Pakistani diaspora and domestic politics

Mr Sajjad Burki, the PTI focal person in USA, has been spewing venom about the country that he and his party call home without any moral qualms. Last month he had requested a US Congressman, Greg Casar, to bring a resolution in US Congress against the alleged human rights violations in Pakistan against his beloved political party i.e. PTI. He and his another activist friend, Mr Atif, had claimed in June that they enjoyed the support of 86 US Congressmen and would expect them to help condemn Pakistan government’s punitive actions against the arsonists and mob attackers of the 9^th May incident. Latest is the tirade of Dr Asif, a doctor of Pakistani descent serving in USA, in front of US House Foreign Affairs Committee’s senior member Brad Sherman against the Pakistan’s government.

During a recent conference on Capitol Hill organised by the PTI activists, Sherman was asked why Pakistan was given an economic lifeline of $3 billion by USA. The allusion was to the latest Standby Agreement of IMF with Pakistan. It was very strange that the activists of a political party were unctuously importuning the US Congressmen to bail itself out whose leader Imran Khan was thundering a year ago in front of charged political crowds that USA had hatched a conspiracy to oust him from the PM’s office. His theatrics and histrionics are still etched in the political memory of keen observers of political scene in Pakistan. With what flourish had he waved the mysterious piece of paper in front of a Rawalpindi crowd claiming it to be the cipher message from Pakistan’s ambassador in USA containing details of a US conspiracy to topple his regime and with what straight face had he taken a U turn to curry favour with USA again?

Sixteen months later the same political party that had demonised USA and the Pakistan Army leadership as co-conspirators in removing Imran from power is seen groveling and lobbying for US support in USA. Sane people with a frisson of intellect and common sense would easily see through the cant and deceit of PTI lobbyists in USA. Unfortunately several innocent people amongst Pakistani diaspora in USA have been influenced by a steady stream of lies and propaganda masquerading as political advocacy. One could grant these charged “Robespierres” the benefit of doubts for political over-zealousness had it remained between them and the country’s government but when it comes to the country’s vital interests no margin of doubt could wash the sin of their treasonous advocacy. What for instance was the meaning of tying Pakistan’s military aid to the concessions to PTI? And what national interest in their warped perception was being served by Dr Asif and Sajjad Burki’s lamentations against the release of $3 billion in front of US Congressmen?

Linked with the sinister attempt by Shaukat Tarin to sabotage IMF deal for Pakistan, there is a pattern in PTI’s madness: to play the victim card and rev up the public pulse to a feverish pitch, making everyone believe the lie. The same victim card syndrome is being applied to Pakistani diaspora in UK and USA. The psychology of diasporas is being cleverly exploited to extract political mileage. Diasporas by nature are lonely, anxious and overly sensitive about the land they leave behind. They wish the very best for the land of their ancestors and are susceptible to the blandishments of any saviour that promises hope and prosperity for their homeland. The successive misrule and unstable politics that had impoverished their homeland made them overly concerned and desirous of a change agent.

After very long a change agent was midwifed into power by the establishment in the hope that he would deliver the country from the perennial cycle of traditional politics and unending cycle of misrule. The change agent however failed to deliver on several counts including governance, reforms, accountability and economic revival. The ground situation in the home country was quite different than what was portrayed to the diaspora by the social media bubble of virtual reality that was diurnally churning out magnified achievements of the PTI regime. The diaspora not only had invested in PTI emotionally but financially too. The climb-down from the love perch therefore had emotional as well as financial cost for the diaspora. Several understood the reasons of Imran’s failure but a large number still find it difficult to come to terms with his ouster.

It is that large cohort of diaspora that is being targeted by the glib-tongued YouTubers and lobbyists peddling half-truths and selective facts to mislead and arouse their emotional response. Pakistani diaspora might take some time to understand the real reasons of Imran’s fall but the damage done by cultish YouTubers and immature viscerally hateful activists to the national image and interests cannot be taken lightly. The mad virus of political polarisation has also infected non-political organisations such as Association of Pakistani Physicians in North America (APPNA) where the PTI activists have tried to gatecrash in order to lobby and protest. Compared to the immature and seditious response of Pakistani political activists abroad, the Indian diaspora is more staid and responsible when it comes to national response, No one has heard even a murmur of protest about the Indian depredations against Christian minorities in Manipur or Kashmiri Muslims anywhere in the world by Indian diaspora.

According to a scholarly study by Yussi Shain and Aharon Barth, the diasporas the world over including Armenian, Jewish, Indian, Sikh, Pakistani, Croat, Irish, Iranians and Tamils exert positive as well as negative influence upon the home country’s affairs and the chances of a conflict increase six times more in a society which has a large diaspora in USA. The conclusion one can draw from above is the impact of diasporas on the US politics and their influence upon their home politics, especially in post-conflict societies. The externalisation of the politics-related conflicts to diasporas leads to a reverse flow of the strife and conflict to the home state. Pakistan would do well to arrest this reverse flow by controlling the torrent of lies and political conflicts in foreign countries by the subversive propaganda of political parties.

The Pakistani diaspora in USA and elsewhere should close ranks behind the national narrative instead of allowing vested interests to damage the country of their origin. Pakistan should clearly identify those quislings that badmouth the country abroad and seek to destabilise it due to petty political vendettas. Their world view of such people is that the country does not deserve to exist if they are out of power. This is a dangerous and seditious world view and needs to be securitised as a serious threat to national security. The epistemic, diplomatic and legal response of the state should be vigorous and resolute, marshaling the whole of the nation resources.

Treason should never be allowed to trump politics either at home or abroad.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 13^th, 2023.

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