Opinion

Realism has won

Pakistan needs money, America needs operations against militants of their choice. Both will be met to a degree only.

Shahzad Chaudhry March 17, 2011

Realism has won

Raymond Davis is on his way home as I write these lines. And, just as well, because in return we expect the suspended $600-million tranche of the Kerry-Lugar funds to cross his flight somewhere over the Atlantic. A few other things may have been resolved. The Afghan war can be back to its end-state self; the hiatus on operations in support of, or linked to, this 10-year-old war will again find mention and perhaps re-initiation in some earnest — and in case people hadn’t noticed, it has been all quiet on the western front of late! That indeed is the other unresolved dilemma of the Afghan war — if Pakistan just tones down the pitch of the battle a bit, it seems there isn’t a more dreadfully quiet place than the Pakistan-Afghan border. What may David Petraeus et al be up to, is anyone’s guess.

There wasn’t another way to the Raymond Davis affair despite our ghairat and idealist brigades going berserk over the whole affair. Both of them have a constituency to please. Between the Taseer and Bhatti murders came the Davis affair. This, in a continuum, provided for a ready stage to the ghairat brigade to brandish its wares. The religious political parties, and those that hoped to become political, used these three occasions to appear larger than their true political standing as they whipped fervour and emotion in the name of religion. Remember, we were shown the way by the most honourable Samuel Huntington with his epic: The Clash of Civilizations and Remaking of the World Order. George the Junior of the Bush clan gave meaning to it, and Osama bin Laden and his coterie followed hook, line and sinker.

What we have in Pakistan today, and for that matter in most parts of the Muslim world, in turn is some vibrant anti-Americanism that takes various colours — religious in the civilisational clash character, and nationalist and idealist for those that have internal scores to settle. This needs to be explained.

The idealists long for a Jeffersonian utopia without giving a quarter to an under-paved ground which is still in the process of providing traction to politics. Their only, and repetitive, refrain is for the inability of the civilian/democratic government to bridle the military. Nothing wrong with that as a motive, but there remain some inhibitors — the military itself being not so insignificant. For the others: the Politics does not yet have the requisite credibility or the confidence in its own ability to question the military and hence contend for control; and, knowing well that with various peculiarities at play, in this dynamic of seeking civilian control of the military, the objective is not about to happen and mauling the image of the military is its only spoil. Why do they do it? It is as much of a 600-million-dollar question or perhaps the Rs200 million that exchanged hands as the diyat amount in Davis’s release. They may not need any of the 18 green cards that were the additional carrots in this well demonstrated religious-legal process, they may already have those rights fore-granted.

Consider: Raymond Davis was indicted, which proved his crime and he was taken through a judicial process. The heirs of the victims thus found it legally and religiously correct to seek a diyat compensation from a confirmed criminal. This covered all tracks. As for the state: The alliance of the unequals survives for some desperate, mutually exclusive objectives. Pakistan needs the money, America needs operations against the militant extremists of their choice. Both will be met to a degree only. One hopes, though, that the biggest of all the plucking would mean clear rules of business between the ISI and the CIA on the functioning of the Raymonds in their midst, as long as they operate on premises set by Pakistan. Also, that the CIA will never again send a fool on a mission and that they will work through the system following all requirements, if they ever need to flag diplomatic immunity. Or, maybe Pakistan just might sell them back.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 18^th, 2011.

COMMENTS (15)

Ali | 13 years ago | Reply After Musharraf Regime this is the first time when Army has lose its honour!!

R S JOHAR | 13 years ago | Reply I agree with the writer's logic and analysis. This probably was the best solution since both countries need each others services and a stalemate would have harmed Pakistan more than the Americans. Moreover, the two victim's families too have been adequately compensated and their safety has also been ensured. This is a politcal decision which might have been influenced by the military but it still can be called as a 'master stroke'.

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ani | 13 years ago | Reply Indictment does NOT equal proof of crime @Hasan and Nadir El-Edroos: Excellent observation you guys made.

Alsahdiq | 13 years ago | Reply My one question to everyone. What have you done to alter the pathetic and grim situation the country faces today which is getting worse and worse by the day? Who told us that we should leave our most prized possession our country where we keep our property and our wealth for others to destroy? Who told us that we should go out and vote for bringing about slavery of the those upon us who hold the political party to ransom? Who stopped us from coming together to join our hands with each other to bring about an alternative to the prevalent unjust system to replace it with a just system? Who? No one. Our own inaction and reluctance to come to join hands with millions of fellow citizens like us to forge a unity and to work together to build our country is the reason for all the trouble and ignominity we bring upon ourselves. No one else is responsible for all these except we, ourselves. Wake up people. Wake up. There is still time to undo all the destructive designs of the enemies.

