Thursday, March 22, 2012

Pakistan's Overdue Review of its Relations with the United States



Pakistan-U.S. Relations: Commission Calls For End To Drone Attacks, Demands Apology For Deadly Airstrikes By Zarar Khan, Huffington Post, March 20, 2012

ISLAMABAD — A Pakistani parliamentary commission demanded Tuesday an end to American drone attacks inside the country and an apology for deadly U.S. airstrikes in November as part of a review of its near-severed relations with the United States.

The commission was tasked with reviewing ties with Washington after errant airstrikes four months ago killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and prompted Islamabad to close its borders to U.S. and NATO supply lines to neighboring Afghanistan.

The incident presented an opportunity for the army – furious at the Americans and under public pressure following the U.S. raid on Osama bin Laden last year that was seen in Pakistan as a violation of the country's sovereignty – to gain a negotiating advantage in its turbulent relationship with Washington.

American officials hope the oft-delayed review will lead to the reopening of the supply lines.

"The U.S. must review its footprints in Pakistan," commission head Raza Rabbani said, reading the recommendations. "This means the cessation of drone strikes inside Pakistan."

This demand could complicate efforts to rebuild the relationship. However, the commission didn't say the supply lines should be permanently closed, as many Pakistanis would like, but rather that the government should charge the U.S. and NATO more money for the privilege.

Washington wants to rebuild its relationship with Pakistan, whose cooperation is seen as key to the success of striking a deal with insurgents in neighboring Afghanistan. Also, the supply lines are important for transporting fuel and other non-lethal goods to troops, and will be crucial to trucking out equipment as the U.S. draws down its forces.

The joint session of parliament was expected to immediately debate the recommendations, but that was shelved after opposition leader Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said his party needed time to study them. He hinted the party could reject them, possibly causing more delays to U.S. hopes of a speedy resumption of ties. The issue is to be debated again on Monday.

The army, and to a lesser extent the civilian government, will ultimately decide whether to restore ties with the United States, but parliament could influence the decision. Analysts say placing the issue before lawmakers was to give the government and the army some political cover, so they could claim the support of the country before quietly reopening the supply routes.

"If drone attacks really are stopped and the national sovereignty is really ensured we can approve the recommendations," said opposition leader Khan. "Otherwise we are not ready to give any authority to this government to take decisions under the garb of parliament."

For complete article, click here

Relevent:
US will respect Pakistan parliament’s decision: Munter - Express Tribune
Pakistani Parliament Demands End to U.S. Drone Strikes - New York Times
Pakistan's Zardari seeks 'meaningful' US relations - AFP
Tough terms set for US re-engagement - The Nation
A report without substance - Express Tribune

For Background, see
U.S.-Pakistan Relations: The Year Past, The Year Ahead (Video) - Council on Foreign Relations
How Obama Can Fix U.S.-Pakistani Relations - By Hassan Abbas, Foreign Affairs

Monday, March 12, 2012

Tragedy in Afghanistan and its Potential Consequences

Afghanistan Civilian Murders Give Taliban 'Forum' to Align With Afghan Public By

The slaying of 16 civilians in Afghanistan by a U.S. sergeant Sunday could not only stall U.S. efforts to negotiate with the Taliban, but give the group more public support even as the U.S. attempts to strengthen the government of President Hamid Karzai ahead of combat troop withdrawal next year, according to Asia Society experts.

"This action is all the more regrettable because it enables the Taliban, and those of their ilk, to claim a forum to appear in league with the interests and concerns of the Afghan people," said Asia Society Associate Fellow Thomas Gouttierre, Director of the University of Nebraska at Omaha's Center for Afghanistan Studies and Asia. "That is a forum for which they have no just claim."

The killings come as the U.S. and Afghanistan seek to hold talks with the Taliban in an attempt to reduce civil strife when the U.S. withdraws its combat forces in late 2013. Those talks have already been hurt by news last month that Americans burned Korans at a U.S. military base. The murders will only heighten the tension, said Asia Society Senior Advisor Hassan Abbas.

