Are you tired of the torrents of rumors on Musharraf in the Western press? Well I quite am. This proves only one thing that no one actually has a clue on what’s happening. Okay its true that there are talks going on behind the scene but how do you predict the way this man’s mind would work in such a situation. Musharraf we should remember is a lone bargainer and is under no obligation from any group to come quietly. It is true that he faces very difficult and taxing challenges which could jeopardize his very existence but this is the point politicians get surlier than you expect. And of course why not? Musharraf still thinks that he has been a victim of a conspiracy. Usually when we do something to our advantage we do not reflect on the possible conspiracy theories on deeds or course of action. Yet when it comes to things done to our disadvantage we suddenly become believers in the very conspiracy theories. So it is natural for him to think that there has been a conspiracy in place to displace him. I don’t contend that he is not to quit but to my understanding he is not someone who would like to give up without fights. Politicians in the past the world over have made fools of themselves in trying to make final bids at survival. Whether the major actors on the scene can take effective measures to dissuade him from doing something ridiculous remains yet to be seen. I believe the answer lies in the fact what is offered to him.
We all know that he wants to stay in Pakistan, with all the security and immunity provided to him. While immunity is possible his stay in the country may jeopardize his survival for he does not know how unpopular he has become. And in all fairness if he is provided with the level of security that has kept him out of the harm’s way thus far it would be unprecedented in Pakistan’s history for no non governmental personality especially a retired politician has ever been provided this much security. And wishing that he has to live a long life I have to say that even if the state and government do pledge such a thing it will not be an honest pledge for given the frequency with which our policies and governments change no one can ensure that Musharraf will enjoy this level of security for ever. What is the course of action then? To proceed to Turkey as was the original plan for in Turkey there is lesser degree of militancy. We also understand that the US, the UK and even Israel have offered to provide him security there. That would be far too practical.
As for the immunity I believe that anyone who thinks that he should be prosecuted after his removal is doing us a great disservice to us especially if such a thought is anything more than lip service or mere bargain threat. Musharraf remains a former national leader and while he screwed up big in many a places including Balochistan, and in Karachi on May 12, 2007, not all his policies were a total waste. He deserves our tolerance and respect if he steps down without fuss. If we are asking for his removal it is because he has become a liability for the state as after an age every politician becomes.
And let me clear one thing here. It is wrong to think that he is a victim of a conspiracy. No sir he is not. If he thinks that the PPP has backtracked on its deal under the NRO he should know that that deal did not include the death of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and since she was killed of which he is partially if not totally responsible it has proven to be a deal breaker. He should go without much ado and create new precedents. And yes total immunity should be given to him and peaceful power transfer should be ensured at all costs if he accepts to step down.
I knew it, I KNEW IT! Once Musharraf felt that the political class was not ready to sing his song this time he would look back to the team of nobodies he had used for his first emergency cabinet. And I was sure that when the scene was so much devastating for our prez they would certainly resort to McCarthyism. For those of you who are not aware of this genre of cheap politics let me explain. In the early days of the Cold War a Senator Joseph McCarthy had risen to much heights invoking patriotism and branding every dissident as a soviet or communist mole. The technique was simple. Pick a critic, throw aspersions on his person, invoke patriotism, and condemn that person without paying any heed to his arguments. This technique worked for a while and then renowned CBS anchor Edward Murrow brought an end to his tyranny by exposing him. Now a similar gang of intellectual thugs has invaded our capital and our television screen in support of Musharraf.
Yesterday Marvi Memon daughter of Nisar Memon was on television and she started shrieking at the top of her voice in one of the talk shows in the presence of suave Ayaz Amir and Fauzia Wahab. Quite predictably she alleged that Amir and Wahab’s parties were not patriotic. Why? Because she had moved a bill on Northern Areas and the recent developments in Indian Kashmir which could not find instant support? I mean look at this. These are the folks who are supporting a general who turned the country into a US colony by providing three bases here. The same general who sold countless Pakistani citizens to the US without even letting them have their basic right to prove themselves innocent in a Pakistani court of law a perfect example of which is Doctor Aafia Siddiqui. And yet these folks have no shame. Allege your opponents, shout at them, keep repeating the same stupid mantras and hope the people will swallow this attitude again.
