Keeping up with our Blunders
Bakhtiar Qayyum
Every year on 14
August, we celebrate Independence Day of Pakistan although Pakistan did not
earn independence on this date 66 years ago. It was India which got
independence from the British Raj; Pakistan was created as a new country on the
face of the earth. It is also worth mentioning that our holy forefathers who
were engaged in the struggle for a separate homeland did not expect their
demand to be accepted so soon. It was probably the avidity of the British to
leave India after they suffered heavy losses in the Second World War that
prompted the creation of Pakistan. This is evident from the ineptness and
incompetence of those who held the reins of authority during the first few
years. There was no preparedness to defend or any preparation to run the new
country. They had neither prepared a constitution or legal framework for the
new-found-land nor trained the manpower to run the country. This
non-preparedness and lack of resourcefulness compelled the rulers of this new
country to commit blunders, which caused irreparable losses to the country. The
human endeavor is to learn from our mistakes and try not to repeat them. Our
national dilemma is that as a nation we neither accepted to have committed the
blunders nor tried to make corrections. Resultantly, we commit the same
mistakes again and again and always expect to get different results. This had
been the vicious cycle we had been going round and round for 66 years of our
existence.
The first and
the foremost blunder was the decision of the first Prime Minister
Liaqat Ali Khan to align with USA and forgo the independent and non-aligned
posture of Pakistan. This action alienated us from our neighbors and other
countries in the region by creating a suspicion and mistrust in their dealing
with Pakistan. Besides we aligned with a new traditional and ideological rival
of states located in our region. It was the beginning of cold war between US
and Soviet Union and we tried making friends with USA which was located on the
other side of the globe, thus arousing enmity with Soviet Union and its allied
states, which were our immediate neighbors. We also gave up the non-aligned and
independent status of Pakistan by joining US sponsored defense pacts like CETO
and CENTO. Thus we were isolated in our region and even failed to get any
benefit from the new alliance. Pakistan still licks the wounds of that unhappy
experience.
As
said earlier Muslim leadership was not prepared to efficiently run the newly
born state as they had done no homework for it. The father of the nation
constituted a Constituent Assembly after the creation of Pakistan with the sole
responsibility to devise a constitution for the newly born state. The
Constituent Assembly wasted lot of time in unnecessary details and got stuck up
in controversial issues relating to Islamic tenets. The only significant
document prepared by it was the Objectives Resolution, which was adopted on March 12, 1949. It proclaimed that the future constitution of
Pakistan would not be modeled entirely on a European pattern, but on
the ideology of Islam. After remaining functional for
seven years and without completing its task the Constituent Assembly was suspended by the Governor General Ghulam Muhammad, on 24 October
1954. This was the second big blunder committed without regrets. The
dissolution was challenged by Speaker, Molvi Tameezuddin in Sindh Chief Court,
where the dissolution was declared illegal and void. But the Governor General
went into appeal to the Federal Court. The Federal Court under the Chief
Justice Muhammad Munir gave the famous judgment in favor of Governor General
and held the dissolution of the Constitution Assembly valid based on the law of
necessity. This decision of the Federal Court, which later became the Supreme
Court of Pakistan, validating the illegal dissolution of the Constituent
Assembly was another blunder which in the coming years provided precedence for
all dissolutions of assemblies and governments by military generals. Soon after
the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly, the then Prime Minister Muhammad
Ali Bogra through a notification declared the four provinces of Sindh, Punjab,
Balochistan and NWFP, Federal Administered Tribal Areas and the princely states
into one province as one administrative unit. The step was aimed at removing
disparity and creating administrative balance between the eastern and western
wings of the country (the present Bangladesh was East Pakistan then) but it
created more dissent and disharmony among various ethnic and linguistic groups
in present Pakistan. This was another big blunder. Although the decision was
reversed by General Muhammad Yahya Khan, the Chief Martial Law Administrator on
1July 1970 but it had done the damage and the hatred-mistrust among provinces
persist even to this date. The separation of Eastern wing of the country and
creation of Bangladesh is also attributed to it as one of the not-too-remote
causes.
