Today is the ninth anniversary of the invasion of Afghanistan by US troops. It is time to reflect on the manner in which US got involved. It is also a good time to look at responsible ways to get out of the Afghan quagmire while ensuring peace for all the nations involved.  To re-phrase the line from the movie “Gladiator”, “Countries should know when the war has been lost”. This comment is not a reflection on the proud soldiers serving there, and has more to do with the policy. I had stated in a publicly broadcast show that the war in Afghanistan had been lost early last year.  Everything since then has gone downhill,  as was easily predictable to those who have the slightest sense of the region. It is already the longest war that US has ever fought. Churchill once said that “America will always do the right thing, but only after exhausting all other options.” It is now time to do the right thing as all the options have been exhausted.

I believe the main reason for hastily attacking Afghanistan after 9/11 was primarily a need to take revenge. This was abundantly evident by the expletive markings on the bombs being loaded onto aircraft aboard aircraft carriers to attack. Pakistani leader was begging for more time to work on Talibans to offer Osama bin Laden for trials. Had the Bush administration not been blinded by sheer hubris, we could have had him and his cohorts without resulting in huge human and monetary loss.

In my opinion the war was lost before it even started. The reasons have to do with the way it was planned. The fundamental long term mistake made then was that we wanted to do Afghanistan on the cheap. Then Secy Rumsfeld was obsessed with containing costs and wanted to do Iraq first. So we chose the easy way in the short term by using Northern Alliance and committed far fewer troops than were needed. These decisions were made in a rush and not enough long term thinking was put in. The result was that Osama got away in Tora Bora and we ended up working with  Northern Alliance, a group far more criminal than the Taliban. An important side effect of this association was giving India the back door space into Afghanistan, as they were supporting the Northern Alliance. We were forced into resorting to the blunt instrument of bombing from the air at the slightest provocation, since we did not have boots on the ground. This in the long run turned us into a brutal occupational force in the eyes of most Afghanis. This fact could be witnessed recently on CBS’s 60 minutes, where US soldiers ventured out only in their armored MRAPS and no Afghani was willing to work with them.

It does not serve anyone much to dwell on the past. What is essential is to do the right thing going ahead. I don’t think US can afford this war in the medium to long term when 40% of the US population is hovering around the poverty line, and the cost of getting one gallon of gasoline to Afghanistan is a whopping $800.

We need to immediately do the following things:

• Training Afghan Army a lot more aggressively.
• Distance ourselves from the Karzai gang of warlords and criminals. ( Read Taliban by Ahmed Rashid  for more details.)
• Get a much larger (300,000+) peace keeping force in Afghanistan, from preferably muslim countries.
• Give more representation to Pashtuns, who are the majority.

We must not do is

• Talk to the Talibans.
• Conduct criminal drone attacks on Afghanistan and Pakistan.
• Alienate Pakistan by military incursions and intrusive activities into their internal affairs.

I am no longer too sure about Churchill’s words. My prediction is that we will be in Afghanistan till well into the next century. I sincerely hope that I am wrong.

Tweet This Post

We’ve just passed the 9th anniversary of 9/11 and in lockstep with each passing year’s remembrance of that awful, tragic day, we’re reminded less than a month later of another anniversary, that of the start of America’s longest war—the war in Afghanistan. 

Such as it is, the war has seen progress and setbacks. We failed to capture or kill Osama bin Laden or Ayman al-Zawahiri. Indeed, the $25 million bounty on Osama bin Laden should probably be dropped. It hasn’t worked and only an imbecile would argue that this was due it being too small a figure. Yet in this simple observation surely lies a deeper truth.  Although we might share some aspirations with ordinary Afghans, what we think motivates us in an American cultural setting does not readily apply to the people of Afghanistan or Pakistan. In fact, bounties as a whole have been among the more notable failures of America’s policy in the region, too often proving to be vehicles for acting on local grudges rather than a means to ensnare our enemies.