Likewise, the former Chief Minister of Punjab Peja Elahi addressed a public meeting in which he claimed that during their regime Karzai did not have courage to criticize Pakistan. I am afraid Mr Elahi is on drugs or else he would have not said such a stupid thing. I mean have you forgotten how Karzai had confronted Mush on his various foreign visits?
Another example is our dear Mushahid Hussain and this is the saddest part. We could digest the stupid blabbering of Marvi and Pervaiz but when a seasoned man makes mockery of logic our hearts weep. Mushahid has forgotten that Benazir Bhutto was assassinated only a few months ago. He has forgotten that people like me still have his lectures on audiotapes extolling the PPP. Since Musharraf now gives him importance the he has started speaking gobbledygook. He says that the PPP had succeeded in elections only benefiting from Musharraf’s policies. Does he mean the murder of Benazir Bhutto? He further states that if Musharraf has he should quash the NRO. Mr Mushahahahid remember that day when the same Musharraf had imprisoned you alleging you along with the Sharifs of taking part in a conspiracy? People like me had spoken and worked tirelessly then for your freedom. Again when you were not being given any importance in the party it was yours truly who had written tirelessly in your support. And now you sit there and make a mockery of the people’s mandate. You know full well that Musharraf’s election from an outgoing parliament was sham and yet you sing his song. My dear sir politics is not the name of such naked opportunism. Of all the people at least you should have shown some reason. Maybe while abolishing NRO Musharraf should send him back to the gaol too.
But the tragedy doesn’t stop here. Some of the anchors are also being used to whip up support for Musharraf. I must urge all PPP, PMLN and ANP leaders to avoid participating in the shows of the following anchors till the time the situation has not settled: Katrina Husain, Mujahid Barelvi, Jasmine Manzoor and PJ Mir. In Katrina’s program the way Fauzia Wahab was ignored or censored was really sad.
Our own Kamran Khan is doing an interesting thing these days also. He seems to be busy in frightening us of the consequences of Musharraf’s departure, albeit subtly. For instance he repeatedly tells us that Asif Zardari is to be the next President as if it was something horrible. But see this assertion in the light of the previous work of Mr Khan. All these media geniuses are building pieces of a case against Musharraf’s sacking. I don’t understand why especially because Mr Khan has suffered as much as anyone else owing to Mush’s arbitrary policies. As for Katrina I was disappointed to note that she was not even listening to the talk of Musharraf’s opponents as was visible from her questions. This is really sad.
And finally it seems the terrorists also have some affinity with Musharraf. See at a time when the NWFP assembly was to adopt the no confidence motion against Musharraf there was an attack on an Air Force bus. It is clear that once Mush is gone the nexus of terrorism will break automatically.<-->
It seems now clear. Musharraf if left on his own devices will not give in to the mounting pressure to stand down. This is in spite of the reports that the US Ambassador to Pakistan met him yesterday and recommended that he step down and seek a safe passage. Honestly if I were Musharraf I would have definitely not heeded such US recommendations. Yet I would have cared a lot for the institution which gave me my name and all the respect. Yes I am talking about the Pakistan Army. When we already know that concerning Musharraf there indeed are some embarrassing facts should he not decide to silently step down and save the army of some embarrassment? I think he should. Not clear? Let me illustrate.
The biggest bombshell and the most troublesome case against our president is being built in the United States. Yes I am talking of Dr Aafia Siddiqui case. As we know the story she was apprehended in 2003 within Pakistan and then handed over to the US of A. If the defense manages to make the point that the bona fide case against her is regarding her activities in 2008 and not what she was alleged of 5 years earlier that will not only vindicate her of any charges of the so-called service to Al Qaeda but also leave the government of Pakistan badly embarrassment. We know her life for the same reason is under threat. But if we know anything about the US legal system we know that now that she has come into the mainstream legal proceedings she will stay safe. But she has finally provided the countless faceless Pakistanis sold off to the US with a face. A woman abducted along with her children and handed over to the Yanks who had to endure countless human right abuses. How does it sound? And yet Musharraf in his published book which amounts to a written testimony takes pride in the fact that such activities were undertaken by the Pakistani state. Is it not embarrassing? Musharraf was then also an army chief and the army if I remember correctly prides itself on its defense of the motherland and its people. So you understand what I mean.