The
second Constituent Assembly created on 28 May 1955 through Governor General’s
order managed to give a Constitution (Constitution of Pakistan 1956). It was
enforced with effect from 23rd March 1956 and Pakistan became an Islamic
Republic but the political instability perpetually
ensued. It was partially due to the attitude of Maj Gen Sikander Mirza,
who first became Governor General succeeding Ghulam Muhammad and then became
President of Pakistan in accordance with the Constitution of 1956. But he could
not pull along with the civilian government and changed four Prime Ministers
within a span of two years. Although first general elections on the basis of
adult franchise were scheduled to be held in early 1959, once again the
National and Provincial Assemblies were dissolved, the newly enforced
Constitution was abrogated and Martial Law was imposed by the President of
Pakistan Maj Gen Sikandar Mirza on 7th October 1958. General Muhammad Ayub
Khan, Commander-in-Chief of the Army was appointed the Chief Martial Law
Administrator. Ten days later Ayub Khan deposed Sikandar Mirza and himself
became President. All political processes in the country were stopped,
political institutions prorogued, civilian government removed and military
personal deputed on all positions of the government. This
was the first successful coup in the history of Pakistan, bringing to power a
military regime under Ayub Khan. The political disorder in the country fostered
the view within the military and in the public that Pakistani politicians were
too weak and corrupt to govern effectively, and that the parliamentary
system was flawed. So the first military takeover was generally welcomed
by the masses but it has proved to be one of the blunders committed by our
ruling elite.
Next on the
blunder’s list is the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965. A lot has been said and
written about the causes of the war including the military exercises named
“Operation Gibraltar” which led to the war in disputed Kashmir region. The
details of the 17-days war and its culmination with the Tashkent Declaration
have also been commented upon extensively. We will suffice to a neutral
assessment of the consequences and the aftermath of the war. About the losses
sustained by Pakistan, an independent source, Library of Congress Country Studies conducted by
the Federal Research Division of the United States stated that “The
war was militarily inconclusive; each side held prisoners and some territory
belonging to the other. Losses were relatively heavy—on the Pakistani side,
twenty aircraft, 200 tanks, and 3,800 troops. Pakistan's army had been able to
withstand Indian pressure, but a continuation of the fighting would only have
led to further losses and ultimate defeat for Pakistan.” TIME magazine
reported that India held 1112 square kilometers of Pakistan territory
while Pakistan held 403 square kilometers of Indian territory in Kashmir and
Rajasthan. Additionally, Pakistan had lost almost half its armor temporarily.
Some Pakistani analysis might not agree to the above figures but one thing is
very clear; Pakistan failed to achieve any of her objectives from the 1965 war.
Encyclopedia Wikipedia in its note on the consequences of 1965 war states that “One
of the most far reaching consequences of the war was the wide-scale economic
slowdown in Pakistan. The cost of the 1965 war put an end to the
impressive period economic growth Pakistan had experienced during early 1960s.
Between 1964 and 1966, Pakistan's defence spending rose from 4.82% to 9.86% of
GDP, putting tremendous strain on Pakistan's economy. By 1970–71, defence
spending comprised a whopping 55.66% of government expenditure. According
to veterans of the war, the war had greatly cost Pakistan economically,
politically, and militarily. Nuclear theorist Feroze Khan maintained that
the 1965 war was a last conventional attempt to snatch Kashmir by military
forces, and Pakistan's own position in international community, especially with
the United States,
began to deteriorate from the point the war started, while on the other hand,
the alliance with China was indeed improved.” After the war resentment
among people and government of East Pakistan (present day Bangladesh) against
West Pakistan (today’s Pakistan) became more intense as they had a feeling that
Kashmir was the obsession of West Pakistan and they were spending on the war
from the funds meant for East Pakistan. Moreover, during the war it was alleged
that East Pakistan was not guarded against the possible attack from India to
divide Pakistan’s attention from west to east.
