Distortion of history out of malice and personal vendetta

Asif Haroon Raja

It has become fashionable for all writers to put the entire blame of Pakistan ailments in the basket of late Gen Ziaul Haq. He is most negatively commented upon since he was an eyesore for the secularists in general and the PPP in particular. Noted columnist Ayaz Amir has also bracketed Gen Ziaul Haq with Gen Musharraf as surrogates of USA. He says that Zia gave us first the Mujahideen and then the Taliban. One must not twist history merely to earn kudos from seculars by bashing the dead man. Do we forget that ZA Bhutto’s despotism and secularism gave space to PNA movement spearheaded by religious parties? Religious passions got energised because of Bhutto’s secularism and despotism. How can we forget and absolve the politicians who would not listen to any reasoning and were bent upon unseating Bhutto at all costs. It is distortion of history to say that mutually acceptable agreement had been arrived at on 4 July 1977.

Notwithstanding the pernicious rule of politicians, Zia too cannot be absolved of his offence of sacking elected government through a military coup. I was a great fan of Bhutto and was truly saddened when he was sacked and when he was hanged. However after carrying out critical and unbiased appraisal of history in hindsight and conduct of our democratic leaders in 1990s and that of Gen Musharraf, my perceptions have changed. Zia is partially to be blamed for not sticking to his promise of holding elections within 90 days of his takeover since each time he decided to do so, disgruntled politicians would moan and groan and beseech him not to hold elections. He didn’t transform himself into a practicing Muslim after seizing power to exploit Islam. He was from a humble background with a religious bent of mind and was austere and conservative in nature. He prayed five times and offered Tahajat regularly from his childhood days.. He was pious, God fearing, modest and unassuming; he was not corrupt or a womanizer, a flirt or a drunkard. Gen Zia rode on the popular wave of Nizam-e-Mustafa eagerly sought by great majority and went along the tide.

He didn’t invent Afghanistan crisis to prolong his rule; Soviet Union invaded and occupied it in December 1979. He too could have buckled under Soviet pressure which was far more dangerous than USA being in close geographic proximity. After occupying Wakhan corridor, it became Pakistan’s neighbor. Isn’t it a fact of history that Zia stood up to Soviet challenge and supported Afghan Mujahideen at his own till as late as June 1981? Isn’t it a fact that Soviet objective was not Afghanistan but access to warm waters through Pakistan? Greater Pashtunistan and Greater Balochistan formed part of the Soviet grand plan, which the US is now pursuing.

The US made Pakistan the frontline state after making sure that it had the desired potential to stand up against the communist threat. While CIA had pivotal role in executing biggest ever covert operation, Zia made sure that the control remained in the hands of ISI. He also ensured that war remained strictly confined to Afghanistan. People of Fata helped in guarding the western border and prevented the flames to spill into Pakistan. It was CIA and not Zia which sowed the seeds of extremism, sectarianism and terrorism in this region. Muslim fighters from all over the Muslim world were enticed and herded towards Afghanistan through Pakistan to fight the holy war against the godless communists.. Madrassas imparting purely religious training were militarized through CIA-Saudi funds.

There is a common complaint against Zia that he made a great folly by allowing over three million Afghan refugees to trek into Pakistan. While he fulfilled the commands of Quran to help Muslims in distress, even if he had used force and tried to stop their entry he could not have done so. This has now been amply proven. Gen Musharraf had employed over 70000 troops along the Durand Line in October 2001 to prevent Al-Qaeda and Taliban from sneaking into Pakistan but failed. US-Nato-Afghan troops and Pakistani troops are deployed on each side of the border but cross border movement continues unabated.   

None can deny that Zia had played a pivotal role in defeating and ousting Soviet forces from Afghanistan. Whereas Musharraf had thrown his towel on a distant phone call, Zia was threatened face to face by Soviet President that if Pakistan continued to support the Mujahideen clandestinely, personal harm will come to him. He disclosed this threat in the National Assembly. He never compromised on national interests including nuclear program which came under severest scrutiny and let it proceed under policy of ambiguity. By 1984 we were one screw driver turn away from making the bomb active. Pioneers of nuclear program including Dr AQ Khan remember him with approbation. He died in a mysterious plane crash with his boots on. His friends and not the Soviets killed him since he was the first third world leader to have gained huge influence over a neighbor and was all set to introduce Sharia in Pakistan and was actively thinking of forming an Islamic block comprising Iran-Pakistan-Afghanistan duly backed by China.