But the story doesn’t end here. The allegation of financial mismanagement worth $ 700 million cannot be taken lightly. The government is alleging that it went to Musharraf’s personal account but even if it cannot be proven please rest assured that disappearance of this staggering amount received in lieu of the war on terror will not go down well in the western capitals. It is a sure thing that the government would have not raised this issue if it could find it anywhere in the 2001-7 account books. This will damage the Pakistani state as never before.
While full accountability of this is needed for the sake of the war on terror and this will eventually come, if issues like these are dragged in the press the establishment of the country will be devastated. Yes the same establishment which has trusted Musharraf so much. The other charges that I am aware off will lead the retired general straight to the gallows. One wonders what Musharraf is playing at then?
I believe then that it is due chiefly to the presence of inept and corrupt advisors. It is clear that Musharraf has effectually been alienated from the circles that call shots in the Islamic Republic. That leaves him without any insight into the intelligence or state operations. In this condition he and his colleagues have resorted to simple calculation of nerves. If the government is still hinting at a safe passage, it certainly have some chinks in its armor, must be their logical deduction. But this is akin to misconstruing the situation pretty badly. Someone needs to wake the embattled man up. If he does not heed the better advise being given by his former colleagues and some rivals he will surely damage himself absolutely. Power is not everything. His life may not be important for himself but he must be precious to his own family. As precious as Dr Aafia Siddiqui is to her own family. Moreover the state which has tolerated him for eight long years as its head also deserves better from him. If he does not heed any advice his friends in the army will also have to let him face the music. For the cause of democracy though it may not be that bad for the impeachment process will create new precedents. Also the case against Musharraf will help manifest that the decade of the 90s was not a disaster because of democracy but owing to the machinations of the establishment.
Musharraf needs to change his advisors at once. The opportunist class he is right now trapped in is only still standing with him for personal gains. The moment he loses they will not take a second to switch sides. With friends like these who needs an enemy.
I am sure most of you have seen the Al Pacino starrer The Devil’s Advocate. Everyone has some advocates. Musharraf has them too. A very interesting lot it is. From Ayman Al Zawahiri to Hamid Karzai, from his political allies to a rag tag army of the so-called “senior constitutional experts”. Let me start from Zawahiri.
When we thought that the old devil was dead he seems to have come up with an almost humorous video lecture. Ary One World broadcasted a video of him yesterday which I missed. Apparently the devil of a man was speaking in English. From the news reports that I have seen he has issued a chargesheet against Musharraf. How very shrewd. I am sure you remember the 2004 US elections when Bush was struggling in the election and he old pal O-Sam-a bin Ladeen appeared on television to give him a leg up in the opinion polls. Something of the same sort here too. By issuing a chargesheet he has tried to make a mockery of the impeachment process and by weaving his own manic views into the popular resentment against Musharraf he has tried to give the western neo-cons an excuse to support him. But the only hitch is that the world is mature enough today to tell such dirty tricks apart. No sir we are not sinking for this one. While we impeach the liability of a president Zawahiri can also kindly go to hell. We all know he is no well wisher of democracy in Pakistan either.
The comes Karzai. Have you ever wondered whenever Musharraf is in a troubled spot how Karzai starts urging the US to invade Pakistan? He indeed has done it again. He wants the US to fight the make believe elements inside Pakistan. Why? To keep the Pakistani generals under pressure, what else? Remember the day long march kicked off against Musharraf the US launched a strike inside Pakistan. This is the same theater of the absurd I keep talking about. And yet I am afraid that this one will not work either. Why should it? The Pakistan army has finally learnt that the more it makes concessions in the war on terror the more it comes under pressure. Pakistan can certainly do better today by not letting such elements win.