Similarly, although drone attacks no doubt prove effective at times, their attempts at elimination of enemies generally create disproportionate resentment. Leaving aside their now well documented inaccurate targeting, the underlying resentment has much more to do with the remote-controlled and faceless nature of such attacks rather than their effectiveness or otherwise. Violence is not new to the people of Afghanistan and they pride themselves on their own martial codes. What is new is death-from-a-distance, from an unseen enemy operating from the comfort of an office somewhere in America and dispensing that death with less difficulty than in writing a memo. That resentment has to do with the dishonorable nature of killing without confronting an enemy, without putting one’s own life at risk, sipping a cup of coffee and returning to spouse and family after putting in “a day’s work.”

Mountaineer-turned-author and now deeply committed peace-worker, Greg Mortenson’s two books, Three Cups of Tea and Stones into Schools, along with his Central Asia Institute’s Pennies for Peace initiative stand on the other side of the chasm separating success from failure. The approach exemplified in his excellent and timely works require more patience and less spectacle. Yet, their successes are spectacular nonetheless and now America’s politicians and generals are paying heed to his words. Through vivid descriptions of his encounters with the people of the region he illustrates their willingness to reciprocate when confronted with (especially face-to-face) gestures of goodwill and efforts to rebuild their homes, schools and clinics.

It may no longer be important to capture or kill bin Laden or al-Zawahiri, and as long as the underlying resentments fester, there’ll be other bin Ladens and his ilk. But if there’s to be an end to this war that makes any kind of sense, we need to build on what works. Cultivating and acting upon a deeper understanding of the people we choose to affect, works. Sadly, however, it’s an understanding which most Americans, including many politicians, seem to lack. This isn’t the same as merely studying the people in the manner of a student or observer. One has to live within that world to embrace its truths. Mortenson’s words provide a graphic reminder of how important it is to take the trouble to do that and achieve a deeper understanding of a people, giving up something of oneself in the process.

And while his work is in the realm of facts and experiences he shares with his reader, other approaches from the world of fiction such as this writer’s own novel, SIKANDER, provide a different vehicle for internalizing how people of a different religious, cultural and ethnic makeup are motivated to think and act. After all, fiction can often provide access to otherwise inaccessible ways of living and experiencing those realities, and do so in as much detail and context as the narrative is able to convey.

After nine long years, simply having a dignified exit strategy is as unlikely to be a winning move as was America’s neglect of the region after the Soviet withdrawal. We need to respect unfamiliar customs, like the jirga system of tribal justice, the right to bear arms, and counter-intuitive customs like the obligation to defend a protection-seeker whether friend or foe, to name just a few examples. We need to avoid demonizing institutions like madrassahs based purely on the superficial imagery of TV sound- and video-bites. We need depth of understanding to equip us to discriminate the good from the bad. In short, we need to help the local people re-establish a functioning society which isn’t alien to their long-standing sensibilities. Only then will an American entry have had any meaning and an American exit be a cause for celebration.

Tweet This Post

After the shock and awe of beginnings of war is over and the dust from the towers has settled, comes the real face of war. How survivors face that face is the story of the mothers and wives who are left behind to cope with the decisions of the leaders who chose to wage them. Two American wives of the victims of 9/11 attack ,  Patricia Quigley and Susan Retik,  decided to turn their tragedy into hope for widows in Afghanistan.

I had the opportunity to meet and see Susan Retik’s presentation of the video “Beyond Belief” in a sold out hall at Islamic Center of Wayland on the ninth anniversary of 9/11 attack.  The work of these two ladies is a source of inspiration to all who face adversity. They took the hand that had been dealt to them and turned it into something worthy for all of us to emulate. Rather than getting overwhelmed by the sudden loss and the prospects of raising young children alone, they found strength in empathizing with the widows in Afghanistan; who had not only lost their husbands but were facing numerous other hardships.  The thing that struck me was the similarity of experience of mothers no matter where they come from. There is a particularly poignant scene in the video where Susan is meeting the widows that her organization “Beyond the 11th” supports, and an elderly lady is helped into the room. She had lost seven boys to the wars that have ravaged Afghanistan. You will need to watch and experience the emotions on her face in the video below.

