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A formula for peace

By Dr Haider Mehdi November 28, 2008

Diagnosis: Consider carefully all of the following:
Calamity: The calamity is already clearly visible on the horizon - the writing is on the wall. The government's pro-US foreign policy, War On Terror, and economic planning will drive Pakistan beyond the abyss of political and economic ruin and ultimately to the brink of a possible national disintegration. It is so because the government has chosen a path of "Fatal Attraction" to a political creed that contradicts everything that is in Pakistan's national interests.
Disclosure: It is politically incomprehensible that a democratically elected government in Pakistan, in absolute violation of constitutional and democratic norms, and setting aside the conventional acceptable parameters of democratic decision-making, could unlawfully enter into a secret agreement with a foreign country and conduct the country's foreign policy in a manner described in the following mind-boggling Washington Post write-up dated November 16: "The United States and Pakistan reached tactic agreement in September on a don't-ask-don't-tell policy that allows unmanned Predator aircraft to attack suspected terrorist targets in rugged western Pakistan. In recent months, the US drones have fired missiles at Pakistani soil at an average of once every four or five days.
The officials described the deal as one in which the US government refuses to publicly acknowledge the attacks while Pakistan's government continues to complain noisily about the publicly sensitive strikes." Surely a 21st century elected president cannot act as a 15th century Machiavellian Prince, an absolute power unto himself, making unilateral secret deals on the basis of his personal judgements. This is not how a democracy works or matures.
Counter-productive: The November 16 understanding between the Pakistani government and the US is going to prove to be counter-productive for Pakistan and for the chances to bring peace to this region. It will be instructive for Pakistani policy-makers to remember that the US is a monolithic ideological power that does not respect a nation's sovereignty and never shies away from using military force in the way of its dogmatic global objectives. Pakistan will not be an exception to this rule - neither will Obama's presidency make a fundamental change in this overall American foreign policy doctrine.
Alarming: What is most alarming in the present ground realities in Pakistan is the silence and political passivity (except for rhetorical noises) of the major opposition party, its allies and the elected public representatives in the National Assembly.

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