Throughout Pakistan’s history, the role of the country’s military has been intertwined with the state, often playing a decisive role in the political sphere. While many perceive the military as the watchdog of the state, others disagree, arguing that the institution impedes the progress of Pakistan. Below, Tariq, based in Karachi, (who asked not to have his full name printed) presents the latter view in his opinion piece for CHUP:
Pakistan’s day of reckoning is near. At this moment, we should rise up to seize our collective destinies without equivocation, because the country that we are left with tomorrow will be the country that we deserve – either a war-torn banana republic fit for a nation of people with medieval values, attitudes and aspirations or a modern democratic republic fit for a nation of progressive thinkers, who aspire to harness social justice to personal freedom. The urgency cannot be overstated and we cannot continue our meandering drunken walk as usual.
For too long, we have offered rhetoric and platitudes, instead of introspection and a direction to this country, because our baser instincts took precedence. Our disdain for the West. Our hatred for India. Our self censorship due to platitudes and a misplaced sense of patriotism. Our sense of victimization. The rumors of conspiracies. The blame on fate. The list is endless. This cannot go on – the tumultuous events of the past year have convinced me that the we have arrived at the fork in the road. This is one the main reasons I decided to write this piece.
As a first basic step, I propose that the Pakistan armed forces be completely overhauled. Not reformed, but completely overhauled.
Before you stop reading because your misplaced sense of patriotism got pricked, because I insulted the “Guardians of our Frontier,” let me remind you of Mark Twain‘s golden words: “A patriot supports his country all the time and his government when it deserves it.” The armed forces are not our country, and only sometimes our government (The sarcasm is intended).
This is an army, no matter how we choose to whitewash their actions, indulged in genocide in Bangladesh, trained terrorists in Afghanistan, is still training terrorists to fight in Indian Kashmir and Punjab, overthrown the civilian government three times (or four if you count the dictators), presided over the loss of one-half of our country, hung a popularly elected civilian leader, intimidated our media and politicians through “the agencies,” set up a parallel economic system, stole elections, has a budget which is never tabled at the Parliament and runs without civilian oversight. Only an irrational idiot would still believe that our armed forces serve the popular opinion of the people and is accountable to them. Their hierarchical structure, lack of accountability and leverage over all centers of power make them a single point of manipulation and a single point of failure for the entire country. The foreign hand and foreign bodies, that we so frequently obsess about, need only buy and influence the top echelons of our army to take over the direction of the entire country, and this is what they very well might have done.
The root of our ills is our armed forces.
Yes we have a biased judiciary. But the judiciary has shown that they still can stand up for justice, even if the motive is self preservation.
Yes we have a corrupt polity. Yes, prices are rising, and yes, bribes are freely being given and taken, but which civilian government ever indulged in genocide and gave up half our country ? We tend to confuse individuals and policies with the “political system.” Our political system has never been given a chance to evolve, note that even the United States had a George Bush before it elected a more reasonable Barack Obama, but their governance is firmly rooted in the rule of law and democracy. In Pakistan, the civilian leaders we so bitterly complain about were all a result of a compromise with the army, be it, Zulfiqar, Benazir, Nawaz or Zardari with his NRO. When have we ever held a free and fair election with no overarching army manipulation of the political class? While I am no Zardari supporter, I do pity the man. Why did he come to power ? He made a deal with the Army. And now his deal with the army is unraveling. On the one hand, he has to be in the good books of the army and on the other hand he should not rub America the wrong way (who don’t consult him on anything anyway, and go straight to meet General Kayani). So pray tell me, when does he ever have the time to do what the people want ?
Why do we lack a credible leader who can mold public opinion through rational discourse and deliver good governance ? Because we don’t have people who lead, we have people who cut deals with the Army. Name the top two civilian leaders Pakistan had — was it Jinnah and ZA Bhutto? What is different between these men and the men who followed them ? Could it be that they did not derive their power through deals with the army ? Look at the tiny bearded turbaned man across the border, have you ever wondered why he struts around with so much confidence ? Is it the blessings of his army chief who commands a million men with guns or is it the vote of a billion people which makes him walk tall? It is stupid to blame the failures of the civilian leadership so far on the civilians, when the army is pulling the strings — either leaving them paralyzed or giving them a sense of infallibility of being backed by guns. As long as the army is involved as a player in politics and is an unaccountable center of power, we will never have a leader who can serve the people and do what is good for the country. We will only have leaders who grab power by cutting deals with the army, or have leaders who get overthrown in coups or fall because of manipulated elections.
Pause to ponder military historian Captain Sir Basil Henry Liddell-Hart‘s words from Why Don’t We Learn from History:
We learn from history that democracy has commonly put a premium on conventionality. By its nature, it prefers those who keep step with the slowest march of thought and frowns on those who may disturb the ‘conspiracy for mutual inefficiency’. Thereby, this system of government tends to result in the triumph of mediocrity — and entails the exclusion of first-rate ability, if this is combined with honesty. But the alternative to it, despotism, almost inevitably means the triumph of stupidity. And of the two evils, the former is the less.
Let us now visit our armed forces. There are some who offer the same cliched arguments:
- They sacrifice their lives for us. So does the army of every other modern state. None of them get to rule the country.
- They are the only corruption-free meritocracy. Says who? I would imagine that for an army answerable to no one, whose expenditure and income are not tabled anywhere and who cannot be scrutinized by an external agency, it is easy to maintain a “corruption free” record. This is laughable. However, the details that do slip out once in a while make for interesting reading. I would recommend reading Ayesha Siddiqa‘s Military Inc.: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy for those who offer platitudes about the “lack of corruption in Pakistan armed forces”.
- They are the only stable institution in Pakistan. So say Americans who find it easy to deal with a dictator without the inconvenience of public opinion. Moreover, I would expect a bunch of men with all the guns and money with no accountability to be at least “stable.”
This brings us to the basic problem with our armed forces – a lack of accountability. The ability to manipulate our politicians, and more importantly, the ability to manipulate our society actively through propaganda and passively through the denial of information. The basic requirement for a functioning modern state is a “well-informed society,” not a society barred from details about the country’s fundamental decisions. For making decisions about our future, we need a full account of what is happening and what has happened.
