Page 10 - Pakistan Link - February 1, 2019

P10 – PAKISTAN LINK – FEBRUARY 1, 2019 PAKISTAN
n By Farrukh Khan Pitafi The Republic of Sorrow may call delayed gratifi cation of a state’s ego and
Islamabad irrational impulses at literally an immeasurable
fi nancial and human cost.
uestion: What does India get out of it? And this exercise in futility at people’s ex-
Believe it or not, the sheer size of the pense and the complicity of Indian media and
Qdeployment of the Indian forces in intellectuals simultaneously radicalizes India
Kashmir has exceeded any known case wor- and threatens (yes, you read it correctly) the
thy of the Guinness Book of World Record. world conscience. I will show you how.
To some estimates, the number has surpassed If you have followed Kashmir’s history
1 million soldiers and paramilitary offi cials. carefully, you must be aware that shortly aft er
While this is not a small number on its own, independence Pakistani tribals and soldiers
it becomes more shocking when you take disguised as tribals entered Kashmir to end
into account the total population of Indian- the stalemate in the state. Since this happened
occupied Kashmir which is slightly over 12 without the explicit permission of the then
million. If you calculate each household as a commander-in-chief of Pakistan Army, it was
nuclear family, there is a soldier in Kashmir the start of the country’s non-state, sub-state
to police every two households. If you factor actor woes. What you might have missed is the
in extended families, one soldier is deployed fact that from the Indian side the fi rst to enter
in Kashmir to police each household. Kash- was not its army but the goons of Rashtriya
mir literally is under house arrest. And there Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to rape and pillage
are no signs of this number going down in the the Muslim population. Th us, began a profi t-
future. Have you heard of another democracy able partnership between Indian deep state and
treating its own people so harshly? If this is decided to tie a peaceful voter to his jeep’s hood state, the Indian media keeps pretending that it the RSS. Th e RSS now controls the Indian state
not an occupation, I do not understand the to stop protesters from pelting stones. Remem- is not there. While the Indian government and through its political front, the BJP, and oft en
meaning of the word any more. ber Jeremy Scahill’s account of Blackwater’s army maintain their silence on the total size of taunts the Indian defense establishment claim-
Ready to be shocked further? Do you know human rights excesses in Iraq? Well, Scahill’s deployment, some in the Indian media have ing that it can prepare soldiers quicker than the
the total size of the Indian army? Th e number Blackwater could learn a thing or two from this tried to prove that the number is signifi cantly Indian army. Th is radicalization is busy rewrit-
of active duty soldiers in the Indian army is lot. Th is self-deceit continues as men, women, smaller, albeit without proof. I know it is a bit ing India’s DNA.
1.4 million. Go back to the number of Indian and kids are blinded by the unrestrained use callous to rub it in, but if you truly want to know And how does this threaten the world
military deployment in Kashmir again. Shocked of pellet guns. And those who die as a result of what is going on with the Indian media, you conscience? By hiding the truth. Conduct a
much? Ready for some more? Th ere is no of- excessive use of force are immediately dubbed need to read this passage from the Hitchhiker’s few experiments. Open Google in a browser.
fi cial number on the total fi nancial cost of the militants or terrorists. No muss, no fuss. Who Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams: Type Kashmir. Click on the images button. Any
deployment. For budget’s sake, break this num- would you rather believe, the families of the de- “No, no,” said Frankie, “it’s the brain we sign of blinded kids? Now click the news but-
ber down to various elements, hide them under want to buy.” ton? Th e same? Now type “Kashmir blind” and
various heads. And you would think democ- If you calculate each “What!” search. On the images page, you will see heart-
racy thrives on transparency. Back in the 1990s, household as a nuclear “Well, who would miss it?” inquired Benjy. rending pictures. You must be aware that only
when the size of deployment was signifi cantly “It could always be replaced,” said Benjy days ago Th e New York Times carried an op-art
smaller, the Indian media speculated that the family, there is a soldier in reasonably, “if you think it’s important.” piece titled “An 18-Month-Old Victim in a Very
daily cost of this occupation was Rs60 million Kashmir to police every two “Yes, an electronic brain,” said Frankie, “a Old Fight”. Type this text in Google’s search
(roughly eight hundred thousand US dollars in simple one would suffi ce.” box and click search. Don’t mind if you see the
today’s value). It is a rough estimate in the pre- households . If you factor in “A simple one!” wailed Arthur. story among the search results. It is a newspa-
nuclearization, pre-Kargil, pre-Indian econom- extended families, one soldier “Yeah,” said Zaphod with a sudden evil per’s story. Click on the news tab. Do you see
ic boom days. Ever wondered how much India is deployed in Kashmir to grin. “You’d just have to program it to say What? it anywhere? No? Okay, refi ne the search. Th is
must be spending now when it has the fi nan- and I don’t understand and Where’s the tea? story was carried on January 19, 2019. Refi ne
cial muscle and modern equipment to crush an police each household Who’d know the diff erence?” the search to the past week. Five stories show up
independent-minded people? Th is, mind you, is “I’d notice the diff erence,” said Arthur. none of which is from the NYT. I am not big on
just the speculation about the fi nancial cost of “No, you wouldn’t,” said Frankie mouse. conspiracy theories but remember the President
military deployment and does not include the ceased or the authorities? “You’d be programmed not to.” of the United States has accused Google of sup-
cost of bribes to individuals and the Kashmiri But before we talk a little more about pel- Well, the Indian media is programmed pressing certain results. Now, how would you
government, the money spent on espionage or let guns, let us take a look at the Indian media’s to… well… you get the picture. And Indian react if you are told that Google used to show
the fi nancial losses incurred by the lack of peace. response. It is funny that although foreign tour- journalists, poor things, think they are serving diff erent results before Sundar Pichai became
Surprisingly enough, the Indian army sees ists visiting Indian-Occupied Kashmir, many of the national interest through this chicanery. its CEO?
