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LETTER
FROM AMERICA
By
JEHANGIR KHATTAK (BUREAU
CHIEF DJ NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA)
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When Saghir Tahir, the little known
Pakistani American civil engineer, was elected to
the New Hampshire State Assembly in 2000, to become
first American of Pakistan descent to enter a US legislature,
a joke would be frequently heard in Pakistani gatherings.
The one-sentence joke would say “Saggy (Saghir
Tahir is known to his friends and electorate as Saggy)
won the election because there was no Pakistani in
his constituency.” (The soft-spoken Saghir won
the elections from a constituency in which only one
Pakistani family lived). The one line satire reveals
a painful truth as well – lack of unity among
Pakistani Americans. Little wonder, it unveils the
rarely acclaimed Pakistani trait too – their
inherent genius and dynamism.....more
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60
Years of Pakistan Army
Columnist
Gp Capt (Retd) S M HALI eulogizes the Pakistan Army.
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The story of the evolution of the Armed Forces of
Pakistan is the story of the birth of Pakistan itself
against heavy odds. The army was pressed into action
directly at the time of our independence.
Pakistan’s armed forces, though they present
a formidable strength today, made a humble beginning,
virtually starting from a scratch. Post partition,
the military assets of British India was unjustly
divided in a ratio of 64: 36% between India and Pakistan.
Unfortunately, Indian spitefulness resulted in Pakistan
receiving only a fraction of its original share and
that too in a dilapidated state.
The Pakistan Army had its baptism under fire just
after its inception; after the fraudulent accession
of Kashmir by Maharaja Hari Singh on 27 October, 1947,
Mountbatten and Nehru air-launched the Indian Army
into the Srinagar Valley. The India Army’s offensive
was halted at the Ceasefire Line (now Line of Control)
by the Pakistan Army......more
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Pakistan’s Nuclear Oversight Reforms: IISS Dossier
Columnist ADIL SULTAN highlights the acknowledgement
by IISS of Pakistan's excellent nuclear command and
control structure.
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Pakistan
has a robust command and control system in place
to protect its nuclear assets from diversion, theft
and accidental misuse. The measures taken in this
regard are transparent and appeared to have worked
well. Indeed, Pakistan’s openness in explaining
its command and control structure goes beyond the
practice adopted by most other nuclear capable states.
This has been recently acknowledged by internationally
renowned scholars in a dossier launched by The International
Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) London on
2nd May 2007.
Command and Control
While highlighting efforts made by Pakistan to establish
an effective command and control structure soon
after overt nuclearization by both India and Pakistan,
the authors of the dossier write that one of the
first acts after General Pervez Musharraf became
Chief of the Army Staff was the creation of Strategic
Plans Division (SPD) — to take charge of operational,
financial and security controls over all strategic
organizations. The arrangement was formalized in
February 2000 with the creation of National Command
Authority (NCA) with SPD as its Secretariat. All
strategic organizations participating in nuclear
and missile programs were put under the control
of NCA. Chaired by the President with the Prime
Minister as its Vice Chairman, the NCA constitutes
top civilian and military leadership of the country.
It is the highest decision making body in the country
and is responsible for nuclear policy, procurement,
planning and use of nuclear weapons.......more
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Do
More Syndrome
Columnist Dr S M RAHMAN urges
Pakistan to review its policy of total compliance
to the US and not to repeat mistakes of the past.
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Pakistan
is a punching pad for the Americans, its allies, and
of course Israel and India, in a manner that ‘lies’
and damn ‘lies’ are orchestrated round
the clock in a manner that global opinion is totally
oblivious of the ‘realities’. Truth is
the first casualty in war, and this is exactly what
has surfaced in the so called war on terror. Pakistan
became a front line state after 9/11, rather naively
due to the rage and anger that USA exhibited and the
threats that Pakistan would be reduced to the Stone
Age if it did not comply to the demands of the unilateral
super power. In the first place, Pakistan’s
contribution in USA achieving global primacy and the
ouster of the Soviet power and thereby the end of
the cold war era of bipolar world order, was totally
ignored. It is considered to be the virtue of an individual
if he remains grateful to one who may have rendered
help under adversity. In the US lexicon of international
relations, such norms of decency and propriety do
not exist.....more
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Secular
or Fascist India?
Columnist
ADNAN GILL exposes the sham of India being secular.
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Talk to
an Indian or listen to any Indian official,
especially the Indian politicians and they would
make you believe India is a secular state. If
you look at the Indian Constitution, again you
would think that India is a secular state. But
on a closer scrutiny of Indian politics, the
myth of secularism crumbles faster than Bal
Thackeray’s tolerance for the Muslims
and Pakistanis.
Just
like 60 years ago when most of the Hindu extremists
were pursuing the creed of Hindutva, today even
more Indians are embracing this intolerant theological
dream. Today, there is a larger percentage of
Indian populace that is embracing fascist and
pseudo-fascist Hindu political parties; consequently
there are far more Hindu extremist parties littering
Indian political landscape. Thanks to these
believers of Hindutva, religious intolerance
has become the main theme of Indian politics.
As always, the hunger for ‘Akhand Bharat’
(a united Hindu state that spreads from the
borderlands of Persia to Tibet and western China)
is stronger than ever before, this explains
why more and more Indians are crossing their
fingers in a hope that one day Pakistan will
become a failed state, so it can be annexed
into the ‘Akhand Bharat’.......more
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Threat
to the Muslim Holy Sites
Columnist
AFTAB AHMAD KHAN highlights the relevance of the three
most holy sites for Muslims and urges the US to refrain
from hurling threats that could invite consequences.
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“Verily,
the first house (of worship) appointed for mankind
was that in Baca (Mecca), full of blessing, and guidance
for all people.” (Qur’an;3:96). “Passing
through the valley of Baca, they make it a well-spring;
yea, the early rain covereth it with blessings.”
