Syffering under our Proxy Imperialists

We are certainly overdosing on the US these days. As if their increased drone attacks against Pakistani civilians were not bad enough, we have had to suffer the excess of the Pakistani media's coverage of the US elections – which in the end will really not alter our fate vis a vis US policies and may make it worse. Now, in a most nauseating fashion, we have had to suffer Boucher once again and this time he has been accompanied by the new US Centcom commander, General Petreaus. We already know that the Zardari regime is in no mood to respect the parliamentary resolution demanding action against US attacks against our sovereignty, so what more can this hapless nation do for imperial US? Kill all our citizens who may have a resemblance to Taliban or may simply be guilty of living in the FATA region? This American duo's latest visit just before the US elections looks suspiciously like a visit aimed at providing a boost to McCain by some large scale attack which will unearth a big Al Qaeda or Taliban fish! Be that as it may, when will it become clear to our ruling elite that the US is a hostile, if not an enemy state? And simple issuing verbal warnings which continue to be ignored only undermine our ability to actually act on these warnings. So what can be done against the mighty US? Very simply, there is a small window of opportunity and the following actions can be taken: Suspending logistics supply route for NATO/US forces; leaving the trilateral commission, at least temporarily, given that our requests are never respected; reclaiming our bases from the US and removing US undercover and military personnel from Pakistan. In a worst case scenario, we could also think of some non-lethal military responses. And what more the US can do against us if we stand our ground? Well, politically they have already pushed our leaders into an IMF option that was certainly not the only option despite the surfeit of histrionic articles by retired IMF Gurkhas some of whom are also desperately seeking to re-access the Pakistani economic bureaucracy? At worse, the US can also send in ground troops accompanied by air attacks but given that they are presently in a state of transition such an expansion of their military operations in the region does not seem possible,. But if it did come to that, given how they are stretched, they would be entering a suicidal minefield because then the Pakistani military would have to be drawn in. We may fear such scenarios, but at the end of the day the US at present is not in a position to expand its military commitments especially against a state without whose support NATO would be suffocated in terms of logistics support. In fact, it is the incremental US destruction being waged on us that is more lethal for Pakistan. Given how Pakistanis are being killed to assuage US anger at 9/11, it is insufferable to have former US Secretary of State, Albright, refer to Pakistan as an "international migraine". Even if this was so, and we were to ignore the rogue state the US is fast becoming, what is the source of the migraine? The US itself. So, Ms Albright, when we rid ourselves of the cause for our "migraine", the healing will take place. Amid all this killing of our citizens by the US, I was sent an email by Saud Khan, which should distress all those who still believe in the goodness of the US people. He sent me a copy of a news release by Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas, some of which is blasphemous against the Prophet (PBUH) and cannot be cited here, but what can be cited is the following:"God Hates Pakistan. Thank God for killer earthquakes that visit Pakistan often: Last Wed.-160 dead;1935 – 30,000 dead; 2005 – 86,000 dead. WBC prays for many more dead. Yes. Pakistan is an evil and dangerous country and is a huge part of the World of Islam." Such is the humanity of the US Baptist Church! Interestingly the news release talks of Pakistan's killing of Christians but the Baptists seem to have turned a blind eye to the mass killings of Christians still going on in India!However, in the final analysis, we must take the blame for where we are – especially our elite and the rulers that come from within them. There is a total indifference to the plight of the state and the nation since simply leaving the country with their wealth is such a viable option for this class. They have enjoyed the privileges this country has offered them and then left with the wealth they made as a result of these privileges. When the country is in financial straits, none of them think of bringing back their foreign stashed wealth back for the salvation of this country. And when they rule, they rule through guile and hypocrisy with generous promises that come cheap and remain unfulfilled. The present set of rulers is no different. Cronyism is rife – from the Abraaj scam (and it is not just Zardari family connections that are involved; according to the Abraaj response given to The News there are names that link up to Shaukat Tareen also) at KESC, to all over the country in the form of advisers, assistants and so on. Special titles, special deals – with scant regard for even the most basic of qualifications! Perhaps the biggest slap in the face of the nation has been the 55-member cabinet – which will require a plethora of more assistants, staff and so on, all from the public exchequer – at a time of dire financial straits. To the further shame of the present government, the man who sought to justify the killing of Baloch women has also been given a ministerial slot. But then why not, given how there is no system or law that functions here. Look what happened to the doctors at the poly clinic only recently. And this is just one such story doing the rounds these days – just as other stories abounded in the previous regimes also.As for respecting the bounds of the law, look at the scandal of the Gilani offspring wedding at the presidency. Even if one were to forget the morality at stake in such an event, surely the brazen violation of the laws of the land cannot be so easily cast aside? I am referring to the use of official state property, but, most important, to the use of the president and the country's flags/emblems right behind the married couple's seating. Even according to the Blue Book of Protocol this is not permissible – but is anyone bothered? Of course, us ordinary citizens cannot fly the national flag on our residences or anywhere else – except on August 14 ( a rather silly restriction that needs to be done away with) – but how can the prime minister and the president allow private citizens to use official protocol and official flags for a private wedding function?With all these shenanigans of the ruling elite, it is no wonder we are continuing to cling to the hope the lawyers' movement still brings for justice to eventually reign strong and supreme in this land of ours. When we greeted the lawyers' rally at the Islamabad parade ground on Monday evening, we felt compelled to rejuvenate our hope even though the fervour of this summer's long march was not all there. But then I saw the determination of the missing persons' protestors still continuing to fight an uphill battle for justice. The group followed the lawyers' leaders, a little distance away, looking weary and, in contrast to the lawyers and other members of civil society, surrounded by a heavy silence. A small band of mothers, wives and relatives, they are still battling against all odds, especially since the democratic government has chosen to adopt a telling silence now that they are in power. I realised then that we, the citizens, have no choice but to keep our faith and hope in movements such as the lawyers' movement because in the end it is a strong and independent judiciary that will bring peace and resolution to these distressed Pakistanis as well as security to the nation as a whole. Otherwise we may as well resign ourselves to a life of subjugation and fear under our own breed of proxy imperialists. (Oh Gramsci, if you were only alive today!)