Pricey presents for US officials

Nawaz Sharif’s gift to Hillary Clinton outclasses presents from president, Senate chairman.

KARACHI: The official list of gifts given to US President Barack Obama, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and other White House officials by foreign government sources in 2009 has been released by the State Department. It includes presents given by Pakistani officials – and one enterprising politician.

According to the list, Obama was gifted a cream coloured rug by President Asif Ali Zardari, valued at $2,500 and First Lady Michelle Obama was gifted a brown leather purse and jewellery box worth $490.

On the other hand, Clinton received gifts from President Zardari and Senate Chairman Farooq H Naek. Zardari and Naek gifted rugs and a carpet respectively (valued at less than $1,000 each) but their gifts were outclassed by Nawaz Sharif’s.

The PML-N chief’s gift to Clinton was a “gold plated jewellery set including a pair of earrings and necklace with emerald, ruby, moonstone, amethyst, citrine, garnet and diamonds” – valued at $2,600.

US Vice President Joe Biden was given a carpet worth $1,700 by President Zardari. Former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel also accepted a rug worth $700 on behalf of the US government from Zardari.

Other US officials, who received gifts from the presidency, include the late US Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke, who was given a leather briefcase worth $350 and Robert Kimmitt, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury (a $598 rug).

Military officials have also been generous. Admiral Mike Mullen received a rug worth $350 from (now retired) General Ahsan Saleem Hyat and Michael B Donley, Secretary of the Air Force, received a $550 rug from Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman.

Gifts received by the office of the director for national intelligence are not listed with names of the donors and recipients, but it received two Pakistani rugs (worth $2,000 and $550 respectively). The total value of the gifts given by Pakistani government and military officials is $12,981 (Rs1, 105,550).

American officials are advised to not accept gifts and only do so if refusing may offend or embarrass the donor or affect US foreign relations. The gifts are accepted on behalf of the government and are considered US property. They are placed in a separate office and officials have an option to buy them back.

Pakistan has similar rules; however, these have been flouted. As reported in The Express Tribune on December 12, over 3,000 gifts received from 1999 to 2009 were valued at Rs118 million.

Officials, including former president Pervez Musharraf and former prime minister Shaukat Aziz, only paid Rs15 million in total for the gifts they bought back, causing a loss of Rs103 million. The gifts are deposited in the Toshakhana, which is part of the Cabinet Division.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 20^th, 2011.