Khyber Agency in the Tribal Areas

The Khyber Agency in Pakistan has emerged in recent times as a centre of sectarian conflict – partially as a result of the spillover of deep-rooted differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims in the nearby Kurram Agency and partially as a reaction to efforts by hardline Sunni groups to establish their writ in the area.

One of seven tribal agencies located along the Pakistan-Afghan border, the strategically significant Khyber Agency offers easy access to Afghanistan, and is located close to the mountainous Tora Bora cave complex, [ http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/29/world/asia/29torabora.html ] from where Osama bin Laden is believed to have escaped US forces in late 2001.

The Agency covers 2,576sqkm and has a population, according to official figures of 546,730. Named after the historic Khyber Pass, the area is seen by observers as well-suited to the purposes of criminals, drug mafias and most recently militants.

Khyber borders Afghanistan to the east, Orakzai Agency to the south, Mohmand Agency to the north and Peshawar District in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province to the east. It is divided into three administrative units, Jamrud, Bara and Landi Kotal. The remote Tirah Valley in Bara sub-district is important to militants because of its proximity to Afghanistan.

Khyber’s tryst with militancy [ http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportID=90760 ] began in 2003 when a Taliban-style organization was set up by a local from the area, Haji Namdar, who had just returned from Saudi Arabia. The ban on music and harsh enforcement of dress codes, which included head coverings for women and beards for men, shocked many residents who had previously enjoyed a relatively relaxed religious lifestyle.

Namdar, who established illegal FM radio stations and used the Tirah Valley area for attacks inside Afghanistan, paved the way for other militant forces in the area. Today, three major groups operate in Khyber:

Lashkar-e-Islam (LI)
Founded by Mufti Munir Shakir in 2005 and currently led by the charismatic Mangal Bagh, the group follows the hardline Deobandi school of Islam, which opposes the tradition of saints and mysticism that has for centuries dominated Islamic belief in the Indian sub-continent. LI has been responsible for actions such as the 2008 kidnapping in Peshawar of 16 Christians [ http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.shtml?202228 ] who were later freed, and other acts of violence. Mangal Bagh has also been responsible for bans on music and action against those deemed to be guilty of “immorality” including liquor and drug sales or keeping TV sets. His status as a poor member of a minor Afridi tribe clan provides him with support among impoverished locals. He also enjoys the support of the Pakistani military establishment, which sees him as a counter to the Taliban [Taliban) http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?Reportid=83105 ] in the region. [ http://counterterrorism.newamerica.net/publicatio
ns/policy/the_battle_for_pakistan_khyber ] Clashes between the LI and other groups have added to the violence.

A series of conflicts with Zakakhel tribesmen displaced hundreds of families in March and April this year. [ http://www.jamestown.org/single/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews%5Bswords%5D=8fd5893941d69d0be3f378576261ae3e&tx_ttnews%5Bany_of_the_words%5D=Azerbaijan-Russia%20Gas%20Agreement%3A%20Implications%20for%20Nabucco%20Project&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=37856&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=381&cHash=940eb41502d07489a85e54274cbcd581 ] The Zakakhels are one of eight major Afridi clans. Mangal Bagh, the LI leader, belongs to a relatively weak Afridi clan, Sepah. Much of the violence, involving tit-for-tat murders and abductions is based around a quest to control the Tirah Valley.

Ansar-ul-Islam (AI)
The rivalry between this group – founded in 2006 by Pir Saifur Rehman and currently led by Qazi Mehboobul Haq – and the LI, fuels much of the fighting in Khyber. Clashes first broke out in 2006. Though both groups are Sunni, the AI follows the Barelvi school which believes in saints and has other theological differences with the Deobandis. While both LI founder Mufti Shakir and Pir Rehman, who belong to areas outside Khyber, were exiled from the Agency in 2007 as a result of government action backed by local tribesmen, the tensions continue.

Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)
In the presence of strong groups, the Taliban have struggled to gain a foothold in Khyber. Efforts over several years to woo Haji Namdar failed, and he was killed in an August 2008 missile attack for which TTP leader Hakeemullah Mehsud claimed responsibility. Since then the Taliban, led by local commanders such as Nazeer Afridi but controlled from their headquarters in Orakzai Agency, have established a stronger hold in Khyber, where convoys carrying supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan have been periodically attacked. [ http://tribune.com.pk/story/173202/15-dead-in-nato-tanker-fire-in-pakistan-officials/ ]

Tribes in Khyber
The Afridi dominate the Khyber Agency, and are divided into eight clans. The Afridis, like other clans in the tribal belt, have built a reputation over the centuries as fierce fighters. The major ones other than the Afridis are the Shinwari, Mullagori and Shimani. The eight Afridi clans are Adamkhel, Akakhel, Kamarkhel, Qamberkhel, Malik Dinkhel, Kukikhel, Zakakhel and Sepah. The Shinwari have three clans, Khugakhel, Mirdakhel, and Mazsokai. The other two are small. [ http://counterterrorism.newamerica.net/sites/newamerica.net/files/policydocs/khyber_1.pdf ] The clans are led by `maliks’ or elders who usually wield considerable influence over their clan members.

Was Navy Attacked Because it was Weeding Out the Militants?

Al-Qaeda had Warned of Pakistan Strike 
By Syed Saleem Shahzad 

Al-Qaeda carried out the brazen attack on PNS Mehran naval air station in Karachi on May 22 after talks failed between the navy and al-Qaeda over the release of naval officials arrested on suspicion of al-Qaeda links, an Asia Times Online investigation reveals.

Pakistani security forces battled for 15 hours to clear the naval base after it had been stormed by a handful of well-armed militants.

At least 10 people were killed and two United States-made P3-C

Orion surveillance and anti-submarine aircraft worth US$36 million each were destroyed before some of the attackers escaped through a cordon of thousands of armed forces.

An official statement placed the number of militants at six, with four killed and two escaping. Unofficial sources, though, claim there were 10 militants with six getting free. Asia Times Online contacts confirm that the attackers were from Ilyas Kashmiri’s 313 Brigade, the operational arm of al-Qaeda.

Three attacks on navy buses in which at least nine people were killed last month were warning shots for navy officials to accept al-Qaeda’s demands over the detained suspects.

The May 2 killing in Pakistan of Osama bin Laden spurred al-Qaeda groups into developing a consensus for the attack in Karachi, in part as revenge for the death of their leader and also to deal a blow to Pakistan’s surveillance capacity against the Indian navy.

The deeper underlying motive, though, was a reaction to massive internal crackdowns on al-Qaeda affiliates within the navy. 

Volcano of militancy 
Several weeks ago, naval intelligence traced an al-Qaeda cell operating inside several navy bases in Karachi, the country’s largest city and key port.

“Islamic sentiments are common in the armed forces,” a senior navy official told Asia Times Online.

“We never felt threatened by that. All armed forces around the world, whether American, British or Indian, take some inspiration from religion to motivate their cadre against the enemy. Pakistan came into existence on the two-nation theory that Hindus and Muslims are two separate nations and therefore no one can separate Islam and Islamic sentiment from the armed forces of Pakistan,” the official said.

“Nonetheless, we observed an uneasy grouping on different naval bases in Karachi. While nobody can obstruct armed forces personnel for rendering religious rituals or studying Islam, the grouping [we observed] was against the discipline of the armed forces. That was the beginning of an intelligence operation in the navy to check for unscrupulous activities.”

The official explained the grouping was against the leadership of the armed forces and opposed to its nexus with the United States against Islamic militancy. When some messages were intercepted hinting at attacks on visiting American officials, intelligence had good reason to take action and after careful evaluation at least 10 people – mostly from the lower cadre – were arrested in a series of operations.

“That was the beginning of huge trouble,” the official said.

Those arrested were held in a naval intelligence office behind the chief minister’s residence in Karachi, but before proper interrogation could begin, the in-charge of the investigation received direct threats from militants who made it clear they knew where the men were being detained.

The detainees were promptly moved to a safer location, but the threats continued. Officials involved in the case believe the militants feared interrogation would lead to the arrest of more of their loyalists in the navy. The militants therefore made it clear that if those detained were not released, naval installations would be attacked.

It was clear the militants were receiving good inside information as they always knew where the suspects were being detained, indicating sizeable al-Qaeda infiltration within the navy’s ranks. A senior-level naval conference was called at which an intelligence official insisted that the matter be handled with great care, otherwise the consequences could be disastrous. Everybody present agreed, and it was decided to open a line of communication with al-Qaeda.

