Terrorist Islamic Republic of Pakistan (TSP): May 21, 2010

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 22 May 2010 18:11

looks like no air marshals aboard PIA flights.....nice target for anti-Pak Taliban

An armed Pakistani air marshal is quite likely to be a jihadi and threat to the aircraft. So PIA may be doing the right thing here.

abhijitm · Post by **abhijitm** » 22 May 2010 18:37

anupmisra wrote:Do you know why I love following the daily do-dos in and from the land of the pure? They lighten up my busy, overworked day. For example, here's a gem:

A drunkard on PIA flight from London

PIA flight PK 788 on April 15... A passenger on board misbehaved throughout the almost eight-hour flight to Pakistan. Halfway through the flight, the concerned man got into a physical altercation with another passenger, in which they ended up tussling right in the middle of the plane aisle. Whereas two fellow passengers intervened to control the situation, PIA’s cabin crew stood by as mute spectators, seemingly terrified. During this tussle, it later emerged that the man had allegedly physically molested an air hostess ; was drinking his own alcohol, which he had brought to the plane; was, as a result absolutely drunk and wielding a lighter in one hand and his alcohol in the other, he threatened to blow up the plane. The other gentleman claims that this man repeatedly made this grave threat.

Pakistan International Airlines crew members ....failed to restrain him or to remove either the alcohol or the lighter from his possession, leaving the British and Pakistani citizens on the flight in serious danger. Following this incident, the drunk man continued to get drunk and exhibit obnoxious behaviour. He was stumbling around the plane refusing to sit down and even going as far as smoking a cigarette on board. Again, his behaviour met with no resistance from PIA personnel, who really should have been trained to deal with such situations. What was truly shocking was that a threat had been made by the drunk man, who was capable of doing anything in his drunken stupor, and the pilot was nowhere to be seen, taking charge of the situation. Furthermore, upon arrival in Karachi, PIA had made no arrangements to hand over this man to the authorities. His name and his whereabouts were concealed Must have had some connections with Grade 14 government officers. The contentious individual kept changing his seat.

Now, honestly, tell me if this does not clearly reflect the true character of a twice-born paki? Little mercies in daily life.

This is horrible!! PK788 leaves from heathrow. So basically british authorities allow this man to board with a lighter and alcohol!! A serious breach of security!!!

Are VIPs exempted??

Manu · Post by **Manu** » 22 May 2010 18:40

You can legally take lighter aboard all US flights. Hooch - he must have bought from Duty Free. Nothing out of the ordinary here.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTr ... /DG_078179

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 22 May 2010 18:44

Not sure which thread to put this in.
The Poet versus the Prophet

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 22 May 2010 20:54

Bhima wrote:BBC Radio 4 Programme: The Pakistani Taliban

Thanks Bhima Ji. pretty nice article it tries to look at taliban as more of class struggle than more as chaliphite movement. Looks like RAPES want to divert cannon fodder towards India under the grab of kashmir or global jehad via palestine or chechnia or unkil & UQ. Where as local commanders are encouraging mango abdul cannon fodder with promise of land which is making RAPE landlords wet their pants.

Hiten · Post by **Hiten** » 22 May 2010 21:00

James B wrote:
Hiten wrote:^^
You could download the podcast.

http://media.sbs.com.au/podcasting/vide ... _Trail.mp4

Would be nice if someone could upload it to YouTube. Could do it but not before two more weeks though.
Uploaded on the megavideo site as they allow longer videos. Here is the link

http://www.megavideo.com/?v=OAT08VEF

10 mins restriction notwithstanding, it'd still be a good idea to upload it on YouTube as it would guarantee that the video getting a lot more eyeballs than anywhere else.
Besides, YouTube videos appears nicely on top in search engine results - more traction the video receives

Also it would be a nice idea to slightly edit the video - break narration the moment the reporter accuses India of not implementing the UN resolution & insert a couple of slides clarifying that it is in fact pakistan that is violating the resolution and showing U.N. the finger, quoting the relevant text from the resolution regarding the pre-requisites and also providing the necessary relevant URLs in those slides, and then restart the report.