And then of course there is this shameful lot of so called senior constitutional experts who keep facilitating Musharraf. One example is Sharifuddin Pirzada who never gives a hint of either being Sharif or Pirzada. Then there are a host of others. SM Zafar? Hafiz Pirzada? Maybe there should be a law barring any Pirzada to become a lawyer. I mean listen to their twisted arguments. Without any hesitation they claim that Musharraf has never done any unconstitutional thing. Excuse me! What did you just say? Never? Then please explain how did an army chief become the president of the country. Oh perhaps there is a law stating that a uniformed officer can contest elections. But sorry there is no such law. We know Musharraf toppled an elected regime and appointed himself the head of government and state and then sought legitimacy through the courts. The crime was committed first and then it was justified. I mean this is two plus two. Plain logic. No matter how much you try to justify it the fact remains that the toppling of an elected government, abrogating and then amending the constitution arbitrarily falls under the purview of high treason. Anyone aiding or abetting a traitor is considered a traitor too. So if a court chooses to take oath under a Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) imposed by a usurper and then redeems his actions it also commits high treason punishable which deserves capital punishment. Likewise if a group of lawmakers tries to legitimize his acts no matter through parliament since it was in essence an unconstitutional act we are talking about it also indulges in the same crime. Musharraf is an illegitmate head of state and anyone tries to call his actions constitutional should die of shame. Otherwise if you allow the subversion of the constitution a legitmate act particularly when a verdict in its support is obtained through the manipulation of courts then any suicide bomber can walk into the Supreme Court or the parliament with a bomb and ask it to make him the president of the country per force and change the constitution in such a way that his excesses are no more considered crime and that he cannot even be sacked. There is one thing no law or constitution can cancel out, in fact every law and constitution is supposed to be built on it, namely the COMMON SENSE. Now tell me where does Musharraf stand right now? Can anyone in his right state of mind and conscience justify such nonsense? Sirs, don’t follow the constitution you call yourself the custodian of but at the very least have enough shame not to call us stupid.
And finally to those politicians who think that Musharraf’s departure can in any case be averted I have this to say: Wake up, he is already gone. What remains is mere formality to be completed within a couple of days.
Since the day Dr Shahid Masood was made the MD and the Chairman of the PTV, press reports against him have been quite visible against him. In some sections of the press it is being alleged that the doctor has chosen to side with Musharraf and that he is squandering the taxpayer’s money too. Some others have called it a sell out. Sorry but what is a sell out in his case? His presence as the head of the country’s largest albeit state-owned terrestrial network is good news. It is unwise to jump the gun and raise finger at a man who has only just joined the set-up. Pakistan Television we already know has been victim of prolonged abuse and hence become an almost incorrigible place. It will take the man sometime to clean the Augean stables. If today the doctor is getting bad press it is mainly politically motivated. And when I say politically motivated I mean the PTV Workers’ Union. It is quite understandable that many a people get jealous of someone so successful but no one goes to this level of defamation if his personal interest is not at stake. The PTV needs a radical operation which may include kicking some asses. Now there are many less successful souls within the PTV union who would have liked to be in his place. That is why all this unfortunate defamation campaign.
Regarding Dr Shahid I have this to say. First he can be anything but not unethical. Therefore we can rule out the chances of financial mismanagement. Second he is not partisan and is being ridiculed for the same reason by a multitude of people. Third he is not only very good at management but also a very capable television anchor. While it is correct to use his administrative skills in order to discipline the unruly PTV bureaucracy, he should also be asked to host a show on the state run television. A little bit of objectivity and independence of view can never harm a government. Masood’s program on PTV will only help it regain viewership. This is exactly what the PTV needs. Image of a credible channel and an increase in regular viewership. I still remember how credible PTV had become when Talat Husain was its Director News. While it is true that Dr Shahid Masood is a doctor by profession let us not forget that he has carved his niche in the media through his own hard work. Let us hope that the democratic government will stand with Dr Shahid and a credible PTV. Sirs, please give us our good old PTV back.
And finally I leave you with Dr Shahid’s recent Urdu column which speaks volumes of the strain caused by the media persecution.
I am not a seer hence don’t expect prophecies from me. Yet I’ll like to share with you my understanding of the situation. I believe that it is indeed a very timely and well considered move to impeach. I am particularly pleased by the modus operandi adopted for the removal of the President. For instance had the ruling coalition chosen directly to head for impeachment procedure it could have caused a degree of embarrassment to the establishment as it is known that the process involves trial like hearings that could be broadcasted live on television. There indeed are policy choices by Musharraf which cannot be defended at any rate. Had such a trial taken place or does indeed take place this would have been akin to washing the dirty linen on the street. Instead the government has chosen to first give Musharraf the option of graceful exit by seeking vote of confidence in the parliament and the assemblies of the federating units. If I know anything about the political dynamics of the country I can bet that he will not win the vote no matter how much horse trading takes place. Also I believe that the courts will also not endorse any presidential attempts to sabotage the process because ground realities have changed beyond Musharraf’s comprehension. If I am worried about any segment or department it is the Election Commission yet even if this institution is exploited it will only mean the delay of the final achievement and nothing else.