itself as a champion of the people. Th is self-im- whom are avid Indian fans, tell us about the ex- In truth, they do no such thing. Th ey are mere (Th e writer is an Islamabad-based TV
age continues even aft er an Indian army major ceptional presence of Indian armed forces in the complicit pawns in the pursuit of what Freud journalist)
Is Imran Pulling off a Foreign Policy Coup? leverage, with India’s all eggs in one Afghan
n By M Bilal Lakhani leave Afghanistan and Pakistan holds all the
s this real life or is this fantasy? Bil- government basket scrambling to create a plan
lions in aid pouring from the Saudis B.
Iand Emiratis, with the Qataris and Chi- Meanwhile, the aid from the Saudis and
nese playing on as a follow-up act. Pakistan Emiratis is allowing Asad Umar, the Finance
driving the peace process in Minister, to negotiate a hard bargain with
Afghanistan, forcing a presi- the IMF. Th is is something we have never
dent like Trump to write a done in our 70-year history. It’s easy to take
letter asking for our sincere money from the IMF in return for giving up
help. sovereignty in our economic policy decision-
Th rowing Modi’s ‘isolate making.
Pakistan’ strategy into the Th e path that the PTI is taking is far more
dustbin of history, with a sur- daunting but rewarding in the long term.
gical strike to open hearts across the border, Th e latest mini-budget, presenting relief and
by allowing Sikh pilgrims to visit their holiest industrialization incentives, wouldn’t be pos-
site in Pakistan. sible if we had entered an agreement with the
Th e PTI may be struggling to get their act IMF. We have a real chance at breaking our
and messaging together on the economy and cycle of begging and borrowing.
police reform but they’re hitting boundary af- Th e real coup that Imran Khan and only
ter boundary in the foreign policy space. Imran Khan can deliver is peace with India. A
If Imran Khan will go down in history as civilian government that enjoys a high level of
one of the greatest leaders to have ruled Paki- support from the security establishment is the
stan, it won’t be because of his political acu- only power that can negotiate an end to our
men, economic policy or social justice reform. cold war with India.
It’s his decisions in the foreign policy space When a new government takes over in
that will be remembered and determine the India, it will be a once in a generation moment
future for generations to come in Pakistan and to begin paradigm changing talks. It wouldn’t
around the world. hurt for cricketing ties to resume as a precur-
In the next fi ve years, America will with- ians don’t make foreign policy in Pakistan. In A second factor is that Pakistan’s long and sor to broader ties between the countries. Pak-
draw from Afghanistan, triggering a new geo- 2018, political leadership changed in Pakistan bloody bet on Afghanistan is fi nally beginning istan could tour India to break the ice.
political and security calculus in the region. but military leadership has stayed constant. to pay off . In short, the PTI is off to a thumping start
Meanwhile, a rising superpower, Chi- And yet, there’s been a dramatic spring in We had calculated that America would in the foreign policy space. Th ey’re projecting
na, and a militarily strong but economically Pakistan’s foreign policy steps aft er the elec- lose interest in Afghanistan, with the persis- an image of a country which is friendly with
weakening superpower, America, will fi ght for tions. How do we explain the inexplicable? tent loss in blood and treasure. Despite my its neighbors and wants to pursue a construc-
global dominance with Pakistan being a pri- Perhaps pivoting from a civilian government personal critique of this stance, it turns out tive role to establish peace in the region.
mary playground for their power games. How that enjoyed low trust from the security estab- that Pakistan’s security calculus was correct A focus on economic diplomacy is pay-
Imran Khan leads Pakistan through these lishment to one that enjoys high trust has al- on Afghanistan. ing dividends which can be leveraged to push
generational shift s in global power will deter- lowed all the power brokers to focus on what’s Aft er 18 bloody years of confl ict, an in- through a real reform of the economy. Cheers
mine his legacy. best for the country versus point scoring for a fl ection point is fast arriving and Pakistan to Imran Khan for being an architect of the
First things fi rst though. Th ey say civil- domestic audience. holds all the right cards. Trump is ready to rise and rise of Pakistan in the region.
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