Why was Karzai sent to Islamabad?

President Karzai reciprocated  General Kiyani’s visit to Kabul within a week. What is going on. Why did Mr. Karzai visit Pakistan on the heels of President Ahmedinejad’s visit to Afghanistan and right before President Gul’s visit?

A report in the Guardian may give us some insight into the reasons for Mr. Karzai’s visit to Islamabad. Reversing Anti-Americanism: Building US allies in West Asia

Unless more pressure is put on the Afghan government, some British officials predict that Karzai’s proposed loya jirga, or grand peace council, due at the end of next month, will be little more than a PR stunt. “My argument today is that now is the time for the Afghans to pursue a political settlement with as much vigour and energy as we are pursuing the military and civilian effort,” Miliband will say at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, according to a text of the address seen by the Guardian.

British officials believe that significant Taliban leaders are ready to start talking about a political settlement in which they would sever ties with al-Qaida and put down weapons in return for a role in politics. But there is also concern that opportunities to open a preliminary dialogue are being lost, and that the conflict, which has already cost more than 270 British lives, is being intensified by Kabul’s inefficiency and corruption.

“The Afghans must own, lead and drive such political engagement,” Miliband will say in his speech. “It will be a slow, gradual process. But the insurgents will want to see international support.

“International engagement, for example under the auspices of the UN, may ultimately be required.“

All roads to Kabul Peace lead to Islamabad.

Mr. Karzai’s visit reflects the will of the London Conference where Mr. Karzai was urged to reach out to the Taliban and try to find reconciliation. Mr. Karzai is seen to be moving too slowly on this count. The pressure is on. The UK and the US want to find a face-saving exit from Afghanistan. A coalition government in Kabul would allow the UK and the US to declare victory and leave the Hindu Kush. Post London Pakistan-American Strategic symbiosis leaves Delhi in the cold

India Prepares To Run From Afghanistan With Tail Between Legs

Dan Qayyum | PKKH

India has decided to run from Afghanistan with its tail between its legs as Pakistan increasingly takes center-stage in bringing stability to war-torn Afghanistan.

CNN-IBN Reports: India plans to ’scale down’ its operations in Afghanistan and will advice its citizens in that country to return home, sources in the government have told CNN-IBN.

The Indian government is considering paring down its presence at reconstruction projects in Afghanistan. Projects underway may be wrapped up quickly and there may be even a freeze on undertaking new projects.

Apart from the embassy in Kabul, the work of consulates in Herat, Kandahar, Mazar-e-Sharif and Jalalabad may also be scaled down.

CNN-IBN learns the precarious security situation in Afghanistan–highlighted by the terrorist attacks targeting Indians in Kabul on February 26, is prompting a gradual but significant rethink in New Delhi.

Pakistan Forces India Out Of Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s immediate neighbours – Pakistan, Iran, China, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, as well as the US, met earlier this year in Turkey to discuss the situation in Afghanistan and to take stock of measures for the restoration of peace in the country. The original “six-plus-two” formula also included Russia, but in the new set up Moscow representation was replaced by the United Kingdom.

Diplomatic sources said Pakistan had been lobbying for the renewal of talks among Afghanistan’s neighbours in order to foil Indian designs of gaining a foothold on Afghan soil.

Pakistan believes India is not an immediate neighbour of Afghanistan and therefore should have limited role in the country.

Turkey was asked to convene that meeting, as it enjoys the backing and trust of Pakistan and is accepted as a neutral party for promoting a common approach to the conflict. The conference urged regional players to work together in order to stabilise Afghanistan and the region.

The revival of the talks group came at a crucial juncture – two days before the London Conference attended by 50 nations to discuss the Afghan issue and deliberate on measures to help the war-ravaged nation. The organisers of the London Conference, like the US, had been trying to convince Pakistan on accepting the greater Indian role in Afghanistan.

India appears to be the biggest loser from the London conference. Not only did Pakistan succesfully manage to keep it out of key decision-making, but also offered to help train 300,000 Afghan Police and Army personnel within the next 2 years – a role that India had been whoring itself out for.

Participants of the London Conference also rejected India’s assertion that there were ‘no degrees of Talibanism – all factions must be fought and destroyed’. India often bundles the Kashmiri militant groups within this classification, in an attempt to discredit the legitimate Kashmiri freedom struggle. New Delhi has even gone to the extent of alleging the presence of Afghan Taliban in Indian occupied Kashmir – which was rejected outright by its own Armed forces, causing massive embarassment.

On the other hand, it is Pakistan that seems to have come out of this conference with its head held high. Not only does the world accept the need for bringing Afghan Taliban into the political frame – a long-standing demand of the Pakistan Army – Pakistan has also been requested to assist in brokering the deal which the US and NATO believe will allow them a safe exit.

General Kayani reportedly told US and NATO commanders in the recent meeting in Brussels that Pakistan intends to take a hands on approach and play a central role in bringing stability to Afghanistan. He also demanded the US and its allies curb Indian influence in Afghanistan as the latter has been supporting terrorism in Pakistan from its many bases on Afghan soil.

The tough, matter-of-fact line on India was in stark contrast to that of the current ‘democratic’ rulers of Pakistan, who have bent over backwards in their attempts to appease both the Indians and the Americans.

In a recent presentation to Pakistani media, Gen Kayani also reiterated his widely reported comments on the Pakistan Army’s view of the situation in Afghanistan and the way forward there – and made it clear that his institution’s “frame of reference” for addressing the problems in that country included certain concerns that are India specific.

History, unresolved issues, India’s military capability and its ‘Cold Start’ doctrine meant that Pakistan could not afford to let its guard down.

“We plan on adversaries’ capabilities, not intentions”, General Kayani said.

Indian Muslims don’t want to sing Anti-Muslim euolgy to “Godess Durga”-Vande Matram

It was the 1940s. The Congress was in power, and it imposed the Vande Mahtram (spelled many different ways) on the school children. Liaqat Ali Khan was in charge of the Finance Ministry. The Muslim League objected to Vande Mahtram and Shuddi and Shangtram (conversion to Hinduism). The Vande Matram evoked a big chasm between the Indian National Congress and the All India Muslim League. Neither could agree–the government fell–the Cabinet Mission Plan was accepted and then rejected by the INC—the rest as they say is history.

Jana Gana Mana was chosen as the National Anthem of independent India. Vande Mataram was rejected on the grounds that Muslims, Christians, Parsis, Sikhs, Arya Samajis and others who opposed idol worship felt offended by its depiction of the nation as “Mother Durga“—a Hindu goddess. Muslims also felt that its origin as part of Anandamatha, a novel they felt had an anti-Muslim message (see External links below).

In 1937, the Indian National Congress discussed at length the status of the song. It was pointed out then that though the first two stanzas began with an unexceptionable evocation of the beauty of the motherland, in later stanzas there are references where the motherland is likened to the Hindu goddess Durga. Therefore, the Congress decided to adopt only the first two stanzas as the national song. To this day the national songs of India consists of only these first two stanzas of Vande Mataram, along with the national anthem Jana gana mana and Saare Jahan Se accha.

Now once again, the Vande Mahtram is dividing the Muslims from the Hindus in what is left of “Bharat” (aka India). Seriously fractured by caste, and religion, the Subcontinent is once again fractured by the Vande Mahtram. As evidenced by the rioting in Maharashtra on the creation of a separate state–the country is coming apart at the seams.

JAMIAT-ULEMA-I-HIND passed a resolution on November 2 urging Muslims in India not to recite Vande Matram, the country’s national anthem, on the ground that some of its verses are against the tenets of Islam. A similar fatwa was also passed by Darul Ulum Deoband three years ago when this controversy had raised its head for the first time. Incidentally, the same organisations have also passed a fatwa that terrorism was against the spirit of Islam.

Hell broke loose in certain circles with the passage of this resolution. The self-appointed custodians of Indian nationalism and some sections of media began attacking the JUH and Muslims in general saying that this ‘fatwa’ was unpatriotic and against national unity. Earlier, Shiv Sena had in an open threat told Indian Muslims that ‘Is Desh Mein Rahna hai to Vande Matram Kahna Hoga.’ So, the Muslims are finding themselves helpless between the two edicts, one asking them not to sing Vande Matram and the other asking them to leave the country if they do not sing it.

There is, however, another opinion espoused by moderates. Most of the Muslim participants in the television talk shows and Muslim leaders, including the minister for minority affairs, Salman Khursheed and some Muslim intellectuals are of the view that that the JUH resolution or fatwa was not acceptable to them, nor should it be given any importance because the Indian constitution has settled the matter long ago: the first two stanzas of the song, which are free from the Hindu imageries, are to be sung by the Muslims. Then, another school of thought asserts that the singing of any song cannot be imposed on the people as that violates the freedom of religion guaranteed by the constitution.