Abdul Samad Mansoori, a former student union activist and now part of 313 brigade, who originally hailed from Karachi but now lives in the North Waziristan tribal area was approached and talks begun. Al-Qaeda demanded the immediate release of the officials without further interrogation. This was rejected.

The detainees were allowed to speak to their families and were well treated, but officials were desperate to interrogate them fully to get an idea of the strength of al-Qaeda’s penetration. The militants were told that once interrogation was completed, the men would be discharged from the service and freed.

Al-Qaeda rejected these terms and expressed its displeasure with the attacks on the navy buses in April.

These incidents pointed to more than the one al-Qaeda cell intelligence had tracked in the navy. The fear now was that if the problem was not addressed, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) supply lines could face a new threat. NATO convoys are routinely attacked once they begin the journey from Karachi to Afghanistan; now they could be at risk in Karachi port. Americans who often visit naval facilities in the city would also be in danger.

Therefore, another crackdown was conducted and more people were arrested. Those seized had different ethnic backgrounds. One naval commando came from South Waziristan’s Mehsud tribe and was believed to have received direct instructions from Hakeemullah Mehsud, the chief of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (Pakistan Taliban). Others were from Punjab province and Karachi, the capital of Sindh province.

After Bin Laden was killed by American Navy Seals in Abbottabad, 60 kilometers north of Islamabad, militants decided the time was ripe for major action.

Within a week, insiders at PNS Mehran provided maps, pictures of different exit and entry routes taken in daylight and at night, the location of hangers and details of likely reaction from external security forces.

As a result, the militants were able to enter the heavily guarded facility where one group targeted the aircraft, a second group took on the first strike force and a third finally escaped with the others providing covering fire. Those who stayed behind were killed.

Syed Saleem Shahzad is Asia Times Online’s Pakistan Bureau Chief and author of Inside al-Qaeda and the Taliban: Beyond Bin Laden and 9/11 published by Pluto Press,UK. He can be reached at saleem_shahzad2002@yahoo.com 

Agriculture in Pakistan

Agriculture is the largest sector of Pakistan’s economy and accounts for 22 per cent of GDP. It provides employment to over 40 per cent of total employed workforce. Agricultural sector of Pakistan is usually divided into crops, livestock and fisheries. The crop sector accounts for about 65 per cent of agriculture share in the GDP. Blessed with abundantly available national resources and favorable climate, Pakistan stands as an ideal place for crop, animal, forestry and fish production. Crop sector banks on cotton, rice, fruits, vegetables etc. while livestock accounts for 30 per cent of agriculture GDP. Forestry and fisheries make up less than 2 per cent of the total. Pakistan agriculture and its related products comprise of major and minor crops, vegetables and spices, fruits, edible oils, livestock, milk, poultry, fisheries etc. Pakistan’s major and minor food crops are wheat, rice, maize, jowar, bajra, barley; cash crops are sugarcane, cotton, sugar beet and guar seed; pulses are gram, mung, and masoor; edible oilseeds are sesamum, groundnut, soybean, sunflower, canola, safflower, and cotton seed.

The average production of some important crops are (in 000 tons): wheat (22,109), rice (4,991), bajra (193), jawar (186), maize (2,275), barley (96), gram (582), sugarcane (45,316), cotton (2,486), tobacco (84), rapeseed and mustard (227), and sesamum (30).

Pakistan is ranked fourth in worldwide sugarcane production and 12th in sugarcane production. The production of sugar is about 4.35 million tons from 77 mills. Fruits, vegetables and floriculture have important impact on agricultural economy. The yearly production of fruits, vegetables and spices is 12 million tons. The production of important fruits include (in 000 tons): citrus (1,948), mango (1,074), dates (622), apples (380), banana (158), apricot (206), almonds (23), grapes (49), guava (571), peach (70), pears (31), plums (61), and pomegranate (50).

The horticulture product holds huge market for exports. The relative importance of this sector can be gauged with high growth rate of exports of fruits and vegetables from Pakistan due to ever increasing demand in the existing and international markets. Some of fruits grown have great potential for exports, which are available in volumes, varieties and are of rich flavor. These are mangoes, citrus, grapes, dates, apples, peaches, and cherries. Other prominent fruits having enormous export potential are plums, pears, guava, etc. Among vegetables, potatoes, garlic, ginger, and onions are vastly grown in Pakistan and hold a large global market share because of competitive advantage due to superior variety, volume and price.

