civil
service and solve lacunae with property security challenges.
valuations. Such reforms will also lead us
away from MPA-/MNA-led development Although Pakistan-China relations are rock
models that contribute to patronage, bribery, solid, in the current geopolitical
and political point-scoring across the circumstances, when both Pakistan and
country. China confront threats and pressure from
their adversaries, it appears essential to
We can discuss and thrash out exact elevate their strategic partnership to an even
operational details as we move forward. But, higher level.
in the meantime, one thing is certain: our
people have been deprived of the power to The prime minister’s visit to China was
decide for themselves for too long, and they preceded a few weeks ago by that of
deserve better. Pakistan’s army chief who is reported to
have discussed the further development of
defence and security cooperation between
The China agenda the two countries at very high levels in
Beijing. The decisions for intensified security
Munir AkramOctober 28, 2018 cooperation will no doubt be affirmed by the
prime minister and Chinese leaders.
The writer is a former Pakistan ambassador
to the UN. The two countries need each other’s support
on the political challenges they face at
NEXT week, Prime Minister Imran Khan present. China will expect Pakistan’s
will visit China, Pakistan’s primary support on its maritime disputes in the South
strategic partner. China Sea, on the One China Policy and
Taiwan, and on the separatist threat from
The visit will take place at a critical moment Uighur extremists in Xinjiang.
in global politics. A new Cold War has been
declared by the US against China and Given the concerted Indian and US pressure
Russia. The world order established after and threats against Pakistan, there is need
the Second World War is being dismantled for more vocal Chinese support to Pakistan
by the Trump administration. The US and on its core security challenges. China
other major countries no longer feel should condemn the threats of force and
constrained by international law from the economic pressure on Pakistan; call for a
unilateral use of force, pressure and peaceful resolution of the Jammu and
intervention against smaller states. The Kashmir dispute in accordance with
global trade regime is being torn apart. The international law; and oppose all threats to
financial system is under stress. disrupt the CPEC project. China’s
contribution is also essential to promote a
In these turbulent times, Pakistan’s political settlement in Afghanistan including
relationship with China provides an essential by support for its development and
anchor for its security and foreign policy and incorporation into the CPEC and Belt and
the foundation for its socioeconomic Road network.
development. China meets Pakistan’s
defence requirements; it is building The prime minister’s agenda in China is
Pakistan’s infrastructure; it is a bulwark likely to be focused on economic issues.
against aggression by India and bullying by Despite the most welcome Saudi financial
the US. support secured during the prime minister’s
tactically smart participation in the Saudi
investment conference last week, Pakistan
still requires a generous financial injection
from China. This may come in various Gwadar port, road and rail links, oil and gas
forms: dollar deposits, soft loans, pipelines, were identified during the
commercial credit, currency swaps and Musharraf government. The power projects
enlarged CPEC commitments. China can were added by the PML-N government.
also positively influence the negotiation and Most of these projects will help advance
approval of the IMF package sought by Pakistan’s industrialisation and economic
Pakistan. expansion.

The prime minister has been invited to As already agreed, CPEC’s scope will be
China’s trade expo in Shanghai as a ‘guest broadened in future. The Special Economic
of honour’ and will lead efforts to showcase Zones can provide the avenue for rapid
Pakistan’s export and production industrialisation and export expansion.
capabilities. CPEC can also incorporate ‘social
infrastructure’: education institutions,
Unfortunately, these capabilities are healthcare facilities, garbage and sewage
currently limited and must be enlarged treatment plants, public amenities, housing
through appropriate trade and industrial projects, environmental protection projects.
policies. China can play a crucial role in this
process, for instance, through a conscious Both Pakistan and China have expressed
endeavour to relocate some of its non- openness to third country participation in
competitive manufacturing capabilities and CPEC. Saudi investments in Gwadar will
those facing new Western trade barriers to come alongside the CPEC projects. Some
Pakistan. The joint development of Western companies are already
Pakistan’s agricultural sector and export of participating in and profiting from CPEC
agricultural commodities and processed projects. General Electric has supplied
goods to China also offer potential for turbines for three gas-fired power plants in
expanding bilateral trade and accelerating the Punjab (whose ‘teething problems’ have
growth and employment in Pakistan. delayed their start by almost a year). Four
Thar Coal projects will also use GE turbines,
It appears essential for the prime minister to hopefully, with better results.
set at rest any doubts regarding Pakistan’s
commitment to the CPEC. This is the It would be useful for Pakistan and China to
‘flagship’ of President Xi Jinping’s Belt and establish a transparent and inclusive
Road Initiative (BRI). If the US and its mechanism to accelerate CPEC
friends, including India, are successful in implementation eg by prioritising CPEC
sabotaging CPEC, it will constitute a major projects, agreeing on terms of financing,
foreign policy setback for China and its overseeing timely execution and keeping the
leader as well as for Pakistan. public and parliament informed.

The BRI is vital not so much for China as for The anticipated strengthening of the
the developing countries. The World Bank strategic partnership is not designed as an
has estimated that developing countries alliance against any third country (unlike the
need an investment of over $100 billion in US-India relationship explicitly meant to
infrastructure annually. The US and the ‘contain’ China). But the reinforced
West are unwilling or unable to finance this; Pakistan-China partnership will enable both
China is doing so. Western opposition to countries to more confidently confront the
BRI is essentially a ‘dog-in-the-manger’ multiple challenges they face in an
approach. Criticism of BRI as ‘debt increasingly turbulent world. The Chinese
diplomacy’ is a misplaced extrapolation of pictogram for ‘challenge’ also means
the West’s century-old strategy to ‘capture’ ‘opportunity’. It is thus that Chairman Mao
the resources and compromise the leaders declared: “There is great disorder under the
of poorer nations. Chinese lending for heavens; the situation is excellent!”
government projects is provided on
extremely soft terms.

All the projects under CPEC were selected

by successive Pakistani governments. The
 has existed; officials have been consumed
Joint solution by litigating the past and issuing demarche
Moeed YusufUpdated October 30, 2018 after demarche to their counterparts, to no
avail. What they need is the opposite: park
The writer is the author of Brokering Peace the negativity; stop revisiting the past; and
in Nuclear Environments: US Crisis judge future actions objectively, with a spirit
of working jointly to help the various factions
Management in South Asia.
in the Afghan war to reconcile with each
other. This requires a conscious decision on
IT’S crunch time in Afghanistan. The US
both sides not to encourage or to feed off
has made its intent to push for a political
those who champion narratives that
settlement that includes the Afghan
Taliban clear. The US and Pakistani demonise the other. Easier said than done.
positions seem to be converging for real.
Second, US and Pakistani officials need to
In recent contacts, both sides have
figure out the practical mode of engagement
tended to agree that there is a genuine
on the Afghan political settlement issue. The
window of opportunity to try and get a
time between now and the Afghan
peace process in Afghanistan going and
presidential elections in April 2019 is critical.
that they’ll have to work together to make
Given how bad the security situation in
it happen.
Afghanistan is and how factionalised Afghan
But how do they translate this belief into politics is becoming, you’d need tangible
progress in setting up a peace process to
complementary actions when the US-
prevent a meltdown. If so, the US, Pakistan,
Pakistan relationship is jaundiced to the
core? For too long, both sides have the Afghan government and other regional
remained suspicious of each other’s agenda stakeholders need to be working on this
in Afghanistan. Their policies have operated issue daily.
at cross purposes even as they have
The problem is that the US and Pakistan
professed the opposite.
have no existing channel to do so. For the
To reverse this, they need to immediately better part of two years, virtually all their
interaction has been through shuttle
overhaul the way they have conducted
diplomacy and almost all of it has been
business with each other.
consumed by mutual complaints and
First, both sides have to start giving the overcoming the ensuing deadlocks. This has
other the benefit of the doubt. The baggage to be replaced by a dedicated mechanism
where civilian, military and intelligence
of the post-9/11 period colours their
interaction. Both analyse each other’s every counterparts from both sides engage at the
move threadbare, with a guilty-until-proven- working level to deal with the specifics of
innocent approach. Mindsets are cooperation.
entrenched — it is impossible to discuss
Pakistan-US ties in either Washington or We have a start on the US side with the
appointment of Zalmay Khalilzad as special
Islamabad without the conversation turning
accusatory. The loudest voices specialise in representative for the peace bid in
bashing the other and calling out anyone Afghanistan. He is empowered as the
designated lead and has a team from across
who seeks to counsel introspection.
the US government backing him. We need a
counterpart on the Pakistani side whose job
Pakistan and the US will be to coordinate the various parts of
government to negotiate and strategise with
must cooperate on the US otherwise, we risk a disjointed
approach that lacks coordination of
Afghanistan. message and effort — a perfect way to hand
the initiative back to naysayers in
Both sides may pretend they can work Washington who’ll distract everyone from
together constructively regardless of their the task at hand by focusing on the
public blame game, but they can’t. The aura perceived civil-military disconnect and the
of negativity this creates has squeezed the futility of dealing with the civilians.
space to find common ground even where it
Finally, and most importantly, both sides individuals who are exclusively ‘Islamic’.
must agree on what they can to do for each Apart from Al Qaeda and its associates,
other. Two points of disconnect need such as the Islamic Movement of
highlighting. First, the US feels that Pakistan Uzbekistan and the East Turkmenistan
can not only bring the Taliban to the table Islamic Movement, the pro-Kashmiri Jaish-
but also squeeze them to talk to Kabul e-Mohammed was ‘listed’ after the 2007
directly and nudge them to agree to a assassination attempt against president
compromise deal. Pakistan appears Musharraf and the Lashkar-e-Taiba after the
unwilling, unable, or both. As of now, it 2008 Mumbai attack.
wants to facilitate talks but prefers that the
US thrash out the rest directly with the
Taliban. Under the cover of
Second, the US says that any move to
countering terrorism,
normalise the broader Pakistan-US ties can state suppression of the
only be entertained once Pakistan delivers
on Afghanistan. Pakistan, however, wants to rights of Muslims has
get back to a broader relationship now,
fearing the US will dump it once Afghanistan
intensified.
is settled. Common ground on both aspects
Under Security Council resolutions,
is necessary to avoid creating perverse
incentives for one or both sides that’ll hold extensive obligations were imposed on
them back from cooperating to find a states to prevent financing and support for
the listed ‘terrorist’ organisations and to
solution to the conflict in Afghanistan.
cooperate against them.
The good news is that I sense real interest
In the US and most Western countries, any
and urgency on both sides to make
something happen. The bad news is that I act of violence perpetrated by a Muslim,
have thus far not picked up evidence the whether or not associated with a terrorist
organisation, is described as an act of
issues highlighted are being taken head on.
The sooner they are, the better. terrorism. Moreover, not only violence, but
even involvement in raising finance for a
‘terrorist’ organisation or a violent action, or
Ban all terrorism an expression of support for a terrorist
Munir AkramUpdated organisation or a violent action, is diligently
The writer is a former Pakistan ambassador prosecuted, even if the act is the
to the UN. consequence of a ‘sting’ operation. Similar
FOREIGN ministers of the Organisation crimes committed by non-Muslims rarely
of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) met in evoke the terrorist label.
Istanbul after the “savage terrorist attack
which took the lives of 51 Muslim Pakistan and some OIC countries made
worshippers in Christchurch”. Notably, early attempts to counter such
while the New Zealand prime minister discrimination. At the 2005 UN summit, they
unequivocally condemned this act as secured a declaration which condemned
terrorism, many Western capitals “terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,
refrained from branding it as such. committed by whomsoever, wherever and
India’s reaction did not mention either for whatever purposes...”. The summit
Muslims or mosques. furthermore called for the adoption of a
‘Comprehensive Convention on Terrorism’.
Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11 against
the US, the ‘war on terrorism’ has been Encouraging progress was made in the UN
largely a war against ‘Islamic terrorism’ General Assembly’s Legal Committee in
2006/07 on drafting the convention. Its
The UN Security Council outlawed Al Qaeda approval was, however, prevented by the
and all organisations ‘associated’ with it. A refusal of some major powers and India to
Security Council committee formed to address ‘state terrorism’ and the root causes
‘monitor’ counter-terrorist actions, of terrorism.
established a list of ‘terrorist’ groups and
The Trump administration has given up all be ‘the use of force and violence against
pretence of objectivity and declared ‘war’ on persons or property to coerce a government,
‘radical Islamic terrorism’. This anti-Muslim the civilian population, or any segment
focus has been eagerly embraced by India thereof, committed by whomsoever,
and several other states which face internal wherever and for whatever social or political
Muslim insurgencies. purposes, except in the exercise, in
accordance with the principles of the UN
The global counterterrorism campaign has Charter, of the legitimate right of self-
had mixed success. Al Qaeda is greatly defence and self-determination or resistance
diminished and the militant Islamic State to foreign occupation’.
group has been territorially defeated. But
insurgent Muslim groups have sprouted and This definition should not exclude ‘state
spread across the Middle East, North Africa terrorism’. If some major powers seek to
and beyond. exclude ‘armed forces’ from the purview of
the convention, ways would have to be
Unfortunately, under the cover of countering found to limit this exclusion, for instance, by
terrorism, the state suppression of the defining the conditions under which such an
legitimate rights and freedom struggles of exclusion is possible and by affirming that
Muslim peoples, as in occupied Kashmir this does not in any way compromise or
and Palestine, has intensified. Some Muslim constrain the legitimate right of peoples to
communities, like the Rohingya, have struggle for their right to self-determination
suffered genocide. Some, like the and against foreign occupation.
Kashmiris, face the prospect of a Pakistan-
India war or genocide if the Hindu The convention, or at least its
fundamentalists in India persist in their plans accompanying resolutions, should explicitly
to colonise them. Meanwhile, the continued condemn as terrorism the violence
occupation and oppression of the perpetrated or propagated by white
Palestinian people, and even the Israeli supremacist, neo-Nazi and fascist groups in
usurpation of holy Jerusalem, no longer Europe, the US and other countries. Their
moves the world’s conscience. actions should be prohibited equally with
those of the Islamist groups listed as
Crass discrimination against the Muslims ‘terrorists’ and equal constraints should be
has been made ‘acceptable’. Muslim placed on the propagation of their
refugees and migrants are turned away from Islamophobic, anti-Semitic, racist and violent
Western borders in violation of international ideologies.
law and humanitarian norms. The
defamation of Islam and other Similarly, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak
manifestations of Islamophobia have Sangh and other violent extremist Hindu
become socially and politically acceptable in organisations in India deserve to be
the West and elsewhere. This has classified as terrorists. Their ideology is one
generated widespread hate against Muslims of religious supremacy, hate and violence.
that was so vividly and tragically manifested Starting from the assassination of Gandhi,
in the slaughter of the 51 Muslims in the the list of their crimes is long and manifest:
Christchurch mosques. the Gujarat massacre of Muslims; the
Samjhauta Express slaughter of Pakistanis;
This global denigration and demonisation of the ongoing violence against the Kashmiris;
the Muslim faith can be halted and reversed the cow-lynching of poor Indian Muslims; the
only if the OIC countries act with suppression of Dalits, Adivasis, Naxalites,
determination, unity and clarity. and other disadvantaged communities; the
murder of journalists and political
Reviving the call for a ‘Comprehensive opponents.
Convention on Terrorism’ may be a good
place to start. A UN Security Council or General Assembly
Committee should be established to list and
From the perspective of OIC countries, the monitor these additional ‘terrorist
convention should firstly agree on a legal organisations’.
definition of terrorism. One formulation could
Pakistan is well placed to assume the lead and Saqib Nisar, great chief justices
in evolving a common and unified OIC should also have a judicial vision, and
strategy and collectively convincing the more importantly, the will and strategy
major powers that failure to adopt an
equitable approach on terrorism will intensify
to implement it.
crimes against Muslims, exacerbate the
terrorist threats in and from the Islamic world The criminal apathy of the
and beyond and precipitate in dangerous
regional and global conflicts. government imperils
judicial reform.
Chief justice’s
Khosa’s vision: In his address at the
challenges full-court reference for former chief
Faisal SiddiqiMarch justice Saqib Nisar in January, CJP
Khosa identified three key goals as he
“Great judges succeed most when
formulated his judicial vision. First, he
they are praised not so much for the
said, he would “like to avail every
legal soundness of their work, but
moment of my remaining time on the
for the sit-up-and-take-notice
bench to attend to the causes that
boldness of their interventions”. —
contribute towards delay in the
Allan Hutchinson, author
disposition of cases” or build a “dam
“ASIF, right from his early childhood, against undue and unnecessary
has always made his own independent delays”. Tackling judicial delay is his
decisions … The family would call him passion. The main cause for delay is
a philosopher child,” is how Sardar also clearly identified by him — “3,000
Faiz Muhammad Khan Khosa, father judges and magistrates cannot handle
of the present chief justice of Pakistan, 1.9 million cases even if they work for
Asif Saeed Khosa, described his son’s 36 hours a day”, especially considering
desire for independence and the increase in cases every day. As
excellence. Even before he assumed Justice Munib Akhtar once pointed out
his present office, it is these two “there are too few judges chasing too
qualities which made Justice Khosa a many cases”.
success story: Law from Cambridge, ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
barrister, author and teacher, leading
to a judicial career marked by CJP Khosa’s observations have
devotion, creativity and, importantly, brought into focus some key measures
remarkable courage. Examples of the to tackle judicial delay:
latter include, imposing constitutional
limits on Musharraf’s dictatorship, a) “Successive governments have
holding to account then prime failed to suitably increase the number
ministers Yousuf Raza Gilani’s and of judges and magistrates,” he said —
(later) Nawaz Sharif’s betrayal of the meaning a substantial increase in
public trust, passing a verdict against judges is required and, according to
the religious fanaticism of Mumtaz him, 25 per cent of the current vacant
Qadri and other unknown fanatics and posts to be filled.
fighting the evil of delay by disposing
of nearly 55,000 cases. (b) He also noted that the “Time has …
come when the judicial system as a
But great judges do not necessarily whole needs to be redesigned or
make great chief justices. Like Afzal restructured and made simple and
Zullah, Ajmal Mian, Iftikhar Chaudhry effective”. This means a simple three-
tier, as opposed to the current four-tier, Firstly, most of the suggested reforms
judicial system, eliminating an extra regarding judicial delay, Article 184(3)
tier of judicial delay. It also means a powers and inter-institutional dialogue
single appellate system, with the high also involve legislative and executive
courts being the final forum for facts, actions by the government. But
and the Supreme Court entertaining nothing has happened despite the
only matters of legal interpretation. passage of over two months since CJP
Special courts would be abolished, as Khosa took office. The criminal apathy
these lead to delay because of of the government imperils judicial
jurisdictional disputes. reform.

