Daily Times

Last week ended with a high note of patriotic fervour as usual as the nation celebrated Defence Day. This is a day that marks the valour of Pakistani uniformed men who stalled the attack on Lahore from our presumed archrival, India. And 48 years later, each year this day is celebrated with the same zeal and enthusiasm, stating that never again such an intervention or aggression from the neighbour will ever be tolerated. The tube replays the chain of events, the martyrs are commemorated and the patriotic songs hit the airwaves, reminding the folks of the guardians of this soil. The selfless souls bearing the brunt of the harshest weathers of Siachen or the infamous Line of Control always stand tall, no matter what month of the year it is.

What we tend to miss and it is worth a mention yet again, is why the war in September 1965 took place? Who initiated that conflict? Who launched an adventure called ‘Operation Gibraltar’? What were the repercussions and the after effects of that ill-fated war? What strategic planning and exit plans were laid out? Did India make its advance towards Lahore out of the blue or was it an act of retaliation? I know the questions are quite harsh and the reality is even harsher. But with my head down in respect for the fallen (that too for both sides), I say with a heavy heart that this conflict was unnecessary and the loss of life and property could have been avoided. Only and if only, the Operation that led to such a disaster was left unexecuted, we would have perhaps avoided its ugly repetition, just six years later in 1971.

As is always said, what’s done is done and the clock cannot be reversed. Very true, but in our context, as two hostile neighbours, it is imperative to revisit these ugly episodes to learn from our mistakes. We have failed as two neighbours to give our generations the atmosphere of peace and tranquillity they rightly deserve. Our daggers are drawn and our guards never down as the prevailing sense of fear and animosity rarely diminishes.

Worth a mention here is a gathering that took place in the federal capital by an organisation called the Defence of Pakistan Council. It is mostly right wing zealots who demonstrate their unrestrained disdain for India and openly declare their will to engage in an armed conflict with it. What boggles one’s mind is how in God’s name the existence of such an organisation is necessary, when the prestigious Pakistan Military Academy produces one of the finest soldiers on the face of this earth. With utter respect to these right wing ‘citizen soldiers’, one may ask, why dampen the sanctity of such an occasion by thunderous war mongering rhetoric? This display of antagonistic behaviour is counter-intuitive and counter-productive, because it defies the official diplomatic stance adopted by the elected government. The people have entrusted their representatives to carry out the duty of steering this country out of the constant threat of terror and wars.

Speaking of people’s representatives, the much awaited and touted All Parties Conference (APC) concluded in the federal capital too without any substantial result. The APC was merely a regurgitation of the known facts and by now the entire world is familiar with those details. It was rather disappointing to hear those resolutions, which one may derive and deduce without even gathering the politicos, the admirable Chief of Army Staff and the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence.

A simple phrase that can encapsulate this whole effort is ‘good lip service’. Before the readers jump to the usual conclusions about my ‘mental health’ for such scepticism, please allow me to clarify. If memories are still not so faded, a few months ago, the ‘angry brothers’ commonly known as the ‘Taliban’, had named four political parties that they trusted to initiate a dialogue of reconciliation. The ruling party was one of them. So the ruling party, the PML-N launched the initiative to supposedly chalk out a strategy of the future through this APC. To summarise the outcome of this initiative in a single phrase: ‘Let’s give peace a chance’.

Such conferences are a good venue for ‘meet and greet’, and that’s about it. Some vague resolutions are passed and very little details are provided. Agreed that this is such a complex cobweb that no matter what efforts be made those efforts will take a lot of time to reflect any positive outcome. There are so many splinter groups within the umbrella organisation that it is quite inconceivable where this whole thing will end.

After reading the communique of the APC, one is left scratching one’s head when it comes to the process of dialogue with the angry brothers. One may very cautiously remind the people’s representatives of a very popular song by late Madam Noor Jahan from a famous movie called Salgirah: “Ley aayi phir kahan pey qismat hamain kahan sey, Yeh to wohi jagah hai, guzrey they hum Jahan sey.” My poor English translation butchers the essence of the Urdu couplet, but I will give it my utmost and sincere try: “Our fate has brought us to the same juncture, the road that we crossed perhaps many moons ago.”

The writer is a Pakistani-American mortgage banker. He blogs at http://dasghar.blogspot.com and can be reached at dasghar@aol.com. He tweets at http://twitter.com/dasghar