The edible oil production stands at 740,000 tons, which is 35 per cent of local demand. The imported quantity of the oil is 1,360,000 (about 65 per cent) and consumption is 2,100. Pakistan spends a huge amount on oil import bill.

The production of vegetables (in 000 tons) are: tomato (426), potato (2025), onion (1,817), garlic (56), chilies (91), turmeric ( 38), and

Livestock is an important sector of agriculture in Pakistan, which accounts for 51 per cent of agricultural value addition and about 11.3 per cent of the GDP. The livestock population is (in million): Buffalo (27.3), cattle (24.2), goat (66.7), sheep (36), poultry (366), camels (0.8), asses (4.2), and horses (0.3). mules (0.3).

In the similar manner the livestock products are (in 000 tons): milk (43,562), beef (1,115), mutton (740) and fat (136.3). The livestock and poultry sectors generate employment for over 1.5 million people.

Leather goods play an important role in the economy of Pakistan. Pakistan enjoys an excellent position in the quality of the skins and hides because of its natural qualities. The skins and hides of the cattle are thicker and shinning in character and processed in tannery factory. The factories have been established in Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad, Peshawar, Multan, Hyderabad, Gujranwala, Rawalpindi, Quetta, Kasur and even in many small towns and villages. These factories have facilities to tan the raw hides and skins using different chemicals. In this way, leather is obtained and through these leather, many different items are made from the leather. Kasur a small city in the province of the Punjab has the largest numbers of tannery factory. Similarly, the city of Karachi in Sindh has also large number of tannery factories and these are located in SITE and Korangi areas, Hyderabad, Sukkur etc.

The finished leather goods obtained in the tannery factory are used in the preparation of leather goods such as leather jacket, sport shoes (boots, shoes, joggers), wallet, purse, leather gloves, sports goods, leather football, boxes, small and big ladies hand bags, lady belts, brief case, leather garments, buttons, zips, rivets, fashion gloves etc.

Fishery plays an important role in the national economy and towards the food security of the country. This sector reduces the existing pressure on demand for mutton, beef and poultry. Seafood includes tuna, shrimp, prawn, mollisca, lobsters, crabs, barnacles and mackerel.

Forestry is also an important sector of agriculture, which provides timber and different types of wood to the people. It also provides millions of jobs to the population.

Is Imran supporting the Taliban?

by Naeem Tahir

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is primarily constructed around Imran Khan’s person and is backed up by the reputation of his being the captain of Pakistan’s cricket team winning the World Cup. Several cricket supporters were surprised at his acceptance speech when he said, “I have won the World Cup…” without acknowledging that it was a team effort.

His second achievement is the establishment of a cancer hospital in the name of his late mother. It is a personal achievement through fundraising after the World Cup success. The hospital enjoys a good reputation and it is professionally managed.

When Imran entered politics, his image was high. He thought he will conquer all, but politics is different from cricket, or even from a hospital. His hospital runs on the contribution of philanthropists and service charges, and cricket needs individual skills.

He was offered a share in governance by Musharraf, but negotiations failed due to Imran’s overestimation of his strength. He lost valuable opportunity of sharing power and gaining experience. Imran soon appeared lost in politics; people equated him with the style of Asghar Khan and late Nawabzada Nasrullah Khan. Both of these leaders never obtained ‘power’, the known pursuit of politics.

Imran Khan appeared to be going through introspection. He was trying to fight against his reputation of being a playboy and his involvement in overseas scandals. Even his marriage with a British heiress was seen with suspicion. He needed to neutralise the critics of the extreme Right. He met the leaders of the Jamaat-e-Islami and many other groups of the Right and even extreme Right. He started to wear shalwar kameez on a regular basis. His marriage finally ended. All this convinced the Right and so-called religious groups. Since then he has had increased support from the ‘right’ political groups and seems determined to hold on to it.

Imran has also worked hard on the non-conventional politicians and the youth. Both of these segments are attracted by his debonair look and fresh approach. He is indeed more educated than most of our politicians. He stands out as an upright person among the of ‘jaali (fake) degree’ type parliamentarians. His personality is an asset for him.