So, there are three shades of opinion on the song issue. One, Muslim orthodox-conservatives like Jamiat-Ulema-i-Hind are against singing the song on religious grounds. Moderates amongst both Muslims and Hindus do not consider someone’s singing or not singing it is a big issue. In fact, majority of Muslims are reported to be of the opinion that they have no problem in singing the song and will continue to sing it. On the other extreme is the RSS fatwa, intimidating and assertive, that the song must be sung.

The song has a complex history. It was written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee who later made it part of his novel Anand Math. This novel has strong anti-Muslim rhetoric. The song was very popular with a section of society but the Muslim League strongly objected to the song on grounds that it compares India with goddess Durga. Islam being a monotheistic religion does not recognise any god or goddess other than Allah. Many others belonging to monotheistic religions also had a problem with this song. In 1937, the Song Committee of the Indian National Congress with Nehru and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad amongst its members selected Jana Gana Mana as the national anthem and picked up first two stanzas of Vande Matram as national song.

The Supreme Court had also to deal with this issue. School children from the ‘Jehovah’s Witnesses faith’ had refused to sing the Vande Matram because they claimed their religion forbade them to sing it. As a result, the school expelled the recalcitrant students. The matter went to the Supreme Court, which observed that a secular court cannot enquire into the correctness or otherwise of religious beliefs and that not singing this song due to religious beliefs was not against Indian constitution. The ground on which the court gave its verdict was the assessment whether the belief is genuinely and conscientiously held by a sizable section of the community, and that the belief is not opposed to public order and morality. The Supreme Court struck down the students’ expulsion as violative of their freedom of religion guaranteed by Article 25 of the constitution and students were taken back.

Soli Sorabjee, an eminent lawyer, takes the cue from Justice Chinnappa Reddy to explain the rationale of the judgment: “Our tradition teaches tolerance; our philosophy preaches tolerance; our constitution practises tolerance; let us not dilute it”. The controversy has been raging since 2006 when the UPA government called for singing of the song in schools.

Even the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee had asked Sikhs not to sing Vande Matram, but most of the Sikhs defied that and continued singing the song. One of the most touching rendition of Vande Matram, Maa Tujhe Salaam has come from none other than A.R. Rahman, the celebrated Indian music maestro.

One may note that Jamiat-Ulema-i-Hind is one such organisation which stood solidly with the concept of composite Indian nationalism, opposing India’s partition, rejecting the two-nation theory. And there are several shades of opinion amongst Muslims. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Maulana Hussain Ahmad Madni and many other Muslim clerics went along with the idea of singing first two stanzas of the song. Legally while constitution recognises Vande Matram as a national song, it also gives Indians the freedom of religion, and the Supreme Court judgments have struck down the extreme position that Anthem-Song must be sung.

Mahatma Gandhi, the father of Indian nation, also came to the conclusion that Jana Gana Mana and not Vande Matram, should be the national anthem. Some reports say that this view was not acceptable to Nathuram Godse to the extent that he made this as one of the reasons to assassinate Gandhi.

If India is able to create conditions under which minorities can live with security, dignity and equity, such ‘fatwas’ will be of little relevance. We have seen that in the case of the Sikh community, the mandate of SPGC, was totally ignored. And even now most of the Muslims are hardly impressed by this JUH fatwa.

The writer is associated with the Centre for Study of Society and Secularism, Mumbai. Controversy on Vande Matram By Ram Puniyani, Sunday, 13 Dec, 2009 | 03:46 AM

Colonel Imam: Ideologue or Pragmatist

Wasif Khan

In a recent interview with the New York Times, the once renowned Colonel Imam made some very insightful remarks and dire predictions. For those unfamiliar with the name, Colonel Imam was an ISI operative who played a prominent role in recruiting and training resistance fighters during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. His list of students includes prominent ‘mujahideen’ commanders such as Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Ahmed Shah Masood. The Colonel worked closely with the Americans and Saudis to train, arm, and support the mujahideen throughout the Soviet occupation and beyond.

Following the emergence of the Taliban, he provided crucial tactical advice and training to this new and potent force, helping them sweep across the rugged country in a series of decisive battles. By his own admission, Colonel Imam was very close to Mullah Omar and spent a considerable amount of time with the Afghan Taliban leader following the September 11 terrorist attacks.

All told, the Colonel spent over two decades straddling the dangerous Pak-Afghan border and was deeply ingrained in the tumultuous affairs of Afghanistan and the border areas. He is undoubtedly an expert on the region and some would argue that his insight is invaluable. His views on the current state of affairs in the region are also certainly worth considering.