This is one of the very few [possibly the 1st] report coming from the West [Oz included] that talks about the Punjabi terrorist that pakistan nurtures under the direct supervision of the TSPA - should make maximum use of this and keep it in the spotlight as much as possible

BTW are comments being moderated before it appears or have they removed SSridhar sir's comment - no mention of the erroneous assertion about India's non-implementation in the comment section

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 22 May 2010 21:05

Tell me if you are suprised

Pakistan detainees proud of role in NYC bomb case

Two men detained in Pakistan for alleged links to the attempted Times Square bombing have admitted playing a role in the botched attack and are unrepentant, with one angrily accusing interrogators of "siding with the infidels," a senior intelligence official said Saturday.

More pious (terrorists) accusing less pious (Army Police Politicians & Beauracracy) of siding with infidels

None of the men has been charged, though in Pakistan that sometimes does not happen for months, if not years, particularly if detainees are held by an intelligence agency.

Now we know that this will never happen how can TSPA accuse faithfuls of treason when all they are doing is following the holy book and its instructions truthfully against kafirs.

The ex-major is from Rawalpindi, where the army headquarters is situated. Last week, an army spokesman denied anyone connected to the army was arrested in the probe, saying only a retired major had been arrested on disciplinary grounds and was being investigated.

The link to the army is noteworthy because of the Pakistani military's past support for Islamist militants in Afghanistan and Kashmir, and Shazad's family ties to the air force. It was unclear whether the suspect's alleged ties to Shahzad were ongoing when he still served.

How is it that TSPA is sinking so low to sacrifice some of its own for a "few dollars more" I mean they started initially in mushy regime by handing a handful of jihadis for dollars and F16 then they handed civilian terrorists like Afia then retired TSPA soldiers and now straight TSPA serving terrorists. I dont know what is the benefit that ombaba is paying for this perhaps dronacharya.

The cherry on the cake will be when TSPA will take Ombaba's advise and spy on their own sons. I am sure they will use the kasab formula sacrifice one for the prosperity of other dozen kids

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 22 May 2010 21:18

A_Gupta wrote:Not sure which thread to put this in.
The Poet versus the Prophet

Philosophically speaking, I believe that when you play a game, you should know whose turf you are playing that game on. If I play a game with you on my turf, I will defeat you (I will cheat of course). Similarly, If I play on your turf, you will cheat is needed and defeat me.

Whose turf is Karachi? What happened to Daniel Pearl?

Whose turf is Facebook?

If you play try to play Facebook type games in Karachi you will quickly be neutralised. But it is difficult to play Paki games on Facebook because Pakistan has not gone beyond Achmed the dead terrorist. "I kill you".

"I kill you" does not work on Facebook. Pakistan may have 17 million internet users but hardly 0.1% will be on Facebook. Banning Facebook is an idiotic reaction. It is like the following limerick

A gourmet out dining in Crewe
found quite a large rat in his stew
Said the waiter, "Don't shout"
"or wave it about"
"or the others will want some too"

Pakistan need not have even noticed or paid attention to Facebook. They have given more publicty to this facebook idea that it would otherwise have got. The Pakis are "shouting and waving it about" and everyone now wants a piece of the action. They have now started a "war" that will make everyone join the "Let's irritate Pakistan" brigade. I think the Pakis are hoping to whip up such great hatred against kafirs that the entire Islamic world will turn them.

But hey they have been doing that for so long now and the rest of the world is only waking up now and are telling Pakistan, "Screw you. We will mock you and what is dear to you. And dominate you."

Ho hum. Serves the Packees right.

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 22 May 2010 21:19

Pakistan’s Ambassador to the U.N., Abdullah Hussain Haroon, speaks to CBS News’ Pamela Falk about U.S.-Pakistan cooperation in the investigation of the case of Pakistani-American would-be bomber Faisal Shahzad and what needs to be done to eliminate jihadists in the tribal regions of Pakistan.

CBS Link

Gagan · Post by **Gagan** » 22 May 2010 21:20

Najam Sethi's take on Rehman Malik Case, Activities of President Zardari & Statement of Defence Minister

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8mLKqE9IdY
Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGsRNtuYjqE
Part 3: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo1zUlEW2o0
Part 4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrB28Dc_J1I
Part 5: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-39mlUWYfsg
Part 6: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTsQbscKACE

Carl_T · Post by **Carl_T** » 22 May 2010 21:23

This might have been posted b4...