(c) He also observed that there should Secondly, as recent examples of

be no adjournments for lawyers and no violence by lawyers against judges
delay in writing judgments, which and bar council strikes against judicial
should be short. reforms have demonstrated, the
lawyers’ community is being
Second, contrary to the elite and transformed — from a reform
liberal propaganda against the Iftikhar movement which restored judicial
Chaudhry and Saqib Nisar courts, suo independence against Musharraf’s
motu and human rights cases under military rule to an anti-reform
Article 184(3) constitute less than 1pc movement which safeguards its own
of the total number of Supreme Court narrow interests.
cases. CJP Khosa is right that this
jurisdiction should “be exercised very Thirdly, most Pakistani judges want to
sparingly” and has suggested two do effective justice but require both the
critical reforms: (a) laying down the singular determination to reduce
parameters of this jurisdiction; and (b) judicial delay and coming up with a
introducing an intra-court appeal (as in court management strategy in this
contempt matters) or enlarging the regard. Only creative, reform-oriented
review jurisdiction in Article 184(3) high court chief justices (eg former
cases. LHC CJ Mansoor Ali Shah) can rectify
the evils of delay.
Third, unless we intend to “keep
drifting or floating aimlessly”, he Fourthly, any creative and post-
proposes “an inter-institutional colonial suggestion like an inter-
dialogue” chaired by the president of institutional dialogue will be opposed
Pakistan and attended by the judicial, by groups benefiting from institutional
parliamentary, executive and military infighting as well as by legal
leadership (including the intelligence fundamentalists who naively believe
agencies). Such a proposal recognises that Pakistan must follow a
both the institutional deadlock and constitutional path exactly like the
Pakistan’s power realities. This out-of- West’s.
the-box thinking can save us unless
we want to be consumed by the fires Cambridge vs Baloch blood: “With
of institutional conflicts. Baloch blood running in my veins
honour is the most precious thing in
Revenge of the status quo: Opposition my life after my faith,” declared CJP
to this vision will come from group Khosa. Dealing with judicial delay and
mindsets that sustain the status quo. reforming the jurisdiction under Article
184(3) may satisfy his desire for
judicial excellence imbibed through his
Cambridge training, but his Baloch Also read: The case for Urdu as Pakistan's
conscience based on honour can official language
provide a solid basis for dealing with ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
evils like enforced disappearances and When speaking to friends, we unconsciously
extrajudicial killings. switch from Urdu to English and back when
we don’t find the right word in one language.
Building on the judicial contributions And let me confess that I am very much part
and courage shown on this issue by of this syndrome. I recall that years ago, we
former chief justices Chaudhry and were fined four annas (or 25 paisa) at St
Patrick’s, my missionary school, for
Jawwad Khawaja and current
speaking in Urdu to our friends during the
Islamabad Chief Justice Athar break.
Minallah, the honour of the Pakistani
people and their faith in fundamental
rights can never be restored unless the There is widespread
missing persons issue is solved. recognition that English is
Moreover, this may be the last
opportunity of saving Balochistan from the language of power.
becoming another Bangladesh. The other day, while picking up some
sourdough bread off Karachi’s Zamzama
Thus, both formidable challenges and Road, I was accosted by a young boy of
unparalleled opportunities await CJP around 10, asking me to buy a children’s
Khosa. book. This was hardly unusual. What was
unusual, however, was his insistence in
The writer is a lawyer. speaking to me in good English, although he
was clearly from a working-class family, and
Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2019 thus unlikely to be educated in a private
school.

Clearly, there is a widespread recognition

that English is the language of power.
‘Urdu medium’ Among the children of well-to-do parents,
‘Urdu medium’ is almost an insult. Kids
Irfan HusainUpdated
IF you eat at one of Karachi’s upscale understand early on that Urdu is the
restaurants, chances are that the language you use to order servants in, while
conversations you overhear from nearby English is used by their parents to
tables will be in English. communicate to friends and family.

This is equally true of ice cream parlours Take a look: The imperialism of language
and cafés in the high-end Defence and
Clifton areas where kids chatter on with Poorer parents also get this message, and
varying degrees of fluency in English. Ditto sacrifice much of their meagre resources to
high-rise corporate offices where executives pay for their children to study in so-called
are almost banned from speaking in Urdu by ‘English-medium’ schools. However, there
an unwritten edict. are only a handful of institutions that impart
instruction in correct English, and charge
So what’s going on in Pakistan, a country very high fees that are way beyond the
that gained its freedom from British rule 72 means of most parents.
years ago? Why this growing use of the
language of our erstwhile colonial masters But if you are lucky enough to graduate with
decades after their departure? This trend a relatively sound command of spoken
has marginalised our national and regional English, many doors are open to you.
languages, and weakened creativity. Intelligence counts for little as it is assumed
that if you can speak English fluently, you
must not just be bright, but from a well-
connected family as well. So you start life remain stuck in the grooves etched by our
with a distinct advantage, looking down on adherence to English.
those less fortunate people whose accent
identifies them as ‘Urdu medium’. Thus, we have not only excluded women
and minorities from important positions, but
And if these lesser beings presume to have shrunk our talent pool by focusing
address you in English, chances are that almost exclusively on English. This has led
you will respond in Urdu, thus putting them to a situation where most kids today leave
in their place. This kind of linguistic school without a sound grasp of either
arrogance divides our society in a way not English or Urdu. And inevitably, we lose an
dissimilar to the division in British society. important part of our cultural heritage.
Here, attendance at expensive private
boarding schools like Eton and Harrow gives
you not just the right accent, but a certain Ironies of the Afghan
attitude that immediately identifies you as
the product of an elite school. To pay for this war
privilege, parents will mortgage their homes Zahid HussainUpdated
to ensure their kids have an edge. The writer is an author and journalist.
HE was captured on Feb 8, 2010, in a
Despite the clear advantages fluency in joint CIA-ISI raid outside Karachi. The
English endows, there is much confusion Obama administration described the
and hypocrisy surrounding its teaching and arrest of the Afghan Taliban’s second-in-
use. Our policymakers and public command as a “turning point” in its war
representatives extol the use of Urdu and in Afghanistan. He remained in
pay lip service to its propagation. But guess confinement as the Taliban insurgency
where their children are educated? Even our swept across the country.
senior clerics have been known to send their
kids to America for higher education, In what could be termed as an irony of
forgetting the anti-America slogans they history, nine years later, Mullah Baradar sat
chant so fervently. across the negotiation table with American
officials to discuss the timeline for the
Admission to schools like Lahore’s Aitchison withdrawal of the occupation forces from his
College and Karachi’s Grammar School is homeland. He had been released by
like gold dust. There are scores of Pakistani security agencies last year on
applicants for each place, and tiny five-year America’s request.
olds are examined for suitability, though
what such a young child is expected to know A co-founder of the Afghan Taliban
is beyond me. But just to make sure his or movement, his role is seen as critical to the
her parents are the ‘right’ sort, they are effort to end the 18-year war. The long
summoned for an interview as well. confinement seems to have increased
Baradar’s respect among the Taliban
Once admitted, the child’s path in life is commanders. After the death of Mullah
more or less charted. Graduation is often Omar, he is the de facto leader of the
followed by a university in America; then movement. His presence in the negotiations
comes a job in a sound corporation — has given greater authority to the Taliban
preferably a multinational — or daddy’s delegation. Though it is not going to be
company; marriage to somebody with a easy, progress in talks had raised hopes of
similar background is next; and then comes the two sides reaching some kind of an
the struggle to ensure admission for the agreement on ending the war.
children in an elite school.
Among others, there are five former
But in the midst of this programmed life inmates of Guantanamo who are also part of
cycle of a tiny elite is the huge loss we suffer the Taliban delegation now engaged in
due to the exclusion of many gifted children peace talks in Doha with those who were
born without the privileges our elites take for their tormentors. They were released in
granted. These marginalised individuals 2014 in exchange for an American soldier
held by the Taliban. Since then, they have
been living in Doha. All of them had been
close to Mullah Omar. They came out of the rebuilding the Taliban into an effective
shadows to join the negotiating team when fighting force and running the group’s day-
the Trump administration decided to directly to-day affairs after the fall of the so-called
talk to the Taliban. Islamic emirate. Besides heading the
Taliban’s military operations, he ran the
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD group’s leadership council, also known as
Mullah Baradar has been the Quetta Shura.

credited for rebuilding the As a young man, he participated in the

Afghan ‘jihad’ against the Soviet forces. It
Afghan Taliban into an was during the war that he came to know of
Mullah Omar. They fought side by side
effective fighting force. against the communist forces. After the
withdrawal of the Soviet forces and the
Their inclusion in the team was also meant collapse of the communist regime in Kabul
to send a message to Washington. Zalmay in 1992, Baradar settled down in the
Khalilzad, the chief American negotiator, southern district of Maiwand where he and
has described their presence in the talks as Mullah Omar ran their own madressah.
“more authoritative”, and tweeted that this
could be “a significant moment” in the talks. When Mullah Omar started a campaign in
1994 against local warlords with a force of
Thirteen years of imprisonment and torture some 30 men, Baradar was among the first
do not seem to have diminished their recruits. That was also the beginning of the
resolve. And, there is no sign of bitterness Taliban movement which in 1996 swept
about what they had gone through. “It’s Kabul and established the Islamic emirate.
been a long war, with lots of casualties and He first served as the Taliban’s corps
destruction and loss. What gives me hope is commander for western Afghanistan and
that both teams are taking the issue later as the garrison commander of Kabul
seriously,” Mullah Khairkhwa, one of the where he directed the fight against the rival
Guantanamo returnees, told the New York Mujahideen commanders in the north.
Times. “The two sides shared a common
interest, at least, in ending the war.” Described as the most skilled military leader
who spearheaded the fighting in southern
Take a look: Endgame in Afghanistan Afghanistan, he also conducted the
Taliban’s financial operations, allocated
The very fact that the Americans are now Taliban funds, appointed military
negotiating their withdrawal plan with the commanders, and designed military tactics.
group their forces had ousted from power
almost 18 years ago tells the story of a war His arrest had dealt a serious blow to the
gone wrong. Even if the world’s greatest Taliban insurgency. American officials were
military power believes that it has not lost quick to declare a “significant win”. But his
the war, it has not won it either. The detention did not change the course of war.
Americans are now sitting across the table By the time he was released, the Taliban
with the same men who they incarcerated had expanded their influence to more than
and declared terrorists. 50 per cent of Afghanistan. Following his
release, Baradar had circulated an
Surely, each one of those representing the audiotape promising Taliban fighters he
Taliban in the negotiations has a story of would have a greater presence within the
struggle, of being in power and a life in movement.
detention. But Baradar has played a much
greater role in building the insurgency, Baradar’s release shows the Trump
notwithstanding his long period in detention. administration’s desperation to find a
His elevation to the top rung of the Taliban political solution to the Afghan crisis.
leadership indicates the influence he wields, Although he seldom participates in the
particularly among the fighters. larger meetings between the two sides, his
presence there helps to clear a roadblock.
Known as a brilliant and charismatic military Whenever there was an indication of talks
commander, Baradar has been credited for
breaking down, Khalilzad would call on him argued that militants should be punished for
and the problem would be mostly sorted out. crimes, instead of being facilitated into
But his health seems to have been sapped society. But while this has its merits,
by nearly a decade of detention. punishment cannot be the only solution.