Colonel Imam’s last visit to Afghanistan ended right before the US invasion and his final advice to Mullah Omar was to engage the invading forces in a prolonged struggle using guerrilla tactics, instead of taking them head on. So far, it seems that the Taliban leader heeded his advice. From the initial US-led invasion to the recent operations in southern Afghanistan, the Taliban seem to have avoided direct large-scale confrontations with coalition forces. And for the most part, they have vacated their strongholds such as Marjah ahead of major operations.

The Taliban have focused on utilising guerrilla tactics such as ambushing convoys, attacking isolated outposts, and deploying IEDs to target western forces. Of course, they have also relied heavily on other tactics such as suicide bombings. Some would argue that the methods used by the Taliban reflect their weakness, since they have been unable to hold any territory against US-led attacks. On the flip side, and according to the view espoused by Colonel Imam, it can be argued that the Taliban have consciously chosen to operate in this manner. Realising that they cannot match western forces in terms of firepower and technology, the insurgents have decided to employ a strategy similar to the one used by mujahideen commanders against the Soviets: bleed the enemy to death with small cuts instead of a single decisive blow.

Consider this. Every time the Taliban successfully attack ISAF forces, they cause damage worth thousands if not millions of dollars, depending on the kind of equipment they destroy and the number of casualties they inflict. In the process, they lose a handful of men (that are easily replaced by a seemingly endless flow of recruits), some assault rifles, and perhaps a few hundred rounds of ammunition.

Similarly, with every successful suicide attack, they cause immense damage in terms of life and property and put a serious dent in the coalition forces’ morale — all this, at the expense of a brainwashed youth and a few kilograms of explosive material.

According to Colonel Imam, the recent arrests of senior Taliban commanders will not weaken the insurgency. He claims that the Afghan Taliban have evolved into a decentralised force, with field commanders leading self-sufficient units that operate independently. He predicts that President Obama’s troop surge will end in failure, since the increased number of American soldiers will only serve to provide the militants with bigger and more diverse targets, such as supply convoys, planes, and vehicles. Furthermore, he also believes that efforts to fracture the Taliban movement by weaning commanders away with bribes will not succeed, since committed militant commanders will not trade their loyalty for cash.

In an interview with the New York Times, Colonel Imam was full of praise for Mullah Omar and the Taliban movement. He described them as a force that brought stability to the war-torn country and all but ended the drug trade. He denied providing support to the insurgents, as some observers have suggested, but stressed the need to negotiate with the Taliban leadership, a view he has reiterated in a number of interviews over the past few years.

It is interesting to note that time and again the Colonel has insisted that Mullah Omar is a reasonable man who would be willing to negotiate and compromise with the Americans, given the right terms and conditions. In an interview with McClatchy in January, he even hinted at the possibility of acting as a liaison between the Americans and the Afghan Taliban leadership. Given his history of close links with both sides, it is entirely conceivable that Colonel Imam might play an important role in any future or ongoing talks with the Afghan insurgents. Of course, any such role would require the approval and active support of the ISI.

With rumours of secret negotiations and potential deals doing the rounds in the international media circuit, some reports already suggest that the US is actively seeking a compromise with the Afghan Taliban. Speculations of Saudi involvement in this process have also been made and it will be interesting to see if anything concrete develops over the next few months, and if so, how Pakistan and the Colonel would fit into the equation.

On his part, Colonel Imam makes no effort to conceal his ideological support for the Afghan Taliban. This support can possibly account for his particular views and predictions. That being said, his in-depth knowledge of the region and vast experience with key players involved in the conflict cannot be overlooked. If his predictions prove to be accurate, the implications for the region will be crucial. In the end, only time will tell if the enigmatic Colonel Imam is an ideologue dwelling in the past (as suggested by his detractors) or a grounded pragmatist with profound foresight.

Dawn News

The New Pakistan/American Afghan Paradigm

Pakistan, US agree on new Afghan set-up

News Analysis By Absar Alam

ISLAMABAD: A strategic shift in Pakistan’s three-decade old Afghan policy has taken a quiet but effective shape as Islamabad has successfully negotiated a peace plan with Mustafa Zahir Shah, the grandson of late King Zahir Shah, who would play a key role in future political dispensation comprising all ethnic groups. “It is a strategic coup by Pakistan against rising Indian influence in Afghanistan,” an analyst tartly remarked commenting on the development. As Islamabad has agreed to untangle the complicated jihadist network fabricated by General Ziaul Haq in 1979, it has acquired ‘iron-clad’ guarantees from Washington and other world capitals to gain advantages not only in regional political and economic affairs but also to get peaceful nuclear technology related benefits, sources privy to the most significant development taking place in the region in more than quarter a century, claimed.

