Daily Times

On Saturday, April 19, Hamid Mir, a prominent journalist and television anchor, was seriously injured in a dastardly, targetted gun attack in Karachi. All sane citizens of Pakistan should, and did, condemn the attack, and all are grateful that he survived.I have not yet called him since he is reported to still be recovering but I will, as soon as he can take my call. It is possible he might not take my call after reading this article.

The prime minister has ordered a judicial inquiry into this matter. It is a very unfortunate and condemnable incident but is it not receiving extraordinary coverage? After all, not so long ago, Raza Rumi, a highly respected journalist and anchor was targetted in Lahore. The incident was reported but had not a tithe the coverage Mir got. Hamid’s brother, Amir Mir, was quick to accuse the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and named its director general (DG). I wonder, had the Rumi familyalso accused the ISI, whether he would have received the same coverage. Maybe the favourite ‘whipping boy’ in Pakistan, the ISI, is aquick fix to fame?

It also seems strange that the dreaded, feared, famous and infamous ISI, which is credited with all kinds of success and, by some intelligence agencies is considered to be second only to the Israeli MOSSAD, is so remarkably inept at home. India accuses it of having conceived, planned and executed an attack in Mumbai not too long ago, which, condemnable in terms of human loss, was acknowledged as an ingenious operation.The CIA has not forgiven the ISI for fooling it during the anti-Soviet war in Afghanistan nor for having lost its exclusive Afghan asset to the ISI: JalaluddinHaqqani. Yes, the very same- the leader of the Haqqani network.

However, when it comes to its home ground, where it enjoys every advantage, the ISI just cannot get anything right. Some time back, a former army officer-turned-lawyer, who now styles himself as a human rights activist, took up a very legitimate case defending the rights of the civilian employees of the ISI. Some thugs chose to attack him in a crowded street in the city in broad daylight. The attack was thwarted with the thugs getting the worst of the encounter but the lawyer was quick to accuse the ISI and got his moment of fame.

This Saturday, the amazingly inept ISI got caught with its hands in the till yet again and, Mir, like the cat with its proverbial nine lives, survived yet again. In 2012, a car bomb in Mir’s car failed to go off; it was so ill-attached that it could be spotted with a cursory examination. On that occasion the (also inept?) expert bombers, the Taliban, were accused by Mir.

It seems that Mir’s enemies — ranging across all divides or are they all monolithic? Mir certainly thinks so — become universally inept in targeting him. Maybe someone up there likes him. The media group he works for stands out for sensationalizing the news. That is how it increases its readership/audience. However, it also stands out as the one group that will air anything or anybody which/who accuses Pakistan, its government, army, ISI, anything and anybody Pakistani is fair game.Not undeservedly, the group touts itself as ‘courageous’ for its reporting. And yet, what of the accused? When it comes to NAB/FIA/the police etc. themedia group expects all to use their authority with discretion. If they do not or are merely suspected of having been lax on investigation, this media group will jump all over anyone. However, the same expectation does not extend to its own reporting or reporters. I wonder why.

A silent army has, under fresh leadership, decided to pick up the gauntlet and has announced that it will go to the courts. The media house was quick to carry a correction. Yes, actually this media house now seems to loves the Pakistan army. It does. Readtheir newspaper of April 21.

Recently, a rival group tendered an apology for accusing the media group. Of course,this news made headlines for them. One really should not gloat.Even as it professed its love for the army, not un-prominent was a news item on the back-page of their newspaper. It was about theTehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan(TTP) condemning the ISI’s attack on Mir, although the, as always, misleading heading was ‘TTP terms Hamid Mir anti-Taliban’. I wonder how many share the view expressed by the heading.To me, Mir is a stauncher TTP apologist than Imran Khan; the Sharif brethren are not in the same league.

Mir’s private television channel can get the TTP spokesman live on telephone during histelevisionprogramme; no one else has treatedShahidullahShahid more respectfully while on air. In my personal view, no one, not even the Fazullahs and Samiullahs, (I refuse to dignify them like Mir does, by titling them ‘maulanas’), is as familiar with the TTP as certain select members of this television channel. And let us not forget that Mir owes his television fame and exorbitant pay to his interview of Osama bin Laden. I wonder if he had help arranging the interview and, if he did, from whom?

Now I am not accusing anyone, neither Mir, an owner, nor Mir, an anchor, but many a journalist has, at some time or the other, been on the roll of the ISI. I do not know their names but I confess to being suspicious of those who profess their innocence too loudly or accuse too consistently. And also of those who are targetted by every conceivable enemy and, so inept is the effort of each, that they escape each attack (almost) unscathed.

I admit my bias. I have worn my uniform(s) for too long.Oh yes, after writing this, if I am targetted, I will tell my family to accuse not the ISI but the media group and Mir himself. If the attack is carried out by the TTP, it will be on request of those I suspect.

The writer is a retired brigadier. He is also former vice president and founder of the Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI)