Gains and Losses of Pakistan as a Coalition Partner

Columnist A Rashid discusses how we stand to profit or make losses on account of our involvement on the side of the US.

Along with the world at large, Pakistan is in the midst of a deluge of history since September 11, 2001. The fast developing momentous events are rigorously transforming the core political culture and the psyche of the people of Pakistan. Ever since her inception, despite enjoying the status of an important ally of the United States, every now and then, her overall strategic status remained marginal. Only a negligible minority of the people of the developed world noticed the existence of Pakistan as a member of the United Nations. In the aftermath of September 11 terrorist attacks in the US, Pakistan has assumed the centre stage where the final act of Great Game in Central Asia is being played. American led coalition’s war against terrorism starting from Afghanistan is one of the most cataclysmic events after the Second World War. Pakistan, being one of the major players is the focus of attention of the entire world today. Provided, the establishment of a broad based multiethnic government in Afghanistan, political pundits and economic wizards round the world are focusing their stretchy imagination in far future to lay bare the promises the event holds for the region in general and for Pakistan in particular. The foremost advantage accruing from the cataclysm would be the transformation of people’s outlook from myth to reality.

From General Zia ul Haq’s period onward, the riffraff host of political leaders that were available, became prisoners to the unrealistic myth that faulty hypothesis, the approval of the people of Pakistan could be obtained through lip service to religion. Based on that faulty hypothesis every set of politicians vied each other to look more Islamic than the other. All kinds of reactionary slogans were coined and repressive legislations done to that end. The focus of successive governments remained riveted to subjective service to Islam and the substantive business of the state remained stalled. Mere slogans and high sounding sermons on religion alone could not provide material for well being of the people. As a result, every successive government stood rejected. The baffled politicians in the government resorted to corruption and nepotism, with a view to hijacking the electoral process through their touts, with the sheer force of ill-gotten wealth. Meanwhile, some foreign forces took advantage of this pathetic state of affairs and, by stealth, injected tons of money through their proteges to breed religious extremism through Islamic seminaries. These religious seminaries belonging to different schools of thought also aired sectarian violence. The religious lobby thus established, became quite vocal and acquired some street power comprised of their mercenaries. Every radical act of the government would be opposed and hindered by this lobby. The corrupt governments in turn, neither having their roots in the people nor performing any meaningful business of the state, became absolute hostages to the religious extremists.

Unchecked population explosion and dwindling trade and industrial activity, due to rampant corruption, transformed the majority of the people into a vast pool of unemployed youth. The tout religious lobby capitalized on this state of affairs. The youth of the country recruited and paid through these seminaries, became an unruly street power in the hands of religious extremists. Thus a culture of bigotry, intolerance and religious extremism took shape. Talibans’ was the first cadre graduating from these seminaries. Routing of the indiscrete killers, mostly non- Afghans, of Northern Alliance, in Afghanistan, by this cadre, further strengthened the belief of the motivated youth of the country that the promised renaissance of Islam was round the corner. Hero worship, in its classical sense, became conspicuous. Personages like Osama bin Laden and Mullah Umer became the paragons of virtue and the chosen men of God, destined to bring about the promised renaissance.

The American led coalition’s war against Taliban and Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda and their summary disposal in Afghanistan, without meaningful resistance, has broken the myth of their invincibility and God’s hand behind them. Contours of reality are emerging fast and disillusionment and disgust of their rank and file is taking a heavy toll of Al Qaeda and the Taliban. The present war in Afghanistan has also opened the eyes of the religious enthusiasts back home in Pakistan. They seem to be awakening from the dreams instilled in them by the respective religious pedagogues. The shattering process of the fantastic myth created by the extremists is also exposing the reality to the poor and simple people of Pakistan. That miracles can only be expected with continuous and relentless home work and not through wishful thought and cheap slogan mongering. Particularly the delirious statements, completely detached from reality, of Osama bin Laden and Mullah Umer, claiming the impending destruction of America and her allies, during the unambiguous rout of Taliban shocked their followers. 

Some of the very obvious indicators of diminishing zeal of religious zealots are observable. The market of Osama bin Laden’s portraits has crashed. No T shirts decorated with Bin Laden’s portraits are visible any longer, nor these portraits remain a decorative item of petty shops in the bazars of Pakistan. Frequency and size of protest processions both have dwindled to almost meaningless exercises. As the intensity of war in Afghanistan picked up momentum and the citadels of Taliban’s power started crumbling one after the other, the weekly culmination days of protest marches, that is Fridays, are passing off peacefully.

Some of the credit for this also goes to the scientific handling of law and order project by the government. The Government denied the usual initiative to the religious lobby by wresting the initiative from them. Strict observance of rules laid down regarding protest demonstrations and expression of dissent in a democratic manner was ensured. Unlike the past, the present administration did not behave apologetically by taking the highhandedness and rowdyism of the religious lobby, lying down. As far as the option of the remnants of Taliban getting to mountains and caves to stage a come back through guerilla warfare is a far fetched hypothesis. A land locked country with all neighbours hostile to Taliban, the feasibility of initiating an insurgency is beyond the realm of logic. The future planning should, therefore, focus more on post-war reconstruction of Afghanistan rather than wasting time in the management and planning of an unlikely exigency.

Reconstruction of Afghanistan, as being planned internationally in the leadership of United States, holds the promise of a massive boost to the Pakistani economy. The tentative figures released by a Dawn report on November 24, 2001, indicate a pumping in of 20 billion dollars in Afghanistan over a period of same number of years. Pakistan by virtue of Afghanistan’s immediate neighbour having her territorial waters in the Arabian Sea, with 2500 km long border with Afghanistan will be the biggest beneficiary of the project, after Afghanistan. Apart from supply of steel, cement and construction material of sorts, Pakistan will also be the main source of skilled and non-skilled labour. Additionally the development and exploitation of Central Asian oil and gas wealth will also benefit Pakistan because of her ideal location to provide route for marketing of these commodities. These processes will surely revolutionize the dynamics of trade and industry in Pakistan, bringing about an economic revival in the country.

The most important positive intangible accruing out of this fateful development would be the riddance from the haunting stigmas of religious extremism and terrorism in general. Extremist elements will stand bridled and the common man shaken out of the dreams of miracle, will be poised to make positive contribution to the national reconstruction and will lead a respectable life.

There have been certain losses as well during the war in Afghanistan. Dwindling foreign trade and law and order crisis in the country. But analyzing the tally of gains and losses, the cataclysmic event is proving a God given opportunity to galvanize Pakistan into a viable state with a name as the envy of many neighbours and distant friends.