The race for nuclear arsenal also initiated as a consequence of 1965
Indo-Pak war and Pakistan started diverting sizable chunk of its GDP towards a
discreet nuclear program.
First general
elections in Pakistan were held on 7 December 1970 for 300 seats in the
National Assembly; 162 for East Pakistan (present day Bangladesh) and 138 for
West Pakistan (today’s Pakistan). The outcome of the elections was 160 seats
from the Eastern wing won by Awami League of Sheikh Mujeeb ur Rehman and 81
seats in West Pakistan won by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) of Zulfiqar Ali
Bhutto. Although Awami League got a clear mandate from these elections, they
were not offered to form the government. This was another big blunder committed
by General Muhammad Yahya Khan who ruled the country as Chief Martial Law
Administrator at that time. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who was a lofty aspirant to
become Prime Minister instigated Yahya Khan not to invite Sheikh Mujeeb ur
Rehman to form the government because he alleged that he would break the
country. Bhutto also hurled threats to elected members from West Pakistan not
to attend any session of the National Assembly if held in Dhaka (capital of
East Pakistan). Resultantly, mass uprising was triggered in East
Pakistan followed by the Bangladesh Liberation War and
the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, and the ultimate secession of East Pakistan
into Bangladesh. The Indian troops had entered East Pakistan to support
the separatist movement and bring an end to war. The separation of East
Pakistan at the end of the Bangladesh Liberation War was one of the biggest
events in the history of this country. It shook the very foundation of
Pakistan, which was said to be created on the ideology of Islam but Islam could
not hold the country together beyond 24 years. There could be many reasons
given for the humiliating defeat and surrender of the Pakistan army at the
hands of Indian troops in East Pakistan where almost 93000 members of the
Pakistan Armed Forces including paramilitary personnel were taken as Prisoners
of War by the Indian Army. The whole nation was stunned at the disaster. The
Army quietly stepped down in what remained of Pakistan and handed over the rein
of power to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. Bhutto became the Chief Martial Law
Administrator, then the President and finally the Prime Minister. His dreams had
come true, no matter at what cost.
Soon after
assuming powers, Bhutto set up a high power judicial commission to inquire into
and find out "the circumstances in which the Commander, Eastern command,
surrendered and the members of the Armed Forces of Pakistan under his command
laid down their arms and a cease-fire was ordered along the borders of West
Pakistan and India and along the cease-fire line in the State of Jammu and
Kashmir." The six member commission was headed by the then Chief Justice
of Pakistan, Justice Hamoodur Rehman. Other members of the Commission included
Justice Anwarul Haq, Chief Justice of Sindh High Court and two senor judges of
Balochistan High court. A retired Lt Gen was included as a military advisor.
After six months deliberations the commission presented an interim report to
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, President of Pakistan in July 1972 as the commission could
not take into account the interviews and statements of some senior civil and
military officers, who were still prisoners of war in India. Twelve copies of
the initially report were prepared. It is said that one copy was given to
Bhutto and the rest were either destroyed or were stolen. In 1974 the
commission restarted proceedings after the return of prisoners of war. The
final report or the supplementary report as it was called was submitted on 23
October 1974 to Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who had become Prime Minister according to
the new constitution of 1973.The report contained detailed analysis how
political, administrative, military and moral failings were responsible for the
surrender of Pakistani forces in East Pakistan. Bhutto classified the entire report as he was afraid that if made
public, it would further demoralize and humiliate the Pakistan Armed Forces. The
Report's findings accuse the Pakistani Army of carrying out killings in the
countryside, killing of intellectuals and professionals and burying them in
mass graves, killing of Bengali Officers and soldiers on the pretence of
quelling their rebellion, killing East Pakistani civilian officers, businessmen
and industrialists, raping a large number of East Pakistani women as a
deliberate act of revenge, retaliation and torture, and deliberate killing of
members of the Hindu minority. It has also been alleged that the report contained
a chapter highlighting the aspirations of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto to grab powers,
which contributed to the separatist stance of Bengalis. Bhutto is said to have
changed that portion of the report and got it rewritten. The report was,
however, published in the year 2000 after it was leaked in Indian newspapers.