The US-Taliban talks have made significant

progress. But there is still a long way to go The problem in Pakistan
before peace can return to the war-torn
country. Decades of conflict that have
is the absence of details
exacted a severe toll on the lives of millions about the government’s
of Afghans and wrought destruction cannot
be ended easily even if the two sides reach deradicalisation plans.
an agreement.
Simply put, not every militant will be found
Certainly, the war has intensified while they guilty of such crimes that he can be given
have been engaged in serious negotiations. the death sentence or life imprisonment.
It is going to be a classic war-war, talk-talk There are many lower-level operatives who
situation. There are still sticking points that cannot be put away forever, even if they can
could cause the negotiations to go on for be convicted.
much longer. The differences over the
definition of ‘terrorism’ and the time frame of And this is why the state has to think more
the withdrawal of the American forces have broadly. It is in this context that
remained unresolved. Then there is also the deradicalisation has to be considered for
issue of the intra-Afghan dialogue. All those those who are not beyond redemption. The
needed to be resolved before one can hope ‘strategy’ has been adopted by a number of
for peace to return to Afghanistan. states, even though its success is far from
evident. But the debate over the efficacy is
for another time.
Unpacking
At the moment, the problem in Pakistan is
deradicalisation the absence of details available about the
Arifa NoorApril 09, 2019 government’s deradicalisation plans.
The writer is a journalist.
ONCE again, as the state rolls up its If the deradicalisation programmes in other
sleeves to rid society of militancy, plans Muslim countries are to provide any hints of
beyond the conventional security what the stakeholders in Pakistan may be
operations are under the spotlight. And considering, then such projects tend to
this includes figuring out how to deal focus on inmates or convicted criminals.
with militants.
Be it Saudi Arabia or Indonesia, the
In this regard, words such as programmes run by these governments aim
‘deradicalisation’ are being bandied about; to ‘reform’ or deradicalise imprisoned
but it is hard to figure out what the specific militants. Clerics or former militants are
plans or strategies are. The information brought in to talk to them, mentor them in a
minister, Fawad Chaudhry, is one of the few bid to turn them away from extremist views
to provide any details — he has said that it and radical ideologies. At a later stage, they
is to be a three-step strategy. The first will can be facilitated economically by being
be to disarm the groups; the second to help offered employment to help them integrate
them get jobs and interest-free loans; and into their families and society.
the third will be to integrate them into
society. For example, in Indonesia (which initiated
such efforts after the Bali bombings), the
Other news reports quote unnamed officials programme is based on the idea that
as saying the militants could be radicals will only listen to other radicals. As
accommodated in the paramilitary forces. a result, reformed extremists were recruited
to talk to and engage with convicted
There has been criticism of this idea of militants. And the second aspect was to
integration, instead of punishment, as it is
offer them financial assistance — paying the Indonesian efforts (and to some extent the
school fees of their children; providing their German example) — have been aimed at
wives with money to raise the family. convicted extremists.
Eventually, the released prisoners were
provided with some money. (In fact, there To return now to Pakistan, one can assume,
were some who argued that the in the absence of details, that the
programme’s ideological component was deradicalisation the government is now
not too effective and that militants opted for promising will be akin to the Indonesian
it only because of the financial incentives.) model discussed here; especially as this is
what the Swat centres also did.
Despite the Indonesian authorities touting
this as a success, not everyone agrees. If so, this means that only convicted
However, other Southeast Asian states have prisoners will be targeted.
implemented similar programmes.
But this raises a few questions. How
Apart from Muslim countries, the European successful will this be in settled areas where
countries, too, have such programmes, without reforms the capacity of our judicial
though these tend to be divided into system to ensure convictions may remain
counter-radicalisation (which are preventive rather limited?
in nature) and deradicalisation categories.
Second, how will this work in the case of
An example of a deradicalisation militants linked to organisations that so far
programme was the Violence Prevention have not carried out attacks on Pakistani
Network run in Germany which targeted soil? How will they be convicted or
prisoners from the far right as well as imprisoned and then made part of such
religious extremists. The prisoners were programmes?
offered a programme in prison, followed by
support for a year after being released. In Third, will the deradicalisation programme,
addition, their families were provided like the Indonesian model, aim to use former
financial help. But instead of the militants to engage with these convicted
engagement being based on religion, the militants, or will it use traditional ulema
dialogue was more focused on delving into (which the Indonesians did not use as they
the perpetrators’ sense of anger, their felt they were too discredited in the eyes of
crimes and re-educating them about the militants)?
democracy and handling conflict.
Fourth, is the government planning to set
On the other hand, the prevention aside funds for the financial rehabilitation of
programmes work entirely differently — they these militants once they have served their
aim to identify those at risk or those who sentence?
may be involved or engaged with extremist
organisations and working to disengage Raising these questions is not about
them. questioning the government’s sincerity.
Instead, it is to highlight the absence of a
For instance, a programme in the debate on the various aspects of a policy
Netherlands, which was run by the before it is given final shape and
government in collaboration with the local implemented. Indeed, the government
authorities, reached out to young people in needs to hold a more open dialogue on the
right-wing groups. These youths were issue, which the opposition must also
offered support in withdrawing from groups; engage in, if the state is serious about
this support could be in the form of help in putting an end to the militancy that plagues
returning to school or getting a job and Pakistan and consequently also endangers
accommodation. its place in the international community.

But Muslim states have tended to mostly

focus on deradicalisation. The Saudi and Pak-India stand-off
Yemeni programmes and the Najmuddin A. ShaikhUpdated April 09, 2019
deradicalisation centres in Swat — like the The writer is a former foreign secretary.
THE revelation by Foreign Minister Shah damaging the image now created of ‘a 56-
Mahmood Qureshi in a press conference inch- chested daring leader’ by another
in Multan that Pakistan had credible strike that would invite retaliation and
intelligence about Indian plans to attack possibly the loss of some further military
Pakistan between April 16 and 20 was assets.
followed, within hours, by an Indian
Foreign Office spokesperson’s shrill On Pakistan’s side, the Indians know that,
dismissal of the claim as “preposterous” beset by economic problems and working
and “clearly aimed at whipping up war frantically on resolving issues with the
hysteria in the region”. Financial Action Task Force and the IMF,
the last thing Pakistan needs is another
The spokesman went on to add: “This public episode of physical confrontation with India.
gimmick appears to be a call to Pakistan- This is the reality the Indians recognise even
based terrorists to undertake a terror attack while continuing to denounce Pakistan as
in India.” the country from which terrorists are
fomenting trouble in India-occupied
One can be certain that the foreign Kashmir.
minister’s assertion was based on what he
had been told by military intelligence. What No Indian policymaker can argue after
is less certain is whether this intelligence Prime Minister Imran Khan’s statesmanlike
was based entirely on solid information. It is gesture of releasing the captured Indian
far more likely that their claim was based on pilot that Pakistan wants to maintain a
their assessment of Ajit Doval — recognised hostile posture or that it will not take two
as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s point steps for each step that moves India forward
man for handling relations with Pakistan — towards resuming a dialogue.
and his proclaimed doctrine of offensive
defence. This, in their assessment, would It is, of course, important for Pakistan to
include Doval planning attacks that would ensure that its armed forces maintain
keep Pakistan off balance. vigilance, but should that mean the costly
deployment of forces on the border and the
In both countries, these public statements closure of 11 of the 12 air routes through
suggest that the ground realities do not Pakistani airspace, which presumably are
figure in the calculations of the two sides in regarded as necessary for security? The
this period of heightened tensions. On the estimates of the extra cost imposed on
Pakistan side, the Indian capacity rather travellers from Pakistan to such diverse
than what the Modi government would find places as Sri Lanka and Thailand run as
most beneficial would have determined the high as one billion dollars — a cost that our
military assessment. On the Indian side, the perilously low foreign exchange reserves
fear that this was a call for a terrorist attack find difficult to meet.
on India ignored the ground reality that
Pakistan’s new government is intent on Realistically, perhaps, one can accept that
curbing and eliminating such groups. even when Modi sends a relatively
conciliatory message on Pakistan Day, his
party cohorts may find it useful to denounce
We can retaliate in kind Pakistan in their media and social media
but keep it confined to a message linking it to the harsh message
that is being delivered to Indian Muslims.
verbal battle. We can retaliate in kind but keep it confined
to a verbal battle and hope that, once the
The truth of the matter is that for Prime Indian elections are out of the way, the Modi
Minister Modi the ‘decisive’ action he took government — which is likely to return to
after Pulwama has given him all the political power albeit with a reduced majority — will
benefits he could garner, despite the clear see the need to talk to Pakistan to resolve
evidence that the so-called pre-emptive the issues that have beset the relationship
strike was an utter failure. A civilian and acquired a sharp edge since Pulwama.
evaluation, therefore, would have been that
Modi is too careful a politician to risk
It is perhaps naïve to expect that Prime To put that into perspective, the fine she is
Minister Modi and the hardliners in his party faced with is worth more than two months’
will modify their stance towards Pakistan, wages for the average Tajik. Critics of the
but there are good reasons for such a applicable law say that instead of curbing
change. While the Indian economy is still ostentation, what it has in practice achieved
doing well, it has not delivered the 10 million is helping corrupt officials extort money from
jobs that Modi had promised to create, nor the public.
has it fully recovered from the adverse
impact of the demonetisation that he carried
out in his bid to digitise the economy. Does the state have the
The World Bank report titled Half a
right to regulate the
Glassful has talked of the immense potential private lives of citizens?
for intra-regional trade within Saarc. Clearly,
as the largest country of the region, India This is not the first time, of course, that the
will be the principal beneficiary, but the law has been trotted out. In 2015, a man
others too would be much better off. It would was fined a similarly hefty sum for
perhaps be going a step too far to envisage celebrating his birthday in a bar with friends,
India as one of the regional countries that after being caught out online when he
can benefit from CPEC, but that too is a posted a picture on Facebook. As reported,
very real possibility as some Indian Tajik authorities “regularly upbraid pop stars
industrialists have recognised. for petty misdemeanours and state control
over the local scene ensures that many
artists stick to pro-government and patriotic
Austerity measures themes” — so much so that Tajikistan
Hajrah MumtazApril 08, 2019 President Emomali Rakhmon in February
The writer is a member of staff. called on them to stop being so slavishly
THE news wires that major organisations loyal in their songs to the long-reigning ruler.
subscribe to are full of curious and
sometimes wonderful things that may We in Pakistan are, of course, no stranger
never make the cut in a newspaper’s to ‘austerity drives’ aimed at reducing the
limited space — and have the additional distance between the rich and the poor, and
benefit of providing perspective. A curbing ostentation and private and public
colleague recently came across a little spending.
gem that she was kind enough to share
with me. From the PML-N government’s decision in
the late ’90s that only one dish may be
As reported by AFP, it seems that in 2007, served at wedding celebrations to schemes
Tajikistan passed a law aiming to such as those the current PTI government
discourage lavish spending on wedding and has come up with — eg opening up Prime
other celebratory events, with the scope Minister House to the public and converting
extending not just to public but also private it into a university premises (until the Saudi
venues. As a consequence, last week a pop crown prince arrived, when the building was
star — Firuza Hafizova — was fined the miraculously resurrected to receive him and
equivalent of $530 for hosting a birthday the doors thrown open to receive a royal
party at her home, with her friends. The donor) — there are numerous examples.
Tajik authorities got wind of the affair after a
video emerged on the internet that showed Some have been partially effective, others
her dancing with friends, with state not so much, because perhaps it is a part of
prosecutors issuing a statement on Tuesday human nature to try and escape the long
that as Ms Hafizova “celebrated her birthday arm of the law. This is especially true if, as
at her home on Dec 12 from eight to 11pm, in a country such as Pakistan, that long arm
her girlfriends and acquaintances arrived to is often ineffectual, the state has limited
congratulate her. […]”. Birthdays should be prosecution and evidence-collecting
celebrated “in the family circle only”, it capacities, and it is the wealthy and the well
specified. connected that are both framing law or
policy, and then being guilty of bypassing it,
aware that they are hardly likely to be called stabilised, are in for a rude shock. We are
out, let alone face the wrath of the courts. still at the beginning of the huge damage
relentlessly being done to Pakistan’s
The interesting question all this throws up is, economy by an irresponsible and
does a state have the right (or can it incompetent management and leadership
appropriate the ‘right’) to regulate even the which has destroyed the economy over
private lives of citizens? Part of the answer the last eight months.
can be found in the hackneyed theory of
social contract, where the state (and by It certainly did not add to anyone’s
extension the government that represents it) confidence when the finance minister
and citizens tacitly mutually agree for one to himself was recently reported to have said
provide basics such as security or right (to that “Pakistan may be going through an
an extent), while the other party submits to a economic crisis”, or that we are “near
certain level of control and oversight, bankruptcy”, a view shared by the adviser to
agreeing, for example, to follow the law or the prime minister on commerce, textile,
pay tax, etc. industry and production and investment who
also said that the economy was in a “bad
That is all fitting and proper, yet in the shape”. The governor of the State Bank,
context of austerity measures such as the agreed, adding his sombre and dire
case in Tajikistan, there are a couple of statement about where we are today,
basics to bring into consideration over the warning about dismal prospects in the
debate. First, it is fact that in every society future, politely saying that growth will
on the planet, there is a disparity between ‘moderate significantly”. However, be
the rich and the poor or not so well off, with warned, things are about to get much worse.
regulatory rules often being faced
disproportionately by the latter — the former Two things need to be pointed out. One, that
get by often on the basis of their privilege. while the current government did certainly
inherit an economy which was desperately
Second, what if a state is not holding up its seeking reform, after eight months it can’t
end of the bargain of the social contract? In blame previous governments and has to
Pakistan, security and economic take responsibility for its own mishandling.
opportunity, or access to affordable and After two failed mini-budgets, some
decent healthcare or education, are introspection is necessary. Second, a look
amongst the issues that are foremost on the at a few key indicators will only emphasise
citizenry’s mind. The state of these sectors, the point of how bad things have become.
and several others, is clear for all to see.
What then? With inflation at its highest in five-and-a-half
years, we are only seeing the beginnings of
Some academics present an argument that, a period of double-digit inflation. The rupee
paraphrased, basically says that hope is losing value every other day, adding to
springs eternal. With each election, people this inflation, and will depreciate a great deal
have a chance to choose whom they believe more, whether, or especially when, the
may deliver best on the contract, the PTI’s government gives in to yet another IMF
victory last year being a case in point. Even programme.
so, there are no guarantees to be found
anywhere. ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD

The rupee is losing value

Much worse to come every other day, adding
S. Akbar ZaidiUpdated April 08, 2019
The writer is a Karachi-based political to inflation, and will
economist.
ALL those who had hoped that
depreciate a great deal
Pakistan’s economy may have finally hit more.
rock-bottom and may just have turned a
corner, and that the wreck created by the The fiscal deficit is about to hit more than six
finance minister and his team might have per cent of GDP, and even a cut in
development expenditure will not stop this schemes will come from, given the state of
rot, as defence spending and interest the economy, is a complete mystery. A far
payments continue to rise. Our exports, more robust taxation policy, taxing the very
despite the 35pc devaluation, have barely rich and transferring this money to those
budged, the circular debt continues to who deserve it, would address Pakistan’s
increase, interest rates are also going up growing inequality, and might allow social
making the cost of business even more welfare spending as well, but the
uncompetitive. One can go on and show a government fails at such structural
vast array of statistics which unambiguously measures of reform.
show that this government has ruined the
economy. With the State Bank The very next day after the prime minister’s
lowering GDP growth to an eight-year low of announcement, it was reported that the
around 3.5pc, those begging for money finance minister had stated that Pakistan
(most of which has already been spent in was finally about to secure a bailout
one way or another) from the four friends we package from the IMF of between $6 billion
have left, need to think of better alternatives. and $12bn in late April or early May. These
And tax amnesty schemes are certainly no two statements represent a huge disconnect
solution. between what the prime minister envisages
and how his finance minister thinks the
There is nothing which represents the economy ought to be managed.
complete disarray and disconnect in
understanding and thinking about Pakistan’s There is a basic contradiction here between
social and economic issues by this both these aims and positions, and both
government, and their attempted solution have diametrically opposite consequences.
than the two announcements made recently. This should be fairly obvious to anyone, no
The first was made by the prime minister of matter how well intentioned, if they have
Pakistan on March 28, followed by one even a miniscule understanding of how a
made by his finance minister reported the country’s social and economic policy is
next day. managed, and what the consequences of an
IMF programme will entail.
Prime Minister Imran Khan announced “the
biggest and the boldest” poverty alleviation The anticipated IMF programme, which is
programme of Pakistan called Ehsas, with a almost a certainty now, is going to make
number of measures supposedly to address things far worse for all Pakistanis, and
many of the country’s persistent economic especially for the working people already
problems. This, at a time, when poverty dealing with prospects of a marked
numbers have fallen and poverty has economic slowdown and far higher prices.
ceased to be Pakistan’s biggest problem, The IMF will further cut the miniscule
now replaced by huge and visible disparities development expenditure we have left,
in income and wealth. although defence spending will remain a
matter of ‘national security’, hence, not to be
The apparent determination and importance touched.
of these measures to the government, were
emphasised by the prime minister’s The IMF brings about austerity, stabilisation
announcement, that he would ask for a and cuts the growth rate, it insists on
constitutional amendment to move Article devaluation, and will cause greater inflation
38(d) from the ‘Principles of Policy” section by raising utility prices. The fundamental
into the ‘Fundamental Rights’ section, rights in the Constitution, regarding the
making the “provision of food, clothing, “provision of food, clothing, housing,
housing, education and medical relief for education and medical relief for citizens”,
citizens who cannot earn a livelihood due to are inconsistent with any IMF programme. In
infirmity, sickness or unemployment, a state fact, at the end of the anticipated IMF
responsibility”. programme, we will add many more to the
ranks of those who “cannot earn a livelihood
Undoubtedly, these are admirable intentions due to infirmity, sickness or unemployment”.
and a part of his Riasat-i-Madina project. Perhaps it is best to remind ourselves, there
But where the money for such grandiose was no IMF in the state of Madina.
 Schools, especially elementary schools, are
A healthy nation where children are exposed to many
Muhammad Umair ArshadApril 07, 2019 influences outside the family. Parents as
The writer is director of the Institute of Home well as teachers need to “help the children
and Food Sciences, Government College build healthy foundations by encouraging a
University, Faisalabad. habit of consuming healthy foods and
IT is estimated that over three billion maintaining good nutrition throughout these
people around the globe are affected by formative and impressionable years”.
micronutrient deficiencies, with its more
aggressive impact being felt in the It is worth mentioning that there are multiple
developing countries. Pakistan is factors that discourage healthy lifestyles at
amongst the countries with an extremely this age, including the easy availability of
poor nutritional status for children under unhygienic restaurant and street food items,
and above five years of age. the busy lifestyles of parents, and marketing
pressures in a globalised world. These
According to the National Nutrition Survey distractions may push children towards the
2011, stunting (the failure to reach linear reduced intake of the nutritious meals that
growth potential), wasting (acute weight they need at their age.
loss) and micronutrient malnutrition (hidden
hunger) is endemic in the country. This could result in compromised nutrition
and could have unfortunate implications for
Nearly half of the children under five years the national economic growth, the
of age are stunted and one in three is healthcare infrastructure and the overall
underweight. Hidden hunger, ie mental, physical and social well-being of the
micronutrient deficiencies, has severe health citizenry. In this context, sufficient nutritional
consequences and is particularly harmful if awareness, within school boundaries, could
experienced in early childhood. It irreversibly create an environment of health and well-
impairs the child’s physical and cognitive being for both the parents and their children.
development and increases the risk of
mortality, with reduced productivity at later In the past, the Punjab government, through
stages. the efforts of the Punjab Food Authority, had
launched a number of nutritional-awareness
The causes of these morbidities are as well as curricula-development
numerous, and include dietary deficiencies, programmes in schools to combat these
poor maternal and child health, poor problems.
nutrition, a high burden of morbidity, low
micronutrient content in the soil, and an In Pakistan, elementary school education
extremely poor knowledge of nutrition appears to be shifting towards the private
amongst the general masses. sector, with an increasing burden of tuition
fees being put on the parents. Private
Stunting, wasting, and schools are adopting different strategies in
the education of children, and are
malnutrition are endemic attempting to come up with better results
through the hiring of specialist teachers
in this country. including those who can teach music,
oversee physical fitness, and motivate
Currently, many strategies are being students.
adopted to combat these nutritional
challenges. However, food-related However, health and growth are not
strategies often fail to address the problem prioritised. It is a disturbing that the
of micronutrient deficiency as budgets often nutritional part of education and training has
do not allow micronutrient-rich foods to be remained neglected. Unfortunately, many
included in meals. Efforts to overcome the parents are also not too concerned.
menace include both awareness and food-
intervention programmes. In particular, The encouraging aspect of this story is that
nutritional-awareness programmes through a large number of graduates, who have
the media are considered to be among the specialised in nutrition, are now emerging
best solutions.
from higher educational institutes. These there are not many democracies of any
graduates are well educated and trained to shade that would have re-elected a leader
address nutritional issues. However, many facing accusations of criminal misconduct.
are still looking for job placement in the
healthcare system. On the other hand, the status quo would
hardly have been upended had the new
I believe they would be best employed in Blue and White coalition led by former
elementary schools. Having such graduates military chief Benny Gantz been elevated to
in the school system could help improve the a position where it could have had the first
nutritional status of our citizenry in the long go at forming the next government.
run and lead to a stronger, healthier nation.
Therefore, public- and private-sector ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
elementary schools must hire professional
nutrition teachers. They would formulate The two-state solution
effective ways of encouraging children to
develop their awareness and opt for healthy has been dead for years.
food.
Ultimately, Blue and White fell just one seat
The idea ought to be conveyed to the short of Netanyahu’s Likud. Even with fewer
education ministry as well as the food seats, though, Likud may still have had a
regulatory authorities that schools must hire better chance of leading a fourth successive
at least one nutrition teacher; it is unlikely administration, given its willingness to form
that it would entail a huge cost. Normally, alliances with even the most retrograde
these schools pay their teachers Rs30,000 elements on the political spectrum, including
to Rs40,000 per month on average. Otzma Yehudit (Jewish Power),
Therefore, employing nutritional specialists representing the overtly racist heirs of
would not add too much to their budgets, assassinated rabbi Meir Kahane. His Kach
especially when we envision the long-lasting party was outlawed by Israel in 1994 after a
impact of this policy on the overall well- supporter killed 29 worshippers in a Hebron
being of the Pakistani nation. Healthy mosque; it was subsequently declared a
children and a healthy nation will terrorist outfit by the US.
automatically lead to an economically strong
Pakistan. This must be the goal. Even the American Israel Public Affairs
Committee (AIPAC) felt obliged to distance
itself from Netanyahu on this count, but
Israel’s destiny more broadly remains a devout admirer,
Mahir AliUpdated April 17, 2019 devoting its energies to denigrating
American critics of Israel such as Rep. Ilhan
IT probably wasn’t necessary for Omar and Senator Bernie Sanders. It is
Benjamin Netanyahu, on the eve of the quite amusing how AIPAC, shortly after
April 9 election, to declare that it was his Omar called it out for devoting its resources
intention to annex large chunks of the to encouraging blind faith in Israel and
West Bank. He evidently did not wish to was slammed as anti-Semitic for doing so,
take any chances, though, despite the the lobby group began funding
last-minute assistance from Donald advertisements against Sanders, who
Trump and Vladimir Putin. happens to be Jewish and leads the
preliminary tussle among Democrats for
Was it bluster? Probably not, especially if next year’s presidential nomination.
the far-right allies he needs to form his fifth
coalition insist on that as the price for That, generally, is how most lobbying
granting him immunity against pending organisations operate, but it’s apparently
corruption charges. anti-Semitic to associate Jews with money,
even though some of them — such as
It is often said that the ability to indict a Sheldon Adelson, a leading far-right
sitting prime minister elevates Israel above fundraiser, who didn’t blanch or blink when
other semi-democracies in the Middle East, Trump recently referred, at a gathering of
such as Egypt or Turkey. At the same time, Republican Jews, to Netanyahu as “your
prime minister”, implying dual loyalty, a to a binational democracy. But even that
suggestion that would immediately have suggestion is deemed anti-Semitic because
been slammed as anti-Semitic had it been it would erode the possibility of an
made by a critic of Israel or Likud. exclusively Jewish state. The likeliest
prospect is an indefinite extension of the
Having earlier technically shifted the US status quo alongside a slow but steady
embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, on the diminution of the occupied territories. The
eve of the Israeli election Trump vague flicker of hope at the end of the tunnel
recognised Israel’s annexation of the Golan has dimmed further since last week. But
Heights, taken over from Syria in 1967, and who will rage against the dying of the light?
furthermore declared Iran’s Revolutionary
Guard to be a terrorist organisation.
Netanyahu was quick to thank him, and Welcoming tourists
promptly announced his intention to annex Rafia ZakariaApril 17, 2019
the West Bank, or at least substantial parts
thereof. The writer is an attorney teaching
constitutional law and political philosophy.
The US president has for two years
trumpeted some kind of a peace plan for the “THE diversity and beauty with a
Middle East, masterminded by his son-in- combination of deserts, beaches and
law Jared Kushner and, to boot, the US mountains bestowed by the Almighty
ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, who upon Pakistan is unmatchable in the
is inclined to go even further than world.” So said Prime Minister Imran
Netanyahu in his support of the settlements Khan at the recently held Pakistan
— illegal under international law, but mostly Tourism Summit. The “diversity and
not under Israeli rules. beauty” of which he spoke is ostensibly
being developed by the government of
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who Pakistan into a means of attracting
has previously expressed the opinion that tourists to Pakistan to boost the
God possibly made Trump president to save economy and to reduce the crippling
the Jews (never mind that some of the most poverty that afflicts millions of citizens. If
deplorable components of Trump’s ‘base’ Malaysia and Turkey can have billion-
are unabashedly anti-Semitic, even if they dollar tourism industries, then Pakistan
are rather impressed by Netanyahu in can, too. Arriving tourists, particularly
particular and Zionism in general), recently those from Western countries, will come
noted that the annexation plans would not to trek and climb and see the incredible
interfere with the White House-sponsored untouched beauty that describes so
plan. many parts of Pakistan.

Small wonder, then, that the Palestinians That, at least, is the dream. Like most just-
have preemptively rejected it, and that launched ideas incubated amongst the
rejection may well be used as an excuse for people who control policy in the country, this
annexing Palestinian territories. one is believed to be a panacea to
Pakistan’s dwindling means of attracting
Netanyahu’s declaration on this front investment. To show how serious the whole
prompted a great deal of commentary along idea is, an e-visa scheme has also been
the lines that he was effectively killing any launched. In a separate speech, President
hope for a two-state solution. But that is Alvi reminded everyone that Pakistan is “a
nonsense. The two-state solution has been paradise for tourists” and that the
dead for years, even if it has not received a government would be doing everything it
decent burial. The Israeli prime minister could to make it easy for them to come over.
could certainly be accused of hammering In addition to the e-visa scheme, which
the last nails into its coffin, but the gesture allows the visa process to be initiated online,
does not realistically mean much. a visa-on-arrival scheme has also been
launched for China, Turkey, the United
The question is, what is the alternative? Kingdom and the UAE. All, it would seem, is
Logic points to a one-state solution leading in place for Pakistan to be, as an article in
The Telegraph hopefully wondered, “the who come from more predictable and
next big thing in tourism”. orderly places. Pakistan can undoubtedly
offer up new experiences, but whether these
All of this posturing and pandering, which experiences are actually enjoyable is not a
included a line-up of white and Western guarantee that any Pakistani can offer.
social media influencers, naturally ended up
causing a bit of commotion. Pakistan’s Then there is the problem of fun and
bloggers complained first, sulky and petulant relaxation. Even with an e-visa system and
at the fact that they were left out of the cast visa-on-arrival schemes and better deals for
of characters to be deployed to bring all the tour companies and travel-related
tourists to Pakistan. Of the ones that the businesses, Pakistan will likely lag behind
government had collected, one was done other countries in the region. This is
away with when it was learned that she was because a tourism-friendly country is
setting up to be quite critical of the project. ultimately one that is flexible enough to
Quite predictably, she took to social media accommodate the visitor’s idea of fun and
(Facebook, in this case) to set out her leisure. Tourism economies are generally
qualms about the whole affair (and of being those that are secure enough about their
cut out of it). It was unclear how the ones own values that they do not find it necessary
that were allowed to speak were selected to impose them on visitors.
(other than the fact that they have blogs and
are white and want to travel). This last aspect is almost impossible in
Pakistan. A country where women are
Beyond the squabble over the citizenship routinely harassed and everyone simply
and the colour of the people selected to sell ignores the problem, for instance, cannot
Pakistan, the tourism summit poses some accommodate female travellers. The latter
interesting questions most Pakistanis and group may want to wear shorts or tank tops
most people involved with the summit may because their definition of fun does not
not have considered. The premise is that the include accommodating someone else’s
natural beauty and high mountains and dress code. Similarly, others may want to
verdant valleys are quite enough to attract consume alcoholic drinks as part of their fun
the cash-laden traveller. It has not yet and relaxation, without having to worry
occurred to anyone that this premise may in about being victimised by religious hard-
fact be false, or at least flawed. The reason liners. Neither of the two — women walking
has to do with the basic question of why around in what they want to wear, or tourists
people engage in leisure travel. For most, consuming alcohol — would likely be
the answer to this has to do with having fun, tolerable to most Pakistanis.
relaxing and having novel experiences.
In this last fact lies the truth of the situation,
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD why the untouched natural beauty of the
country cannot be the cash cow that
Like most just-launched everyone wants it to be. Pakistan, with its
tense and insistent imposition of constraints
ideas, this one is believed on people’s behaviour in public, is not
flexible enough to accommodate visitors
to be a panacea to who want to experience the country’s beauty
Pakistan’s dwindling but not follow the strict codes of how to be
and what to say that govern Pakistanis. All
means of attracting the visas and social media influencers and
bloggers cannot alter the fact that Pakistanis
investment. cannot live and let live among themselves
and are probably incapable of
At the moment, Pakistan can offer only one accommodating the tourist’s definition of fun
of the three: the potential for novel and freedom without imposing their own
experiences. Indeed, the large doses of moral judgements.
chaos that douse everything from roads to
electricity supply to water availability are Promoting tourism in Pakistan, then, likely
likely to produce new experiences for those has more to do with setting aside the moral
intransigence that so smugly judges and seek it. As a result, the government has
demands that everyone align with its mores; failed to do any legislation in the last eight
it must graduate from its own version of fun months. Can this be described as a failure
and enjoyment and hospitality to those of of the system or as Imran Khan’s own
the tourists it wishes to attract. If this is not egotism? In a parliamentary democracy one
possible, then all the high mountains and needs to learn to make compromises where
green valleys and delicious food cannot they are needed. One cannot blame the
attract the world’s travellers to what the opposition for one’s own ineptitude and
travel guide Lonely Planet calls “South mistakes.
Asia’s difficult child”. Before tourist dollars
can be expected to transform the country ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
and rid it of poverty, the country and its
citizens must transform themselves. An attempt to return to a
centralised state will have
Betting on presidential very serious political
rule repercussions.
Zahid HussainApril 17, 2019

The writer is an author and journalist. Over the last 70 years, the country has
alternated between authoritarian military
WHETHER Pakistan will be better off with regimes and ineffectual elected civilian rule.
a presidential system of government or For most of its history, the country has been
not — the debate is perennial. But the ruled by the powerful military with short
proposition now seems to have assumed spans of elected civilian democracy in
a more serious connotation. There is a between. Consequently, democratic
growing scepticism within the ruling PTI institutions and values that are necessary to
and the establishment over the viability sustain parliamentary democracy have
of the existing parliamentary democracy. remained weak.

In a recent media interview, President Arif Still, we have seen three democratic
Alvi revealed that the PTI has seriously transitions in a row. While there may be
been discussing whether to switch to a questions about the credibility of the
presidential rule. For many in the party, only elections, democracy has taken root, though
a centralised power structure could ensure it is still very fragile. Surely, the
political and economic stability in the parliamentary system has its flaws and does
country. Such arguments are not new. They not have an enviable record when it comes
manifest an increasing tendency towards to performance. But a unitary form of
authoritarianism. It’s more about the crisis of government doesn’t provide a solution to the
governance rather than failure of problems. In fact, an attempt to return to a
parliamentary democracy. centralised state will have very serious
political repercussions. The controversy
It is apparent that Imran Khan is not over the 18th Amendment is also a part of
comfortable working within the confines of the move to weaken the federal structure.
the parliamentary system. He has been Such attempts could widen various political
voicing his frustration at various forums. He and ethnic fault lines.
feels constrained without absolute power.
He would not even attend parliamentary What is needed is to reform the existing
sessions because of a vociferous system rather than move toward a more
opposition. He would not interact with the centralised power structure. A major
opposition leaders even on issues that problem hindering the democratic process is
require consultation according to the law that there has been no fundamental change
and the Constitution. in Pakistan’s political power structure. A
small power elite has dominated the
Lacking a clear majority in parliament, the country’s political scene under both civilian
prime minister needs the support of the and military rule. The extractive nature of
opposition to legislate, but he would not the state’s institutions has prevented the
country from embarking on a path of Education, health and population planning
economic and political progress. remained on the lowest rung of priorities.