His political stance needs a careful and serious analysis. The main point of concern is that he has never taken a clear stand against the activities of the Taliban. Instead, he has been pleading for a ‘negotiated’ settlement, knowing full well that all negotiations and ‘peace’ agreements have been used by the Taliban for the purpose of consolidating and then continuing terror activity. He should have offered to negotiate himself if he was confident of this course of action. The failure of the infamous Swat agreements must still be fresh in the public memory. Imran has never supported the army action. This includes army action in Swat and in South Waziristan. He has not even condemned the attacks on GHQ and, more recently, the attack on the Pakistan Navy Station (PNS) Mehran base.

On the other hand, he is prominent in demanding the blocking of supplies to NATO forces through Pakistan — a step which would help the Taliban. He is against drone attacks. It is true that the drones cause regrettable collateral damage but they also target the al Qaeda and its supporters. The Taliban also demand an end to drones. Imran is prominently part of anti-US campaigns. True that many American policies have been self-serving, but then it is our responsibility to protect Pakistan’s interests against any foreign country, not just the US. Just being against the US and the war on terror is again an indirect help to the Taliban. Most significantly, his calling the war on terror as an American war is the standard Taliban slogan. Over 30,000 Pakistanis have been killed due to the Taliban’s terror attacks. Is it still not our war?

Looking at these factors, one is forced to question: what side is Imran on?

He is agitating in Karachi against the supplies to NATO forces, and the drone attacks. He was active with the extreme Right in protesting against Raymond Davis’ release. He has been doing sit-in protests in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In fact, the PTI has been doing so many protests that it may be aptly called Tehreek-e-Ehtijaj. Imran’s group seems to be joining every protest and playing to the gallery.

This strategy has also given certain advantages to Imran Khan. Consistent ‘exposure’ is one of these. Perhaps more significant is the fact that he has won over a sizeable portion of the supporters of Nawaz Sharif. This support primarily comes from the Taliban or their sympathisers. So Imran Khan is obliged to toe their line. As a politician he realised that the white collar will not win him an election but the rightists may. They get together, provide street power as well as loud noises, and this works to collect crowds. Imran is the preferred choice of extreme Right also because of his energetic style, which is more convincing than that of Nawaz Sharif; his eloquence is impressive against Nawaz Sharif’s limited capability, and indeed Imran is a ‘fresh’ image as compared to the repeatedly tried image of Nawaz Sharif. He may find it very hard to risk alienating himself from this segment. He also likes to have them because it is quieting down the critics of his flamboyance and flirtations of youth.

Soon there will be the final stage when Imran may need to do some soul searching once again, and decide if he is going to flow with the tide of extremist groups or stand on his own and refuse to be their cover politician.

Government Misses the Initiative of Taking the Armed Forces to Task

By Baseer Naweed 

The Government of Pakistan has once again come out in support of our armed forces in an attempt to present them as brave and innocent. The government is reluctant to initiate an independent inquiry commission in the incidents of Abbottabad and Mehran Naval base and their silence is welcomed by the high officials of the armed forces and intelligence agencies. It can be seen in the history of the civilian governments that they do not have the courage to take the generals to task for their continuous defeats whether through war or by terrorist action. The government is turning a blind eye to the fact that all national resources are being grabbed by the armed forces.

This was first done by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto after the successful freedom movement of Bengalis and the shameful defeat of our brave soldiers. It was following this debacle that he started developing a heroic image of the army and generals. He begged Indira Gandi, to release all the soldiers who were captured during the war with India in 1971, thinking that this would make him a popular man before the arm forces. But, after the release of these soldiers it was the very same armed forced that hung him through their minion, the respected courts of the land.

The military government of General Ziaul Haq enjoyed unchallenged rule for 11 years.

Sadly, not learning anything from the fate that befell her father, Benazir Bhutto followed in the same path and agreed not to take any action against the officers who were involved in the conspiracy against her father. She also agreed to accept all the demands of the army that she would not interfere in the affairs of foreign policy, defense policies and the Finance Ministry. She went further. To show her loyalty to the armed forces she awarded the Medal of Democracy to General Baig, the then chief of army staff. General Baig in turn showed his loyalty to Benazir Bhutto by conspiring to overthrow her government with the support of the ISI and money sequestered from the Mehran Bank. The ultimate victim was Asif Ali Zardari, the incumbent President, who remained in prison for many years on the charges of corruption. Now, history repeats itself as President Zardari is also working hard to appease the army.