Susan originally wanted to help only one widow. But as she realized that the cost of living in Afghanistan is so amazingly low when compared to that in US, she decided to actually support 400 of them. Through her fund raising efforts, that started with bicycling from Ground Zero to Boston, she was able to collect hundreds of thousands of dollars that she funneled to different women empowering projects through CARE.

Patricia and Susan are the face of America that gives rise to hope that Americans will eventually overcome their fears and assist those regions of the world that we have forgotten, rather than bombard them through drone attacks. Similar inspirational efforts have been effectively undertaken by Greg Mortenson through the creation of schools for girls.

I would urge you all to join and contribute to the efforts of those Americans who will win for us the hearts and minds of those that so desperately need our attention. On Planet Earth there are no borders, we are all connected.

Tweet This Post

My family came to India with Malik Hayder Ghazi, who laid the foundation of Bassi, on the outskirts of Sirhind City during the reign of Sher Shah Suri. 12 Tumans (Zais) came here, but many have become extinct and a few are left now. Their chief source was and is either agriculture or service. Some of them used to serve in Hyderabad Deccan even in pre mutiny days.The Afghans used to enjoy semi-independence till the cessation of Bassi to Patiala State and chose their own rulers. When the Moghul rule was nearing its end, the Afghans of Bassi were unable to defend themselves and they began to search for a Ruler who could defend them from the Sikh Invasion. Nawab Shamshair Khan Killewalla (Bassi), backed with the majority of Bassi Afghans, brought  an Ahluwalia Family related to the Maharaja of Kapurthala, to rule in Bassi,  while two families of Omarzai Afghans sided with Patiala. They on their own accord brought a Patiala Tahsildar to Bassi, against the wishes of the rest of Afghan community. The result was that the then reigning power began to torture them, their houses were looted and burnt, and men imprisoned (our Omar Zai ancestors). More than once Patiala Forces were sent to help against Kapurthala Forces. These two families were of Nijabat Khan (Muqueem Bhai’s ancestors in Katehra Mohalla across town from ours in Mohalla Nai Sarai and Ghous Khan (our ancestors)of Nai Sarai.

Bhikan Khan, (His “Abba Jan” great grand father)
When Rani Jounsa died, Kapurthala Forces took possession of Bassi, but these two families never yielded to them and kept on agitation against them in favour of Patiala. The leading members of those families at that time were Nijabat Khan and Ghous Khan’s two sons Shah Mohammad and Bhikan Khan Sahib. The result of this Civil War was that British Govt. took possession of Bassi, which was made a part of Ludhiana District. The activities of these two families continued, with the result that the British Govt. after ten months rule handed over Bassi to Patiala. It was the day rejoicing for these two families, and their services were rewarded by Patiala in more than one way. Muafi of land revenues were given to them. They were considered to be the Malikan-i-Ala of the whole Bassi. The lands of the rest of Afghans siding with Kapurthala were confiscated. During the short British rule, Arain cultivators of Bassi wanted to take the advantage of the situation and to assert their own rights against Landlords. His Highness’s Government was so much pleased by the services rendered by these families, that the orders were issued by the Foreign Office, under the August Commands of His Highness The Maharaja Narinder Singh  Sahib Bahadur, to the State Vakil at Ludhiana and to Tahsildar Fatehgarh Sahib to help our private cause with the British Officers. A copy of the order, which happens to be with me by chance is attached herewith. The words Zubdatul-Iqran have been used with when the name of Bhikan Khan Sahib was mentioned in the Perwana. The words show the esteem in which he was held.

As the fortress of Bassi and other public buildings were in the possession of Kapurthala side and Patiala had no State building, in the city, the necessity was felt to have one to show British Officials that Patiala has got substantial proof of possession even in the city. The building of Nizamat, Bassi was built in one night by these Afghans. This was the reason for naming it as Shatab Garh.

These families used to collect revenue for Patiala and render every sort of help to them. For instance when General Octorloney was passing through Patiala territory, orders were sent to Nijabat Khan to help in every way with Rasad, etc. A Perwana-i-Khushnudi was given by the General for the help given.(Perhaps Muqueem Bhai had this, he once mentioned it. These Afghan used to fight battles for Patiala with their Retainers; just like Feudal Lords in England, and many lost their lives in them.

—————————————————————————————————————

Chaudhry (A title of Army Chief and of authority) Namdar Khan Sahib ( his grand father)

Bhikan Khan Sahib had two sons, both entered the State Service. The elder Kalay Khan Sahib entered the service as Daftari and retired as Nazim. The younger Namdar Khan Sahib was recruited in the army and worked as Naib Daftari, in Bhakshi Khana. Later on he was sent to Thanessar District as Vakil. His services during the Mutiny and his honesty brought him into the notice of His Highness Maharaja Narinder Singh Bahadur, who made him Naib Adalti on the reduction of Thanessar District. His Highness The Maharaja Mohinder Singh Bahadur made him Sarishtadar Ijlas Khas. Afterward he was made Nazim and later on he was made Adalti (Judge). During the minority of Late-Lamented His Highness the Maharaja Rajinder Singh Sahib Mohinder Bahadur, he worked as a Member of the Regency Council. The work of the Council is so well known and so highly spoken, that I need not write any thing on the subject.

(There is a Road in Patiala India still named after him)

—————————————————————————————————————

Sardar Haji Mohd Ashraf Khan Sahib  (His father)

S.H.Ashraf Khan Sahib son of Ch. Namdar Khansahib, entered the State Service at an early age. He worked in different capacities. He was a Musahib (Advisor) to His Highness The Maharaja Rajinder Singh Sahib Mohinder Bahadur. He retired from the service as Nazim after 47 years of service, which has been well appreciated by our August Master in the order of his retirement.

—————————————————————————————————————

Sardar Mohd Fazley Haque Khan

He graduated from M.A.O. College, Aligarh and studied Law for 2 years. He joined the Patiala State Service as a Naib Nazim (E.A.C.) and in due course was invested with the powers of a Sec. 30 Magistrate. Latter on, he became an A.D.M. and for five years worked as Nazim(D.C.). When the Judiciary was separated from the Executive, he was appointed District and Session Judge, Bhatinda, from which post he was promoted to the post of Judge in the High Court. He was then made Home Minister and later on was given the portfolio of the Ministry of Development and Agriculture. He retired on superannuation pension, after having been given two extensions, on 16th December, 1944.

Tweet This Post

We in the Pakistani American community have been deeply troubled by the attempt by one of its new member to bomb the Time Square. Pakistani American community is a well to do community; as was this perpetrator. Faisal does not fit the typical profile of these kinds of criminals. Before we start talking about putting out the correct responses within our society to stop this in future; we need to learn more about what made Faisal undertake such a mission.

Some of the brute force and shot gun approaches that are being suggested, like aggressive screening of airline passengers alienate the very people that we need to improve the relations between the two countries. I think this is a good opportunity to stress on Pakistani leadership to clean up their act and to provide them assistance in doing it. If they are unwilling to do it, then it is time to tell them “Lead, Follow or Get out of the Way”.

The current approach of firing missiles from 10,000 ft into civilian houses in Pakistan with the associated human carnage only makes it difficult for the Pakistani leadership to do what is right; not only for them but also the rest of the world, and US in particular.

What people like Faisal have proven that the Pakistani American community can no longer be casual about what happens within it. It needs to vigilante to unusual behavior amongst its members that could possibly result in another Faisal. We also need to urge the US government to form a policy in the region that has some chance of successfully stabilizing the region. The current approach of sending too few troops to manage Afghan security only embolden the Taliban. Similarly conducting drone strikes with “collateral damage” is morally reprehensible and only creates more Pakistanis with anti US feelings. You can read more about my views on the subject here.

There is a need for regional approach to that region’s security.

Tweet This Post

Seldom does something so small make such a major social splash as the JadooTV box. The reason is that the box is just the tip of an ice berg. The multimedia content aggregation, Jadoo Portal, globally distributed media servers and a high bandwidth global infrastructure constitute the whole iceberg. JadooTV is a palm size box that connects the internet to your TV set and allows you to browse and watch audio, video and multi-media content in your living room or wherever your TV is located. It could even be in a car. The concept of connecting TV is not new and there are other companies providing devices that do the same; like VuNow from VerismoNetworks and IPTV2000 from Netgear.

Global Focus:

What sets JadooTV apart from the other offerings is the content on its portal and the regular software and portal improvements that continuously keep on increasing the value proposition of using it. JadooTV’s development teams are spread around the world. Hardware is designed in Taiwan and manufactured in China. Software is being developed in Pakistan and India. Aggregation is done all around the world. The content is pushed out by video servers around the world by world class infrastructure providers. Globally diversity allows for both optimization of development and manufacturing; that over a period of time has the potential to make JadooTV the unquestioned number one provider of this disruptive technology. The global vision of its management had also made its way into the content aggregation. They have chosen to first focus on providing the many diasporas living around the world with live content from their homelands. This focus is also what separates it from the rest of its competition. JadooTV has done for video content, what internet earlier on did for documents by providing global accessibility.

Live TV and Radio:

You can watch Live TV Channels from Indian, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and many more countries around the world. It shows Live Cricket Matches, Live Soccer Games, Live Sports, Indian & Pakistani Food Recipes, International News, and much more. You can also watch from the large selection of Indian Movies, Pakistani Dramas & Stage Shows. Live Internet Radio from India / Pakistan and many other Countries is brought to you as well. These capabilities made their impact on our lives when my relatives visiting from Pakistan were made to feel right at home in the US by being able to watch their favorite TV programs and remain abreast with news back home.

Surfing the Web:

Many computer companies like GateWay and Dell have tried to make browsing the web in the living room TV. But they failed because they had computer centric thinking. JadooTV shines in this space as it takes a TV centric approach to experiencing the web. JadooTV has embedded a special web browser and designed their portal to make the frequently visited media and social sites easy to visit. You will be able to scour Youtube and search for videos using the powerful built-in video search engine. If you were willing to go the extra step of downloading PlayOn™ from Media Mall™ you will be able to watch all the exciting video content from Hulu™, Netflix™, Amazon Unbox™, CNN™, and ESPN™.

Access Personal Media from Home Network:

Another useful JadooTV feature is the ability to access all your videos, music and photos on your PCs over your home network. It could also be from Networked Attached Storage device, or even on a connected USB storage device. I did not realize that Microsoft Media Player can also act as a video server. It was quite easy to configure Media Player 11 on my XP based PC, to share its content on the local network. You do need to make sure that the firewall is not blocking external access. The Media Player senses your JadooTV and asks you if you want to share content with it. The nice thing is that you can not only watch videos but also collectively watch your photo albums with music streaming in the background. JadooTV automatically senses the resolution of your TV and scales the photos appropriately.

QWERTY Remote:

The standard tv appliance user interface of a remote starts to suffer when it comes to internet browsing. The need to enter alphanumeric information frequently led to the design of a Qwerty remote. A blackberry like remote with a full QWERTY keyboard will provide the enhanced user interface while remaining sufficiently like the standard tv remote.

It is hard to beat the shear amount of multimedia content being delivered by a device that costs about the same as an iPhone but without the monthly charges.

PS:  You may want to read about Jadoo2: A Worth While Entertainment and Educational Gadget.

Tweet This Post

Little did I know when I first posted this that there would be a number of drone strikes and suicide explosions immediately after wards. I know of no nation in the world that willfully allows another nation to attack and kill its citizens, specially when it has the resources to stop it. The current civil and military leadership of Pakistan needs to be held accountable for allowing Pakistani citizens to be killed, on a nearly daily basis, by its people. I had recorded  a talk show on US policy in Afghanistan and Pakistan in April 2009. It discussed the anticipated change in the US policy brought about by the new Obama administration.  