The non-publishing of the report in time was another big blunder because it
snatched away the opportunity of learning from our follies and failures. We
failed miserably to make amends to our mistakes which led to the breaking up of
the country.
The
nationalization policy of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto during the 70s also proved to be
another national blunder. Without any long term planning or assessing the
consequences he tried to restore the economic order that was badly shaken by
war through acquisition of property and businesses owned and run by private
concerns. It was perhaps the hardest test nothing short of vengeance which Bhutto put this nation go
through by taking over banks, schools, factories, vehicle manufacturing and
assembly units, cement factories,
electricity gas and oil refining units. Even the exports and imports
were taken control of by the government through trading corporation. Perhaps,
Bhutto wanted to ensure the distribution of wealth and the prosperity of lay
man. However the policy of nationalization had many defects. It caused a great
damage to the private sector. Investment in the private sector was almost
finished. The managements of those nationalized concerns made personal gains at
the cost of the progress and wellbeing of the institutions they worked in. They
were taken as personal fiefdoms and government used them to oblige friends and
family members of high and mighty. Resultantly, with the passage of time these
governments owned enterprises, which were once profit making machines turned
into garbage dumps. Today around 200 of such enterprises lose more than Rupees
500 billion a year; that is roughly Rupees 1.5 billion a day, every day of the
year; when the treasury is almost empty. Despite the fact that banks,
educational institutions and few other manufacturing units had been restored to
private sector.
Declaring Ahamdi
sect as non-Muslims by Bhutto was probably another blunder in our checkered
history of 66 years. It gave rise to sectarianism and boosted the radical
Islam. We still reap the fruit of that forced decision. The Ahmadi factor had
since been used to avenge personal grievances as well. It is very simple to
label someone as Ahmadi to shun all doors of well-being and prosperity for him
and invite the wrath of the guardians of faith to make life a living hell for
him.
Next on our list
of blunders is the execution of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto as result of the verdict by
trial court, which in his case was the Lahore High Court and rejection of
appeal by the Supreme Court. General Ziaul Haq, who was the man in the saddle
at that time, did not adhere to any clemency appeals made by world leaders to
spare the life of former Prime Minister. The hanging of Bhutto gave rise to a
new political culture in the country – that of dynasties, political martyrs and
the ascendancy of violent political rivalry. His sons and daughters overnight
ascended to the throne of political leadership without having any notable
political achievement to their credit. Besides, the country lost a political
personality, which was termed as the leader of the masses, the man who gave the
1973 constitution and a feudal who chanted the slogan of “food, clothes and
shelter” for the poor and downtrodden people of the country. The nation still
feels the crunch of the events and the trial sheds a cloud on the reputation of
our higher judiciary. The Adjudicators who handed down the judgment admitted
later on that they were under tremendous pressure to pronounce the death
sentence. The court verdict had been termed as “judicial murder” by some of the
most prominent jurists.
The invasion of
Afghanistan by Soviet Troops in late December 1979 to support the communist
government against the Islamist insurgents marked the beginning of a new type
of proxy war between old rivals, Soviet Union and the USA. For the proxy war,
Americans chose to launch the Islamic Jihadists from Pakistan. Religious
seminaries were converted into military training camps and the ill-trained
radical enthusiasts were sent into Afghanistan to fight alongside the local
Islamic insurgents against the invading Soviet troops. It opened up an all new
vistas of the Islamic holy war against the communist infidels. Muslims from the
Middle Eastern Islamic states started pouring into Pakistan to participate in
Jihad, an Islamic tenet. Thus in Pakistan guns, war, military training,
weaponry and a plethora of motivational material to wage holy war became a
common street affair. This waging of Jihad from the Pakistani soil against
foreign invaders in Afghanistan can be marked another big blunder which had
long lasting consequences on the peace and security situation of the country.