How Gates, Mullen are building US military's ties with Pakistan

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Po ... h-Pakistan

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 22 May 2010 21:37

Shiv,
This Pakistani gets it.
http://pakteahouse.wordpress.com/2010/0 ... ebookgate/

This other one warns against violence, it seems, not out of conviction but because it won't work.
http://criticalppp.org/lubp/archives/11237

On the current onslaught, emotionalism wouldn’t yield anything. Don’t count on the Jihadis, as their Jihad needs constant financing, no matter where it comes from, in the form of US Dollars, Saudi Riyals or last but not least bank robberies. Intellect and knowledge can be our only weapon. Rational arguments can fetch way more than Kalashnikov bullets. And remember those who can make Facebooks, first they have made weapons, far lethal to protect theirself and in this field too, we are a no match to them.

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 22 May 2010 21:50

RajeshA wrote:
SSridhar wrote:Pak Taliban trying to overthrow government in Islamabad: US
All those sweet promises! Allah, Karim, when will you give us this day!

good to see you back.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 22 May 2010 22:11

Anujan Thanks.

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 22 May 2010 22:33

Is IMF funding this ?

Breaking News:Pakistan to hike defence budget to Rs 448 billion

Avinash R · Post by **Avinash R** » 22 May 2010 22:58

SSridhar wrote:TSP arrests a US Embassy caterer and 5 others for NY bomb attempt
Salman Ashraf, who co—owned the upscale Hanif Rajput Catering Service, was of vital importance as he was specially recruited to attack foreign diplomats for whom the company provided services. A senior intelligence official said on the condition of anonymity that Ashraf had access to various embassies and could easily carry out terrorist attacks.

Time to reopen case files of Marriott hotel bombings.

Carl_T · Post by **Carl_T** » 22 May 2010 23:13

I wonder if they have intelligence assets deployed to scout taxi drivers, would be the perfect way to scout areas and deploy anything malicious.

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 23 May 2010 00:07

SSridhar wrote:An interesting letter in TFT

Banning truth

The restrictive Saudi version of Islam has destroyed our society.

Ethsam Waheed,
Islamabad.

During today's visit to Pakistan, I was thinking about KSA's hold on Islamic world and how TSP can become center of new Islamic world.

KSA will be center of Islamic world as long as the two holy sites remain in KSA. Pakistan has all the ingredients to take the baton of Islam from KSA, viz pure-land, purer citizenry, nukes, and an islamic-army with a state but cannot become the leader of Islamic world unless it takes the control of the two holy sites.

All other religions and associated civilizations got over their fixation with their holy sites when those regions and sites were conquered and desecrated. The story is same for Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Buddhism, and Christianity. Since no outsider is interested (politically) to conquer the holy mosques it is appropriate that Pakistan makes an effort in that direction.

To achieve that TSPA should occupy Afghanistan, a tract of Iran, and Iraq before getting into KSA, which is impossible given its abysmal performance in its past wars. However TSPA's trademark "Terrorism as State Policy" can be more efficient tool to achieve this goal of TSP.

Imagine a world where TSPA's non-state actors occupy and threaten to destroy the holy mosques with non-state nukes unless a oil-rich portion of KSA and the two holy masques are handed over to TSP.

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 23 May 2010 01:01

Carl_T wrote:I wonder if they have intelligence assets deployed to scout taxi drivers, would be the perfect way to scout areas and deploy anything malicious.

If you want to implement this you might have to shadow half of all cabbies in NYC London & all other major cities in Europe & US. What else can pakis do other than pump gasoline & drive cabs.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 23 May 2010 01:02

Pakistan to hike defence budget to Rs 448 billion

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 23 May 2010 01:48

RamaY
IslamabadPaki has already tried this under the guise of Nuke Umbrella . Wonder Why Shai Khandan there feel betrayed, they observed the knife behind their back held by Pacui.The naukar tried to usurp the takhat but failed.

Carl_T · Post by **Carl_T** » 23 May 2010 03:03

RamaY wrote:During today's visit to Pakistan, I was thinking about KSA's hold on Islamic world and how TSP can become center of new Islamic world.

KSA will be center of Islamic world as long as the two holy sites remain in KSA. Pakistan has all the ingredients to take the baton of Islam from KSA, viz pure-land, purer citizenry, nukes, and an islamic-army with a state but cannot become the leader of Islamic world unless it takes the control of the two holy sites.

All other religions and associated civilizations got over their fixation with their holy sites when those regions and sites were conquered and desecrated. The story is same for Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Buddhism, and Christianity. Since no outsider is interested (politically) to conquer the holy mosques it is appropriate that Pakistan makes an effort in that direction.

To achieve that TSPA should occupy Afghanistan, a tract of Iran, and Iraq before getting into KSA, which is impossible given its abysmal performance in its past wars. However TSPA's trademark "Terrorism as State Policy" can be more efficient tool to achieve this goal of TSP.