Nawaz Sharif also appeased the generals and supported the military on the Kargil issue, thinking he would become Sultan Salah Uddin Ayubi, by blindly following the wrong policies of the generals. The Kargil incident took place in 1999 when the Pakistan armed forces entered Indian Kashmir and captured some strategic heights thereby invoking an undeclared war with India. In those days the people were angry over this incident because of the potential full scale war (with nuclear deterrents) with India. India repelled the Pakistani forces which led to the loss of thousands of lives. The people demanded an inquiry into the unconscionable action by the generals. However, Nawaz Sharif in an attempt to appease the military generals refused the demands. History then repeated itself once again when the generals toppled his government and compelled him to surrender. In order to save his own life Sharif wrote a letter of apology begging for amnesty before General Musharraf.

This was the armed forces way of telling the people of the country that even governments could be toppled if they dared to oppose their arbitrary right to wage war on a sovereign state without consulting either the government or the people. The military government of General Musharraf ruled for nine years.

Today, the government of Gillani and Zardari are again following the same path by attempting to ignore the failings of a demoralized army. After the Abbottabad incident when the whole nation was agitating about the performance, or lack of it, by the security agencies on the violation of the country’s sovereign air space and demanding accountability the Gillani-Zardari team came forward to shield the armed forces and take blame rather than sharing it with the real culprits.

This government has missed a God-sent opportunity to initiative action in favour of civilian rule and democracy by listening to the demands of the people and ensuring the accountability of the armed forces. No doubt, in their private meetings to discuss these matters they cannot help but reminisce on the downfalls of their predecessors who, at one time or another fell afoul of the army generals. There can be no doubt what-so-ever that they have every intention of avoiding the same fate that befell the Bhuttos and Nawaz Sharif. However, what they do not realise is that even by remaining silent and offering blanket impunity to the generals this does in no way confirm their safety.

What is to follow in the months to come? Pakistan already has a judiciary which cannot say NO before the generals; can we now expect martial law under the guise of securing the nation?

This government’s habitual performance has been to turn a blind eye to the illegal and inhumane actions of the armed forces against the people of the country. The very people they are sworn to protect are now being disappeared and tortured in no less than 52 torture cells operated by the army and several by the navy and air force. Solid evidence has been produced in the courts with eye witness accounts by the victims themselves and yet no person has ever been recovered and no armed force’s official has ever been taken to task. There is even video-graphic evidence of extrajudicial killings by the army officers and evidence of mass graves in locations where the army conduct operations in the name of counter-terrorism, and yet, once again, no action is taken by the civilian government.

In their ongoing programme of appeasement the government has completely ignored calls from local and international human rights NGOs to demand accountability for these acts of terrorism against the people by their own army. It was documented by the international community in 2005 that the army carried out aerial bombardment in Balochistan and it was promised by Gillani/Zadari’s ruling party that when they came into power inquiries would be held. However, no such inquiries have been instigated. Instead, the disappearances have not only continued but increased.

It is with great sadness that the writer acknowledges the fact that no government has ever learned a lesson from Pakistan’s recent history. No representative of the people has ever paid attention to the character of the armed forces of the country.

This is the time for the government to take strong action against the wrong doings of the armed forces and prosecute all those who are responsible for supporting the terrorism and terrorists in the country whether in the government, the religious community or the armed forces. An independent commission made up of the judiciary, academics and experts must be set up immediately if the power exercised by the generals is every to be contained.

Baseer Naweed is a senior researcher of Asian Human Rights Commission. baseer.naweed@ahrc.asia

 

Pakistanis Need to Grow up and Smell the Cow Dung

by Fasih Bokhari

There is no sanction in Islam, Judaism, or Christianity for a clergy.

Clergy see religion as a means of livelihood paid for by their congregation. Their objective is to expand their congregation and thus their “business empire” by attacking other clergy to take over their congregations. The violence in the world today is in large measure due to the influence of the clergy of these three religions.

When the theocratic State supports one sect in preference it empowers that sect to use all means including violence against other sects.

