BLEEDING AFGHAN BELT & U.S. POLICY

BLEEDING AFGHAN BELT & U.S. POLICY
Pukhtoons belt is a bleeding wound for the last three decades. The wound instead of healing is increasing in size and eroding the surrounding area too. The intensity of blood let and pain is increasing day by day.
The wound was inflicted on us by USA & UK with the help of Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. These two acted as local surrogate states. According to an insider it was the illegitimate government of Zia who approached the Americans through Gen Fazle Haq in Scotland, that this is the time to take the revenge of Vietnam.
This adventure served the interest of both sides. Americans were on look for a place to take the revenge without loosing their army personnel. On the other hand Pakistan needed the legitimisation of the unlawful government in Pakistan, to acquire US arsenals for its armed forces and cash to run the subversive activities in India, Afghanistan.
In addition to the above; Pakistan would get the status of front line state, with associated perks. And to fulfil their long cherished desire to bring Afghanistan to its knees to accept the Durand Line as international border. The Pakistani rulers were thinking even more than that as one insider put it. By capturing Afghanistan it would provide the strategic depth to Pakistan, where they can hide their nuclear arsenals, to use some of the aid to liberate Kashmir and Khalistan.
It will be of interest to the readers that after the plane crash of Zia, when the annual budget was taken to President Ghulam Ishaq khan, he asked in anger where is the amount allocated for Afghanistan and said, “Afghanistan is our 5th province and must be included in our budget”. Trying to be more loyal to the king than the king himself.
In this second big game Saudi were also made partners. Their interest was to have a Wahabi mole on the neck of Shia Iran. Zia framework was put in to action. He was so deeply committed to this idea; he wanted to be physically involved in Khalistan fight. He took his cherished wish to the grave to offer thanks giving prayers in Kabul (Pule Charkhi). He was cunning like a fox, vicious like a snake and cruel like a bear.
He was a committed fundamentalist and used his tenure to promote his sectarian ideas in every section of his constituency, the armed forces of Pakistan. He included hatred and intolerance on religious basis at the level of kindergartens to post graduate level, in education system. With his masked face, he was the wicked person one can imagine.
It was during his rule that ISI was hugely expanded, operating in many countries at the same time abroad and against its own people inside the country. Right in the heart of Islam Abad, the red mosque was his creation and used to pray regularly there. He tightened his grip on other generals, by bribing them with plots and agricultural land.
His successor Musharaf used the same lot for the interest of US. The free world legitimised the two illegitimate rules in Pakistan for their international strategic interest, keeping aside their lofty ideals for democracy and human dignity.
During the rule of these two spiteful characters, most of the foreign aid and loans were diverted to army establishment, which were destined for developmental purposes.
It was during Zia rule that 6 billions dollars were donated for eradication of poppy cultivation but were diverted to the army and a big chunk was used for direct bribing of the generals. Those who have seen special documentary on BBC about a Japanese scout, will bail me out. It is a worth seeing documentary, how corrupt was this self proclaimed Caliph.
After the USSR left Afghanistan, the west led by USA left the area too. They were not aware of the fact that their double standard in foreign policy will land them once again in this area.
Afghans (Pukhtoons) on both sides of Durand Line were still under the effect of the first great game that the second was imposed on them by western democracies led by USA.
The US inexperience in conducting international diplomacy, combined by BUSH & DICK doctrine, landed US in their new Vietnam. It was a lethal combination.
I still remember the head line of the GUARDIAN in 1981, after the carpet bombing of the North Vietnam,” Hanoi survives in the caves”. It is true today on both sides of Durand line. The strategy has gone wrong. Since 2003 they have failed to make a significant dent in the terrorist’s campaign or their organisational set up.
Their sphere of activity is broadening and the intensity with ferocity is increasing. They have acquired more precision in their targets and are more devastating. Their response time has decreased and the counter attack hardly takes time.
Their selection of soft target is to create fear, stretch the government facilities’ to the maximum and thin down the protection of strategically important places. The public patience is also running out. The feeling of insecurity is at its maximum heights. This is what, these evil shadows wanted to achieve.
