The latest controversy surrounding Husain Haqqani continues to grow as different parties try to score some political points. Whether it is PMLN trying to solidify its power, or PPP’s unseemly willingness to turn on one of its own, everyone knows that piling on someone who has openly criticised the Army’s policies towards militants is a low risk proposition. The reality is that this latest episode is nothing but a repeat of past dramas, and like those too nothing will come of it except distracting from the actual problems facing the nation.
As it has already been pointed out, there is not any new information in Haqqani’s latest article. There was never a denial that he issued visas to Americans working for the US government, but as already explained in his statement to the Abbottabad Commission that no unauthorised visas were issued to Americans agents while he was Ambassador. This brings up an important point: There has already been a commission to investigate these claims, and it has already produced a report! However, as always, it has been kept secret from the people opening the door to conspiracy theories and confusion. If there is some great concern over Haqqani’s article, the obvious answer is to follow advice of Justice Javed Iqbal, who headed the Abbottabad Commission and publish the complete report so the people can know the actual findings.
This raises another important point: While we have already had a commission investigate Abbottabad raid, nothing has been done to investigate and explain any of the following:
- How Taliban leaders were issued official passports and CNICs and able to travel in and out of Pakistan without detection.
- Cover up of Mullah Omar life and death in Pakistan.
- Admission of Sartaj Aziz that Pakistan hosts Taliban leadership.
- Statement of former DG-ISI that it is ‘probable’ ISI knew Osama bin Laden was living in Pakistan.
- Interview with former DG-ISI who termed 150 killed school children of APS Peshawar as ‘collateral damage‘ of Pakistan’s own security strategy.
- Statement of security officials that ISI agents drink Blue Label Whiskey with CIA agents after carrying out secret operations inside Pakistan.
- How thousands can defy government bans and praise a convicted killer in the captial.
- Extent of jihadi infiltration in Armed Forces that led to PNS Mehran attack.
- Kidnapping and torture of Umar Cheema.
- Murder of journalist Saleem Shahzad.
- Torture and murder of Aftab Ahmed.
- Torture of Waqas Goraya.
This is only a partial list of unanswered questions that the state has shown no interest in investigating. Do we have nothing better to do than try to interpret and decode hidden messages in Husain Haqqani’s writings?
In Husain Haqqani’s latest article he gave the example of passing messages between US officials and Pakistan officials. As was obvious to anyone who can read, he was explaining that this is the job of a diplomat – to pass messages back and forth. Nowhere does he say that he issued any unauthorised visas, and no one has shown any evidence that he did. Does the state really want to push things to the limit that records of every visa and who authorised them (including military personnel) are leaked to the public?
The obvious next step is not to constitute a new commission but to release to the public the report already compiled by Abbottabad Commission and once again face the inevitable questions about how Osama bin Laden was able to enter Pakistan and live next door to PMA Kakul without ever being noticed by our own agencies. Next we can answer questions about why officials continue to accuse civilians of treason for any contacts with CIA when it is well known that most cooperation was with Army and ISI agents and not civilians. Most importantly, though, we must stop allowing this pathetic political point scoring to continue as cover up for the lies and failures of state policy that continue to plague our nation and cause the deaths of hundreds of innocents.
Escape goating has been a perpetual instrument of Pakistan State policies. Husain Haqqani is not the first victim, many heads have already rolled in this game to cover up the de facto rulers.
Without going in to argument, I wish to know which other country will allow an Ambassador who has been vilifying his country’s religious, military and state institutions before and after his assignment to this exalted office. No One.
Now on merit, what is that he contributed to the State of Pakistan. His obsession with weaker military, irrelevance of religion in human life, subservience to India or the West is a misguided narrative.
As his his scholarship, what new theory of international relations or state relations has he produced.
He is a bloody Quack.
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