Despite the economic and social changes That has been one of the major reasons for
that have occurred over the past 70 years, our backwardness. Imran Khan does not
the stranglehold of family-oriented politics hide his admiration for Ayub Khan and other
has been perpetuated. A limited number of military rulers for their development work.
influential families continue to control But he forgets to mention much else. Thirty
Pakistani legislatures. A sense of dynastic years of direct military rule has also been
entitlement dominates the country’s political responsible for the country falling behind in
culture, impeding the development of all social indicators. Interestingly, all the
institutional democracy. military governments in Pakistan had tried to
civilianise themselves, thus strengthening
With few exceptions, almost all the political the power structure that remains the basic
parties are an extension of powerful families obstacle in the way of the development of
with hereditary leadership. This decadent democratic culture and economic progress.
power structure has been strengthened by
authoritarian military regimes that have ruled Whether the presidential order suits the
the country for the larger part of its history. country more is a futile debate. It will not be
The control exercised by a narrow oligarchy possible for the PTI government or for the
has impeded the critical structural reforms establishment to change the Constitution.
needed for sustainable economic Imran Khan is neither Recep Erdoğan, nor is
development and for strengthening Pakistan Turkey. A unitary form of
democratic and economic institutions. government cannot keep a multinational
country united. A presidential form of
Another challenge hindering the democratic government does not provide the solution to
process is that Pakistani politics has our complex political and financial problems.
increasingly become region-based, with
even the mainstream national political Instead of trying to change the system, the
parties now focusing on their provincial government must focus on removing the
strongholds. This regionalisation of politics shortcomings in the existing political order
has also been a factor in the country’s by working with other political forces. The
failure to build a national narrative on critical country cannot afford to experiment with a
issues. While the 18th Amendment has system that has long been thrown into the
turned Pakistan into a truly federal dustbin of history.
democracy by giving the provinces greater
autonomy, the failure to further devolve
power remains a major problem. Politics of adjustment
Khurram HusainUpdated April 18, 2019
Some promoters of the presidential form of
government contend that the economy The writer is a member of staff.
performs much better under authoritarian
regimes. This is a completely flawed THE finance minister and his cohorts are
argument. The relatively high economic now repeatedly claiming that the size of
growth achieved under military rule had the economic adjustment that they are
mainly been driven by massive foreign aid being made to undertake is “the largest
as payback for the military’s services in ever” and that the size of the
various American wars. macroeconomic imbalances they have
inherited are also “unprecedented.” Is
The increasing dependence on foreign this really the case?
financial support had also been a major
factor in our failure to carry out any It is important to explore and verify this claim
structural reform that could put the country of the government, because it is central to
on the path to sustained economic progress. how well they are in a position to navigate
There had been very little investment in the the politics of adjustment. The real game of
development of human infrastructure. politics will begin for this government after
the IMF programme is signed, since thus far
they have made a go of things by pushing service obligations. Let’s consider the first of
the difficult choices down the road. The real these: the fiscal adjustment.
game begins once they have to start telling
powerful constituencies that they cannot At the moment, the government is being
have all that they wish for. When the finance asked by the IMF to cut expenditures and
minister has to turn away supplementary increase revenues in quantity equal to
grant requests, and enhance taxes on items almost 4.5 per cent of GDP over the three
of daily use and those that increase the years of the programme. Of this, something
burden on the common man, that is when like 1.7pc of GDP worth of revenue
the politics of adjustment kicks in properly. generation has to come upfront, while the
deficit has to be cut by 0.8pc of GDP in the
At the moment, this government is having a first year, followed by another 0.8pc in the
difficult time managing the very beginnings second. Of course, these numbers could
of the adjustment process. Once in an IMF change by the time a programme is signed,
programme, they will have to wade deep but will still be in the same sort of ballpark.
into it, own the adjustment, and submit to a
review every three months. Fail one review Is the size of this adjustment bigger than
and disbursement of the tranche could be any other undertaken by any government in
delayed, which sends a terribly disruptive the past? Here is what the document
signal to the state’s creditors and all containing the terms of the 2013 facility said
investors. about the size of the fiscal adjustment that
the newly elected PML-N government had to
It takes a great deal of political skill to undertake:
manage the adjustment process and keep it
on track. A government can afford to lose its “The initial fiscal adjustment effort includes
voter base for a brief period, and plan to permanent deficit reduction measures of 2pc
return with large spending packages in its of GDP, coming mainly from revenue
final year to regain the affections of its key increases and lower energy subsidies. Tax
constituencies among the masses. But measures included in the 2013/14 budget —
losing the support of the elites of its society, including a one point hike in the GST rate —
with whose permission any government are expected to yield [0.75pc] of GDP
remains in power, is far more costly and annually. Reduced energy subsidies will
difficult to navigate. This is true in practically produce another [0.75pc] of GDP in savings.
all countries where there is an electoral The remainder will come from lower current
franchise. All societies have elites, and no expenditures (0.15pc of GDP), savings of
ruler can afford to alienate them. the PSDP budget, and (in the second half of
the fiscal year) a new levy on natural gas
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD expected to yield about 0.4pc of GDP on an
annualised basis. As a contingent strategy,
Once in an IMF the government will bring forward the
measures identified for years two and three
programme, the of the programme.”
government will have to Notice upfront that the initial size of the
wade deep into it, and adjustment in the first year of the
programme is larger than what is being
own the process. demanded now, when expressed as a
percentage of GDP. This puts the figure in
The process of adjustment is a little the right proportion to make it comparable
complicated, but it’s not exactly rocket over time.
science. At its simplest, it involves raising
taxes and cutting expenditures. After that, it The military regime of Pervez Musharraf
involves building foreign exchange reserves, implemented a very tough one-year standby
in a sustainable way, which means facility in the first year after the general
increasing exports and remittances seized power. That programme envisaged a
and decreasing imports and foreign debt budget deficit reduction equal to 1.3pc of
GDP in half a year (the letter of intent was
submitted in November 2000, the target was their culture and customs, rejection of the
to be achieved by June 2001). They rights of minority communities and women,
committed to increase tax revenue by 1.1pc and determination to convert them through
of GDP — no small feat for a government inducement or intimidation or eliminate them
just one year in — and to be achieved in half through physical violence, including terrorist
a year. How did they propose to do this? Not acts.
by base broadening, but by raising the GST
and extending its coverage into areas like Women constitute the largest single group
fuel, gas and electricity. In short, by of people in Pakistan that are victims of
significantly raising the burden on the extremists’ violence. A recently released
common man — something a military report of a survey conducted by the United
regime does not have to worry about too Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), in
much. cooperation with the Bureau of Statistics
and the Punjab Commission on the Status
The story is the same with the PPP of Women, shows that one-third of women
government of 2008. Their programme in Punjab, aged 15 to 64, have suffered
began in November 2008 while the real violence. The situation elsewhere in the
macroeconomic targets were worked out by country could be only marginally different.
March 2009. So their targets also had to be Almost every day, the media reports a
met starting midway through the fiscal year. woman being burnt alive or killed otherwise.
The budget deficit had to be reduced by The practice of killing women for men’s
0.9pc in half of a fiscal year, as per their honour has spread to cities where it was
letter of intent (compared to 0.8pc being unknown till recently. Women are attacked
demanded from the present government). for choosing their spouses, for failing to
The bulk of this had to be achieved from the meet intermittent dowry demands, and for
elimination of fuel and power subsidies, venturing out wearing clothes and sporting
which significantly raised prices at the pump hairstyles tabooed by orthodox priests of
and in the power bills, boosting inflation and morality. There are areas where girls are not
spreading widespread disaffection. allowed to go to school.

The story is a simple one: the path of Women and girls belonging to bonded
adjustment is tough, but the PTI government labour families, working in agriculture or at
is not the first to have to walk it. The others brick kilns and in various other sectors,
managed and dealt with the fallout. It is time suffer extremists’ excesses in several forms:
for Imran Khan to do the same. their labour is exploited, they are denied
freedom of movement, they cannot seek
alternative employment, and they have no
The roots of extremism defence against abduction and sexual
I.A. RehmanApril 18, 2019 abuse. Non-Muslim women and girls suffer
greater violence than their Muslim
I. A. Rehman counterparts, and those still identified by the
state as the scheduled castes suffer much
EXTREMIST militants receive more than upper caste Hindus and other
considerable support from their non-Muslim groups.
apologists who take exception to
criticism of religious extremism and
claim this is not the only form of Can the state be
extremism. The point is valid though
there can be no bar to examining faith-
absolved of crime by
based intolerance alone. A brief inquiry negligence?
will show that the various forms of
extremism have common roots. Children outside the category mentioned
above constitute another large group that
For want of a standard definition in the suffers extremists’ violence. A large number
context of Pakistan’s environment, of street children suffer economic
extremism may be defined as irreconcilable exploitation and physical and sexual abuse.
hostility to other people’s religion or sect, The number of domestic servants that are
subjected to various forms of abuse has liberate the Pakistani society of
been rising for quite some time. The state anachronistic social mores which are,
has failed to eradicate corporal punishment among other things, one of the major
in schools. Only the other day a small girl obstacles to the growth of a democratic
died after falling (or jumping) from a rooftop. system and a democratic culture. If children
She dreaded going to school where she was at schools and madressahs are at the mercy
mercilessly thrashed for lagging behind in of sadists in the garb of teachers, and if
her studies. Her mother added to her misery savages at institutions of higher learning can
by tying up her hands and feet and throwing kill a student like Mashal Khan and a
her in a dark room. Enforced teacher like Khalid Hameed, can the state
disappearances are one of the ugliest forms be absolved of crime by negligence? The
of extremism. bonded workers, their women folk and their
children continue to suffer because their
Now we may take a look at the incidence of tormentors enjoy political clout. Has the
faith- related violence. The Hazara Shias state taken any action to eliminate the worst
are mowed down for their beliefs. Many hate forms of child labour despite having signed
preachers openly instigate murder. The the relevant ILO convention? Can the state
Ahmadis continue to be victims of target wash away the ignominy of allowing
killing. The anti-minorities knights are not enforced disappearances, the ultimate form
content with instituting cases under the of extremist violence?
blasphemy law; they try to exterminate their
quarry in police custody or in the street. As regards extremist violence in the name of
Anyone acquitted of blasphemy charges religion, the state has been inviting censure
cannot find a safe place to live in the for acts of both omission and commission.
country. And there is no doubt that the killing On the one hand, it has done practically
of non-Muslims in prayer houses and nothing to save the people from what is
Muslims in mosques and schools is done in described as wrong interpretation of their
the name of religion. faith and, on the other hand, it continues to
associate with the religious elements that
Even a cursory reading of the evidence of openly denounce democracy, human rights
violence committed by extremists will bring and pluralism. All past governments
out the fact that use of extremist violence increased their and the people’s tribulations
due to completely non-religious factors, by appeasing the quasi-religious lobby. It is
such as exploitation of bonded labour and time the present government asked itself
street children, and corporal punishment in whether it is surpassing its predecessors in
schools and even in madressahs, is not pandering to the orthodoxy that has done
unknown in Pakistan. The causes of incalculable harm to Islam and Muslims over
violence against women include patriarchal many centuries.
excesses, feudal culture and misogynous
tendencies, but do not exclude
misinterpretation of religious injunctions. As A new strategy
regards the extremists’ and militants’ Sikander ShahApril 20, 2019
narrative of terrorism in the name of religion,
it has been attributed to a wrong The writer is former legal adviser to
interpretation of Islam by no less an Pakistan’s foreign ministry, and faculty,
internationally recognised Islamic scholar Lums Law School.
than Dr Khalid Masud, formerly chairman of
the Council of Islamic Ideology and at THE BJP government has unequivocally
present a judge of the Shariat Appellate stated that it will repeal Articles 35-A and
Court. 370 of the Indian constitution if it is voted
back into power. Article 370 provides an
Unfortunately, the roots of all forms of autonomous status to Jammu and
extremist violence lie in the state’s acts of Kashmir and Article 35-A prevents
omission or commission. If women’s settlements or the acquisition of
suffering due to the curses of patriarchy, immovable property by non-Kashmiris in
misogyny or feudal culture has increased, the occupied territory. These articles
the state is responsible for having failed to solely authorise the [occupied Kashmir]
legislature to define “the classes of promulgation of Article 370 and 35-A, and
persons who are, or shall be, permanent prohibits all changes to the status quo over
residents of … Jammu and Kashmir”. Kashmir effected by either nation without
mutual resolution. The treaty states that
India’s constitutional absorption of occupied “pending the final settlement of any of the
Jammu and Kashmir in the 1950s remains problems between the two countries, neither
illegal under international law because the side shall unilaterally alter the situation and
princely state (that includes Azad Kashmir both shall prevent the organisation,
and Gilgit-Baltistan) was to decide its own assistance or encouragement of any acts
fate through a plebiscite carried out, as detrimental to the maintenance of peaceful
outlined under UN Security Council and harmonious relations”. By repealing
Resolution 47, under the auspices of the Articles 35-A and 370, India would be
United Nations Commission for India and violating the Shimla Agreement both in spirit
Pakistan (UNCIP) formed under UN Security and practice.
Council Resolution 39. Nevertheless, today,
any protections taken away from the ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
Kashmiri people or attempts to change the
demographics of occupied Kashmir by India Furthermore, India’s attempt to change the
would seriously compromise the right to self- demographics of India-occupied Kashmir is
determination and human rights of the a grave violation of international
Kashmiri people; it would also alter the humanitarian law and can amount to serious
status quo over Kashmir, violating war crimes, crimes against humanity and
Pakistan’s due process and international ethnic cleansing. Under Article 49 of the
legal rights as a recognised state party to Geneva Convention IV (1949), “the
the Kashmir dispute. occupying power shall not deport or transfer
parts of its own civilian population into the
Through these measures, such as its territory it occupies.”
endeavour to define (or redefine) the
permanent residency of India-occupied The same principle is reaffirmed in the more
Jammu and Kashmir, India is openly recent 1977 Additional Protocol I to the
violating numerous UN resolutions on Geneva Conventions, which largely reflects
Kashmir. Under UNCIP’s resolution of Jan customary international law, and which
5, 1949, “all persons (other than citizens of terms such acts a grave breach of the
the State) … shall be required to leave the protocol. Moreover, under Article 20(c)(i) of
State” and “[a]ll citizens of the State who the 1996 International Law Commission
have left … will be invited and be free to Draft Code of Crimes against the Peace and
return”. It is clear from this language that Security of Mankind, such transfers are
pending a plebiscite, any attempts to considered war crimes; while under Article
change the demographics of Kashmir or 8(2)(b)(viii) of the International Criminal
effect a transfer of its population would be Court statute (1998) such transfers, directly
illegal. or indirectly, constitute war crimes in
international armed conflicts.

Permanently altering the That the Kashmir dispute could trigger an

international armed conflict has been
ethnic-makeup of indubitably confirmed via the recent military
occupied Kashmir would conflagration between India and Pakistan,
when Indian warplanes crossed over Azad
be a violation of Kashmir and unsuccessfully conducted air
strikes around Balakot in Khyber
international law. Pakhtunkhwa.