What exactly happened in Bangladesh in 1971 (Recommended reading: declassified portions of Hamdoor Rahman report) ? In Kargil in 1999 ? Who were the “freedom fighters” in Kashmir and Punjab? What do they have to do with the madrassas in Punjab and the Pushtuns in Afghanistan ? What is our relationship with the the various militant leaders? Who are these “Sarkari Taliban”? Are we supporting or did we ever support the “Quetta Shura“? How effective was our operation in Swat, Bajaur and South Waziristan? How many civilian causalities were there? How many people disappeared in Balochistan? Was Bughti killed? What about the many Pakistanis who have “disappeared” and were handed over the United States? How is Musharraf living in style in London with 24/7 protection from the British Police ? What was the deal between Musharraf and Nawaz (then and now)? Between Musharraf and Zardari ? Is it true that our bases are being used for predator attacks ? If so was it done because of the discretion of the army? Why is the ISI not under civilian control and why can a declaration of bringing it under civilian control so easily be reversed with a single phone call from COAS ? What about AQ Khan?
Almost every “security issue” that we have in our country today can be traced to one or more questions above, questions that need to be answered by our armed forces. All these and the entire armed forces need a thorough airing and a stint in the sunlight. Only then can we really know our past list of omissions and transgressions, where we stand as a country and make decisions about our future.
But for now we can rest in peace, because General David Petraeus after visiting our COAS has assured us that there will be no coups in the near future. I can only hang my head in shame.
The contribution is the sole opinion of the author and does not necessarily represent the opinion of CHUP. If you would like to contribute a piece to CHUP, please email Kalsoom at changinguppakistan[at]gmail[dot]com. Pieces should be no longer than 800 words please. For past contributions, click here.
This was a delightful piece to read. However, blaming everything on the Army absolves the rest of the country of any blame. The Army has only been powerful and accountable because we’ve been sitting on our bums in gleeful indifference for the past many decades. Collectively, we have been complicit. It is too easy to blame everything on the Army, and then ignore the fact that we danced on the streets after the 1999 coup.
Sohaib,
I agree – I think blame should also be apportioned to other institutions, who have allowed this status quo to become entrenched. No one doubts the immense sacrifice the Armed Forces have committed for this country, the wars that have been fought, the lives that have been lost, etc. Even our response to natural disasters have been institutionalized by our military.
Even we, the Pakistani people, look to the military within months of the elected government being inept. Blaming the military is counter-productive if we first don’t look at this phenomenon as well.
To the person who just tried to comment (and others) – Tariq’s post will undoubtedly illicit strong reactions on either side of the debate, but I ask you to abide by my comment policy – i.e., no swearing or inflammatory language. I welcome a debate on this topic, but encourage comments that provide constructive criticism. Thanks!
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welcome tariq:)
anyone who says our occupying army is not corrupt should see that mile long list shaheen sehbai printed on his website (south asian journal?) when he was in exile in dc some years back
however, there are no simple solutions
the army’s raison det’re is its presumed readiness against india…that foundation has to be dismantled so the GoP can spend the resources on more urgent needs like education, primary health care, law and order
the politicaians are corrupt, feudal, antiquated and have over the decades inter married with the army officers and bureacrats
and the wily bureacrats excel at playing sides
i said earlier there are no simple solutions…to which i will add a query…who is less corrupt?
Unlike Mr spineless ‘Tariq’, I am putting my full name and email so come at me with your armchair rhetoric. We are a people who have taken shortcuts over an honest day’s work. Thank you for sweeping up our lack of morals, lofty rhetoric and convoluted powers of connecting the dots, putting it in one sack of crap and leaving it at the military’s doorstep. I am the daughter, neice, granddaughter and sister of men who have served and served honourably. My brother has gone on two stints to Siachen (volunteer I might add), served at the pak-india border twice and is now at the forefront of this mess that was not just the brainchild of the army, ‘Tariq’, but backed by your ‘polity’ for which you only have a shrug of the shoulder dismissing their part or their failures. ‘So what if they lay down their lives for their country, military all over the world does that’ I’m paraphrasing here because I can’t bring myself to read your incisive analysis without feeling nauseous; I’ll say that to the wife and mum of the 24 year old who returns from Swat in a coffin with his face blown off. At least have the guts to use your full name while lumping all the men and women serving in the military for your country in one garbage bin. I am disgusted and appalled by this myopic vitroil which excuses everyone but the ones who are in any case SUPPOSED to lay down their lives for Pakistan because ‘big deal, that’s what all military personnel do the world over’. Shame on you and on CHUP for letting a coward who is scared to use his full name whilst slinging his pedantic guns and exhibiting his nifty formatting prowess.
Salma,
Thank you for your powerful comment. Again, as I mentioned in my disclaimer, Tariq’s views are his own and they are opinionated. As such, it would undoubtedly incite a strong response from either side – people who agree with him, as well as men and women who are strongly connected to our Armed forces, and honestly, I applaud your family’s service to our nation. My thoughts and prayers are also with the soldiers who are fighting Pakistan’s war in Waziristan and Orakzai right now – they are making the ultimate sacrifice.
I try to present all views on this blog fairly, and I invite you to write a contribution on your experiences and perspective for this blog as well. You can email me at changinguppakistan[at]gmail[dot]com.
wow,
So do you think that if you a write a few sentences with queen’s english extolling the virtues of the army, people will be impressed ?
Salma, people like you are part of the problem in Pakistan today. I am an indian abroad and I have pakistani friends too. Many of them openly say that they dont care about what happens back home and that any news from Pak is only depressing news.
Because I am an Indian I am sure u will say that I harbor ill feelings towards Pakistan. If you think that is the case, pls stop reading my post now.
The basic problem with Pakistan is that they fail to assess ground reality at all levels. Of course, it is true that India and Pakistan both support networks in Balochistan and Kashmir respectively, but please dont feed us the BS that Pakistan is what it is only because of external factors. The problem goes much deeper and the author of this article has clearly pointed out one of the major reasons – the army
Get this straight…India has no reason to destroy or dismember Pakistan. We have other constructive tasks to attend to. The B’desh war happened because India was unable to manage the humanitarian crisis emanating out of East Pakistan. Either way, Making east Pakistan part of the country of Pakistan was one of the most ridiculous things done by our forefathers. It was logistically and geographically impossible to have a province separated by a huge country like India , which u consider hostile territory.
The Pak army has always rode roughshod over the civilan govts in Pakistan by brainwashing people about the “Great Indian threat”. The funny thing is that, we in India are more interested in having a civilian, stable Pakistan than even you.
why ? Because if your country falls apart, the taliban and radicals will take over the country. Who will they target next ? India of course !
also, one of the major things that is affecting you today is cultivation of terror networks to use as a hedge against India. These elements are bombing your own country now, because they are being rooted out by the army.
unless there is a major common-sense revolution, where people discard their intrinsic hate towards india, USA, West, Kafirs, Jews etc I think Pakistan will cease to exist in a few years.
(Btw, Salma, do u know that the army is hand in glove with the taliban elements ? U people say that India is influencing afghans against you. But u tell me….ur government foisted the taliban on the afghani people. Being a woman, I think u fully understand how women were treated under taliban rule. Do u think even one single person in Afghanistan will like you after what U have done ? What’s worse, u are still trying to ensure taliban dominance in Afghanistan. Naturally, they hate you.)
Kalsoom
My comments on your last post pretty much reflected these absolutely realistic facts stated very well by Mr. Tariq
My sincerest thanks to the fellow for finally delivering what should have been delivered many ages back
My heart goes out to Miss Salma family members who have sacrificed their lives for our country. Sacrificed to clean sweep the mess so efficiently harboured nurtured by their great military men of the past who had a so called of notion of strategic depth.
However what baffles me most is how conveniently she she forgotten the plight of baloch ppl. plight of 1 million bengalis slaughtered, raped molested. Oh i forget those moms lost no sons no daughters no brothers no fathers, even if they did ..so what..they were bengalis, dalits on our land of pure with their lives, utterly expendable.
What of those missing balochis, picked up by men in black vehicles for never to return home. What of those innocent lives lost in suicide attacks, car bombings ..obviously militancy is another democratic ploy..nothing to do with our military or its, i repeat, so called notion of stragetic depth.
No miss salma, no more patriotic speeches, no more honorable addresses, your folks (may their souls rest in peace) died because this was the profession they chose, deliberately picked, intentionally selected with the knowledge that they were putting their lives to risk.
But us public including bengalis, sindhis, balochis, we have chosen to live, we want our life, a peaceful existance and we have been robbed of that. Thanks to the men in uniform and their arrogant philosophy of we-control-we-decide-and-we-impose-not-the-bloody-civilians
Next time when you mention your family sacrfice with such passion and zeal, PLEASE DO NOT FORGET to mention along, loss of many thousands lives, their suffering is 100 times more..their widows wont even get any financial compensation 🙂
I agree with Salma,and thank her and other families of our soldiers for keeping us safe so that we can write whatever we can freely in comforts of our Pakistan.
I saw this news in Dawn today:
“KARACHI: The retail price of sugar in the metropolis has jumped to Rs60 a kilogram, registering an increase of Rs5 to Rs7 a kilo during a short span of two days.
The sudden increase in the wholesale price indicates that the retail price of sugar is set to hit Rs65 per kilo in the next few days.
The use of sugar is being increased across the country ahead of Ashura and it was one of the main reasons behind the price increase.”
In a country where citizen themselves are corrupt at their core,in this news of increasing prices before Ashura, during Ramazan/Eid,give and take bribe,disrespect law,do not follow traffic laws,no national pride,cheat,decit and bully……….. I wonder how the writer came up with one element to blame !!!
I think work need to start from us: Citizen of Pakistan.
Daanish thanks indeed for keeping our lives safe and secure. perhaps we need another few dozen bomb explosions with further few thousand casualties only thn we may feel threatened. So far it’s just plain brilliant. Pakistan army Zindabad!!!!!!
Butterscotch, next natural disaster, next suicide attack, next time the country is being held hostage by one man who claimed an entire province as his own personal estate, don’t come to the military for help. I never mentioned the bengalis being dalit or otherwise neither did I say a word about the rocket launcher weilding balochis who have orders to shoot to kill any ‘army’ or ‘punjabi’ man in Quetta city. East pakistan was a moment of shame for the whole nation not just the army. Since we’re talking about my ‘expendable’ family, my grandfather was Bengali, one of the few who chose to remain in Pakistan when the Bengali officers were being evacuated post 1971. He gave in his resignation from the Pakistan Army because in his words he could not wear the uniform which reminded him of the injustices committed against the East Pakistanis. Btw, his brother is the national poet of Bangladesh who was murdered by Bengali nationalists for being too sympathetic to West Pakistan. As for the Baloch matter, the forward battery of my father’s unit was skinned alive, strung to trees and left to die a rather painful death when the army tried to establish a presence in Kohlu, Balochistan in the 70s. Part of the contract they signed …. expendable! Let’s leave everyone in Swat and waziristan as they are and sit back and hope they don’t lob a ton of explosives our way. The civilians were asked and given time to evacuate but how dare the army displace them even though they were harbouring the TTP. Btw, thank you for informing ignorant old me that you pathans, bengalis, sindhis and balochis want to live in peace and the vile punjabis and the loathesome ‘punjabi’ army deserve to be sat in a corner and shamed and humiliated for giving you such great leaders … The theiving bhuttos must also have a connection with us in your convoluted mind …. And for having the gall of signing up for the military and then being outraged when we’re told that a) we’re scum b) we asked for it c) we suck at doing whatever we do d) we don’t do anything e) how dare we do anything?!
Out of sheer curiosity, I would like to know the name of the national poet Ms. Warraich claims was killed by the Bengali nationalists??
Reading the comments:
I love this,typical Pakistani mind set,losing focus or having pre-conceived notions.
STOP commenting on comments !!
My comment is about the author,why he did not put his name?
This is interesting as he writes,”But for now we can rest in peace, because US General David Petraeus after visiting our COAS has assured us that there will be no coups in the near future. I can only hang my head in shame”.
Let’s think hard to make some good decision today to make our tomorrow proud.
