Better placed
by
Javed Hafiz |
Pakistan’s relations with India, Afghanistan and Iran will improve
President Asif Ali Zardari has been sworn in as the 14th President of Pakistan. His election to the top post is nothing short of a civilian coup. In that sense, it is a welcome development in a nation used to military coups. Zardari evokes extreme sentiments. His supporters are gleeful, his foes bewildered. The Pakistani nation has passed through an exciting chain of events bordering on fictional, indeed dramatic. Some people are still struggling to come to grips with this reality. On 6th of September, the sweet shops did roaring business as PPP supporters distributed sweets. On 9th September, some people switched off their televisions to avoid watching the oath- taking ceremony. Some three thousand articles have recently appeared in the international media about this extraordinary man, mostly negative. I am reminded of an old saying: “He who does not have enemies is not a good citizen.”
Zardari visited Dushanbe in 1996 as federal minister, while I was ambassador there. Though we spent a couple of days together, I cannot claim to know him well. So I started my Internet research from the websites and local newspapers. And there was a plethora of information available. You can allege him of anything but he is certainly not a bore. He appeared in an Urdu movie as a child artiste years ago. As a young bachelor he was known for a personal disco at his house in Karachi. While playing a polo match, he is reported to have saved the life of a foreign female player who had fallen off her horse. Those who were around, credit Zardari for his great courage. Singapore leader Lee Kuan Yew called him “likable rogue.” In Dushanbe, I found him to be an engaging social conversationist. Tajik President Emomali Rehmanov is his personal friend.
To the down side again, Christina Lamb called him “Pakistan’s most controversial figure” and “Benazir’s inconvenient husband.” His celebrated wife tried to keep him out of the public eye as much as possible in months preceding her death as he was seen as a political liability. Anjum Niaz, a senior Pakistani columnist calls him “a leader by accident of marriage.” A number of commentators have opined that President Zardari, due to his checkered past, will lack the moral authority so essential for a leader.
On the positive side, Zardari will be good for the federation which had grown weaker during Musharraf’s later years. Three smaller provinces have voted for him and his support in the Punjab is also substantial. Situation in Baluchistan has improved lately. The new leadership has made it clear that the militant Taliban will be dealt with a strong hand. Looking at it from another angle, my friend Ambassador Tariq Fatemi wrote about Zardari, “He is coming with the blessings of the Bush administration—-they feel he will provide a political face to the military operation.” But then Ambassador Fatemi is known for his PML (N) affiliation.
On the external side, Pakistan’s relations with its neighbours-India, Afghanistan and Iran-would improve and this is a good omen. Zardari believes that a hostile relationship between India and Pakistan is futile for both, more so for Pakistan. President Hamid Karzai was the sole foreign leader invited to the oath-taking ceremony. In a joint press conference, both leaders underlined the necessity of co-operation in war against terror. President Zardari has wisely decided to pay his first official visit to China, Pakistan’s friend for all seasons.
An elected president, with no worries about legitimacy, he will certainly be better placed to face external pressures. Recently when the US/Nato helicopters landed in Waziristan, Pakistan promptly stopped overland supplies to the Isaf forces in Afghanistan. This was a clear message to Washington to think twice before undertaking operations inside Pakistan. The Army Chief General Ashfaq Parwaiz Kayani has also issued a categorical statement to that effect. Such operations, in my opinion, not only embarrass the Pakistani government but also provide, by default, political strength to the Pakistani Taliban. By the same analogy, they weaken Pakistan government’s hand to deal with them.
In political terms, the present government in Pakistan is in a good position to engage the Taliban in talks. Two coalition partners, the ANP and the JUI of Maulana Fazal Ur Rehman have a strong base in the Pashtoon population of Pakistan. The ANP is a nationalist and secular party which disdains Taliban ideology. However, in the Pashtoon culture, ethnicity and religion overlap. “What kind of a Pashtoon are you, you are not fasting” is a question asked amongst Pashtoons only who are almost 100 per cent muslim. Due to ethnic links the ANP has held several successful negotiations with the Taliban. If and when the negotiations reach a dead end, the government is on a high moral plank to use force.
This is a long drawn war, in which, the long term strategy should always be given greater importance than short term tactical gains. When President Zardari visits US, he must tell its leadership that Pakistan forces alone should operate on the Pakistani side.
Javed Hafiz is the former ambassador of Pakistan to the Sultanate of Oman.
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