Today Pakistan faces the greatest internal threat from the radical Islamists
called the Taliban, who can be regarded the descendants of Jihadists of the
80s. And their tirade against the Nation is the aftermath of the Jihad, they
were trained and indoctrinated for.
General Ziaul
Haq exploited the Jihadist saga to prolong his own rule and introduced the
process of Islamization in the country. He tried imposition of his own
understanding of the Quran and Islam. Ziaul Haq was himself affiliated with the
Hanfi sect, which is one of the many schools of thought in Islam, but he
undertook to implement the same without taking into account the teachings of
other sects. Curriculum was changed, new laws were enacted and strict Islamic
code was implemented. In schools as well as offices dress code was altered and
all rules to rise up the ladder of ranks and grades were written afresh. Strict
adherence to the Islamic rituals was made mandatory for promotions or making
advancements. Bank accounts of general public were frozen for compulsory
deduction of Zakaat. People were publically flogged for not adhering to strict
Islamic tenets. Dance parties in hotels and clubs and the use of liquor was
completely banned. All restaurants and eating outlets were forcibly closed
during the month of fasting and offering afternoon prayers in offices were
declared mandatory. The enforced imposition of one Islamic view in the country
was another blunder which infested the Pakistani society with intolerance and
use of violent tactics for religious purposes.
Next on our
blunders list is the Kargil war of 1999. Apart from the strategic significance
of the war from a Pakistani prospective it was an aimless endeavor. The Pakistani troops in the guise of Kashmiri
freedom fighters crossed the line of control (LOC) near Kargil and occupied
Indian military posts overlooking Indian National Highway connecting Srinagar
to Leh. The LOC had been demarcated by
the UN Mission after the 1948 war to mark the temporary boundary between Indian
and Pakistani controlled territories. The objective of the intruding Pakistani
troops was to sever the military logistics supply on the Srinagar-Leh Highway.
But crossing the LOC, occupying Indian controlled territory and threatening the
military supply route amounts to border violation and waging war on India.
There should have been no doubt that the Indians will retaliate fearlessly and
the International community would not appreciate the move. When Indian troops
retaliated, Pakistan military suffered heavy losses and had to retreat.
Pakistan had to make request to USA to help stop the war from spreading to
other areas. The international community condemned and criticized the Pakistani
move. As a consequence of war, the peace efforts initiated between the two
countries after Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpai visited Lahore came to
a halt, mistrust and suspicion between the two countries reached new heights;
hostilities got escalated and military standoff continued for several years.
Regarding the
events of recent times, the stand taken by Pakistan after the 9/11 attacks on
American targets are still considered controversial. There are conflicting
views about the response shown by the Government of General Pervez Musharraf.
His facilitating US forces to strike on Al-Qaida including Afghan civilians and
militants targets, the Taliban and the Arab nationals fighting Jihad in
Afghanistan are still being condemned by political and military circles. The
critics claim that the error of judgment has plunged Pakistan into an unending
war against the unforeseen enemy. It is also said that the war which was initially
being fought in Afghnistan has been acclaimed to be our war and extended to the
streets and cities of Pakistan. But the objectives and targets of the said war
are still ambiguous and we are with each passing day loosing space. The war on terror which has been sponsored
and financed by ISAF countries is still a long way from being conclusive while
the country is being torn apart by the ensuing terrorist activities. This is
the third civilian government facing the upshots of the war on terror but we have
yet not constituted any commission to inquire the causes, consequences and the
authenticity of our response to this war.
On the national
front the promulgation of National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) by General
Pervez Musharraf through which all criminal and corruption cases against
activists of PPP and MQM and against Asif Ali Zardari were withdrawn. It was a
blunder of his government. Hundreds of hardened criminals and plunderers of
national wealth were pardoned, even those in jails were released and all
proceedings and investigations halted. It was not an amnesty, it was setting
free the criminals and plunderers to do the same again. All were given a clean
chit by the government so that they may launch once again to do more harm.