Interesting read! The politicization of armed forces lead to bad name to an institution which is if not perfect but much needed nevertheless, in the current situation it is imperative that we extend our support to the troops who are entangled in a battle with forces which seek to strike at the foundations of Pakistan in the name of ISLAM!
Miss Salma aren’t you fond of providing personal examples. What your family has suffered has been suffered by million others so trust me you are no different. And why shouldn’t we be demanding our army for protection after all we have been feeding them for the past 62 years. Funding their never ending appetite for misadventures, proxy wars and domestic crackdowns, funding their grand efforts against an ever ‘conspiring’ nexus of India/Israel/CIA/Zionist lobby. Jinnah’s vision was a secular social welfare state free of religious zealots with tolerance for minorities being state’s highest priority. Now I agree Pakistan is a welfare state providing all basic necessities to its uniformed protectors. It’s a welfare state only for the army providing cantonments, army schools, army hospitals, army mess, army clubs bloody army everything. And imagine all this has been done at the cost of our economic development. Bhutto once screamed, we will eat grass but make nuclear bombs, a philosophy precisely adopted by army; don’t eat, don’t educate, don’t shelter just keep feeding us, keep stuffing us after all we are your holy protectors. And one must wow at the sheer efficiency of our armed forces. Produce qaseedays every now and then to highlight their services rendered to us the very thankful public so far.
Thank us, be grateful to us we feed you and your bunch of criminal generals and brigs for guarding us and we feed you well and so far you have only failed to deliver anything substantial, what you have delivered is shame, pain, agony and international humiliation. But we public are still very thankful and remain thankful after all who can stand against mighty guns and cannons.
And yes years and years of injustice, ignoring the rights of balochis, sindhis, no wonder they will shoot you on sight, skin you alive, burn you to ashes as 62 years of unimaginable suffering has only turned them into a bunch of madmen. They retaliated back in 70s and they will continue to retaliate even now. Why do I always forget how our totally God fearing uniformed men thought of promoting, exercising in fact imposing Islam with the noble intentions of turning us Pakistanis into more pious practising Muslims. So they implemented blasphemy laws, hudood ordinances and create militancy to counter their ever troubling neighbours. And the rest as they say was history, I wont get into details, we have suffered the aftermaths of dictatorships. Imagine a country of Faiz, Manto, Ibn-insha, guljee producing the likes of Fazalullah, mangal bagh, baitullahs, haqqanis, a 360 degree turn in every sense. Drugs, afghan immigrants, gun culture, militancy, sectarian violence, all gifted to us by our ever watchful, efficient military, may be those were xmas gifts delivered with noble intentions but please no more gifts!!
When you mention entities like TTP, must I remind you that you are not fighting our war, you are not defending us, you are only paying the price of your blunders, only dealing with ghosts of past that have come to haunt us.
As for the coward Mr Tariq who had requested his name not to be mentioned, I completely understand the plight of the poor man. If known and respected journalists like Kamran Shafi can be threatened, harassed for expressing their views, kidnapping can be attempted against qudrut ullah shahabs for resisting tyrant Yahya Khans, thn safety does become our foremost concern. He is just a harmless citizen sharing his thoughts. He has no artillery no protection. Who knows one night he may as well get picked up and not see his family again. At least give this fellow some benefit of doubt.
Your family members died with a gun in their hand, fully trained, fully prepared, with all the tactical knowledge of battlefield, guerrilla warfare, fully aware of the consequences. Compare them with an innocent civilian who has merely gone out for shopping, may be buying a gift for his children, medicine for a suffering elder, food for his family. What did he or she or their families ever do to deserve such tragic end. Nothing!!
They were carrying no weapons backed by an inexhaustible supply of resources neither had any physical training to counter such scenarios.
This is army’s job, they are trained for this, trained to defend, trained to die. In our case the only dilemma, our army instead of fighting external enemy s, is only dealing with its own misdeeds, monsters it created for the sake of strategic depth.
Just bloody do your job, save the borders, stop intervening in civilian matters, stop rigging elections, stop proxy wars, stop differentiating between good and bad militants, monitor agencies and their unlawful domestic activities and last but not the least, stop looting this country through defence deals, through military equipment deals, you are accountable for billions and trillions and what saddens me most is, your lot will remain unaccountable unquestioned for their corruption, while we civilians will continue to be victimised, our rommels and hitlers will remain untouched, beyond any law, beyond any court, above all this system
Btw I am a Punjabi, born and brought in Lahore and a very very proud Punjabi
Mr Butterscotch! Looks like you’re making this personal. I will quote my family’s experience because they are facts and experiences witnessed firsthand. All countries have a defence budget and provide the same amenities to their military. Yes, the generals made away with millions but don’t villify the entire armed forces for that. Yes, they are defending you and others like your vitroilic self against wars, covert or otherwise. You have been feeding the army? Pray stop and let India, Iran, Russia and the US have a field day. The baloch tribes who had no right to the land other than the fact that they grazed their animals on the pastures lay claim to national resources and go at the national gas supply line with rocket launchers and the army is wrong in going against them? Sure! Makes perfect sense. Hudood ordinance and shariah were the projects of one demented creature who wore the uniform but please, brand all army men and women the spawn of Satan. After all, the adage ‘Power corrupts’ never crossed your glance. What about when we had ‘democracy’? Why no mention of how well it served us? Thank you for reinforcing my belief that you privileged pseudo-intellectuals sitting comfortably typing away your myopic hate will never be convinced to ‘do’; you’d rather sit and assign blame and bring up ’62 years’ of the big bad army’s deeds and justify that the young men dying out there who go ‘armed and trained’ deserve it because the army alone has to pay for 62 failed years that our fair country has experienced. Go sing kumbaya over coffee at some fancy joint and chant ‘down with the military’. I will say this; I have no intention of kidnapping Mr Tariq but I would love to see your face right before I punch your front teeth in because frankly you disgust me. 🙂
Geez, both of you please take it easy. Butterscotch, I’m sorry but if you come back with an irrelevant and personal attack I may not print it, because you both are getting out of hand. Just agree to disagree on this issue, because it doesn’t look like either of you will come to an agreement.