My understanding is that the armed forces and the establishment in general will not side with Musharraf in this situation. Why? Because of the anti-Musharraf sentiment on the street. With the exception of the spineless sycophants and his lieutenants there is no one who wants him to stay put. The most plausible logic is that the dynamics have changed on ground and Musharraf is a fixture of past. The more the country tries to march to the future the more it is dragged back by his presence. The retired general had a peculiar way of ruling the country which is not conducive to the changing ground realities. Since he believes in realism everyone expects him to resign. The establishment’s expectation from him would be that he seeks safe passage and leaves without any further embarrassment to his benefactors. I am sure that the Bush administration would have chosen to stand with him but he has become a defaming factor for every politician associated with him both here and abroad.
If my information is correct the president’s relations abroad have already been alerted to the fact that he may soon leave his position and the country. It is my understanding that if he leaves now his safety will be ensured by the establishment and the US administration. However if he does not, the mere withdrawal of high security status granted to him could really jeopardize his security. Also there are indications that the UN may soon take Benazir Bhutto assassination inquiry. Again the claims of his taped recording with Benazir Bhutto that have surfaced in Ron Suskind’s book are highly implicating. Even in this context he would be better advised to disappear from the public attention like Shaukat Aziz so that the antipathy to his very existence can be reduced. Once the impeachment process starts the allegations leveled in the chargesheet would become formal and his eventual compromise would not help him either. The sooner he makes up his mind and says goodbye the better it is for him and for the nation.
Another of my understanding and my hope is that Musharraf in spite of the presence of inept advisers will show some reason and step aside before the impeachment process. I know his faith in his make believe destiny is of the messianic proportions. However this is the time when all such fantasies start crumbling and people see reason. Perhaps Musharraf’s graceful mother and wife can convince him to see reason. It is a desperate appeal because his further stay in power will only jeopardize his safety and the nation’s integrity. Please have mercy on your motherland.
And now a request to the civil society and the lawyers’ movement. Dear sirs, show some patience, empathy and trust. It is my understanding that the impeachment move is an honest attempt at resolving the country’s crises. I see reason also in the fact that the first priority is given to the impeachment rather than the judicial issue. If once the president is gone and the judges are restored it will ensure that the judicial system remains free of political or vindictive exploitation. Sirs please have faith.
And a piece of advice to Altaf Hussain. Don Altaf if you try to muddy the waters you’ll be better advised to start counting your days.
This week Pakistan’s most influential class is meeting in Rawalpindi. A ‘routine’ meeting of the Corps Commanders and the formation commanders will be held under the leadership of the Army Chief. It would have been an ordinary meeting had it not been an extraordinary juncture in our national history. Apart from the countless operations and international pressures the country is enduring, the fact that the government coalition seems gearing up for the impeachment of the sitting president Pervez Musharraf a former army chief and coup maker, is bound to have an impact on the psyche of the officers corps. It is clear that Musharraf has not survived for so long just because of sheer luck. While claiming to be a courageous man who neither fears death nor stepping down, he has made hectic efforts to escape the both. For instance he concedes in his book and in a related episode of Jawabdeh (albeit reluctantly) that on October 12, 1999* had the Corps Commander Quetta decided to move it could be civil war. In other words he doesn’t mind risking civil war for the sake of personal survival.
