KARACHI:
It is a universally accepted norm in international affairs that countries should not interfere in the political affairs of other countries. Many sovereign independent democratic countries have placed strict curbs on foreign funding of political parties, and any parties or leaders found violating these curbs are strictly punished. Unfortunately, financially powerful countries and foreign donors regularly engage in such malpractices. Although very rare, when an aid recipient country is found involved in such malpractice, either directly or by default, the repercussion is very severe.
In July 2019, during an official visit to the US, former prime minister Imran Khan addressed the Pakistan community at an event funded by PTI’s local chapter. Amongst the major fundraisers of PTI was a Pakistani-origin oil billionaire who coincidentally was also the chairman of Trump’s re-election campaign and a major Republican party fundraiser. All this was hunky dory until Trump lost and Biden was elected as President in 2020 after a bitter election campaign.
The PTI government should have distanced itself from that particular individual after the Biden administration had taken over the helm. However, against the advice of our ambassador, the President of Pakistan decided to confer Tamgha-e-Pakistan on him in a ceremony held at the Presidency. This appears to have irritated Biden who did not even telephone Imran Khan after coming to the office. The new Pakistani government must address the mistakes of the former government and mend relations with the US. Our political leaders must learn from this and avoid getting cosy with individuals involved in the politics of other countries.
Ali Malik
Lahore
Published in The Express Tribune, August 28th, 2022.
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