"This recent tragic incident in Afghanistan is likely to further shake, as well as complicate, the U.S. negotiations with the Taliban," said Abbas, an expert in security issues in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The sergeant's action will also increase calls by the public for the U.S. military to end military tactics such as night raids, Abbas said.

"Local Afghans who are American allies will find it increasingly difficult to publicly defend the International Security Assistance Force/ NATO operations," he said. "The U.S. urgently needs to improve its overall image inside Afghanistan before the forces' withdrawal timetable goes into motion and this unfortunate development has made it a very difficult goal to be achieved in the short term."

The ISAF said in a statement Sunday it is investigating the incident and will work closely with Afghan officials. Meanwhile, the Taliban has already warned of reprisals for the murders on its website and called for a public trial of the culprits "so that the rest of those who want to shed our innocent people's blood take a lesson from it."

For complete article, click here

Related:
Mourning, anger sweep Afghanistan after massacre - MSNBC
Afghanistan killings - Guardian

Tuesday, March 06, 2012

Laughter in Islamic Tradition

The Holy Teaching Power of Laughter
Homaira Zaid, Huffington Post, March 2, 2012

When I was young, a teacher came regularly to my home to teach me Quranic Arabic. Almost every kid in my community had a religious teacher or went to a Muslim Sunday school -- and frankly, most of my friends couldn't wait to "age out." Sunday school was a drag, a miserable waste of a gorgeous weekend. But oddly enough, not for me. I thought about Sunday all week long. I practiced like crazy, waited impatiently for each lesson to start, listened in rapt attention throughout, and thought it the greatest honor to make my teacher happy.

Was it his impeccable Arabic pronunciation? The unsullied purity of his lineage? The perfect length of his beard? What was it about this man that made a 6-year-old want to do her homework?
I'll let you in on the secret: It was his deep rolling belly-laugh.

My teacher knew a cardinal rule of moral instruction: Never take yourself too seriously. That master of pedagogy, the great poet-saint Rumi, reminds us that "the true teacher knocks down the idol the student makes of him."

We may not all be religious teachers, but we all teach, many times a day. From showing your daughter how to tie her shoelace, to teaching her the difference between right and wrong, teaching is a subtle art. At some time or another, in the middle of some grand pontificating, the teacher will trip and fall flat on his face. The Quran tells us that it is God who causes our laughter and our tears (Quran 53:43). That means, echoing Ecclesiastes, that there is a time when only laughter will do.
A teacher who can laugh at herself is the red sulfur that every alchemist seeks. For laughter is an act of great mercy and wisdom. When I laugh at myself, I hold a mirror to my imperfections. With that one small act, I can see myself as others see me -- well-intentioned and ever so slightly ridiculous. Laughter lets me off the hook, just enough to learn, recoup and get back in the game. If I can't laugh at myself, can I really show mercy to others?

Laughter is humility. Picture the sweet story of the Prophet of Islam (upon him, peace), down on all fours with his two little grandsons on his back, exclaiming: 'What an excellent camel your camel is, and what a wonderful load you two are!' The Prophet was, in the words of a disciple, Anas b. Malik, "among the merriest of men." Once, some close disciples complained about another disciple who they thought joked too much. "You may be surprised to know," the Prophet replied, "that he will laugh all the way to heaven."

Laughter humanizes. There is a very good reason that the most beloved Islamic teaching tales feature the trickster and the holy "fool" -- call him Amar Ayyaz, Nasreddin Hoja, Bahlul or Juha -- whose only job is to mock the pompous airs of the religious teacher. It is because we instinctively know that moral instruction rooted in arrogance is, in the wise words of the sage Luqman to his son, no more edifying than the braying of a donkey (Quran 31:19). (And at least donkeys are endearing, whereas pompous scholars... not so much.)

For complete article, click here