Indeed a thought-provoking read! At first, I almost stopped reading because my “…sense of patriotism got pricked, because [Tariq] insulted the “Guardians of our Frontier…”
However, I decided to continue reading with an open mind and made it to the end of the piece. I am of the opinion that Tariq seems to have a personal vendetta against the Pakistani Armed Forces, since he pretty much threw everything at them but the kitchen sink! Indeed, the army has much to answer for but I agree with a lot of what Salma said in her first couple of comments (before she and Butterscotch started trading punches).
So instead of me writing long comments about how I think the Pak Army (maybe not the brass, but definitely the “jawaans”) deserve a salute – and someone else countering that the army are the hounds of hell – how about throwing out some suggestions as to HOW they think the bad eggs of the army can be overhauled? How can we bring about more accountability to an all-powerful institution? How can we make sure that the Generals stay in their 5-star barracks when the polity hits the fan?
‘Thank you for sweeping up our lack of morals, lofty rhetoric and convoluted powers of connecting the dots, putting it in one sack of crap and leaving it at the military’s doorstep’
‘Shame on you and on CHUP for letting a coward who is scared to use his full name whilst slinging his pedantic guns and exhibiting his nifty formatting prowess’
‘I will say this; I have no intention of kidnapping Mr Tariq but I would love to see your face right before I punch your front teeth in because frankly you disgust me’
Amusing isn’t it!! And Miss Salma accuses of getting all personal.
‘What your family has suffered has been suffered by million others so trust me you are no different’
‘Your family members died with a gun in their hand, fully trained, fully prepared, with all the tactical knowledge of battlefield, guerrilla warfare, fully aware of the consequences’
My extremely offensive bits..
Frankly you can punch me anytime you want but hey why even bother to use your strength on me. Just ring up one of your uncles and they, backed by the army of abductors, will have me abducted, keeping me in one of their many many torture cells specially designed and maintained for us coward spineless ranting civilians. After all who will I ever plead to!!. We civilians don’t have any civilian agency or a civilian NAB to entertain your big shots. Btw when was the last time your accountability bureaus kept any general, air marshal, brigadier or any admiral for their corrupt practices? I admit respective civilian governments have had their share of blunders but when was the last time you let any democratic regime complete its full term? Democracy is a slow process and takes many many full terms before it gains its completely maturity. We have witnessed prime ministers sentenced to death, politicians tried in courts, imprisoned, shamed and dishonored for their misdeeds (and yes some of them fully deserved it) but when was the last time we saw a wardi wala going through such ordeal?
Please do answer my question if you can
You highlighted one demented creature again conveniently ignoring how he and his demented religious vision was backed by an entire elite of generals, brigs, colonels and majors. They all shared his vision. To this day, most of that lot is still respected, revered among young army men and cited as great examples of true visionaries who once worked for the glory of Pakistan and Islam. No lady, don’t put your entire blame on one man. You are saving too many criminals
‘‘You have been feeding the army? Pray stop and let India, Iran, Russia and the US have a field day’’
A typical conspiracy theory something our establishment has been feeding to us since 1947 backed by its media collaborators. You with all your fancy English and fancy expression came up this typical military theory, something even the most illiterate pakistani graduating from Narowaal Jamia high School could have proudly described.
And I agree militaries all over the world have a budget and extra privileges however they have a certain duty which they usually perform with vigilance and efficiency unlike ours which not only forcefully snatches its budget but also happily indulges itself in all sorts of civilian matters, imposing its writ by hook and crook. They run entities like railways and Wapda etc etc. Truly truly amusing!!!
I remember one particular speech by Vajpayee and those were his priceless words
‘My brave soldiers fear not your neighbors; they are an army of electricity meter checkers, gutter cleaners, runners of municipal corporations’.
Who am I to mock our military when they themselves are happily doing it. And when they do take over a civilian department they usually turn out more corrupt more demanding acting in the typical timeless Pakistani corruption traditions.
Men die for honor, men die for purpose, so far I am yet to see the purpose of countless soldiers, civilian dying everyday.
Last but not the least, I would like to convey my sincerest apologies if I had been offensive. Like a true punjabi I will unleash my anger but hold no grudges afterwards.
I also happen to have one serving general, 2 colonels and a major in my family.
Wow, I was in the midst of typing an apology for maybe going a trifle too far but you obviously don’t know the meaning of too far. The first paragraph quoted by you is not personal in any way. The second one merely states that contrary to your very clearly stated opinion that Mr. Tariq will be kidnapped by people like me, I would just have liked to see him put his name down to this nicely packaged little bundle of responsibility for all ‘ills’ he’s bestowing upon the military.
You, I would love to have the personal satisfaction of punching since you told me that “big deal, boo-hoo, stop crying about your family’s services, this is what they signed up for, I am not thankful to any of the thieving, looting monsters, death be on them for … and so on.”
Really, I have no wish nor did the thought even cross my mind to have you picked up by ‘my uncles’ and frankly they would be horrified at the suggestion. Why don’t you go and pour your grievances to your generals and colonels?
Basically, your rhetoric boils down to the fact that you would like to see military men tried and duly beheaded and all will be well with the world as we know it. Let me get personal with you as you did with me. I vote for it to be General Butterscotch!
My point, if you bother to let it sink in, is that yes the military has flaws, yes it has over-stepped but please don’t conveniently lay it all on the army’s doorstep and dismiss it all saying so what, it’s a mess of their own making.
Last comment by me because frankly as I said earlier I found the gist of this post obnoxious and I really do find you disgusting and when I think about the fact that my family has fought in wars for the protection of the likes of you, it makes me nauseous. Good and bad exist everywhere, but the vile dismissive nature of your comments is in another class.
Aamer: I would definitely salute the Jawaans but also the Officers. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t rake in a lot to get by on in the army unless you’re at a 3 star rank & above so it amazes me that people still elect for it as a career. Some have family money to fall back on, a lot don’t, yet they’re there and ‘doing’ rather than ‘talking’ like us.
Kalsoom: My apologies!
Butterscotch:
EXTREMELY SORRY, apologies all round but I couldn’t resist. A 360 degree turn implies you’re back to where you started … full circle?! You meant a 180 degree turn! Happy to help! 🙂
There are numerous reports of Indians openly supporting groups who are causing mayhem in Pakistan from Afghanistan.