(Bilbe;Psalm;84:6). “And Remember when We showed
Abraham the site of the Holy House (the Ka’bah)
at Makka saying: Associate not anything in worship
with Me, and sanctify My House for those who circumambulate
it, and those who stand up for prayer, and those who
bow and (submit themselves with humility and obedience
to Allah), and make prostration (in prayer).”
(Qur’an;22:26)
Introduction
The War On Terror (WOT) started after 9/11 and is
taking a toll on 1.5 billion peace loving Muslims.
The few hundred misguided militants (initially trained
by US in the war against USSR), who have chosen ‘violence’
as means of expression of their anger and reaction
to oppression and injustice, do not represent the
vast Muslim majority, which is itself a victim of
their violence. The killing of innocent Muslims by
extremists (in the name of Islam) in Iraq, Afghanistan
and Pakistan through suicide attacks has become a
routine phenomena, although according to Qur’an,
killing of innocents (Muslims or non Muslims) is prohibited.
Allah says: “..whoever kills a person, except
as a punishment for murder or mischief in the land,
it will be written in his book of deeds as if he had
killed all humanity and whoever will save a life shall
be regarded as if he saved humanity …”
( Qur’an;5:32), “If a man kills a believer
intentionally his recompense is Hell to abide therein
(for ever): and the wrath and the curse of Allah are
upon him and a dreadful penalty is prepared for him.”
(Qur’an;4:93).......more
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Suicide
Bombings, Afghanistan, the Ulema, America
Columnist
FAZAL HABIB CURMALLY probes into the al-Qaeda, the
Taliban, approach of Ulema, Afghanistan and the mess
created by the US, with relevance to Pakistan.
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Introduction
This is the final article of a series that include
“The Owl Eaters” and “Sergeant
Peppers Bleeding Hearts Club Band”. Suicide
bombing is not the only thing to have beset Pakistan
in this summer of our madness that is upon us and
in an election year. We have the Ulema, the Al-Qaeda,
the Taliban, a rumoured threat of emergency with
America also muddying the water. All because of
the war in Afghanistan and the USA’s unquenchable
thirst for power. It seems they have very little
in common under normal circumstances but today they
are linked. I plan to deal with all four in some
depth below and plan to build up a base for understanding
the situation for what it is. I have referred above
to the so-called emergency which was media hype,
no more and no less. Being election year and election
a few months away, everyone has kittens and there
are more rumours than needed floating about. The
two phone calls between the President of Pakistan
and the US Secretary of State had to do with Afghanistan
and possibly finding a way out for the Americans.
It seems Pakistan has not taken to the 9/11 Commission
recommendations that were translated into an act
of Congress and duly signed by President Bush linking
aid with performance for Pakistan, lightly. Perhaps
the President should have told the Secretary of
State that we are not their performing monkeys and
the President’s refusal to attend the opening
session of the grand Jirga between Afghanistan and
Pakistan was a part of the ire expressed.......more
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Civil and Military in Pakistan
Columnist
RIAZ JAFRI looks at the other side of the coin regarding
army officers
holding civilian appointments in Pakistan and sets
the record straight.
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Introduction
An email on the internet by the caption, “Every
Country has an Army, Pakistan Army has a country”
has been doing the rounds for the last many years
much to the delight of the likes of Farhat Ullah
Babar, Ansar Abbasi and Dr. Ayesha Siddiqui, who
let go of no opportunity to malign the armed forces.
It surfaces every now and then in a planned manner
to strike when the anvil is hot, that is, whenever
the government is facing a situation. I have received
it again for the third time now during the last
two years. It contains a comprehensive list of the
army officers in civil appointments in the country.
On the face of it the list looks huge and on its
first reading gives the impression to the uninformed
gullible that the entire administration of the country
is being run by military officers. What it does
not say cleverly is that it is a consolidated list
of all such military personnel who have held such
appointments over a period of last two decades or
more and includes the names of even those who have
retired since long from their civil positions or
have even left for their eternal heavenly abode.
But the list keeps on making the rounds, of course
not without the obvious purpose of maligning the
army in its own country, thus doing the job of the
enemy strategists for free (but who knows, there
might be a price?) in eroding the very unity and
the foundations of Pakistan. .....more
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Lost
Opportunities and Unforgettable Events
Columnist M A GILANI’s
recounts some opportunities that were lost by Pakistan
in the 1965 War, particularly by the senior leadership.
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Introduction
Before the September 1965 War Pakistan had lost
two golden opportunities to capture at least half
of KASHMIR. On 27 October 1947 at LAHORE the QUAID-E-AZAM
had ordered the acting C-in-C Gen. DOUGLAS GRACEY
(Gen. MESSERVY was on leave) to immediately send
Pakistan Army units into KASHMIR because India had
invaded KASHMIR by air and by land route. Obviously
the Indian Government had broken the agreed ‘STAND
STILL’ agreement for the misfortune of Pakistan.
Gen. GRACEY felt obliged to stall and instead of
obeying the orders of the head of the state of Pakistan
decided to consult the supreme Commander Field Marshal
AUCHINLECK at DELHI. On 28 October the Field Marshal
and Gen. GRACEY and the QUAID-E-AZAM met at LAHORE
and the orders to send Pakistan Army units into
KASHMIR were cancelled and it was arranged that
MOUNTBATTEN, the Governor General of India, and
political leaders of both the countries would meet
at LAHORE on 29 October. According to historians
it proved to be a fiasco; Mr. NEHRU pretended to
be sick and Sardar PATEL (the strong man of the
Indian cabinet) expressed inability to leave DELHI.
But after three days of postponement MOUNT BATTEN
alone attended the meeting.....more
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