Apart from the relevant UN resolutions, Altering demographics through state policy
Pakistan can also rely on the Shimla and repression can result in forcible
Agreement, a bilateral treaty between transfers of the indigenous population,
Pakistan and India, to highlight the latter’s qualifying as crimes against humanity when
violations of international law. This treaty they are part of a widespread or systematic
was entered into in 1972, after the attack (which need not be armed) directed
against any civilian population, as Neda MuljiApril 21, 2019
determined by the International Criminal
Tribunal for Rwanda. The government of The writer is a lecturer of communication
India, by attempting to repeal Articles 35-A skills at Amity University, Dubai.
and 370, is signalling its intentions to realise
this repression. IT is Report Day for Grade 9 students. A
group of friends is huddled together
Permanently altering the ethnic-makeup of reading their teacher’s comments. One
India-occupied Kashmir, which could has a series of positive remarks while
eventually result in ethnic cleansing, would another has “can do better” and “needs
also be a serious violation of international improvement” screaming out of the
law and the International Convention on the paper. What if those words were to be
Elimination of All Forms of Racial directed towards their teachers instead?
Discrimination, a UN treaty which India When students fail, how many teachers
ratified in 1968 without any reservations. look within themselves and ask what
Such violations were confirmed by the they ‘can do better’ to help those
ICERD Committee in its 1995 decision on students who have not met their targets?
Bosnia-Herzegovina. When students are instructed to do
better, perhaps it should be
In the last few years, the BJP government accompanied by constructive advice on
has attempted to change the demographics identifying ways to change their learning
of the occupied territory using targeting strategies and a structured plan to apply
measures such as through the setting up of them, rather than generic comments.
Israeli-style settlements or townships for
Kashmiri Pandits or via the establishment of Self-directed learning has its underpinnings
Sainik colonies to permanently settle Indian in constructivist learning theory which
soldiers displacing local Kashmiri residents. distinguishes between surface and deep
Repealing Articles 35-A and 370 is, learning. When learners recognise the value
however, a more serious and insidious and relevance of what is being taught, they
attempt to destroy the culture and identity of are more receptive to engaging in classroom
the Kashmiri people, and Pakistan must discussions, activities and take greater
actively raise India’s violation at all responsibility for their work. Some students
international levels, legally and do better than others at self-directed
diplomatically, including with the learning.
International Committee of the Red Cross
and the ICERD treaty body and at the UN They ‘own’ their learning journey, participate
Security Council, the General Assembly and in lessons actively, follow a study schedule
the Human Rights Council. and steadily acquire the tools for success in
achieving the set learning outcomes. Others
The BJP is, in the run-up to the elections, who have not developed intrinsic motivation,
going to extreme measures in order to stir struggle with superficial learning, get quickly
up nationalist and racial tensions within the accustomed to ‘helicopter’ parents prodding
country in an attempt to mobilise its right- them to work, resign themselves to
wing power base. Tinkering with the Indian mediocrity and set the ball rolling in a
constitution in this way, however, not only direction that is almost destined to fail them.
dilutes the sanctity of the constitutional
document itself, but would have grave Fast forward to their adult life and the
consequences for the people of Kashmir. distinction between these different sets of
With the two articles omitted from the learners is clear as crystal. One group relies
constitution, there would be little to stop an on external factors such as approvals and
Israeli-style settlement programme being rewards and cannot find much motivation
instituted in the valley of Kashmir, leaving within themselves. The other group relies on
the Kashmiri — much like the Palestinians their unique resources to find value within
— foreigners in their ancestral lands. themselves — they do not require
leadership going forward.

Sowing the seeds ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD

 to play an active role in their own learning —
When students fail, how analyse, criticise, debate and evolve through
many teachers look within the experience.

themselves? Engagement activities such as groupwork,

peer feedback, an ongoing dialogue with the
As adult learners in higher education, they teacher, self-reflection at the end of lessons
do not need hand-holding through their and ‘flipping the classroom’ where students
journey. They are able to show resilience sometimes get to teach the class are some
when faced with challenges, and chart out a of the ways of increasing engagement and
path through life. They seem to have building motivation.
internalised the value of learning earlier on,
and along with that comes a feeling of Children in this digital age cannot be
empowerment that will continue to help passive learners — they want an immersive
them through a maze of choices and experience in the classroom, much like the
challenges. kind that they get online. Whilst it may be
tricky for many schools to introduce digital
Children are not born with the tools for self- learning in their classrooms, there are
direction; intrinsic motivation is not deep- hundreds of different ways of replicating the
seated within their personalities. The tools digital experience. Interactive games such
for learning, engagement and empowerment as ‘hangman’, ‘scatter-gories’, and ‘bingo’
are carefully constructed through years of for maths are fun and engaging. Often,
encouragement, guidance and inspiration. students who do not speak up in class might
Often, it is the result of watching and get involved in games. Ultimately, it is the
learning. focus on developing and rewarding effort
rather than chasing results that enables
Most children do not develop a love of students to direct their own learning through
reading by being told to read — they get intrinsic motivation.
inspired by watching the adults around
them. Intrinsic motivation may also be the
natural consequence of exposure and Winning the peace
experience. Those who grow up playing a Nazish BrohiApril 21, 2019
sport develop an affinity with it, which may
translate into a competitive drive through The writer is a researcher and consultant in
exposure to others who are excelling at it. the social sector.
As they grow up with that inspiration,
guidance and experience, they tend to make IMAGINE an outraged, emotional
a personal choice to work harder. introductory paragraph to the Pashtun
Tahaffuz Movement, validating whichever
The secondary classroom is the fertile soil side of the divide the reader chooses to
where teachers can grow these seeds. It is identify with. Imagine that this article
in the secondary school phase that students starts with that. And then let’s put that
become self-aware and can rationalise, out of the way. Let’s see what that leaves
appraise and vocalise what they wish to us with.
work hard at, and this is a crucial stage for
strategies that can hone their skills. It is at On one side, a generation that has grown up
this stage that interactive classrooms can be in conflict and destruction, whose
used for the benefit of high-achievers as bildungsroman was the ‘war on terror’,
well as the previously disengaged ‘back- whose only pre-war memories are what
benchers’. they’ve been told by elder generations. The
history they know verbatim is that they were
Engaging activities in the classroom can used in 1948 for Kashmir, in the 1980s to
spark enthusiasm through a variety of support the Mujahideen, in the 1990s to
techniques to help the ‘invisible’ back- support the Taliban and then 2000 onwards,
benchers gain influence, and the high- all of which they’ve sewn together into a
achievers shine brighter. The student- narrative of perpetual victimhood. According
centred classroom gives students a chance to this script, everything was externally
imposed, there was no local war displacement, earlier agreements with
profiteering, ideological convergences, militants, and bizarre eight-page-long social
dovetailing local power structures; everyone contracts with 18 main clauses for citizens.
who participated was either a planted agent
or forced into it and people had no volition. Thousands across erstwhile Fata are
protesting, most recently in North
On the other side is the security apparatus Waziristan, partly because people’s ire at
in panic mode. The rallies of tens of different things has converged: tedious
thousands of people cannot be broadcast on security checkpoints every 2,000 yards
TV channels because of gag orders, increasing commute time by hours,
journalists who cover these get inadequate compensation policies and their
reprimanded, the organisers get detained, inefficient payment systems, the scale of
arrested or expelled, the parliamentarians destruction and slow pace of reconstruction,
who represent them are sidelined. The PTM Watan cards, contract allocations to
phenomenon is explained as being Afghan favourites, awarding of bids to the Frontier
funded or Indian funded or American Works Organisation and lack of
funded, and in either case, out to destroy employment.
Pakistan.
Outrage over these governance and
This piece doesn’t use the ‘there are two administrative functions has merged with
sides to every story, the fault lies with both’ anger against how military operations were
template. Instead, it tries to make the point conducted. And that is because the army
that both sides are speaking to different took over both sets of functions in Fata. Any
problems. politician in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa can attest
that once you are in a position to govern,
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD anti-incumbency comes into play more often
than not. Governance comes with its built-in
The demands for costs; the wholesale rejection of those in
power is one of them. Had this anger been
accountability are not a directed against civil political authorities, we
would probably have shrugged it off as
rejection of the state but routine dysfunction. This also illustrates the
the trajectory to its importance of maintaining the separation of
powers.
acceptance.
In conflict zones, people’s perspectives
The security studies’ lot may say that the change according to the stages of conflict.
principles of war are not applicable in In the build-up stage, contributing factors
irregular warfare like ours, but I’ll borrow are easier to isolate since they have not fully
anyway. There are historical debates about lapsed into a larger narrative. Once violence
what justifies war in general or the reasons breaks out, people express righteousness
why particular wars must be waged (jus ad and take sides. After the corresponding
bellum). These are separate from disputes violence occurs, outrage and laments kick in
over and assessments of the way in which as losses pile up — displacement, out-
warfare is conducted (jus in bello). The ‘why migration, security operations, the profiling
war/whose war’ is distinct from its ‘how’. It is of identity groups.
entirely possible to have supported the need
for military intervention against the Tehreek- The immediate aftermath usually includes
i-Taliban Pakistan while also pointing out condemnation of all violence generally
problems with its execution, including including deflection and the externalising of
vacillation on the part of the security all blame. As life for the people resumes
apparatus. some semblance of normality, they try to
block out what happened and tend to see
The current PTM demands are focused on that period as a time of insanity they want to
how the war was conducted. In the tribal forget about.
areas, this spanned internment centres,
disappearances, large-scale destruction,
Processing and the ability to reflect comes
later when the violence is over, and it leads Managing security &
to demands for accountability. All over the
world, truth and reconciliation commissions,
economy
Muhammad Amir RanaUpdated April 21, 2019
mediation programmes, reparations, trials
and tribunals on human rights violations and The writer is a security analyst.
pushback against impunity are post-conflict
accountability mechanisms. MANY interpret the government’s recent
reshuffle of the federal cabinet as a way
Demands for accountability are not a of venting its frustration over a
rejection of the state but in fact the trajectory seemingly intractable economic
to its acceptance. Engagement with this challenge. The reshuffle came days
process will open up critical reflection on not before Prime Minister Imran Khan’s
just the state apparatus but also on the role scheduled visits to Iran and China, where
of local communities and leadership, economic and security cooperation will
including colluding with militants. At the be among the major points of
moment, the interface has become so discussion. In particular, Pakistan
bitterly divisive that those who collaborate anticipates more relief from Beijing,
with the state are called ‘samsaray’, mainly in terms of an early launch of the
referring to giant lizards which latch on to Special Economic Zones under the
surfaces and were reputedly used to scale China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
walls for robberies by tying a rope around (CPEC).
them — signalling infiltration and hence a
local incarnation of the Trojan horse China is considerate of Pakistan’s economic
metaphor. woes. However, Chinese investors demand
the award of projects on softer terms and on
To an extent, Pakistan is defined by its a fast track. They also consider investment
geography. Foreign interest in destabilising in the country risky. Their main concern is
Balochistan or KP and border districts is a the prevailing insecurity in Balochistan
present danger but vested interests can where a multitude of separatist and
exploit existing grievances, not create them. religiously inspired militant groups are
Addressing impunity is vital to creating an environment detrimental to the
demonstrating that the state can provide implementation of CPEC projects and the
justice. functioning of the Gwadar port.
Patriotism cannot require people to be The recent attack on security officials
unhappy with elected governments and travelling on the Makran coastal highway,
happy with unelected state institutions. As which is considered a safe highway in the
long as demands and dissent do not province, will certainly add to Chinese
override the Constitution, patriotism and concerns. The Baloch insurgents have
civic freedoms should not be positioned as perpetrated some high-impact attacks in
opposites. Throughout history, discontent recent times, including a few suicide blasts,
with current conditions has been the motor which have started to defy the oft-told tale
for growth and change. It is a basic human that the Baloch insurgency is a low-scale
impulse to want things to be different and conflict. Secondly, Baloch separatist groups
strive for it. Why hold it against the people? have started to launch joint attacks; the
latest one, hitting security personnel on the
coastal highway, was also claimed by an
alliance of three separatist groups.

The timing of the attack will not help Prime

Minister Khan convince the Chinese and
Iranian leaders of an improving security
situation in Balochistan. His visit to Tehran
was long due and overshadowed by the
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin
Salman’s visit to Pakistan. Border security
will be the high point of the Iranian and the BLA are left-leaning secular
diplomatic call during the prime minister’s separatist groups that also advocate the
visit to Tehran. China, too, is concerned liberation of Sistan-Baluchestan in Iran.
about insecurity at the Pakistani-Iranian
border, which has become a hub of In December 2018, an attack was claimed
separatist and religiously motivated as well by the BLA that killed six Pakistani soldiers
as criminal groups. This is not only causing in Kech near the Pakistan-Iran border,
geostrategic complications, it is also implying BLA militants’ cross-border
impeding progress on CPEC-related movement for shelter. The attack occurred a
projects in coastal areas of the province. day after the two countries signed a
memorandum of understanding for
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD “improving border security and stopping the
smuggling of petroleum products, drugs and
Chinese investors arms, and human trafficking”.