Zahid Hussain | 13 years ago | Reply The contributor started his contribution with the mention of $600-million tranche! Can everything be measured in terms of money - Ghairat or no Ghairat? It has become a fashion to blame those who want justice to find a place in Pakistan. It is said that life is a series of compromises. Yes it is! But we have to see where does Pakistan and Pakistanis stand as a country and as a nation as a result of compromises by a large number of people, though in minority but enjoying power, position and status, in every walk of life. You will find FILTH under every corner of the carpet you lift. So I hope the contributor and his like minded journalists thinking only in terms of MONEY will BE CAREFUL in what they write!

Hassan | 13 years ago | Reply An Indictment does not prove the crime, it is merely a formal statement of an offense as framed by the prosecuting authority of the state, so he was not proved to be a murderer and thus the diyat was premature and without due legal and religious process. So no it did not cover all the tracks it hardly covered any, Sir this is not realism this is called being devious and decietful to the people of this country who toil night and day still believing that those in power will someday have the deceny to look out for their interests. The people in power in Pakistan that includes the armed forces choose to politicise religion and they have managed to do so even in this case, the mockery of the Qisas & Diyat laws for the release of Raymond Davis is an example of using religion to further political and economic gains for the select few who lead this nation into an abyss. So the blame for politicising religion for the three issues mentioned by yourself does not lie with the religious parties or the wannabe political parties it lies with those who are in power and im sure i do not need to tell you who is in power in Pakistan.

Amer Badayun | 13 years ago | Reply This system of 'patchwork' exceptions, sanctified by extra judicial 'stakeholders', cannot deliver true justice, or binding correctives / punishment / sentence. Time to draft secular laws. But for that to happen, the legislators have to legislate, instead of the slugfest we have in the national assembly. And they won't legislate. Because after Taseer and Bhatti, they have learned their lesson. Only too well. Still, Pakistan needs a secular legislative, executive and judiciary, independent of each other. In short, Quaid E Aazam, was right. We must become a secular state. We have been in denial for too long.

Arindom | 13 years ago | Reply That Davis would be released was a foregone conclusion. What surprised all was the route taken - Islamic law!! So the extremist right should be happy that US now also believes in Sharia????

ani | 13 years ago | Reply One thing consistent about the Air Marshal: whether in an F-16 or behind a desk, he is always able to take the winning position. Until last week he was fuming green and crescent with ghairat. Now with tails between their legs, the ISI/Army released Davis. The Air Marshal is all of a sudden on the side of realism. But as always the the khaki colors are hard to hide. The problem is the poor civilians who are elected by their people. Their fault: they tarnish the 'image' of the miliary. It never is the military that controls all levers of power and has tarnished the image of Pakistan and never allows the civilians to succeed.

Hasan Bin Hamza | 13 years ago | Reply "Consider: Raymond Davis was indicted, which proved his crime and he was taken through a judicial process. " Come on now Mr. Chaudhry, surely mere indictment is no proof of guilt! Or is that so in our courts! Strong stuff indeed, indictment as proof of guilt. Bravo.

Nadir El-Edroos | 13 years ago | Reply Since when does someones indictment prove his crime?

TightDhoti | 13 years ago | Reply This says it all: though, that the biggest of all the plucking would mean clear rules of business between the ISI and the CIA on the functioning of the Raymonds in their midst, as long as they operate on premises set by Pakistan. Raymond Davis was never going to face prosecution in Pakistan. He was used as leverage for the ISI to push its advantage. An unaccountable Pakistani institution dealing with a mostly unaccountable US institution acted to protect both their interests, and Pakistan at least is poorer for it.

John | 13 years ago | Reply As always all Pakistan politics is only with short term vision.

Bangash | 13 years ago | Reply The writer was singing the tune of "national honor" some weeks ago and demanding Davis be investigated for spying and prosecuted. Now the writer has fallen in line.

Independent from UK | 13 years ago | Reply Money can't buy happiness, this is a common saying. I say money can buy a murder though. I agree with Shahzad that Realism has won. The dollars without which this country could come to standstill and the generals would be lot poorer is the main motivation behind the release of RD. Those leaders are crying foul would have most probably done the same thing as what the government did.

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