The talk was triggered by a blog by Adil Najam on Pakistaniat. I am vociferously against the use of drones as weapons, for reasons too many to enumerate here.   As it turned out 2009 was by far the worst year for Pakistanis killed by US drones as well as their human equivalent, the suicide bombers. According to Human Security Project Report the number of Pakistanis killed by drones in 2009 alone is SEVEN HUNDRED. I had the opportunity to meet Imran Khan ( the cricketer/politican)  in my recent visit to Pakistan who informed me that 20,000 people have been killed by drone attacks. If these numbers are true, then US is committing a “My Lai every Month” in Pakistan. The only difference is that there are no photographers on the ground to capture the decimated bodies left behind after a hellfire missile explosion.  Unlike My Lai, there are no US service men with the conscience to bring the perpetrator of these crimes to the public notice. I am not sure what the real numbers are; most probably between the two figures. But this is an extraordinary large number of civilians to kill over a very large area with no accountability and no declaration of war. The fact of the matter is that there are no independant journalists allowed in the region. So anyone can come up with figures that are impossible to corroborate. These reports don’t mention people being injured and maimed in an area with little to no medical facilities.  The very fact that you have drones flying over you 24/7 creates a persistant psychological trauma for the people and children of the region.  This is essentially a collective punishment being inflicted on the people of Pakistan.

The unfortunate things is that the change in US policy have mostly been for the worst  since then. The only real shift has been by Pakistan Army in launching operations in South Waziristan. The video is self explanatory, hence this short blog.

One of the nice things in US is that the cable providers are forced to airing local programs created by the citizens of the town that they serve. This allows for the creation of grass root programming which neither the corporations not the government can control. Political Chowder and Policy Watch are two such programs that allowed such heretic ideas presented here to be aired in a number of affiliated public channels across the US. It is people like Joe Briggs who are the unsung heroes for saying what is the right thing, in a nation otherwise kept in the dark by the corporate run media.

Tweet This Post

As a Pakistani American I am most interested in good and strengthening relationship between the two countries. As an inhabitant of the planet I am interested that the two countries can work out their issues without resorting to the use of force, as both the countries are nuclear powers. The sad fact of the matter is that right now US is waging a hot war on Pakistan. It is Pakistan’s weakness and inability to defend itself both from inside and out, that it is letting itself to be bombarded with missiles on a nearly daily basis. Over 300 Hellfire missiles have been fired into the homes of Pakistanis since 2007. Each $58K missile attack kills about fifteen people on the average. Many of these people are children and women. By one estimate, one AlQaida type is killed for every 49 civilians. It is estimated that there maybe upto 10,000 hard core Taliban and AlQaida types in Pakistan. Using this strategy would result in the loss of 500,000 innocents to get rid of them. This is the same failed US strategy in Afghanistan that has alianated the average Afghan. The irony of the matter is that the Government of Pakistan actually provides two bases for the drones to fly out of Pakistan so as to give them longer loitering time over Pakistani villages. The Obama administration has appointed a Special Forces general to chart out the new Af-Pak strategy for the region. Being from special forces, he tends to see solution to most problems as needing the application of even more special forces. So he has asked for more Predator strikes into Pakistan and inserting special forces to go into cities of Pakistan, like Quetta. Agianst this backdrop comes “The Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009″, or more popularly known as the Kerry-Lugar Bill. I managed to stay awake while reading all the legalize. I took the time to read it and would urge you to read it too at pakistaniat. It is the single most important piece of US-Pakistan document to study as it lays down the foundation of relationship between US and Pakistan for the duration of Obama administration.  We as a planet, are standing a tipping point in history. If we are not extremely careful in how we tiptoe through the next couple of years, there is a real risk of nuclear war between Pakistan and US. Should such a tragic event happen, the inhabitants of the Northern hemisphere of the planet could be inhaling radiating dust for a very long time to come.

Let us analyze the KL Bill against this backdrop of activities. In my opinion the bill lays down the foundation of what the US wants the relationship with Pakistan to be during the Obama administration. There is a fundamental shift in a couple of significant ways. The first is a shift in giving aid directly to civilian organizations for social development. The second is that the monitoring of the money being spent will be done primarily by the US embassy in Islamabad. The third is the certification by Department of State that Pakistani government and security forces are behaving in a manner that achieves the intent of the bill specified in Section 4 Statement of Principles.