What worried me the most yesterday were two things. First the sudden statement of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee on Pak Army’s readiness to face all challenges no matter external or internal. This statement could have been a mere matter of routine referring to the operations going on in tribal/Balochistan regions. But it is not. We know the sitting CJS is very close to Musharraf and to me the statement is quite ominous. The CJS as we know is a ceremonial position hence has to borrow all man power from the services chiefs and he is expected to make statements everyday. But hardly any statement is brought to the media’s attention. The current statement seems a clear message and perhaps a warning to the political class. And if the truth be told in the time of crisis this post can be used to hijack the army control from the army chief. The trouble now is that there are clear attempts being made to isolate the sitting Army Chief by none other than Musharraf’s moles only because he believes in the discipline within the army and thinks that he should not be partisan. I am deeply concerned that owing to the fact that the most of the corps commanders were appointed by Musharraf and that he still enjoys the US support he may not risk something silly again. Then Musharraf’s political puppets have started using very crude and outrageous statements on the television. For instance there is a Lilliputian Barrister who used very sad language on television. This is the old roller coaster. Army is being lured into a trap of becoming partisan and polarized. Since the neo-cons have already shown readiness to inflict as much damage on Pakistan as can be done before being thrown out of the power corridors, this serves their hidden agenda and helps Messrs Hamid Karzai and Zalmay Khalilzad in their quest for alternatives to the Gwadar deep sea port. It is our responsibility not to get entangled in such open traps.
The pretexts being made for the army rank and file’s disquiet are 1) the government has failed in controlling the multi faceted crises created by Musharraf’s eight year policies, 2) the govt had the nerve to try to bring the ISI under its direct control especially through its hideous interior adviser.
The first is indeed rubbish. While we can pretend to do so for our own convenience, the new government has only been in power for four months or a little more and Musharraf’s lackeys and the ISI both have done their bit to throw spanner in its way. When usually it takes a dictatorship 8 to 12 years in creating such chaos how can you expect the democratic governments to undo that within a short span of time? The foreign cooperation with the new cabinet has not been serious owing to the presence of Musharraf and his clout. If anyone instead of complaining actually wants the system to survive he should ensure that Musharraf is gone.
As far as the confusion on the ISI is concerned folks whom are we mocking? I know the decision to let Rehman Malik head the agency was downright stupid which has duly been reversed but those army officers who have not worked in the ISI know its repute already. Brigadier (retired) Yousaf in his book the Bear trap has not made any bones about this. Likewise countless former DG ISIs have conceded that they took part in political engineering and manipulation which is not actually its brief. Is a little bit of discipline and coordination bad? Why should the army give in to the lousy feudal sentiments like other supremacists? Why should the army behave as if it is the sole monopoly on all wisdom. Again the ISI does not comprise the untouchable core national interest. It should rather be addressing its image problems both here and abroad. And any form of civilian control (of course not interior ministry and not Rehman Malik) is its best chance. If the army keeps behaving as if it is a no go area the impression that the government has not been granted the real powers will only strengthen. Sirs, for the future of the country, for the sake of your own children and grandchildren if they are in this country and for the sake of the faint promises that we once made to ourselves to defend our country in our schools please do not allow the discipline of the army to be destroyed. Please do not let this country die for its enemies want that to happen quickly. Army should not take sides. It should ensure neutrality and respect for the original system that was envisaged by our founding fathers. Democracy and institutionalized justice system are our best hopes. Please do not let them get destroyed. No matter whatever the Army has done under Musharraf’s command to please the foreign powers the enemies of the country have not made any concessions. Today everyone from the presidency warns between the lines that the country would plunge into civil war if Musharraf is sacked yet no ones understands that if another martial law is imposed or democracy is dismissed the real civil war going on in Balochistan, NWFP and the like of which we witnessed on the eve of Benazir’s murder in Sindh will become out of control. Musharraf is a liability for the army and the political set up. He should seek an immediate safe exit in order to save all of us who believe in this army, of any embarrassment. Those who still have doubts should pick a newspaper and read the reports on Dr Aafia Siddiqui. I would not want that to happen to my own child one day.
At a time when the democratic government seemed badly paralyzed and helpless, things have taken a dramatic turn over night. After Asif Zardari and Nawaz Sharif met yesterday, those who had lost faith in the democratic set up now are clinging to television sets for more information on the chances of Musharraf’s impeachment. Musharraf seems to have abandoned his immediate departure to China. The presidency and its crony politicos have already started threatening of course through their media moles of the dissolution of assemblies. It remains to be seen whether the presidency will try to act quickly in order to preempt the parliament or not, yet there seems little that the presidency can do.
