Army in the dock
by
Javed Hafiz |
Pakistan’s defence establishment has bounced back after bad patches
The recent Osama Bin Laden episode will have consequences for the region and Pakistan. Revenge attacks by the Taliban followed soon after his killing. The US leadership started breathing down the Pakistani neck for explanations and with the “do more” mantra. There was increased pressure to get the likes of Ayman Al Zawahiri and Mullah Umar. The military leadership was put in the parliamentary dock for the first time in Pakistani history. In a marathon joint House session, some tough questions were asked. Intelligence Chief, General Ahmad Shuja Pasha, offered to resign if the parliament desired. The general impression, so far, was that in Pakistan the military establishment could literally get away with murder. But as matters stand today, this is not true.
The Bin Laden episode has changed the power equation in Pakistan. For the last three years, the ruling Peoples’ Party was at odds with the military establishment. Zardari tried to give his own military doctrine by first saying that the main threat to Pakistan did not emanate from the east. He then said that Pakistan had forsaken the first use of the nuclear deterrent. This was not liked by the military establishment which has often derogated to itself the sole right of defining Pakistan ’s threat perception. Interestingly, the politically vulnerable president, facing a strong and independent-minded judiciary, stepped back. He then gave the military a carte blanche to deal with the Swat situation. Despite all this the GHQ kept the pressure on the political leadership, widely perceived as corrupt and inefficient. Inspired media stories gave a repeated impression that the days of this political set up were numbered. The latest developments have brought the Peoples Party leadership and the military establishment closer as Nawaz Sharif has emerged as their common opponent.
Sharif, by taking a principled stand, has assumed a higher moral ground. It was on his insistence that some’ teeth’ were put into an innocuous draft on the security issues placed before the joint session. An inquiry about recent security lapses was to be conducted by the adjutant general, Pakistan Army, according to the original draft. Sharif’s Muslim League insisted that the inquiry be done by an independent bipartisan commission. This commission is to be appointed jointly by the prime minister and the leader of opposition. Now Sharif is insisting that the defence budget, inclusive of the ISI budget be presented before the parliament. The prime minister has spoken to Nawaz Sharif to say that the army chief can give him a briefing on the budget; but he has turned down this proposal. The Bin Laden episode has literally humbled the defence establishment. Its image of omnipotence has taken a dent.
But the defence establishment in Pakistan has a tradition of bouncing back after bad patches. One is reminded of 1971, when the defence forces were down and out but they soon recovered. That helped Zia Ul Haq to stage a coup against a stalwart like Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. In 1999, when Musharraf turned the tables on Sharif, some people in Pakistan distributed sweets. We have to concede that the armed forces in Pakistan have a political role. During the sunset days of Musharraf, the military had become very unpopular due to its omnipresence in civil departments. After the elections in 2008, General Kayani was quick to withdraw his personnel from the civilian sector. His deft handling of militancy in Swat and Fata again saw the army popularity graph climbing. The Osama episode has now turned the tables on the military establishment. But, in the light of its history, I am sanguine that the armed forces of Pakistan would soon regain the lost ground. However, I do not see the armed forces ruling Pakistan any time soon unless the Americans push Pakistan against the wall and arouse jingoistic emotions.
An important Muslim country with a long and potent tradition of military role in its polity was Turkey . But that role has been rolled back before our eyes. And that has been possible only after the economic success brought about by the civilian leadership over the last decade. The Turks no longer look up to their armed forces as saviours of last resort. However, compared with the Turkish political leadership, Pakistani civilian leadership is far less astute. Given his past performance, I do not see Sharif emerging as the Tayyip Recep Erdogan of Pakistan. Pakistani civilian leadership has yet to develop the expertise and display national commitment to stand up to the military establishment as it happened in Turkey. |
Other comment for Javed Hafiz
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| NEWS UPDATES |
|
|
|
|
|
|