Earning benefit from the NRO, Asif Ali Zarzari got elevated to the highest
position in the country and became the President of Pakistan. It was the most
humiliating blunder that the man who was so notorious for his corrupt
practices, the nation had spent millions to bring him to books and cases of
money laundering and corruption were pending against him in Switzerland, Spain
and UK was suddenly made the President of the country and accepted by all at
that position. He was neither acquitted nor exonerated from any case; they were
all withdrawn due to promulgation of NRO. It brought a bad name for the country
and for the people.
Furthermore, on
March 9, 2007 the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry
who was believed to be doing a good job was removed from his office by General
Pervez Musharraf without following the due process given in the Constitution.
The Chief Justice resisted his removal and the matter was taken up by the
Supreme Judicial Counsel, where after exhaustive deliberations the matter was
decided in favor of the Chief Justice. He was re-instated and all allegations
leveled against him in the Presidential Reference were discarded. But he along
with 60 other judges was removed again by the general in an
extra-constitutional move on 3 November 2007 whereby the Constitution was held
in abeyance and a Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) issued. A street
agitation was started by the lawyers’ community, civil society and the media to
revive the pre-3 November Judiciary. The agitation took the shape of a regular
movement and continued for more than a year. In the mean time General Pervez
Musharraf doffed his uniform, resigned as President of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto
was assassinated, PPP formed the government after winning elections, Asif Ali
Zardari became President and the government of PML(N) in Punjab was removed.
Nawaz Sharif set out from Lahore on a long march onto Islamabad. When the long
march was midway, the Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and all other judges were
restored. However, it has not been determined yet, why the Chief Justice
removed and what were gained from the year long lawyers movement.
Last on our
count of blunders is the mysterious presence of the most wanted man, Osama Bin
Laden in Abbattabad, the garrison city so close to the Federal Capital. The
whole world, including our security agencies and Armed Forces were trying to
hunt him down since he disappeared from Tora Bora in Afghanistan in 2001. As if
the embarrassment of his hiding on our soil was not enough, it was the US who
found him not our men. The US Naval Special Warfare Development
Group and Central Intelligence Agency operatives ordered by U.S.
President Barack Obama killed him in a covert operation at midnight 2 May
2011. There could be two plausible excuses for his being there. Either we or
any of our agencies knew nothing about the presence of Osama bin Laden on our
soil or someone knew it. Regrettably, if the first is true, we are stupid and
dupe and if second is true, we are wicked and untrustworthy. The man had been
there for eight years perhaps controlling and running his terror outfits around
the world and our agencies knew nothing or were abetting him.
This was a
concise premise of our blunders during the 66 years of our existence. Every
nation commits mistakes and makes corrections to move forward. We should not be
embarrassed of our follies of the past rather we should keep them alive so that
we do not commit same mistakes again. The younger generation is desperate and
hapless. They often ask why have Pakistan not progressed and prospered as have
some countries in the far east, which came into existence much after us and
have lesser resources. Our people are very hardworking and talented. They don’t
know whether Pakistan should be graded with the industrial countries or with
the agricultural countries. Even the deserts have bypassed us. In desperation
and frustration a majority are looking to leave for a more prosperous career offshore.
Maybe someone somewhere can learn something from our blunders and do not repeat
the same.
About the author:
Bakhtiar Qayyum is a retired officer, who served for more than 30 years in a prime Government of Pakistan agency. He possesses a thorough knowledge of political, social, ideological and security related issues of Pakistan. He is currently running a NGO namely “PIFF”, which is trying to lessening the hate factor from amongst the youth. His email is baqayyum@gmail.com and Fb address @Bakhtiar Qayyum
Bakhtiar Qayyum is a retired officer, who served for more than 30 years in a prime Government of Pakistan agency. He possesses a thorough knowledge of political, social, ideological and security related issues of Pakistan. He is currently running a NGO namely “PIFF”, which is trying to lessening the hate factor from amongst the youth. His email is baqayyum@gmail.com and Fb address @Bakhtiar Qayyum