The Statement of Principles or the intent of the bill is written very well and if executed properly would be a win win for all parties. It respects the sovereignty of Pakistan in that it aspires to work through the Government of Pakistan. It recognizes the sacrifices made by the people and security forces of Pakistan. It shows US desire to support the rule of law for all Pakistanis and for quality education in all territories of Pakistan. It extends support for people to people engagement that has been neglected for a very long time. It supports greater US aid in many areas of development that are sorely in need of monetary and expertise assistance. It even aspires to involve greater Pakistani American involvement in the process. If the bill had stopped at this point, it would be a bill worthy of support by all the concerned parties.

Unfortunately things start going downhill after that. Depending upon how much you want to read into it, the areas where the money can be spent starts unfolding the real agenda of the bill. It starts talking about enhancing the government’s capability in enforcing human rights. Nothing wrong with that on the surface. Till you take into consideration how the human rights bogey has been selectively used by US in furthering the foreign policy directives in countries around the globe. It begs the question as to who is defined as a human.  These moneys would be used to strengthen National Parliament committees to oversee national defense issues. I have included the exact quote below.

“..support for efforts to strengthen Pakistan’s institutions, including the capacity of the National Parliament of Pakistan, such as enhancing the capacity of committees to oversee government activities, including national security issues,..”

Such a brazen statement implies that they currently do not do it, and are looking for assistance from around the globe. If this is not infringement on sovereignty, then what is. How do you suppose money will be spent for this goal. Bribe the generals. Promote those officers who adhere to our mantra. The tone belies the desire to drive a wedge between the security agencies and the “democratically elected representatives of the people”. The Secretary of State will be asked to certify that

“..the security forces of Pakistan are not materially and substantially subverting the political or judicial processes of Pakistan.”

“.. Govt. of Pakistan is making progress in ceasing support, including by any elements within the Pakistan military or its intelligence agency, to extremist and terrorist groups..”

“..Government of Pakistan is preventing al Qaeda, the Taliban and associated terrorist groups, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, from operating in the territory of Pakistan, including carrying out cross-border attacks into neighboring countries, closing terrorist camps in the FATA, dismantling terrorist bases of operations in other parts of the country, including Quetta and Muridke, and taking action when provided with intelligence about high-level terrorist targets..”

All this implies that Government of Pakistan has been  historically guilty of all this , and is being put on notice to clean up their act. We have the arrogance to dictate that Pakistan do our bidding in its local and foreign affairs according to our definitions. Many of the words are defined in great details in the definitions. But definition of terrorism is glaringly absent.

As a Pakistani American I would like the US government do the following:

1. Not spend any money for improving the education and police forces in Pakistan. This money is the responsibility of the Pakistanis to generate. There are too many home less and destitute american citizens who are more deserving of our tax payer dollars.

2. We should cease Predator attacks on Pakistanis immediately and compensate those who we have harmed.

3. We should get out of Afghanistan and let Pakistani and Turkish security forces under the UN mandate provide the space necessary to raise Afghani Army which would then take over. These countries share ethnic, religious and territorial commonalities with the people of Afghanistan. Both of these countries have the necessary security apparatus to assist and train Afghani Army. They will ensure that Alqaida types will not be able to use the Afghani territory.

4. We should provide nuclear and non nuclear technical assistance to Pakistan for their energy needs.

5. Provide visas conveniently to Pakistani students wanting to come to US universities.

6. Create opportunities for greater people to people contacts.

7. Respect Pakistani visitors and not profile them when they visit US.

As a American Pakistani I would like to see Pakistani Government do the following:

1. Spend enough money to educate all the Pakistani kids. Right now it provides money for only one in forty.

2. Spend enough money to provide security and timely legal recourse to all Pakistani citizens.

3.  Repeal the Blasphemy laws as they are against the founding spirit of Pakistan, against the religions  of Pakistan. Against the constitution of Pakistan.

4. Pakistani security forces should only play the constitutional role  and protect all the Pakistani citizens from all attacks from the air or land.

If both countries conduct themselves morally and do the right things for their citizens, there would be no need for any bloodshed. We should tear the Kerry Lugar bill and replace with a bill which lays a foundation of friendship based on mutual respect and trust.

Tweet This Post

Tweet This Post