Daily Times

Official Secrets Act, 1923 is Pakistan’s Anti Espionage Act and was enacted to consolidate and amend the laws relating to official secrets in Pakistan. It stipulates that if a person uses the information in his possession for the benefit of any foreign power or in any other manner prejudicial to the safety of the State, shall on prosecution for the offence is liable to be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to fourteen years.

Apparently, our politicians are unaware of the implications of the breach of this act or the gravity of disclosing state secrets. Military officers are expected to take an oath when they are commissioned as well as sign the official secrets act. Civilians too are bona fide citizens of the state and while in office and even when out of it, either as bureaucrats or parliamentarians, are expected to protect classified information, they may receive through briefings or exposure to documents. The advertent or even inadvertent disclosure of such information can be detrimental to the interests of the state.

Economic measures, which range from devaluation of the national currency, double digit inflation, disappearance of essential food items from the markets and later making them available at cutthroat prices are adopted by the enemy to create discontent

Pakistan is facing multiple threats, which imperil its very existence. There are various reasons why the detractors of Pakistan would like to destabilize it and decapitated it in the process. It is the only Islamic state in the world, which is equipped with nuclear weapons. Despite several attempts to defang Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal, its strategic assets remain intact. There are different reports which disclose that some world powers actually conducted surgical strikes to take out Pakistan’s nuclear programme, when it was still in the nascent stage. They failed and Pakistan managed to disperse its nuclear assets, far from the prying eyes of would be assailants. Some international forces carried out wargames to study the possibility of acquiring Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal by brute force. They came to the conclusion that in the face of Pakistan’s robust nuclear command authority, it would not be possible.

The strategic location of Pakistan combined with its alliance with China and participation in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative along with its flagship project the China Pakistan Economic Corridor and the development of the deep sea port of Gwadar, have all made Pakistan a candidate for destabilization, fragmentation and breakup by its enemies.

Resultantly, macabre forces have been unleashed in the shape of separatist elements, terror mongers and agent provocateurs to wreak havoc. In all the heinous plots hatched against Pakistan, India plays a major role as it would gain tremendously with Pakistan’s fragmentation and annihilation.

Faced with the possibility of a nuclear holocaust if a full scale invasion of Pakistan takes place, India would prefer to use hybrid war instead. This fifth generation war has various elements and tools and is military strategy, which employs political warfare and blends conventional warfare, irregular warfare, and cyberwarfare with other influencing methods, such as propaganda, fake news, coercive diplomacy and foreign electoral intervention. By combining kinetic operations with subversive efforts, the aggressor intends to avoid attribution or retribution. Hybrid warfare can be used to describe the flexible and complex dynamics of the battlespace requiring a highly adaptable and resilient response.

In modern times, the enemy seeks to discredit the adversary’s ruling dispensation as well as its armed forces by spreading rumours. Economic measures, which range from devaluation of the national currency, double digit inflation, disappearance of essential food items from the markets and later making them available at cutthroat prices are adopted by the enemy to create discontent. Placement of factotums in the seat of government to do the bidding of the adversary or feeding taglines to the political opponents to create mayhem and chaos is a common factor.

The mention of the Pakistan Official Secrets Act in the opening paragraph was essential to emphasize that information can be leaked to the media, which pertains to sensitive data. Unsuspecting or at times willing politicians who have the capacity to be manipulated by the enemy for bribes or blackmail are launched to disclose sensational information infringing on the breach of the Official Secrets Act, which can embarrass the sitting government but more importantly, shatter the morale of the people.

Fifth Generation Warfare next entails protest rallies, strikes and demonstrations, which erode the peace and harmony as well as the credibility of the government if the demonstrations turn ugly and the government cracks down with brute force. Sometimes ethnic or racial conflicts are orchestrated so that destabilization is achieved.

Some members of the political opposition, who have chosen to denigrate the law enforcing agencies, the armed forces and intelligence institutions, twisting facts, even going to the extent of nullifying victories gained in combat and demeaning the sacrifices of the martyrs are actually facilitating Pakistan’s detractors. If such politicians chose to disclose selected titbits from classified briefings, twisting facts and at times telling blatant lies, they are committing a breach of the Official Secrets Act and can be tried in a court of law.

The writer is a retired Group Captain of PAF. He is a columnist, analyst and TV talk show host