Imagine a world where TSPA's non-state actors occupy and threaten to destroy the holy mosques with non-state nukes unless a oil-rich portion of KSA and the two holy masques are handed over to TSP.

You are in TSP?

Regarding your point, TSPA gunning for the two holy mosques will only happen if the infidels are either eliminated, or too powerful to take on, either case will make situation ripe for ethnic conflict between the pious.

Carl_T · Post by **Carl_T** » 23 May 2010 03:04

Brad Goodman wrote: If you want to implement this you might have to shadow half of all cabbies in NYC London & all other major cities in Europe & US. What else can pakis do other than pump gasoline & drive cabs.

Also perfect cover with good supply of materials.

It may not be a bad idea to compile a database of all young male emigrants from TSP, and regularly track their purchases via credit card numbers. Don't know if that is possible.

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 23 May 2010 03:06

Carl_T wrote: It may not be a bad idea to compile a database of all young male emigrants from TSP, and regularly track their purchases via credit card numbers. Don't know if that is possible.

You can track Credit Cards but what about cash. Remember FS was using hawala cash.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 23 May 2010 03:09

Carl_T

Pakistan = throne room

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 23 May 2010 03:13

Carl_T garu,

You are thinking too logical.

Take it easy! I do not live in Pakistan but visit that place on a daily basis, sometime more than once

That was a sarcastic post to provide innovative strategies for Pakis, who think they are the flag bearers of Islam and the world revolves around them. For them it is always someone else's fault. And the quote I quoted claims that TSPs problems are due to KSA's IED-ology (not that I disagree) while our munna dreams to go to KSA to be a better TFTA.

Pakis are not logical; if they were logical they would by now would have figured out that they are nothing but raped SDREs. So it is very logical for them to pursue their islamic leadership dream first.

Venkarl · Post by **Venkarl** » 23 May 2010 03:44

Gerard wrote:
looks like no air marshals aboard PIA flights.....nice target for anti-Pak Taliban
An armed Pakistani air marshal is quite likely to be a jihadi and threat to the aircraft. So PIA may be doing the right thing here.

No doubt about it..I agree...but a jihadi downing the PIA carrying British folks would sound sweet to me....and taliban(G/B) claiming the responsibility

.....but seriously...Asian Tigers should be looking at this {I know people will hate me now}.....

Sen_K · Post by **Sen_K** » 23 May 2010 03:45

James B wrote:
Hiten wrote:^^
You could download the podcast.

http://media.sbs.com.au/podcasting/vide ... _Trail.mp4

Would be nice if someone could upload it to YouTube. Could do it but not before two more weeks though.
Uploaded on the megavideo site as they allow longer videos. Here is the link

http://www.megavideo.com/?v=OAT08VEF

Uploaded on youtube. Here are the links:

The Terror Trail Part 01 of 03
The Terror Trail Part 02 of 03
The Terror Trail Part 03 of 03

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 May 2010 06:35

SANTIAGO: A Chilean court ordered back to jail Saturday a Pakistani man who had been briefly detained and charged after being found with traces of explosives at the US embassy here, officials said.

Dawn

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/art ... wD9FS6TG04

But the appeals court overturned a magistrate who said there wasn't enough evidence to justify his preventive detention.

Court president Lamberto Cisternas wrote that evidence shows he carried powerful explosives, and that he represents not only "a danger to the security of society," but also, "in some ways, to the success of the investigation."

Evidence shows his things "only could have been contaminated with the explosive substances, Tetril and TNT, through direct contact," the judges added, and that "this enables one to presume that the suspect has been associated with people who illegally possess explosives."

Brad Goodman · Post by **Brad Goodman** » 23 May 2010 06:52

What are pakis doing in hongkong

Rising illegal immigration from Pakistan worries Hong Kong

* Hong Kong Immigration Department assistant director says 2,400 illegal immigrants from Pakistan identified

When will taller than mountain friend learn its lesson. Does it want one soosai bummer to turn up before it can send all pakis to firing squad.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 May 2010 07:07

Dunno if this continuing investigation by S. Korea was posted here.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/na ... 65746.html
(May 11, 2010)

A Pakistani man arrested last month for illegal entry into the country has been confirmed to be a member of the Taliban, raising national security concerns with the G-20 summit in Seoul just six months away.