The US strategists are still pursuing the same old policy. The present visit of the secretary of state, Hilary Clinton, to Pakistan was a mass contact diplomatic offensive for public consumption.
I do appreciate their problem to keep Pakistan on board, to stop the cross border strikes and ensure the safety of the supply route to its forces. It is a good step in a right direction. But one fails to get a sense out of their approach. It is Peshawar and Kabul on fire and it seems, as if they are sending the fire brigades to Lahore and Islam Abad.
She should have better advised to visit Peshawar and have open discussions with the students and journalists there? They are the people in the thick of fire and know how it can be quelled. The evolutions of the process could be better gauged in the place, which is on aflame. I do realise the question of security but in Pakistan there is no safe place.
It would have been better that she had discussed with the cross section of society like elected members, intellectuals, students, civil societies and even religious scholars instead of going to Raiwand.
Lahore is as unaware of our social set up as Washington. In addition to this, Lahore has its own interest at stake in this bloody drama. It would have been more productive if there were a program, “HILLARY FACE THE UNIVERSITY OF PESHAWAR”.
I don’t intend to shift the weakness of our leadership, their failure to jump from back seat to the front and take the control of the events, which led to the fire that has engulfed us. She should have been told that our people were being used as the cheapest available fuel to keep the engine of death rolling.
To have peace on one side of Durand line and war on the other is lunacy. Either there is peace on either sides or war. There is no alternative. If Pakistan had declared it earlier that it was their war, the situation would have been different. They realised this fact, when in the words of Rehman Malik, it crossed the Indus and hit the main Land. By that time it was too late. Now Pakistan army is fighting a war of survival of Pakistan, we still have the doubts about the rogue elements in intelligence agencies.
They have yet to prove their professionalism. To make it easy for the army, it is there duty to do the spadework like chasing these shadows and finds those in their ranks who are with them under the compulsion of circumstances.
On the other side the NATO forces led by USA is receiving punches right in their face, every day without fail. No war can be conducted by sword only.
Even in the thick of war, the sword should follow the book. The reverse is disastrous both in war and peace. The back doors should always be kept open. While the army is in combat the intelligence agencies should look for those who have some sanity left. The success of one supplements the success of the other. It is almost impossible for conventional force to fight guerrilla warfare without competent and dedicated intelligence.
Afghan leadership must realise that without involving Taliban there is no way out. The government must be trust worthy, transparent, with due representation of all nationalities on population basis.
They must get rid of corrupt warlords, heroin growers and agents of ISI. The US strategists must involve the government of Afghanistan to show some realities on the ground and prove their worth.
To re read afghan’s psyche and put it in action is more useful than other options. Afghan rulers must realise that these warlords and corrupt elements will eat up the very foundation of the fledgling Afghan democracy, as it happened in Pakistan. It is better to go through pain initially for the gains later, to keep the state viable.
I do realise their will be some reverses initially but a continuous try and error will bear the fruit. It will accord some credibility to the government.
We must appreciate that the permanent presence of US forces will not be acceptable to any body on both sides of Durand line. There is public resentment in people all around the world, thanks to the double standards of foreign policy of US administration.
But priorities should be chalked out factually. Sine afghan government has no standing army like Pakistan. It is a must that the rogue foreign elements must be thrown out first without any exception.
It will be better that troops from the Muslim world are deployed through UNO. But care must be taken that those who had some sort of vested interest at stake in Afghanistan, should be kept out of multi national force, like Pakistan, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia.
All these countries mentioned have their own camp followers in Afghan society. The aim of this new force should be to train Afghan army. I am of firm belief that ultimately it is the Afghan national wisdom that will prevail.
US must realise where the Afghan wisdom can be traced. Probably they will find it with the help of British colonial wisdom. Nothing can be forced on Afghans; their nation instinct should be addressed to.
By Dr. Khurshid Alam……… khurshidalam5@hotmail.com dated 1st Nov 2009.