It is correct that the president was developing a silent chargesheet against the government with the help of the state institutions more recently of the governor State Bank and his foreign peers. Let me remind our readers that partly if not completely responsible for the current financial mayhem is the sitting Governor State Bank. After she rose to power she has tried vainly to be the Alan Greenspan of Pakistan by increasing interest rates in such a naive way that the liquidity has vanished from the market. That has been done despite the fact that the real culprits could not be stopped in exploiting the bourses or making mockery of the price system. The President was currently banking on the sentiment of the men in Khaki who were offended by the move to hand ISI’s charge to Rehman Malik. The government has been proven quick at learning and that disastrous decision has been reversed. If he tries to play with the sentiments of the army any longer the chances are that he will only ensure another martial law in which he would have no voice. If he is expecting miracles from the judiciary let us state it clearly that the judges who took oath under the PCO believe in the ground realities which have already changed considerably. Musharraf is without uniform and everyone knows that the election results gave a clear verdict on him. The foreign masters may want to stick with him but he is no more inevitable for Washington which is soon to face its own presidential election. In my view if he tries to sack the government or dissolve the assemblies the courts will only whitewash his victims and ensure his departure even though I find the PCO judges the least trustworthy. The Army will either have to step in to oversee the sacking of the president and the government or to impose martial law. If fresh elections are held of anyone can win but the pro-Musharraf parties. In case of the martial law things will change beyond calculation. Musharraf then is in a lose lose situation. The sooner he realizes it and chooses to leave with dignity the better it is. And this is not a reasonable time for attempting to sack a government for anyone.
The Theatre of the absurd has not been finished yet. Author Salman Rushdie who has championed the cause of the freedom of imagination and expression is now against a book which hardly poses any threat to anyone. The objection he has raised is interesting. The book “Her majesty’s service” by Ron Evans does definitely not throw aspersions on any established faith or question the integrity of its founder, yet it commits the minor blasphemy of portraying Mr Salman Rushdie as a mere mortal with some mortal lapses. Mr Ron Evans, a former Metropolitan Police officer was one of the team guarding Rushdie while he was under an Iranian-backed death threat for his 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses.”
The issue of the Fatwa against Rushdie was misconstrued as a religious matter even though it was not. Even Mr Rushdie at that time being too eager to cash in his image of a victim made no attempts to correct the impression. Those who have read the work will remember and those who have not should learn that the primary reason behind the edict was the fact Imam Khomeini was one of the characters of the novel and was not portrayed in any positive light. It is true that Rushdie’s book has two sections where he could be alleged of blasphemy, the first being an intellectual one whose rebuttal has been written by none other than Karen Armstrong in her book ‘Muhammad’. This section in a way suggests that the Prophet of Islam at a time was ready to concede to the demands of acknowledging Lat, Minat and Uzza as deities for the sake of political survival. In a nutshell the traditional issue of the Satanic Verses. The second one where poet Baal recommends something to the prostitutes of Jahiliyah. Indeed the behavior of poet Baal when the prostitutes are to be prosecuted is made a symbol of dissent and courage. Yet now when it has come to his own person Mr Rushdie cannot swallow only this much difference of opinion or dissent? What a shame?
Yet it must also be stated here that the above two sections were not part of any historic narrative but dreams of a man called Gibrael Farishta in the novel who finally kills others and himself at the end. In other words these things are presented more as an anomaly of a madman’s mind rather any formal historic claim.
Let me quote the BBCi story here for your consumption:
“The author told BBC News the claims were “a bunch of lies” and he was seriously considering legal action.
Sir Salman said the book was defamatory and is demanding that the offending chapters be removed. The Booker Prize-winning author received police protection after a fatwa was issued by Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran’s spiritual leader.
Mr Evans worked as a driver in the protection unit. He was also a bodyguard for John Major and other high-profile figures.
I was never locked in a cupboard nor was I suicidal - none of these things happened
Sir Salman Rushdie
In the book, he claims Sir Salman was nicknamed “Scruffy” and was once locked in a cupboard because he irritated his protection officers. They then all went to the pub.
He wrote: “When they were suitably refreshed they came back and let him out.”
He also claims the author charged officers around £40 a night to stay in his home and would also ask for money if they drank his wine.
In the memoirs, Mr Evans writes: “We were paying, or rather, the taxpayer was paying Rushdie to protect him!”
‘Extremely friendly’
Sir Salman replied: “He’s made up a whole bunch of lies.
“I became extremely friendly and fond of the police officers who protected me.