There are numerous reports of Mercenary outfits roaming the streets without accountability and protection from Pakistan Ministry of Interior.
These reports are not just from the “local papers” but from credible News sources (Guardian, Telegraph, Der Spiegel & Al Jazeera).
It is the Pakistani Armed Forces that fight and protect the Nation from the above threats. I don’t see the “educated” rising up and rushing to border to fight India.
Please give due respect to the brave men/women. It is because of them “Pakistan” still exists.
Every “elected” leader has robbed the Treasury and leaves to go reside in Dubai or Saudi Arabia.
At this time, I don’t think Pakistan deserves a “Democracy” and there is nothing wrong with that.
It’s easy for us to comment and post our views from overseas. We are not living under skyrocketing food prices, constant electricity outages and chaos!
I wish that the masses will rise and and demand for the basic necessities before its too late…
Just my thoughts.
Thanks.
-Sam Hussain
Let me guess where these reports are from- Urdu Press?
Hehe.. You would believe if they said Taliban are actually Hindu dressed as Muslims dont you? Oh wait!!!! They already claim that dont they!
Wow…seems like this is turning into a “my general uncle is better than your colonel uncle” argument! Just by the sheer size of our armed forces, most of us are bound to have someone close to us serving in the army. I too have friends and family in the army and air force, and just like you say urs are not bad eggs, so do I. In fact, I am sure all military families will confirm that their serving relatives are “sharif and imandaar”. But that is not what we are debating here. Salma and Butterscotch – hats off to your serving family members, for laying down their lives and for being selfless to the extent of serving our Nation.
As much as I respect the Army, I cannot entrust blind faith in them and ignore the fact that there are many instances in Pakistan’s history where the army brass has overstepped its bounds. So again I ask: how can we make sure that the right people are in command and the wrong people are not wielding unbridled power? Regardless of how “sharif and imandaar” most of our army may be, the (more than) handful of not-so-sharif-and-imandaar officers, unfortunately, have the power and ability to give all serving men and women a bad name.
I really appreciate CHUP putting this article up especially considering the kind of reaction its getting.
The author is absolutely correct regarding the army’s role in the current crisis. The army only deserves respect for “defending” Pakistan once it issues a mea culpa and an apology for the nation for creating and fostering militant groups who are now slaughtering our population at will.
Not only that but the army needs to prove that it has done an about face on its entire policy of supporting religious extremism as a way of fighting wars that are beyond Pakistan’s capacity.
Unless that is done, criticism of the army as an institution is absolutely necessary and must and shall continue. kudos to the author for being brave enough to write this article.
>
> The baloch tribes who had no right to the land other than
> the fact that they grazed their animals on the pastures
> lay claim to national resources
>
This is so true. Thanks for sharing this with us Salma.
I propose that the brave Pak Army make “reservations” for these savage tribes and confine them to live within those “reservations”. These savages can should be allowed to live on these “reservations” under their own tribal customs and cultural laws. They can even build casinos there if they want.
This is not some hairbrained proposal but is a very true and tried model to deal with such savage and lawless tribals who resist a brave and growing nations plans to develop its national assets and resources.
>
>…as for the Baloch matter, the forward battery of my
> father’s unit was skinned alive, strung to trees and
> left to die a rather painful death …
>
> rocket launcher weilding balochis who have orders to
> shoot to kill any ‘army’ or ‘punjabi’ man in Quetta city.
>
Sounds very savage to me!!
And Remember this is not some CIA/Zionist/RAW inspired propaganda here. This is first-hand experience and knowledge from our own bibi Salma. Now if you want to call her a lier and get punched in the front teeth then that is between you and her, I am just doing my part to prove to all of you good people that I am not one of the “privileged pseudo-intellectuals sitting comfortably typing away”.
“Unless that is done, criticism of the army as an institution is absolutely necessary and must and shall continue. kudos to the author for being brave enough to write this article.”
Ultimately this is what it boils down to. Everyone who takes offense at criticism of the army almost always ends up personalizing the criticism.
No one is saying the ‘jawans’ are evil, power hungry mammoths hell-bent on ruling Pakistan. It’s the higher-ups; the officers, the generals who believe they’re above and beyond the government or constitution of Pakistan.
And can we have enough of the “they protect us from India” bull? The army is now alarmingly redundant on that front with Pakistan is possession of nukes. That’s the offset, the balance. The whole point of having our own nukes was so that it would act as a deterrent against India. So, after pissing away billions on a nuclear programme, why the hell are we still pissing away billions ‘protecting’ ourselves from the supposed wrath of India?!
“The whole point of having our own nukes was so that it would act as a deterrent against India. So, after pissing away billions on a nuclear programme, why the hell are we still pissing away billions ‘protecting’ ourselves from the supposed wrath of India?!”
Excellent point..
>
> At this time, I don’t think Pakistan deserves a “Democracy” > and there is nothing wrong with that.
>
Enlightened Moderated Khilafah, anyone ?
kalsoom
I understand your reservations for not entertaining my last comment. It probably would have led to another war of words so … fair enough.
My apologies to you for the trouble i may have caused here. I will take some consolation from what was just mentioned by Rabia and Aamer. Their views pretty much reflect what i have been saying all along. However my tone was aggressive something our military brethrens and sisters are not accustomed to.
Taking rabia’s point forward, yes I agree a presence of a strong army is absolutely vital to our existence, to our stability and peace. With a massive army comprising half a million, I have every reason to feel proud of them only if they are doing what they are required to do. Tariq has very effectively highlighted the role of Pakistani army pointing out the most relevant facts. It takes some guts to come with a piece like this. The article had a broader perspective covering the entire history of Pakistan. It refrained from launching any personal attacks. We all saw the stinging venomous reply by Miss Salma where she completely thrashed that fellow highlighting personal sacrifices made by her family. I understand personal tragedies have a different impact and they may not necessarily shape your opinion in more rational terms. Not that I am suggesting she is a negative person but if I had experienced such personal tragedies, I too would have defended military with equal ferocity but one must base an argument keeping a bigger picture in mind something Mr Tariq had considered. Quoting individual instances is easy. We all have suffered one way or the other.