During his tenure Pakistan had Afghan card and Kashmir card to play against Indian machinations and enjoyed adequate perimeter of security and breathing space. Pakistan economy was strong and its respect and image in world comity was high. Zia too enjoyed high standing particularly in the Muslim world and was recognized as a great Mujahid. I met senior Egyptian, Jordanian and Saudi officers in Cairo in 1987 who eulogized him profusely. Some went to the extent of asserting that he was a great Mujahid and the only hope to unite the Muslim world. Even Indian Defence Attaché told me that there was a general impression in India that whosoever from India met him became his fan. He was so popular among the Afghans, that newly born male children and roads in Afghanistan were given his name. During the war, the Mujahideen pasted his picture in their bunkers. We still remember the emotional scenes at the time of his funeral which was attended by thousands of weeping Afghans. 

Common crib is that he exploited Islam to prolong his rule. He did not commit an unforgivable sin to correct our moral compass and to make an effort to introduce some basics of Islam in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan as enshrined in 1956, 1962 and 1973 constitutions and to promote austerity. He tried hard to bring Ulemas and Mashaikh of differing Fiqahs on a single platform and was working towards introducing Sharia in the country. If he failed in his endeavors, which secular leader succeeded in bettering Pakistan? He picked up cudgels against PPP when its militant wing Al-Zulfiqar backed by several foreign powers had begun to play havoc against Pakistan.

During his tenure, India was badly caught up in the logjam of Khalistan movement and Kashmiri Intafada and its economy was in deep crises. Zia had plans to link the two movements and lot of spade work had been done in this regard. Principally, with the demise of Soviet Union and emergence of USA as the sole super power, Pakistan should have become the strategic partner of USA and benefited the most since it was the most allied ally of USA since 1953.  Both should have joined hands to fragment India. It is a different matter that ungrateful USA changed colors and not only ditched Afghan Mujahideen and Pakistan but did the worst thing of befriending India that had all along sat in the lap of USSR. USA is now collaborating with India to balkanise Pakistan. History will not forgive the treacherous role played by USA for selfish commercial interests. Nature too would make the US accountable and maybe the same venue where it had humiliated Soviet Union ultimately becomes its graveyard.

Our pseudo intellectuals pick up truncheons against anyone uttering the word ‘strategic depth’, or dub Islamists as strategic assets. Zia is condemned for using Jihadis as proxy fighters. Shafqat Mahmood says that Zia armed, financed and unleashed illiterate Jihadis which sowed the seeds of our current troubles. Were we not better off when Taliban were ruling Afghanistan as our friends, had assured us to forget about our western border and had chased out Indians from their country; or we are more secured after their ouster? Were we better off when Kashmiri freedom struggle was raging with full swing which had bottled up over 0.7 million Indian security forces in Kashmir valley or is the present situation healthier when Kashmiri movement is almost dead and the Indian force level in Kashmir is relatively freer to look for an adventure across the border? How do we feel now when the Indians in partnership with USA are using our illiterate Jihadis against us as proxy fighters? That day may not be far when Kashmiri Jihadis after having been declared terrorists by President Zardari also turn their guns against Pakistan particularly when he repeatedly asserts that Indians are our friends?

Presently, we have hostile India in the east, Afghanistan in the northwest and not so friendly Iran in southwest. Thanks to psy war of Indians and our own doings, the people of Afghanistan hate Pakistanis. US-Nato forces are breathing on our neck and eager to cross over into Fata. Our forces are fighting the war of survival within Pakistan against Jihadi forces that were our strategic assets and supposed to present second line defence in case of external aggression. No place howsoever well-guarded is safe from the reach of suicide bombers. FATA, greater part of NWFP and Balochistan is engulfed in flames of militancy and 3 million IDPs have become refugees in their own country. Our nuclear program has become extremely vulnerable. Our morals and human values have decayed, corruption is rampant and life of the poor has become miserable. Our economy is in dire straits and running on oxygen provided by IMF. Although we have more enemies and very few friends, we project our adversaries as friends who are constantly stabbing us in the back. Pakistan was always regarded as a very important country because of its geo-strategic location. Today it is projected as the most dangerous country in the world and a danger to world security. Pakistan has virtually turned into the 51^st state of USA since our rulers receive dictation from Washington. It is now for the history to decide which leader was more sincere to the cause of Pakistan. Malice and personal vendetta cannot distort history.