A joint investigation into Mohammad Salim by the National Intelligence Service (NIS), the prosecution and police is underway, focusing on why the 39-year-old disguised himself as a foreign fisherman to enter the country. Salim was detained on April 27.

....

“It was confirmed Salim is affluent in Pakistan, meaning his illegal entry was not to make money here[/g],” an investigator was quoted as saying by the daily Hankook Ilbo. “We are investigating every possibility at present.”

...The authorities are looking into his frequent trips to Daegu, Korea’s fourth largest city and about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, since his landing in February last year. Daegu is hosting the World Championships in Athletics next year. The city is one hour from Changnyeong by car.

Investigators confirmed Salim had visited a mosque in Daegu every weekend, where another Pakistani national, who was also arrested for suspected connections with the Taliban, served as the Imam.

According to the Hankook Ilbo, Salim was confirmed as a member of the Taliban by Pakistan’s intelligence service and a high-ranking officer covering a stronghold in the northwest part of the Southeast Asian country.

“We presume Salim snuck into the country to avoid the Pakistani government’s crackdown on the Taliban in late 2008,” an investigator said. “If it turns out to be true, he must be a key member of the insurgency group.”

According to investigators, Salim is inconsistent in explaining his personal history in Pakistan.

“Initially, he said he was forcibly trained by the Taliban for about 10 days and then fled. And then he bombed a house of Taliban members in an act of retaliation,” an investigator said. “But he recently blamed military bombing for the house explosion.”

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 May 2010 07:17

Himal South Asian has a good summary of the Pak vs Facebook.
http://www.himalmag.com/Drawing-a-line- ... fnw47.html

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 May 2010 07:23

Girls’ school blown up in Peshawar

PESHAWAR: Suspected terrorists blew up a girls’ primary school on the outskirts of the provincial metropolis on Friday night, police said on Saturday. A police official told Daily Times that the assailants planted timed explosives close to Government Girls’ Primary School Ferozabad, in Matani police precincts to blow up the building.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 010_pg7_12

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 23 May 2010 07:29

Interesting historical snippet from the Frontier Post:

How the Indus ran dry for 6 months: Blockade of water flow by land/rock slides and snow dams in the rivers are not unknown in the upper Indus valley. One such rock barrier stopped flow of the Indus for six months in 1841. A massive rockslide triggered by an earthquake blocked the river near Nanga Parbat (26,650 feet high) in the upper Himalayas. The river bed became so dry at Attock that a Sikh battalion crossed it on foot.

http://www.thefrontierpost.com/News.asp ... ar&nid=290

arun · Post by **arun** » 23 May 2010 07:55

X Posted.

Anujan wrote:Dig deep enough and you find TFTA army involved in NY failed bum attempt

Pakistan arrests army officer linked to Times Square bomb suspect

Pakistan Investigators have arrested a Pakistani army major linked to the prime suspect in the botched attempt to bomb New York City's Times Square early this month, Pakistani law enforcement sources said Tuesday.

Notwithstanding official Pakistani Military denials that no Pakistani Army Major has been arrested for associating with Faisal Shahzad, the LA Times, citing US investigators continues to insist that a Pakistani Army Major was involved. LA Times also says that the Army Major involved is a serving, not retired officer:

Evidence mounts that Pakistani major spoke to Times Square suspect

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 23 May 2010 08:11

arun wrote:X Posted.

Anujan wrote:Dig deep enough and you find TFTA army involved in NY failed bum attempt

Pakistan arrests army officer linked to Times Square bomb suspect

That they caught him is not of interest, but:

U.S. officials said they could not confirm that timing of the conversations between Shahzad and the major. U.S. investigators have limited information about the major, who is in custody in Pakistan, and are negotiating with the Pakistani government to interrogate him, they said.

Now Pakis can twist the story as they please.

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 23 May 2010 08:31

An interesting letter in DT

Live and let live

Sir: I am appalled to see Pakistan becoming another China. If some people’s life is about hatred and the promotion of hatred, they are the ones who lose. Why isolate yourself from the world? We Muslims should collectively stop complaining about hate groups on Facebook or elsewhere and focus on employing our energies on positive things.