Prime Minister Gilani’s spokesperson Shabbir Anwar, when contacted, said Pakistan wanted peace in Afghanistan. “We will do whatever we can in strengthening of the political institutions in Afghanistan.”

Anwar, however, said the Foreign Office would be in a better position to comment on such a development. The foreign office spokesman could not be reached despite repeated attempts as his cell phone was switched off.

“Karzai is fast becoming a seat-warmer for Mustafa Zahir Shah,” a diplomat commented. “But the young leader will have to perform a very complicated balancing act by satisfying both sides of the ethnic divides in the world’s one of the least governable countries.”

To continue to have a political foothold in Afghanistan and counter Pakistan’s thriving liaison with Mustafa Zahir Shah and the Northern Alliance, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh went to Saudi Arabia to get help in establishing contacts with Taliban. Saudi Arabia reportedly has refused to oblige.

According to the clinched deal, Islamabad would help cobble together a consensus political dispensation in Kabul comprising all ethnic groups, help ensure its stability, dismantle the dreaded militant infrastructure and carefully comb its security apparatus to avert the rise of radicalism. On all counts, Pakistan has already started delivering and brick-by-brick demolition of Jehadi infrastructure has already set in motion. A high-level Pakistani delegation held a final round of negotiations with Mustafa Zahir Shah and Northern Alliance in Kabul a couple of weeks ago.

Islamabad’s diplomatic circles are abuzz with this new, exciting development taking shape during the last few weeks. “To convince Mustafa Zahir Shah to lead, and make the leaderships of Northern Alliance and Taliban share power among themselves is a major breakthrough successfully engineered by Pakistan to reclaim its lost position in Afghanistan,” the sources said.

In addition to winning over the confidence of Mustafa Zahir Shah, the weaning off Northern Alliance from India is the most important milestone in Pakistan’s foreign policy as ties between the two sides had been strained for Islamabad’s tilt towards Taliban. As final touches are being given to level the rough contours of this win-win policy, the diplomatic sources in Islamabad are attributing great significance to the sudden dash of Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani to Kabul over the weekend.

In return for the success of this policy, the sources claimed, Washington has given guarantees to Islamabad that it would support Pakistan’s efforts to buy nuclear power plants from France for peaceful purposes, limit India’s political role in Afghanistan and Pakistan would have the right to buy oil and gas on less-than-market price from the proposed oil and gas pipelines originating from Central Asia and Afghanistan to India. The royalty that Pakistan would earn on these energy pipelines passing through its territory would be in addition to the above benefits.

DG ISPR Maj-Gen Athar Abbas, when contacted to ask if Pakistani officials were engaged in negotiating such an understanding with the help of the US and the Nato in return for political and economic benefits of the country, he said: “It is a political issue and I have no comments”.

When asked about the high level contacts between Pakistani officials and Mustafa Zahir Shah and Northern Alliance leaders, Abbas said: “Not to my knowledge.” The arrests of top Taliban commanders from Mulla Abdul Ghani Baradar two weeks ago to Abu Yehya Gadan over the weekend is a testament to Islamabad’s sincere commitment with this new approach.

In his weekend visit Gen Kayani met Afghan President Hamid Karzai to, what the sources said, discuss his role, if any, in the new setup. Almost a week prior to Kayani’s visit to Kabul, a high-level delegation comprising officials who have been handling the Afghan strategy for decades, visited Kabul and met Mustafa to finalise the future peace plan for Afghanistan. The success has been reached following a series of behind-the-scene meetings in and outside Pakistan between Pakistani officials, Mustafa Zahir Shah, Saudi and US officials, and key leaders of Northern Alliance who have earlier been sceptical of Islamabad’s intentions.

The difference this time would be that Pakistan would ensure the acceptance of this new formula both by the Northern Alliance and Taliban with Mustafa Zahir Shah leading the brood. Sources claimed that the new plan would guarantee Pakistan’s political and economic interests in the region as well as the existence of a peaceful Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the US and the Nato troops.

The sources claimed that the establishment is quite serious now in reigning in radical elements who have been creating difficulties for Pakistan in the past. “Now they will not be given a free hand anymore and the elements within the establishment supporting such ideologies and activities would be sidelined in the next round of promotions starting from next month,” source said.