WikiLeaks: MQM feared May 12 violence ‘killed’ its chances in Punjab

Farooq Sattar told US diplomats in January 08 that plans to expand party’s base had been undercut.

KARACHI:

The violence in Karachi on May 12, 2007 is still referenced by political parties and citizens in the daily discourse on the state of security in the city, and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) felt the heat of the allegations made against it for its apparent role in the riots.

The MQM’s Babar Ghauri, who was the then-minister of ports and shipping, told the US charge d’ affaires that the May 12 violence ‘killed’ the party’s chances of building a voter base in Punjab.

According to a US consulate cable dated June 4, 2007 released by WikiLeaks, officials asked Ghauri whether the MQM’s chief Altaf Hussain had played a role in planning the violence. “No, absolutely not. We were trying to expand into Punjab; how would we have benefited from this?” Ghauri reportedly answered.

The cable notes that embassy and consulate contacts believed “that at the very least Hussain suspected there would be violence on May 12 and supported the MQM counter-rally in any case”.

Additionally, Ghauri reportedly said his party’s leadership felt ‘alone’ and were worried that the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) would abandon them. This was confirmed to US officials by PML-Q contacts who believed the MQM was responsible for the violence and that the party should distance itself from it. However, then-president Pervez Musharraf and government officials blamed the opposition and Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry for the violence. The cable assesses: “Given that much of the public and media believe the MQM is principally responsible for the violence, Musharraf’s position could exacerbate his political problems.” In January 2008, MQM leader Farooq Sattar told US diplomats that while he predicted the MQM would win 20 to 25 seats in Karachi in the upcoming elections, “plans to expand the party’s base had been undercut by blame over the May 12 riots”.

The cable states that Sattar admitted it was “perhaps not wise to have organised a countervailing demonstration to the one organised for the former chief justice”. But he argued (unconvincingly) that the decision not to intervene and stop the rioting would have caused additional violence. Sattar pointed out that 14 MQM party members had died in the violence that left approximately 40 people dead.

A cable released on May 15 reported that the MQM members were taking unusual steps to protect their personal security. The US had also been told that “when the MQM National Assembly members attempted to shake hands with members from other parties on May 14, the non-MQM members refused to shake hands”.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 9^th,  2011.