Husain Haqqani Defends Pakistani-Americans

Despite being a favourite bogeyman of the right wing, Ambassador Husain Haqqani has been busy at work representing the interests of Pakistanis in American following the Faisal Shahzad case. No doubt the fallout from Faisal’s little adventure has created a lot of work for Haqqani, who is not only Pakistan’s primary representative to the US, but also is responsible for helping our citizens in that country.

The Boston Globe newspaper reports that Ambassador Husain Haqqani has been working on the issue of three Pakistani men arrested in connection with the Faisal Shahzad case.

Pakistan’s ambassador to the United States said yesterday that three Pakistani men arrested in New England last week as part of the investigation into the attempted Times Square bombing do not appear to have any involvement in terrorism.

Husain Haqqani, who has been briefed by Pakistani officials, said that law enforcement cast a wide net during the investigation and that the three men were only taken into custody because alleged immigration violations were discovered while they were being questioned.

“For all we know, there will be no connection at the end of it,” Haqqani said during a telephone interview. “I’m a little critical of law enforcement who ran to the press first, because you can actually destroy people’s lives. So far, there is nothing that implies anything of a terrorist nature.”

This is good news. Faisal Shahzad’s stupidity not only hurts him and his own family, but it can make life more difficult even for those who are not associated with extremist ideologies. Living in another country can be stressful, and it is always good to know that there is someone who is looking out for your best interests. Ambassadors have to meet with many high level officials and, so Husain Haqqani should be commended for not seeing the needs of ordinary Pakistanis as below his level.