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 23 May 2010 08:38

When you make a name and a (very good) living from the spoken word, it’s hard to make the case that a recording of your voice is a forgery. This is the dilemma Hamid Mir, the popular anchor of the TV chat show Capital Talk, is facing today. Having heard the leaked conversation between a person who sounds uncannily like the TV personality, and another who is apparently very close to the terrorists then holding Khalid Khwaja, I will take a lot of convincing that it is a fake. However, in this day of technological marvels, anything is possible. As this newspaper suggests in a recent editorial, it would be a simple task to check the tape for authenticity. So where do we go from here? Hamid Mir’s connections with Islamic militants are hardly a secret. Indeed, he first made a name for himself by interviewing Osama bin Laden, and writing a book on the Al Qaeda leader. The role our intelligence agencies — and especially the ISI — have played in Pakistan’s politics is a matter of public record. From rigged elections to the disappearance of scores of citizens, much has been laid at the doors of our spooks. Such is their reputation for unsavoury deeds that even when they have nothing to do with some incident, they are considered guilty. For precisely this reason, it is in their interest to be less secretive.
Their use of journalists as pawns in their murky games erodes the media’s credibility. On the other hand, public memory is notoriously short, especially when an anchor’s slanted views coincide with the audience’s. Thus, when certain anchors support the Taliban or denounce the Ahmadis, they can always be sure that many viewers will applaud them.

Anchors, spooks and jihadis By Irfan Husain
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/daw ... ihadis-250

Prem · Post by **Prem** » 23 May 2010 08:46

Whines, Wails and Withering
Needed: realisation of reality

For instance, one received last Sunday from retired Vice Admiral Premvir Das, a ‘former naval person’ of India, in the light of the renewed contacts between us and our large neighbour, warrants dissemination:
“Contrary to what most people in Pakistan might think, the great majority of educated Indians are saddened by what is happening in Pakistan and not ‘rejoicing’ at its woes. Here is a country whose civil servants are no less capable than our own, whose army, in professionalism is in no way inferior to ours and whose people are, possibly, more cultured than ours. “Yet, one country is universally branded the ‘epicentre of terrorism’, while the other, even if considered soft, is not seen as threatening. Security checks at airports and visa authorities around the world do a rethink when they see the word ‘Pakistan’ stamped on documents — mainly because the establishment deliberately chose to target India with terrorism knowing well that military power is not the answer. Once this led to patronage of groups like the LeT and JeM, the present state of affairs was inevitable. “I believe that writers of public credibility have to constantly tell readers that India has no military plans targeting Pakistan and never has had. Yes, there are plans, as there must be, to respond to military moves against us. The existence of Pakistan as a strong, confident, democratic neighbour is in India’s national interest. “Talk of reducing the deficit of trust through contacts between political leaders and even through people-to-people is not going to lead very far until, unless the establishments shed their fears, one of being targeted by terrorism and the other of being targeted by India. At this point, it is Pakistan’s military leadership, more than all others, which must play the lead role because it is the element which really matters. “Much more than all other forms of interface which might continue, it is interface between the two militaries which will help. India’s military is not political but it is a key factor in establishment thinking. There should be a way in which the two can start talking, not at the Track II level, but between themselves. Without this, no amount of interaction, at any level, can be more than just cosmetic.” We should heed him. There must be many such as he, and perhaps millions of others, who share these views, who are not affected by paranoia and who genuinely believe that the two countries (in particular Pakistan) to prosper and do what they should do for their masses must live in peace and with harmony.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/daw ... eality-350

SSridhar · Post by **SSridhar** » 23 May 2010 11:00

Rebuilding trust with Pakistan - BG Verghese

Pakistan’s ‘core’ problem is not Kashmir or defending its Islamic character. These are symptoms. The disease it suffers from is a lack of positive identity, the absence of which has to be artificially propped up by appeals to territoriality (Kashmir) and faith, which is has betrayed by departing from its own Sufi roots. The military and the mullah have been propped up over decades to fight the cause. They have captured the state. The battle against terror is a battle against the mullahs. The salience of the military can best be reduced by a just settlement over Kashmir — such as Musharraf came to advocate with Manmohan Singh but which the present regime, under military prodding, seems inclined to repudiate, {Mr. Verghese, haven't you contradicted yourself here ? On the one hand, you say a 'just' settlement will defang the PA and OTOH, you say the PA is prodding Gilani to repudiate whatever was achieved by Musharraf ? While leaving the issue of what cold be a 'just' settlement short of the entire J&K joining India, does anyone have an idea of what the PA actually wants if it keeps changing its mind as you have said yourself ? BTW, if the PA is composed of 'identity-starved' Pakistanis, how will they stop with a 'just' settlement over Kashmir alone ?} and going back to the UN resolutions and a plebiscite.