Sine the ’70s the Pakistan State has empowered GCC/ American backed fundamental sects with consequences that are becoming unmanageable. This suited GGC/American interests versus Iran and the USSR. Pakistan’s interest was to acquire “strategic depth” in Afghanistan, and of course, money thrown into our begging bowl that never reached the masses, pushing them to alienation from the State.

No State can survive against its own population.

Strategic depth does not lie in expansion of territory. Strategic depth lies in expansion of the economy.

As state policy we must dis-empower all clergy and change the national purpose from “hatred of India” (rationale for seeking strategic depth) to “Peace at home and peace abroad” so that the right environment for growth of the economy is created.

These issues are the basis for review of our National Security Policy.

It is evident that our leadership have no clue what a National Security Policy is all about! So, because it has the word “security” in it they will again leave it to the military to review. No military in the world (like the clergy) would want to reduce its empire.  That is why the neo-con merger of military-industrial-clergy interests and our own military-mullah mix are on the same page.

We need to grow up and smell the cow dung, as someone so aptly said recently.

We Could Not Intercept the Americans Cuz They Came at Nite

 

 

 

The chief of the Navy staff says that terrorists were able to enter the Pakistan Navy’s installation at the Mehran Air Base by taking advantage of the darkness of the night. He was correct when he stated that the terrorists were clever because they knew the actual capabilities of the security agencies and the capacity of their personnel, including their professional duties, particularly at night time. The terrorist’s attack on the naval air base in the night and particularly on a Sunday night was timely and well planned. A security detail does not sleep. It does not have a day off. However, the terrorists were well aware that the security agencies responsible for safeguarding the air base would be either be drunk or sated on their power, having enjoyed their Sunday. After all, who would dare attack them on a Sunday?

 

This is not the first time when the sovereignty of the country was asleep during the night. When American helicopters entered Pakistani air space on May 2 and carried out a smooth operation to kill Osama Bin Laden and retrieve his body from a cantonment area in Abbottabad the sovereignty was in such deep slumber that it could not hear the noises of the two helicopters, the gunfire and the subsequent crash landing of one of the helicopters.

 

The official explanation was that it was night time and as we are all well aware, when security officers are asleep they do not like to be awakened for such minor matters such as an incursion into Pakistan’s sovereign airspace. This is the sole responsibility of the ‘bloody’ civilians. Prior to the attack on the Mehran Air Base the professional capacity of our armed forces were tested at Abbottabad and found to be severely lacking. The question then begs to be asked. Why were they once again sleeping during the night at Mehran Air Base.

 

It is not as if the Pakistani armed forces and security agencies have not had sufficient experience in surprise attacks. In October, 2009 there were threats by extremists to attack the army camp at Rawalpindi. Despite the threat, no additional security was mounted and when a handful of terrorists made the attack in the dark of the night there were only civilians on duty, cleaning the streets, supplying milk and other essentials. When the army officers finally reached the scene they were taken captive by three of the attackers and made hostage for several hours. Their only contribution to the incursion was to hand over their arms to the terrorists. Once again the attackers played on the habits of the officers who firmly believed that no one would challenge their sovereign right to sleep.

 

Obviously, the attackers and intruders mentioned in the examples given above did not learn the same rules and regulations as the Pakistani security agencies and forces. They simply did not play fair. How are the brave soldiers supposed to act when the rules of engagement are changed? This is clearly the fault of the attackers and intruders. If the attackers were to show any degree of bravery then they would attack in broad daylight when the brave soldiers were able, and awake enough, to mount a proper and professional resistance. Quite obviously an attack at any other time is very cowardly in nature.

 

Unit 701A Westley Square,

48 Hoi Yuen Road, Kwun Tong,

Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR China
baseer.naweed@ahrc.asia
Mob: (852)6402 5943

PPP Likely to Win the June 26, 2011 Kashmir Elections

Elections to Pakistan’s part of Kashmir called Azad Jammu & Kashmir are taking place on June 26, 2011.

The electorate will elect an Assembly which will be semi autonomous body working under control of the Government of Pakistan.

The 48 members’ assembly has a power to elect its own Prime Minister and President; however, the Pakistan Federal Ministry of Kashmir Affairs has real power to run the government.