demand the award of Despite complicated border security issues,

both sides can still develop an effective
projects on softer terms bilateral mechanism to check cross-border
and on a fast track. incursions by all shades of separatist and
Islamist militants. The agendas and
objectives of different brands of militants
Iran alleges that a Saudi-backed separatist
operating along the Pakistan-Iran border are
group, Jaishul Adl, is operating from
known to both countries, which they can
Pakistan and attacking Iranian security
counter by working jointly. In retrospect, Iran
forces. The group launched an attack in
and Pakistan have done that in past, during
February, killing 27 members of the elite
the regimes of Raza Shah and Zulfikar Ali
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and
Bhutto in the mid-1970s, by launching an
provoked tensions between the two
extensive security operation against the
countries. Iran’s intelligence minister,
militants.
Mahmoud Alavi, spoke of taking revenge on
those responsible for the crime. This country
However, one cannot ignore the Saudi
sent a high-level delegation to Tehran to
factor. Though Pakistan is in dire need of
give assurances of a thorough investigation
economic assistance, it should not close its
and cooperation in finding the culprits. As
eyes to militant proxies that can complicate
with Afghanistan, the Pakistan government
Pakistan’s core economic interest linked
has decided to fence its border with Iran too,
with CPEC, and a conducive security
but that is a comparatively more complex
environment in Pakistan, particularly in
task.
Balochistan.
Pakistan also has concerns about recurrent
Prime Minister Khan can get a positive
border violations by Iranian border security
response on security cooperation from
forces. In 2018, Iranian border security
Tehran before his visit to Beijing where such
forces carried out six cross-border attacks in
a commitment will have a positive impact on
Balochistan’s Chagai, Gwadar and Panjgur
bilateral deliberations. The removal of
districts, compared to 12 such attacks in
federal finance minister Asad Umar will also
2017. Shelling by the Iranian security guards
be read positively by Beijing; not only did he
causes much physical damage, affecting
fail to run the economy of the country but
residents living along the border; sometimes
was also responsible for the slowing down
it leads to the complete suspension of daily
of the execution of CPEC projects.
activities.
Pakistan needs CPEC to sustain its
Local residents suspect that Iran has gone
economy; unfortunately, the vague and
soft on anti-Pakistan separatist groups,
sluggish policy responses of the current
especially the Balochistan Liberation Front
government, as well as its overconfidence in
(BLF) and the Baloch Liberation Army
attracting foreign investment by mobilising
(BLA), whose militants are evidently
the Pakistani diaspora, has damaged not
sheltering on Iranian soil. This is conceived
only CPEC but also the overall economy of
as a counter-move by Iran though the BLF
the country. The worsening economic The first is that a nation’s cultural heritage
condition is forcing the country to put the will get the respect it demands, not
economic focus back on CPEC. However, deserves. As the world came together to
the direction will become clearer only after watch the flaming spire and pray for the
the new adviser on finance and his team lay cathedral, resentful voices from the Global
out the government’s revised economic South (rightfully) asked why such tears had
roadmap — if there is any. not been shed for IS-ravaged Palmyra, the
Bamiyan Buddhas demolished by the
China wants to make the Belt and Road Taliban, or the Timbuktu manuscripts
Initiative a success story, and CPEC is an destroyed by Ansar Dine.
integral part of that. China realises that
Pakistan has the potential to put CPEC back
on the fast track. It will boost the confidence The French unite in their
of the BRI’s potential stakeholders who are regard for it, they see
reluctant at the moment to become partners
in the initiative. their identity in it.
Still, security will remain at the heart of any Part of the answer lies in post-colonial and
potential outcome of renewed economic economic dynamics; the fact that more
cooperation between Pakistan and China. people visit Paris than other locations with
comparable treasures. But the main reason
is that the cathedral is valued by the French
Notre Dame lessons themselves. They unite in their regard for it,
Huma YusufUpdated April 22, 2019 they revere it, they see their history and
identity in it, they celebrate it. Conversely,
The writer is a freelance journalist. countries and cultures that are divided, that
deny their histories, that recast their cultural
IT burned. Its spire crashed through a heritage to suit shifting political dynamics,
centuries-old roof. It was devastated, but will struggle to muster universal esteem for
not razed. Some termed it a miracle. their artefacts.
Though embers still glowed, the belfries,
rose windows, organ, sacred relics, and Pakistan constantly moans about its image
much art had been saved or spared. problem. It seeks to revive tourism, and
huffs when the international community is
The fire at the Notre Dame cathedral in sceptical. But how can we expect others to
Paris is already lost to last week’s news embrace our culture and history when we
cycle. Within hours of the fire being ourselves are seeking to ignore, negate and
extinguished, hundreds of millions of euros rewrite these? From Mehrgarh to Takht-i-
were pledged for its restoration. French Bahi, our national treasures are crumbling,
President Emmanuel Macron has vowed to subject to vandalism, looting and attacks. If
complete the works within five years. The there is no national outrage now, we cannot
tragic fire has conveniently transformed into expect global mourning later.
a story of resilience, hope and rebirth. Many
are ready to move on. Another lesson is about accountability. The
fire was an accident. But that did not prevent
Read: Investigators probe Notre-Dame fire French people from pointing fingers — at
as billionaires, private donors mobilise to the French government, for implementing an
rebuild cathedral austerity programme that limited public
works spending, including for timely
But let us dwell in the moment of the fire a renovations of the cathedral; at the architect;
little longer. Though far removed from the at the project manager. Such a blame game
political turmoil and regional machinations could imply arrogance, the sense that the
that have Pakistan in their grip, the burning French consider themselves immune to
cathedral offers us some important insights. mishap. But it can also be a demonstration
of a society that expects accountability.
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
Pakistanis are too quick to assume that
tragic incidents are mistakes, the vagaries of Winning with empathy
fate, God’s will. The failure to question may Rafia ZakariaUpdated April 24, 2019
stem in part from humility, but it also reveals
a people who do not expect answers, who The writer is an attorney teaching
have no precedent for holding the powerful constitutional law and political philosophy.
to account. Perhaps it’s time we emulated
the French practice, apparent post-Notre IT has been called the world’s largest
Dame, of refusing to accept an accident as election. Next door in India, a seven-
such. phase vote to elect the Lok Sabha got
under way on April 19. It will go on for
Yet another insight is that there’s nothing to many more weeks, not culminating until
be done about conspiracy theories, but May 19, when the long process of
these are inevitably political and sow more counting the votes cast will begin.
discord in already difficult times. Even while
Notre Dame was burning, re-edited audio As has been visible in the days leading up to
footage implying that Muslims were the election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi
celebrating the fire was circulating online. and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have
There were tweets linking the cathedral fire deployed every flavour of divisive rhetoric to
with the 9/11 attacks, other terrorist attacks whet the appetite of their Hindu nationalist
in France, and an alleged plot to bomb the base. Such has been the vile desperation
church in 2016. that even a near war with Pakistan was
brought into the mix, the attendant claims of
Though we may rail against the the killing of militants and the downing of
Islamophobia evident, similar conspiracy Pakistani F-16 planes all to be admitted as
theories are Pakistan’s default response to fabrications, as perceived.
any event, whether a terrorist attack or a
cabinet reshuffle. Such conspiracy While crossing over into Pakistani territory
theorising is a natural response to a and attempting to ‘bomb’ an area was a
nontransparent environment in which those tactic that was seen in the weeks preceding
with power act with impunity, without being the election, the crackdown on Muslims
answerable to the public. But we should not living in India itself has been a fixture of the
forget that conjecture and paranoia stoke Modi administration. Leaders in Modi’s party
fear and breed hatred. And the antidote is have made it a point to demonise Muslims
the same everywhere: more openness, at every opportunity they get.
more facts, more responsible media.

The Notre Dame fire’s most poignant lesson

Entire movements in
is that it’s getting harder to be hypocritical. India have been
Although people across the country chanted
Ave Marias, hoping the cathedral would be constructed on the policy
saved, they did not shy from critiquing the
big donations that poured in from France’s
of Muslim exclusion.
richest individuals and companies. Why
didn’t they donate before? What tax relief Those who plan and execute attacks against
may they claim through the donations? Why non-Muslims have not simply been tolerated
not question the source of this immense but, on the contrary, anointed. Sadhvi
wealth? The contrast between generous Pragya, a known Hindutva extremist, has
donors and the working class gilets jaunes been given a party ticket for these elections.
who have been protesting nationwide for Entire movements have, in fact, been
several months has not been lost on the constructed on the policy of Muslim
domestic and international media. Our exclusion. According to a recent article
leaders should take note: grand gestures no in Scroll India, studies have shown that even
longer compensate for venality, upper-middle-class Muslims are not safe. A
incompetence, or dissemblance. Public high percentage of their children report
naiveté has long smouldered away. being harassed in school, with questions like
‘Do you support Al Qaeda?’ and ‘Are your
parents Taliban?’
Read: Modi defends extremist woman revealed just how far the Islamophobia has
candidate progressed. Even the Indian media, once
insurance against fascist takeovers, has
The practice of denying rental housing to kowtowed to the Modi government, with
Muslims, which came to light years ago, recent reports showing dissenting journalists
used to be an embarrassment for most confronted with reprisals and revenge if they
Indians. Not anymore. Such denials, along do not toe the BJP party line.
with exclusion from public spaces in schools
and colleges and universities, have created With this sort of toxic atmosphere hanging
an extremely restrictive environment in over the subcontinent, Pakistan has an
which the powerful appear to be proud of opportunity to show leadership on the issue
excluding Muslims and would likely welcome of persecuted Muslims. Not only should the
thoroughly strong-arm tactics that would government finally resolve the issue of
restrict Muslims to certain living spaces in stateless Muslims who still languish in
certain areas of Indian cities and towns. The camps in Bangladesh, it should consider
narrowing of the Indian mind, the policies that can offer Pakistani citizenship
evisceration of Indian democracy, it seems, to persecuted Muslims in the region. This
is here to stay, regardless of what the would likely include Rohingya Muslims and
outcome of the ongoing elections may be. others who have been fleeing violence.

The BJP is still worried about the outcome It could also possibly include Sri Lankan
of the elections, however. One new proposal Muslims who are at risk of violence at the
that again delivers hatred and exclusion in hands of Sinhalese Buddhists following
yet another way is a system that would Sunday’s Easter attacks (and the fact that
expedite citizenship proceedings of they are being blamed on hard-line Islamist
persecuted minorities living in other groups, despite the absence of concrete
countries but it pointedly and particularly evidence).
leaves out Muslims.
Pakistan has taken in thousands of Afghan
Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and other refugees before, but now it can show its
minorities who have fled their homelands respect and empathy for the suffering by
owing to persecution and violence, and have taking in these other Muslims.
taken refuge in India, will all be eligible for
this sort of fast-track citizenship; everyone, Arms races between India and Pakistan are
that is, except the Muslims. common, both countries having always been
eager to stockpile weapons and aircraft and
In his article on the issue, scholar Sadanand all sorts of military technology. It may be
Dhume honed in on the law as being time for a new competition. If India has
particularly indicative of the unquenchable turned cruel and exclusionary, made hatred
hatred of Muslims that festers in the country. a staple and coercion its practice, Pakistan
The Muslim community in India, it seems, is can rise above the fray and show the world
looked upon by extremist minds with such and especially the region its respect and
hate that it can never be identified as commitment to providing assistance and
persecuted — on the contrary, the hard- refuge to the world’s persecuted.
liners living in the Modi era, look upon the
Muslims as persecutors. The image of India Just as Pakistan followed the dictates of the
as a Hindu nation in the eyes of Modi and Geneva Conventions and released captured
his supporters cannot include Muslims, and Indian pilot Abhinandan, so too should it
discrimination and persecution may well be open its arms and its borders to those who
geared to eventually driving out India’s have suffered injustice and now exclusion at
Muslims. the hands of states that are fuelled by
hatred and who have elevated the exclusion
Pakistan has not been able to do much to of Muslims as a primary tenet of their
stop the march of hatred right across the governing platform. In a world pivoted on
border. The recent episode that left India hatred, Pakistan can be different; Pakistan
and Pakistan teetering on the brink of war, is different and it is time to show the world
averted by happenstance, fortunately, just how different.
 burdens inflicted by an already ailing
Untimely rains economy. Farmers are demanding
Marwah Maqbool MalikApril 23, 2019 compensation for their losses, which the
government should reasonably provide.
THE worthy climate change minister
must be eating her words right now. What next though? Must we wait for another
Quick to claim credit for untimely rainfall, year, only to repeat the cycle of weathering
she has since disappeared after the crises without preparation, followed only by
same rainfall became tragic. The cash-based remedies?
statement did not suit a public office
holder, much less of the climate change Our weather systems are already changing
portfolio, and her absence after and will continue to do so, arguably with
devastating floods only makes it worse. greater severity, affecting agriculture in the
country (among many other sectors) and
Recent thunder and hail storms have bringing forth new challenges for food
claimed dozens of lives and left many more security. To address these challenges, we
injured. The agricultural impact is huge: need to shift from ‘reactive’ to ‘proactive’
some estimates are that at least 150,000 approaches that try to predict and prepare
tonnes of wheat crop have been destroyed. for impacts, reduce risks, and allocate
Other crops affected include mustard, required resources to respond when crises
cotton, tomatoes, mango and citrus. Will the strike.
minister now come forward and claim ‘credit’
for what now looks like God’s wrath? To begin with, it is important to understand
the full breadth and scope of climatic
What we witnessed recently is not new, and change impacts to agriculture. We know that
will happen again. We have had early rains, rain patterns have shifted, as have seasonal
often called ‘pre-monsoon’ rains, for at least temperatures. Is the conventional rice-
four consecutive years now. Floods have cotton-sugarcane-wheat mix still viable?
been a regular occurrence, close to or Can our agricultural practices survive
during monsoon, for over a decade now. On changes to type and availability of inputs
average, our summers are now warmer, and such as water?
droughts more frequent. These changing
weather patterns are local manifestations of While farmers across the country have
a warming planet that is causing a global already started adapting their agricultural
change of climate. practices to changing weather patterns,
decisions about what crops to grow and how
Our urban citizens remain largely immune to to grow them are still driven by government
any observable changes in climate, barring policies that incentivise (or disincentivise)
the occasional outcry about increasingly hot certain crops and technologies. We need to
summers. Talk to farmers instead, and they conduct research on climate-resilient crop
will describe in lucid detail how shifting varieties, and subsequently encourage their
weather patterns have brought on new uptake among farmers. For small farmers,
challenges including diseases, untimely and such adoption requires a push that only the
erratic rains, lower yields, change of government can provide.
cropping cycles, and droughts.
While natural phenomena like storms cannot
Can our farming practices be averted, preparing for them in advance
can help reduce losses to the farmer, as
survive changing weather well as the government. Innovations like
parametric insurance, that indemnifies
systems? farmers against certain events, are being
tested around the world (with mixed
In the face of recent crop losses, the success). This is not to say a solution that
economy must now prepare for shortages has worked for farmers in India or Mexico
and the associated rise in prices. An will work for farmers in Pakistan. But we
impending shortage of our staple, wheat, need to start thinking of innovative solutions,
means food security for the poorest will be
negatively impacted, further adding to the
contextualised to Pakistan, which can help Negombo and Batticaloa. The rest of the
us prepare better for climatic impacts. morning was spent in trying to find out if our
Sri Lankan friends and their families were
Knowing better (predicting) helps to prepare safe. As the magnitude of the atrocity
better, which eventually helps deliver emerged, I knew that only an experienced
effective responses. Warnings issued before and highly trained group could have pulled it
disasters must be accurate and effective in off.
what they communicate, and also able to
reach the people they are meant for. It is In their long, brutal civil war, the Tamil
also not enough to warn people and Tigers had never deliberately targeted
prescribe actions without having adequate Christians and foreigners. In any case, the
facilities for those preventive actions to take defeated remnants of the ethnic Tamil group
place — eg advising farmers to shift crops to are too demoralised to attempt such a
safe storage when such storage spaces complex operation. That left Al Qaeda and
have not been created or facilitated for small IS as possible backers of the NTJ. The
farmers beforehand. former has given up launching
indiscriminate attacks, so that left IS. So I
Ultimately, we should realise that untimely was not surprised when it claimed
rains and storms are not ‘divine blessings’ responsibility for the multiple attacks. What
for unprepared politicians to claim. did surprise me, however, was the
Responding to one of the biggest challenges revelation that information about the
of our time requires recognition of what we impending suicide bombings had been
haven’t been doing and preparations for passed on to Sri Lankan security officials by
what, going ahead, we can and absolutely Indian intelligence a fortnight earlier. Both
must do. Most importantly, it requires that the prime minister and president claimed
our leaders, especially those tasked with they had not been informed.
handling climate change affairs, are
educated on what climate change actually
is. There is no history of
discord between Sri
Bombs & backlash Lankan Muslims and
Irfan HusainApril 27, 2019
Christians.
irfan.husain@gmail.com
Given the rocky relations between the two
WHENEVER there’s a terrorist attack ambitious politicians, such a lack of
anywhere, I pray that Muslims weren’t communication is understandable. Under
involved. And if they are, I cross my the 19th amendment to the constitution
fingers and wish none of them were (drafted by Prime Minister Ranil
Pakistanis. In the horror stories Wickremsinghe), President Sirisena has the
emerging from Sri Lanka, I seem to have defence portfolio, and thus responsibility for
got my second wish. However, this is security. There are reports he did not invite
scant consolation for the mayhem the prime minister to meetings of the
unleashed by a little-known Islamist National Security Council.
group, the National Towheed Jamaath
(NTJ), backed by the militant Islamic Last October, he attempted to remove Mr
State (IS) group. Wickremsinghe, but was thwarted by the
supreme court. Since then, their power-
On Sunday morning in the UK, I received a sharing arrangement has become
string of text and WhatsApp messages dysfunctional. Mahinda Rajapaksa, ex-
enquiring about my safety. Friends knew president and the other claimant to power,
that as I do every year, I had spent the has cashed in on this criminal intelligence
winter at our beach house in Sri Lanka, but failure, and called on the prime minister to
were unsure about my whereabouts. I resign. As the next presidential election
immediately went on Twitter to discover the looms, expect him to ramp up the rhetoric.
bloodbath that had occurred in Colombo, And as his track record shows, he is not
above playing the extreme Sinhalese also complain about the lack of
Buddhist/nationalist card to further his cleanliness in Muslim neighbourhoods and
agenda. the consumption of beef in a country that
largely avoids cow slaughter. All this is grist
Perhaps more serious than this squabbling to the BBS mill. After Sunday’s slaughter,
is the backlash against Muslims that I had these memes are likely to be magnified.
feared. Although the government has tried
to cover up the ongoing attacks against Another aim of the attacks was probably to
Muslim families and businesses, there have cripple the economy. Tourism, after the
been multiple reports of anti-Muslim actions, setback of last October’s constitutional
especially from Negombo, a largely crisis, was just recovering when the
Christian area. bombers struck. It will be a long time before
the country can calculate the full cost of a
Sri Lankan civil society has been appalled colossal intelligence failure.
by this mindless (though understandable)
backlash. One friend has announced her
intention to stand guard outside Colombo’s A recipe for durable
Jumaa Masjid at Friday prayers. People
remember how monks of the Bodu Bala peace
Sena (BBS) led mobs who killed several Rafiullah KakarApril 27, 2019
Muslims following a petty altercation near
Kandy a couple of years ago. The writer is a public policy and
development specialist from Balochistan.
There is a deep undercurrent of nationalism
among elements of the majority Sinhalese THE recent wave of violence in
who basically say that Sri Lanka is for Balochistan has once again turned a
Buddhists, and the minorities live there on spotlight on the long-running conflict in
sufferance. This is despite the fact that Balochistan. Two important lessons can
Muslims constitute only nine per cent of the be drawn from this wave of violence:
population; many of them have descended
from Arab traders who came to the island First, it marks the growing complexity of the
centuries ago. conflict landscape in the province. A low-
level ethnic insurgency concentrated mainly
There has never been a history of discord in southern Balochistan on the one hand
between Muslims and Christians in Sri and sectarian and religious militancy in
Lanka. So if the aim of the NTJ and IS was northern and central Balochistan on the
to create conflict between the two minority other continues to pose a threat to peace
communities, they have succeeded beyond and stability. Over the past few years, the
their wildest expectations. militant Islamic State group has also
established a footprint in the province and
In the small town in the south a few built alliances with sectarian groups and
kilometres from our beach house, there are splinter groups of the Tehreek-i-Taliban
a couple of mosques, three churches and Pakistan. The latter is responsible for some
several temples. While the Muslims largely of the most deadly attacks carried out in the
keep to themselves, I have never heard of province in the last few years.
any attacks on their peaceful community.
But now, there is palpable fear of a Second, the persistence of violence proves
backlash. that the security-centric approach has failed
to deliver peace and prosperity in
One warning sign I have observed with Balochistan. There is no denying that hard
increasing (and depressing) frequency is the and kinetic measures have succeeded in
way younger Muslims now dress: women curbing terrorism partially and temporarily.
often wear the full burqa, while even However, the long-term threat of terrorism is
teenage boys sport long, Saudi-style far from over. Despite partial successes,
dishdashas and straggling beards. sectarian and militant groups continue to
launch brutal attacks every now and then.
Similarly, a low-level Baloch insurgency
lingers on, despite military operations, First, the government should prepare a
increased presence of security personnel, comprehensive strategy for reaching out to
enforced disappearances and political the Baloch insurgents. This strategy should
engineering. entail credible guarantees, substantial
concessions and confidence-building
The aforementioned trends suggest that measures such as ceasing of all military
restoration of durable peace in the province operations, withdrawal of the Frontier Corps
requires a holistic but differentiated strategy. from certain areas, release of Baloch
missing persons and compensation for
families of those killed in an extrajudicial
Recent violence proves manner. In the absence of confidence-
that the security-centric building measures and substantial
concessions, negotiations are unlikely to
approach has failed to succeed. Mere offers of amnesty won’t
convince insurgent leaders to abandon
deliver peace in violence and return home. Key reasons why
previous efforts to reconcile the Baloch
Balochistan. insurgents failed were: a) repression went
hand in hand with reconciliation efforts, and
To begin with, tackling religious and
b) those leading the process had little
sectarian militancy requires a fundamental
leeway and freedom to negotiate and make
shift in our national security policy and
meaningful offers.
Afghan policy. There is a widely held
perception in the province that the state
The military’s support is a must for the
doesn’t have a zero-tolerance policy for
proposed reconciliation efforts to make any
violence perpetrated by certain non-state
headway. The military needs to realise and
actors. In addition, we have repeatedly been
appreciate that a hard approach alone can
accused of becoming a party to the Saudi- ensure only partial and temporary peace at
Iran proxy war. The recently announced
best and that a low-level insurgency could
Saudi investments in Gwadar and Reko Diq,
continue almost indefinitely no matter what
local analysts fear, may turn the province security measures are taken. Complete
into a battleground for a regional proxy war. suppression and defeat of the insurgency is
impossible. And the low-level violence is
Our security thinkers need to appreciate that
enough to put the state on the defensive,
durable peace in Balochistan or Khyber
draw international attention and unsettle
Pakhtunkhwa cannot be established without
foreign investors.
peace in Afghanistan. Therefore, a policy of
zero tolerance and indiscriminate action
Second, Baloch concerns regarding control
against terrorist groups should be adopted. over their natural and coastal resources
Furthermore, we need to play a balancing
should be addressed. For example: control
act in our relationship with Iran and Saudi
of the multibillion Saindak copper-gold
Arabia rather than tilting in favour of the mining project was supposed to be
latter.
transferred to the Balochistan government in
2012 under the Aghaz-i-Haqooq-i-
The Baloch ethnic conflict is different in
Balochistan package. The federal
nature and merits a different strategy.
government refused to transfer the
Developments of the past decade suggest
ownership of the project to the province,
that only political engagement and
claiming outstanding dues of Rs27 billion
reconciliation can ensure long-term peace
that it had invested in the project. The lease
and prosperity in the province. Repressive
agreement of the project has since been
measures and cosmetic development
extended twice by the federal government
packages both have failed to bring the
without the genuine consent of the provincial
disaffected Baloch into the political
government.
mainstream.
Similarly, Baloch people have serious
Here is what the government needs to do to
grievances regarding the China Pakistan
find a sustainable solution to the Baloch
Economic Corridor. They have concerns
conflict:
about the influx of human labour and threats conditions Secretary Pompeo had laid
to demographic balance, displacement, out for resumption of US-Iran dialogue.
share of local people in jobs and financial
and administrative control over Gwadar port. A lot of material was made available
Moreover, they fear that CPEC will increase regarding America’s increased production
oppression and intensify isolation of the and export capacity and of the Gulf
Baloch people rather than bringing countries’ commitment to increase
socioeconomic development and production and ensure there was no
integration. shortage on account of the withdrawal of
Iranian oil from the international market.
Third, in the long term, a constitutional
amendment shall be introduced to enhance (Essentially, the fact sheet the State
the powers of Senate and replace the Department put out said that the US crude
current method of indirect election with oil production was 12 million barrels a day
direct elections. Pakistan’s current and would increase by 1.4m within the next
majoritarian federal design makes year; Iran oil production had been reduced
Balochistan the least rewarding political by 1.5m barrels; other countries including
constituency for political parties seeking to Saudi Arabia and the UAE had promised to
come to power at the federal level. It offers increase their production; the inventory of
little or no incentive to these parties to care crude oil globally was seasonally strong.)
about the province. This primarily explains
why successive governments in Islamabad This followed the unprecedented and
have tended to remain indifferent about perhaps legally dubious step of designating
Balochistan. Moreover, the Senate has been Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards
ineffective in enabling smaller provinces like Corps a foreign terrorist organisation. Iran
Balochistan to block policies or legislations retaliated by naming all US armed forces as
that may impinge upon their rights. terrorist organisations.