“They were extremely scrupulous and would never behave so cruelly to me, get drunk on duty or do anything else he has said.
“At the end of my nine years of protection, they even held a party for me.
“He has not checked his facts. I was never locked in a cupboard nor was I suicidal. None of these things happened.
“The first I heard about the book was three weeks ago when a senior police officer called to warn me it was coming out.”He said the force was humiliated, apologetic and embarrassed about it.”
Rent money
Sir Salman said he was paid rent for officers who stayed in his houses but that he never asked for the money.
He said it had been offered by the police, who would otherwise have had to pay for more expensive lodgings nearby.
He said: “I am not in the business of suppressing books. I just want the stuff taken out of which he knows to be untrue.
“Whenever I write something, I always want to make sure that what I write is defensible. That doesn’t seem to be the case here.”
Sir Salman said he remembered Mr Evans but the man had not made any overall impression on him.
He said: “This is not just my reputation at stake. Apart from making me look bad, he’s made the entire police force look bad. “I am taking the action because I feel loyal towards those people who risked their lives for me. “They are being accused of all sorts of things and yet no-one seems to be defending them.”
Legal action
Sir Salman is considering legal action against Mr Evans, his co-writer Douglas Thompson and publisher John Blake Publishing Ltd.
In 2005, Mr Evans was convicted on nine counts of false accounting and ordered to pay £6,280.85 in fines and costs.
A statement from the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) about the book said Mr Evans had not been asked to sign a confidentiality agreement. “It is not our intention to comment on Ron Evans’ recollection and interpretation of specific events. We regret that he chooses to publish this book,” the MPS said. “There were a number of passages within the draft which caused [us] concern. Following legal advice we negotiated with the publishers to make some alterations.” The publishing house has declined to comment. Ron Evans and Douglas Thompson were unavailable for comment. ”
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7538875.stm)
I have highlighted Rushdie’s comment on police’s image above because I can see the double standards at work here as well. In the Satanic Verses when the transfiguration of Saladin Chamcha starts and he is apprehended by the British authorities considerable cruelty is shown on the behalf of the British authorities and the police too. Is it not interesting?
I am saddened because the man who has been fashioning himself as the crusader against censorship now wants a minor work to be censored. While I am not a British citizen and I have no right to object legally on Rushdie’s knighthood I most certainly can object to his demand on censoring the book. No sir, the book should be published as it is. The best course of action for Rushdie would be to write his own memoir on life under the Fatwa and clear all the allegations made. Any legal action should and would be condemned.
CBS News chief foreign affairs correspondent Lara Logan is reporting that the “Pakistani authorities” have intercepted a letter carrying verified seal and signatures of Baitullah Mehsud stating that Al-Qaeda number 2 Dr Zawahiri is critically injured. This letter has already reached the hand of Ms Logan and she reports that it refers to Sheikh Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri by name - and says that he is in “severe pain” and his “injuries are infected.” Ironically the Pakistani authorities have only sign of confusion on the bit of news and the Taliban have rebutted the report. If the report, however, is correct it essentially implies that Zawahiri must have been hit on 28th July when alleged Al Qaeda weapons expert Abu Khabab al-Masri, and five other Arabs were killed in South Waziristan.
The shocking thing about the report is not the news itself but the surprise of the ISPR and the Pakistani authorities. These raids cannot have been conducted with Pakistan being in an intelligence vacuum. If the letter is genuine and there are reasons to believe its veracity, it must have passed through the hands of at least some Pakistani officials. Could it be the classic case of a barium meal? If it was it has most certainly identified a leak to the media. Yet this time the report was not carried in the New York Times but CBS news which is quite well known for its credibility (with the exception of the Dan Rather law suit). However if the Pakistani authorities are indeed in the dark this confirms my point on the lack of counter intellignce and something should be done about it.
As for the Taliban reaction it is quite natural for them to deny the reports. A militant group fighting a battle of survival seldom confirms easily the fall of its mighty. If you remember the case of Ahmad Shah Masud despite his demise it took the Northern Alliance two days to confirm just that. Yet if the reports of Zawahiri’s injuries or death are it is a huge success in the war on terror.
Shaukat Tareen - An excellent choice for Finance Advisor ---
Reflections on the global credit crisis ---
Parliamentary joint session briefing - Impact ---
The Way ahead.
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