The area is totally under control of State of Pakistan and its intelligence agencies; and the latter either rig the elections or at least manipulate as to who becomes the President and PM of the State and sometimes even the Ministers. The GOC sitting in Murree has a lot of say in this regard.

The 48 members AJK Assembly members are not elected directly from the local area of Kashmir, 12 members of the assembly are elected from different parts of Pakistan and these seats are called the immigrant Kashmiri seats. These immigrant Kashmiri seats are mainly under the control of intelligence agencies and these 12 seats play a decisive role to elect the Prime Minster and President of AJK.

Pakistan’s Nuclear Program Budget was $10 Million per Year, Increasing to $20 Million per Year When at Full Capacity

Pakistan’s nuclear program has always been a target for Western propaganda and false accusations. I would like to make it clear that it was an Indian nuclear explosion in May 1974 that prompted our nuclear program, motivating me to return toPakistanto help create a credible nuclear deterrent and save my country from Indian nuclear blackmail.

After 15 years in Europe with invaluable experience in enrichment technology, I came toPakistanin December 1975 and was given the task of producing nuclear weapons by Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.

On Dec. 10, 1984, I informed Gen. Ziaul Haq that we could explode a device at a week’s notice, whenever he so desired.

We achieved credible nuclear capacity by the second half of the ’80s, and the delivery system was perfected in the early ’90s. For a country that couldn’t produce bicycle chains to have become a nuclear and missile power within a short span—and in the teeth of Western opposition—was quite a feat.

The question of how many weapons are required for credible deterrence againstIndiais purely academic.Indiais engaged in a massive program to cope with the nonexistent threat posed byChinaand in order to become a superpower.Indiadoesn’t need more than five weapons to hurt us badly, and we wouldn’t need more than 10 to return the favor. That is why there has been no war between us for the past 40 years.

I have little knowledge of the present status of our program, as I leftKahuta,Pakistan’s main nuclear facility, 10 years ago. As the pioneer of the program, my guess is that our efforts have been to perfect the design, reduce the size of the weapons to fit on the warheads of our missile systems, and ensure a fail-safe system for their storage. A country needs sufficient weapons to be stored at different places in order to have a second-strike capability. But there is a limit to these requirements.

Don’t overlook the fact that no nuclear-capable country has been subjected to aggression or occupied, or had its borders redrawn. HadIraqandLibyabeen nuclear powers, they wouldn’t have been destroyed in the way we have seen recently. If we had had nuclear capability before 1971, we would not have lost half of our country—present-dayBangladesh—after disgraceful defeat.

There is a total misconception about the money spent on our nuclear program. When we started, our budget was just $10 million per year, increasing to $20 million per year when at full capacity, including all salaries, transport, medical care, housing, utilities, and purchases of technical equipment and materials. This is but half the cost of a modern fighter aircraft. The propaganda about spending exorbitant sums on the nuclear program circulated by ignorant, often foreign-paid, Pakistanis has no substance.

India and Pakistan understand the old principle that ensured peace in the Cold War: mutually assured destruction. The two can’t afford a nuclear war, and despite our saber rattling, there is no chance of a nuclear war that would send us both back to the stone age. What pains me is that we gave Pakistan nuclear capability for its self-esteem and deterrence against adversaries. With our sovereignty thus secure, I urged various governments to concentrate on development to raise the people’s standard of living. Unfortunately, successive incompetent and ignorant rulers never bothered to work on the greater national interest. We are far worse off now than we were 20, or even 40, years ago when we were subjected to embargoes.

Our nuclear-weapons program has given us an impregnable defense, and we are forced to maintain this deterrence until our differences withIndiaare resolved. That would lead to a new era of peace for both countries. I hope I live to seePakistanandIndialiving harmoniously in the same way as the once bitter enemiesGermanyand France live today.

Kashmir Population Breakdown

Total population                12,548,926

Kashmir Valley                   7,198,110 (57.36%)

Jammu                                    5,350,816 (42.63%)

Female Ratio                         883 (-9)

Children Female Ratio      859 (-82)

Literacy                                   68.74% (+13.24)

Literacy Jammu                  68.79% (10 districts)

Literacy Kashmir                63.29%

Literacy Ladakh                  77.48

Srinagar district comes 6th amongst the Kashmir districts. The first five are Hindu majority districts, namely Jammu,  Samba, Leh, Kargil, and Kathua.