Core of my argument is based on equal accountability for army and their misguided adventurism. I have said it before and I will say it again, we civilians have already paid a huge price for their policies. Politicians are corrupt inept, shameless people who have had their share of blunders (note that I am using the term blunder) whereas she said yes I agree military has flaws. From balochi operations to the creation of militancy, this army has a history of bloodshed, violence and mass genocide mostly committed on its own population. Were those merely ‘flawed’ measures?
If politicians can be vilified, thrashed, abused by common public, print and electronic media for their follies, made to appear in courts, imprisoned, tortured, where is it mentioned that same rules, same checks and balances are not applied or must not be applied to the armed forces. I may have been harsh in my criticism, may be the ineptness of army is only confined to their upper echelons but are they not the citizens of Pakistan? Are they not answerable for their actions, their policies, their handling of military budgets or aids (the only aid this country has ever gotten is military aid with the exception of Kerry-Lugar which was mistakenly meant to aid civil infrastructure and we all witnessed how military agencies backed by their ever vigilant media supporters made a mess of this bill)
and i like to know who are they to define and control our foreign relations with India, who are they to decide our policy on Afghanistan, since when did this become the job of army?
If Zulfiqar Bhutto can be sentenced to death, Zardari imprisoned for money laundering, what of the likes of General Tikka and his bunch of crooks involved in mass genocide. Were they ever tried for their action, brought to the court of justice or even military a court?
If Americans can put their own soldiers on trial for committing war crimes, how come our bunch of holy warriors have remained untouchables?
Simply because military in this country considers itself above constitution above judiciary, runs its own parallel economy and believes in disrupting the political process, exercises its power through corrupt elements in media, uses religion when it suits them most.
In short, interfering in civilian matters when they have absolutely no business in running affairs of state.
Show me any law manual where it is suggested that these men are above the system with their gunahs maaf already and must not be confronted at any cost since they are our sole guardians and risking their lives for our safety. Zardari has presidential immunity but here is another brutal truth, our retired and serving uniformed elite too enjoys immunity, that’s gun immunity
All of you are welcome to disagree
and Kalsoom my apologies again
Thank God comments war is over, sigh of relief. Just a question,Tariq,Butterscotch,Salma: what you guys have done for your country to make her proud ! This is the only question, I ask myself and I ask each of you , this is the key to glory, self evaluation, rest of battles can be easily won then .
“Look at the tiny bearded turbaned man across the border, have you ever wondered why he struts around with so much confidence ? Is it the blessings of his army chief who commands a million men with guns or is it the vote of a billion people which makes him walk tall?”
Simply brilliant.
How does the average Pakistani feel about a Sikh occupying the Highest chair in a country 80% Hindu??? I am just curious…
Sometimes the comments section offer more insights into the topic than the article itself. This is one such piece.
Army is good for fighting. Not for managing the country. Similarly, politicians can rule the country but cannot fight(Unless you consider them fighting the opposition).
No one in this world should be unaccountable. All cannot be Gandhi’s and do the right thing all the time. Even the brave Jawans need to be accountable to the people during war OR peace.
Discussion can only take place where we gather the opposite views together. However, making sarcastic remarks and blaming each other would neither be called a healthy nor a fruitful end. Military is but what is required. Had India been only ‘ram ram’ and no ‘churri’ under the ‘baghal’ (arm pit) it would have agreed to a defense pact as offered by Musharaf. However they remain the ones who blew the Nuke first and spear headed all the menace in Sub Continent. Had they been so in love with Bangladesh, they would have made them a province in 1971. Not to mention their complete support to Mukti Bahnis as no insurgency can stand without any out side help.
This was it for the remarks. I reserve my comments for the original writer till tomorrow, for I have important job to do that might turn something good to my Pakistan. I bet even if it does not prevail, you will still require to fight the perspective till I breath.
Remember all the crap is not to be blamed to US but UK is the main originator. Who carved India out of our Muslim Saltanat and took poor minded hindu to power, who neither has magnanimity nor any selfless approach to this region and always try finding gods in the form of Mughals, Britishers, Russians and these days the Americans. They would always be wearing the stink of a Donkey, even if they continue the rule for a hundred years. It is India who is inviting USSR and now US to this region and no one else.
flamebait: An email, usually to a message board, written with intent to offend\anger\enrage other persons, so that they will send a flaming email in reply. http://bit.ly/5pqlSj
“Had they been so in love with Bangladesh, they would have made them a province in 1971.”
—>We do care about the Bengalis and that is why we left the country soon for them. we are a status quo power and making it a State in the Indian Union would have made us Imperialists. We dont have any territorial ambitions in our neighbourhood. Can you say the same thing about Pakistan?
“Who carved India out of our Muslim Saltanat and took poor minded hindu to power, who neither has magnanimity nor any selfless approach to this region and always try finding gods in the form of Mughals, Britishers, Russians and these days the Americans.”
—> On what fact do you base this on?? India is the 2nd fastest growing economy in the world. Surely, a country which comprises “poor minded Hindus” could not register such high growth! Glad to know Pakistan is the fastest growing country in South Asia. Oh WAIT! Its not even close!</b?
"It is India who is inviting USSR and now US to this region and no one else."
—>You are right in this observation. We definitely inviting them to invest in our country.
“Had India been only ‘ram ram’ and no ‘churri’ under the ‘baghal’ (arm pit) it would have agreed to a defense pact as offered by Musharaf.”
—> You dont get it, man. Pakistan is a middle level power at best. India is going to be the 3rd largest economy by 2050 on current growth rates. Maybe even 2nd largest if we really improve the efficiency of our economy.
In this scenario why would be reduce our military power to accommodate a Middle level power that is crumbling and has repeatedly shown aggression(1948,’65,’71 and recently in 1999)???
And, what about China,with whom we have fought a war in 1962?? Will China come into the defence pact? India faces Chinese aggression too apart from Pakistan’s..
Your analysis is severely faulted and matches the frequency of the Majority in Pakistan. So as long as the People of Pakistan continue to think like you, you are “royally” screwed!
@Salma Warraich
From the Jihadi Columnist Hamid Mir…….