A directly elected and powerful Senate is ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD

likely to incentivise state-wide parties to take
a serious interest in Balochistan. This will, in What will be the costs as
turn, induce more political competition and
bring technical expertise and experience to America continues to
the province. Besides, enhanced powers will
give provinces like Balochistan more say in tighten the noose around
decision-making at the federal level. Iran’s neck?
Trump’s Middle East If one looks at other actions the Trump
administration has or is taking or is likely to
plan take around the world, it appears that apart
Najmuddin A. ShaikhUpdated April 26, 2019 from the ‘America first’ mantra, securing a
victory against Iran is the driving force.
The writer is a former foreign secretary. He
is currently head of the IoBM’s Global and Support for Israel has been part of Trump’s
creed. This could explain the abandonment
Regional Studies Centre.
of the long-settled US policy on Palestine
and Syria, formal recognition of Israel’s
ON April 22 it was announced that the
annexation of the Golan Heights and formal
Significant Reduction Exception
endorsement of Israel’s intent of annexing
President Trump had granted to eight
illegal Israeli settlements on the West Bank.
countries would not be extended and
However, there is in my mind the vision that
that purchases of Iranian oil by these
partnering with Israel in confronting Iran
countries would be subject to sanctions
would help create conditions in which the
after May 2. This was another step to
Arabs would join Israel formally in the
isolate Iran, deprive it of revenue and
Middle East Security Alliance that seems to
make it more amenable to fulfilling the 12
be part of the plan that Trump’s point man
for the Middle East, Jared Kushner, would To cement ties with the Military Council,
present for a regional settlement. Saudi Arabia and UAE said they would
provide $3 billion in assistance to Sudan
In Libya, Gen Haftar, a commander from with $500m being deposited for balance-of-
Qadhafi’s days, has a base in the east and payment support and the rest for
is receiving weapons from Russia, political humanitarian aid for Sudan’s people.
support from France and political and
material support from Saudi Arabia and the Sudan is under US sanctions which can be
UAE. The latter two are reportedly lifted only if a civilian government comes to
supporting Haftar because they think that power. The Military Council has announced
Libya has become a centre for the Muslim it will send a delegation to Washington to
Brotherhood that these countries and Egypt discuss the situation. It is my conjecture that
want eliminated. helping them find their way in Washington
will be a task undertaken not just by the
In Libya, it had been long-standing US Sudanese embassy but by the other friends
policy to recognise the Government of I have identified.
National Accord and support the efforts of
the UN special representative to help It is again my conjecture that they will
negotiate a power-sharing agreement receive a sympathetic hearing. Their
between various Libyan factions to maintain promise to hold elections within two years
essential Libyan unity. may not be accepted and a shorter time
frame proposed, but sanctions will be lifted
When Haftar started his assault on the GNA, as a favour by Trump for his supporters in
the State Department asked him to stop. the anti-Iran campaign.
Trump, however, after a conversation with
the Abu Dhabi crown prince, spoke to Iran’s economy is suffering as a result of the
Haftar, in which he “recognised Field sanctions; the ill effects have been
Marshal Haftar’s significant role in fighting compounded by floods and earthquakes.
terrorism and securing Libya’s oil resources, There is no sign the regime is collapsing.
and the two discussed a shared vision for
Libya’s transition to a stable, democratic For Pakistan, it is important that what Prime
political system”. The GNA saw this as a Minister Imran Khan and President Hassan
betrayal. One could assume that Trump’s Rouhani agreed upon is implemented.
reversal of State Department policy owed to Trade that was agreed upon is all food and
his willingness to defer to the views of his humanitarian relief related and will not be
allies and thus strengthen their support for affected. Border security is important to
his Iran policy. both, not only because of Iran’s need but
also because those who trouble this border
The Sudan uprising, the overthrow of are likely working with those across the
president Omar Al-Bashir’s regime or more border who want a Balochistan independent
accurately his ouster after 30 years or rule of both Iran and Pakistan. Oil prices will rise
owed to demonstrations mounted by the perhaps to $80 a barrel and we may need to
Sudanese Professional Association. The get further concessional oil supplies from
uprising was successful because the armed our friends.
forces, that have participated in the Yemen
war as part of the Saudi/UAE effort and thus
have strong connections there, saw their Keynes in Islamabad
own soldiers joining the rebels. The air force Aqdas AfzalUpdated April 25, 2019
chief’s son joined the protesters. The
Military Council said it would hold elections The writer is a Fulbright Scholar and has a
in two years because it would take that long doctorate. He teaches economics and public
to ensure security and make other policy at Habib University, Karachi.
arrangements. This is being resisted but this
is what Sisi’s Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the THE story of modern economic policies
UAE would want because Omar al-Bashir starts in 1929 during the Great
had provided shelter to Muslim Brotherhood Depression, an economic crisis like no
followers. other. Its most severe impact was in the
US where the economy contracted by spending had brought an end to the Great
almost 30 per cent, leaving one in four Depression.
Americans without employment.
A recent World Bank report points out that
This crisis created an existential challenge Pakistan’s economic growth will average
for the liberal order — capitalism and only around 3pc in the next two years. Given
democracy — with people wondering what this anaemic growth, the economy cannot
good was a system if they could not put food generate jobs to absorb millions of people
on the table. Some scholars even connect entering the labour force each year. At the
the rise of Nazism in Germany to the same time, the government’s austerity
ravages of the Great Depression. programme aimed at reducing the fiscal
deficit through cutting expenditure is
John Maynard Keynes was the first alarming. Evidence from Britain’s austerity
economist to identify that capitalist experiment since 2010 (Big Society
economies had a tendency to remain stuck initiative) shows that curtailing expenditure
in a recession, unless shocked by the has led to entrenching poverty.
infusion of more money. Keynes showed
that once someone’s income went up after Had Keynes been Pakistan’s finance
obtaining a job, they increased minister today, he would have serious
consumption, which, in turn, increased the reservations about present economic
income of firms that sold whatever these policies and would have offered a different
newly employed people were consuming, prescription for taking Pakistan out of the
enabling the firms to create still more jobs. economic impasse.
In other words, the final impact of an extra
unit of money would be far greater than the Keynes would have made the case that this
initial amount injected into the economy. government has taken an incorrect
approach by focusing on reducing fiscal
This ‘multiplier effect’, argued Keynes, deficit by cutting expenditure as the
would increase the overall demand in the multiplier effect also works in reverse. When
economy, thereby pulling it out of an the government cuts spending on
economic recession. Keynes believed that infrastructure projects, like new roads,
monetary policy would fail to stimulate the construction firms do not hire labour. This
economy. Thus, Keynes singled out fiscal not only leads to job losses but those
policy — public or government expenditure without jobs cut back on consumption,
— as the most effective policy tool for thereby forcing other firms to reduce
stimulating stagnant capitalist economies. production, which leads to further job losses.

ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD Instead of curtailing expenditure and trying

to squeeze more revenue, Keynes would
Had Keynes been our have the government provide a fiscal
stimulus for increasing the size of Pakistan’s
finance minister, he economy or GDP. This would involve putting
more money in the pockets of people
would have serious belonging to the lower socioeconomic
reservations. groups since they end up re-spending a big
portion of their income. Doubling the size of
the Benazir Income Support Programme
Taking a cue from Keynes, President
would thus be an ideal policy for the short
Franklin Roosevelt implemented a massive
term. A higher GDP not only creates more
fiscal stimulus called the New Deal.
jobs, it also leads to still higher tax
Hundreds of public projects entailing huge
revenues, which can then be used towards
government spending were set into motion
reducing the fiscal deficit.
with the government injecting money by
employing almost eight million previously
Keynesian policies have made a comeback
unemployed Americans, at times even
in the shape of Job Guarantee programmes.
employing out-of-work artists to paint
Argentina introduced the JG programme
elaborate murals. By the time the New Deal
after the economic crisis of 2001 in which
ended in 1938, massive government
heads of households were provided
employment for at least four hours per day.
India has the National Rural Employment
Guarantee which gives guaranteed
employment of 100 days per year to rural
workers — it increased the incomes of low-
income households by 13pc.

The severe economic crisis facing Pakistan

demands out-of-the-box thinking and agile
leadership. Keynes has shown how nations
can come out of economic recession by
injecting — not withdrawing — money from
the economy. JG programmes have been
tried successfully in a number of countries
where they have created jobs, raised
incomes and provided economic fillips. The
best brains in the nation need to get
together in order to conceive, design and
implement effective JG programmes that will
not only reduce poverty in Pakistan but will
also take us out of these economic
doldrums.