The two principal characters in the memo scandal, former US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mullen and ex-National Security Advisor General Jim Jones, having confirmed its existence, the focus since has shifted to its alleged author and mover, Ambassador Hussain Haqqani and American businessman Mansoor Ijaz. The fight now is between Haqqani - by extension his boss in Islamabad - and Ijaz.
The former of course denies he had anything to do with the memo while the latter insists it came from Haqqani who, he says, actually dictated the text to him by phone. The ambassador has resigned after closed-door meetings with civilian and military leadership. He has a lot more at stake than his job. The businessman is worried about losing credibility and, hence, his ambition to act as a reliable go-between for Washington. Notably, this was not the first time that he had involved himself in another country's affairs. He has been meddling around in Somalia and Kashmir before. The man may have dubious credentials, but he would not have moved something in the present case unless it was backed by some solid commitments.
Stepping out to defend her husband and the PPP government she serves as an MNA and media adviser to the president, Frahnaz Ispahani has said that the couple would sue Ijaz for "falsely implicating" her husband, ie, if the PPP government so permits. Given the gravity of the case, anyone in a similar situation would be eager to clear their name without any ifs and buts. They'd better do it sooner rather than later.
Meanwhile, the now ex-ambassador's sympathisers have been trying to change the colour and context of the controversy surrounding the memo. Resorting to an 'even if' argument, they portray it as a military versus civilian government issue. An elected government is being held accountable by military, they say, whereas elected civilians rather than the military should be defining the "national interest". On the face of it, the argument has a lot of merit. Indeed, it is for the elected representatives of the people to determine the national interest and act accordingly. Military has no business pointing fingers at a civilian government for its decisions or indecisions.
That said, it is not enough to have an elected government in place for a democracy to be seen as truly functional. The system of checks and balances has to be equally strong, parliament fully empowered, and verdicts of the third organ of the state, judiciary, accorded due respect. Sadly, these necessary conditions are almost non-existent at present.
We have a parliamentary form of government, yet executive power is exercised by the president rather than the prime minister, and he has made it a habit to disregard judicial verdicts and bypass Parliament, consigning its resolutions on vital matters of war and peace to the waste basket. That has eroded the government's moral authority as the guardian of national interest, thereby weakening the democratic system, which encourages the military to interfere in affairs that belong in the civilian domain.
The memo is not just about reining in the military. It covers several sensitive national security-related areas promising to pursue a policy that, among other things, gives a "carte blanche guarantee" to US military forces "to conduct the necessary operations to capture or kill them [Ayman Al Zawahiri, Mullah Omar, and Sirajuddin Haqqani] on Pakistani soil"; to develop "an acceptable framework of discipline for the nuclear programme"; to tell Pakistan to cooperate fully with the Indian government "on bringing all perpetrators of Pakistani origin to account for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, whether inside or outside its intelligence agencies."
That would "include handing over those against whom sufficient evidence exists of guilt to the Indian security services." We, on our own, may need to cooperate with India to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice. But guaranteeing a "carte blanche" to American forces to operate at will on our soil, control our nuclear programme, and surrender intelligence officers to India are things no sovereign nation worth its name can imagine doing. It is unthinkable, for instance, that India would hand over to Pakistan the perpetrators of the 2007 arson attack, led by a serving Indian Army officer, on a Pakistan-bound train, Samjhota Express, that left at least 66 innocent people, including small children, burnt to death.
Admittedly, it is not unusual for the US to openly ask Pakistan to act on any of the preceding issues. What makes the memo incendiary is that it invites the US to run this country in whichever manner it likes. Consider the following proposal: Washington willing, its political/military backing would result in a revamp of the civilian government "in a wholesale manner" which would include replacing the existing national security officials with "trusted advisers that include ex military and civilian leaders favourably viewed by Washington, each of whom have long and historical ties to the US military, political and intelligence communities." Furthermore, it suggests reordering Pakistan's relations with Afghanistan and India with "US assistance to help us pigeon-hole the forces lined up against your [US'] interests and ours, including containment of certain elements inside our country that require appropriate re-sets and re-tasking in terms of direction and extent of responsibility after the UBL affair." In short, if those who authored the memo or okayed it had their way, Pakistan for all practical purposes was to become an American colony run by a servile bunch of the Empire's loyalists.
Forget what the military wants and does, no self-respecting political leader would even want to hear any of these offers. In fact, the two-time former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, who is a staunch critic of military intervention in civilian affairs, has come out strongly to demand accountability of all allegedly involved in the memo scandal. The civilian and the military leadership may find it prudent to hush up things for now. But that won't be possible.
The issue has generated huge media hype. Equally important, the PML-N is determined not to let that happen. Nawaz Sharif gave a 10-day deadline on Sunday for the government to appoint an independent commission to probe the scandal, failing which he would go to the Supreme Court. The party has already prepared a petition. The final act, it seems, is not going to look pretty for anyone involved in the alleged framing and approval of the infamous memo on the Pakistani side.
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