Hamid Mir presents a test case to the Supreme Court. Will CJ take action against Major General Nadeem Ijaz?
http://criticalppp.org/lubp/archives/3667#more-3667
We all have got to share the blame otherwise we won’t be able to find out the solution.
I agree with someone who wrote that writer should have shown courage by mentioning his full name.What happnes to Imran Khan when he speaks truth about Military Operations and Zardari?
Nothing happens to him.If you yourself are right,nothing can harm you.
I sometimes comes across nonsense that Islam is soemthing which stops you from making progress and the same has been mentioned in this blog.
If Islam is not a progressive religion,then why are you Muslim?.The problem may lie with Mullas but why you yourslef don’t learn Islam?.Is it only Mullas responsiblity to give opinion about religion ?
The writer like many others needs to familiarize himself with religion.
Army has made many mistakes so have not we done the same.
I guess the problem is institutional rather than with Religious Ideology.
Systemically Pakistan has lot of faults. People of all the countries in the world on an average are moderate and peace loving. But, I do understand why some people blame the Muslims. Even if they dont some Muslims think they are being blamed. I guess its good to have an introspection. Debate in the right spirit is the answer. A debate within oneself is the best one but not everyone is upto a open minded debate within society or oneself.
I dont blame the Religion at all but why do so many Muslim countries gravitate towards fanaticism? Only Muslims in Turkey and India are immune to it. I guess the presence of democracy and a pluralistic ideals enshrined in the constitution is the reason!
According to me the answer to Pakistan’s problem is cutting military to size and establishment of Civilian supremacy. Democracy is the solution to everything. And, one more suggestion. Remove Islam from the name of Pakistan. Remove Islamic references from the constitution. But, this is the biggest challenge of them all, I think. But, these also the reason of absence of a plural society in Pakistan. The constitution should be influenced by any Ideology other than the basic Human Ideals. India’s constitution is a Sacred text for me. Even though India is 80% Hindu there is no reference to the Religion. Why cant Pakistan get India’s constitution?
I know the answer to the above question and it is very complex. But, that is the right path according to me.
Anoop I may not agree to the extent of removing Islam from Pakistan’s name however what most of us have forgotten is that Pakistan was never made in the name of Islam. I have said it again I will say it now; one must only follow Jinnah’s vision of Pakistan. A secular Pakistan where religion had absolutely no interference in the matters of state, a country where religion, caste, colour creed mattered least with equal rights and privileges for everyone.
1949 objectives resolution was our first major blunder when it was unanimously decided by parliament that the state be modelled on the ideology of Islam out rightly defying the very ideology Jinnah had fought for, all his life.
What would you expect from a nation that has completely ignored the principles laid and emphasized by its founder? We are living in the state of denial perfectly representing a doomed nation:)
Butterscotch,
I agree that Jinnah was a secular man. But, I cant reconcile to the fact that he led a bunch of people to believe that they cant live with another bunch of people which they have been doing for Hundreds of years.
Dont get me wrong, I am glad that Pakistan got created because if it hadn’t Muslims of India would have never rested and a Civil war would have been started. Now, after Bangladesh they know what nationality really is.
If Nehru had accepted the points raised by Jinnah with creation of a federal structure with provinces having the right to declare Independence after 10 years it would have resulted in the creation of more states than 1. As M.J.Akbar says in this piece [ http://www.mjakbar.org/mjvoice16.htm ] ,Nehru was not ready to accept a “moth-eaten” India.
Pakistan was basically a sociological experiment and the Inferences of that experiment got very clear after 24 years of Pakistan’s creation. It was an experiment that needed to change some ground rules. The ground rules earlier was, “lets have a nation on the Ideals of Islam”. But, nobody thought of specifics. Who is going to define what Islam is? I read somewhere that an independent body couldn’t decide a basic definition of a Muslim. When that is the case there is massive changing of ideology is needed to make sure Pakistan survives as a peaceful nation in the future. For that to happen, the very 1st step is changing its name( from Islamic Republic of Pakistan to People’s republic of Pakistan or just Republic of Pakistan). The word Islamic should be removed. 2nd step is Democracy in the truest sense of the word. And, 3rd step is patience. But, the very 1st step is danger.
Jinnah was a great man to emulate. Gandhi was a great man and he described Jinnah as a great Indian.
As always is the Indian tradition, only a man’s good deeds and positives should be talked about after his death.
Dont get me wrong, I dont want the creation a greater Bharat as some of you believe. That thought is fraught with danger for India. India’s democracy is finally paying off after decades of Patience. I just want a peaceful neighbor in peace with itself and whose society is inclusive.
That is easier said than done.
I don’t know how I missed this earlier while debate was on. It got my attention because of title – The Root of Our Ills – and listed under TOP POSTS. I wish there was a HOPELESS POSTS category also to list this post their.
All institutions in Pakistan are at the moment deteriorated to the extent that one can easily believe their non-existence. The Army is the least damaged and strongest of the weak institutions. That is why they always come forward and fill the GAP created by corrupt and inefficient politicians and bureaucrats. They are forced to fight “wars” against their “own bad people” by Man in Charge (could be one of their military man turned Statesman) – be it was in East Pakistan, Sindh or Baluchistan.
I think this debate went to weeds while searching for Roots. The root cause is lack of loyalty with a Common Cause – or let’s say even Absence of a Common Cause. The cause in corporate lingo is Mission.
I believe our national Mission at the moment is Self Interests. Be it a self interest of a corrupt politician or a General or a institution. We are not thinking and acting like One Nation – One cause. We are so divided and all moving to different directions with different motives and all finger pointing all others for moving in wrong direction.
COME to one RIGHT PATH. This is a solution of all our ills and AVOIDING it is The Root of Our Ills.
All who matter need to sit together and agree on ONE RIGHT PATH for this nation. Until then all are wandering in Lost Wilderness and causing more and more Chaos for this Confused Nation and blame game is the only game Pakistanis are winning at the moment.
P.S. The cricket wins were a smoke screen consolation wins for this deprived and desperate nation but Kangaroos have also stolen that away. Now we need to play some paper tigers like Bangladesh to come out of Loss depression.