US agression and ‘Honorable existence’!

United States-led NATO forces killed 15 tribesmen, including women and children, in it’s first-ever ground attack inside Pakistani territory on Wednesday. The US forces landed by 3 choppers inside Pakistani village of Musa Neeke in South Waziristan Agency (SWA).  The soldiers started indiscriminate firing with their automatic assault rifles at the sleeping inmates and shot dead nine family members of Faujan Wazir, including four women, two children and three men. The troops also killed another villager, Faiz Mohammad Wazir, his wife and two of his other family members.

 

Prime Minister of Pakistan and President has strongly condemned the unprovoked and cowardly act while the Senate, National Assembly and NWFP provincial assembly passed unanimous resolutions condemning the killing of innocent civilians and demanded the suspension of logistic support to US forces in Afghanistan. “We reserve the right of self-defence and retaliation to protect our citizens and soldiers against any aggression,” remarked Maj Murad, an ISPR officer based in Rawalpindi.

 

Meanwhile, NWFP Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani condemned the attack. “I have already raised the issue of repeated predator attacks by the coalition forces with the federal government,” the governor said, adding, “This is a direct assault on the sovereignty of Pakistan and the people expect that the armed forces of Pakistan would rise to defend the sovereignty of the country and give a befitting reply to all such attacks.” Such attacks, he added, hurt the pro-government and peaceful sentiments among the people of targeted areas.

 

Unfortunately, this is not the first attack on sovereignty of Pakistan, a key ally in war on terror, who has lost more troops since war began then the collective causalities suffered by US lead collation. Predator attacks by US lead forces were a common practice in Pervez Musharraff’s regime, which were mostly directed at innocent civilians. These unprovoked attacks on civilian population which have nothing to do with Taliban have badly hurt the pro-government sentiments in locals.

 

Continuous killing of innocent women and children by US lead forces serve no other purpose except breeding the sentiment of revenge in Tribal population. The family members of victim are later recruited as suicide bombers by US backed militants for attacks inside Pakistan. These suicide attackers have badly hurt the economy and investment climate in country. The foreign reserves are declining sharply and stock markets are heading nose down while foreign investment has come to a halt.

 

Not a single attack was directed at Baitullah Mehsud and his militants who are responsible for every suicide bombing inside Pakistan, despite the fact that Pakistani agenies provided details of his exect location to US lead collation, rather they are being facilitated by Kabul based US-India nexus. Ther previous dictatorial regime never raised a voice on this issue in fear of loosing US support. Not a surprise, the timing of this attack is when the presidential election is just two days away which will complete the democratic process. This is first ever land attack on Pakistani soil after newly elected government launched a full scale operation against US backed militant groups.

 

After presidential election, Pakistan seriously needs to re-consider her foreign policy and role in war against terror. US is encircling Pakistan from several fronts, through facilitating the militants by providing them local support against government and at the same time pushing her in to economic collapse with suicide attacks from Kabul based militants. If the present situation continues, there is going to be no alternate then a direct conflict, but by that time, Pakistan will loose too much in terms of economy and support of local population.

 

There is no reason for avoiding inevitable, if it’s going to be a direct conflict then let it be on your timing rather then playing on enemy ground and becoming a victim of delay. The newly elected government will have to choose from dying in installments and facing inevitable. In present situation war with Pakistan will be a costly bid for US, as she is not yet out of Iraq mess and her presidential elections are scheduled later this year.
 

At this point of time an immediate suspension of logistic support from Pakistan to US forces in Afghanistan might serve the purpose, leaving two enemies of Pakistan, Al-Qaida and US, to decide each others fate. Obviously, Pakistan will have to pay the price of such decision in economic terms; US will use every measure to hurt Pakistan’s trade and investment. This nation has survived the US sanctions and tough times before and is still capable of facing any challenge posed to our sovereignty. The only thing we need is a will of leadership to take tough decisions and protect our borders and innocent women and children.

 

After today’s cowardly attacks on Pakistani soil, government and armed forces have taken a serious note and all political parties have shown maturity by unanimously announcing support for government against any foreign aggression or internal conspiracies. If the newly elected President comes clear and asks the support of nation, there must be no doubt that people will stand with government facing any tough time ahead with courage. This seems to be only way for an honorable existence and is much better then humiliating attacks on our land and collecting dead bodies of our women and children.

The victory of ‘US lead war against terror’: over US judicial system and human rights

A United States court Thursday found American-educated Pakistani doctor Aafia Siddiqi guilty on charges to attack U.S army in Afghanistan as a member of Al-Qaeda, said a statement released from US court. This statement is a declaration of the first defeat of United States judicial system in so-called war on terror.  Although, many of the citizens of civilized world and United States might not consider it of any importance, as, this is a case of a lady from third world country, who is accused of being related to terrorists.

 

 

 

Dr. Afia Siddiqui, a PhD degree holder, was arrested by Pakistani intelligence agencies while on her way to the Rawalpindi airport and she was later handed over to the American Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). At the time of her arrest she was 30 years and accompanied by her three sons the oldest of which was four and the youngest only one month.

 

On December 30, 2003 Dr. Fowzia Siddiqui, Dr. Afia’s elder sister met with Mr. Faisal Saleh Hayat (the then minister of interior) at Islamabad with Mr. Ejazul Haq, MNA, regarding the whereabouts of Dr. Afia. Mr. Faisal told Dr. Fowzia and Mr. Ejazul Haq that according to his information Dr. Afia Siddiqui had already been released by ISI and that she (Dr. Fowzia) should go home and wait for a phone call from her sister. Later, the Minister of interior confirmed her arrest on terrorism charges during his interview with a local weekly, “You will be astonished to know about the activities of Dr. Afia” the Minister claimed.

 

In 2004, Britain’s Lord Nazeer Ahmed, (of the House of Lords), asked questions in the House about the condition of Prisoner 650 in Bagram detention facility under US control, who, according to him is physically tortured and continuously raped by the officers at prison. Lord Nazeer has also submitted that Prisoner 650 has no separate toilet facilities and has to attend to her bathing and movements in full view of the other prisoners.

 

The detention of Dr. Afia was later confirmed by a Pakistani, Mr. Moazzam Begg (a former Guantanamo Bay detainee), who was arrested from Islamabad by ISI and later handed over to FBI. He recounted his experience during his detention in Bagram, Afghanistan including the details about the treatment of Dr. Afia and her childern in his book ‘Enemy Combatant’ , after his release in year 2005, when he was found innocent, after several years of torture and illegal detention by US forces.

 

After reading Mr. Begg’s book, a British journalist, Yvonne Ridley, decided to find further details about the ’Prisoner 650’ and visited Bagram and later called for help in a press conference on July 6, 2008, for a Pakistani woman. “I call her the ‘grey lady’ because she is almost a ghost, a specter whose cries and screams continues to haunt those who heard her,” Ms Ridley said at a press conference in Pakistan, which leads to the country wide protests against United States.

 

Several online petitions were signed (much earlier before date of  her alledged arrest in Afghanistan) by thousands of concerned Pakistan’s and International Human Rights Organizations, and sent to US and UNO officials demanding the release of Dr. Afia from US custody, months before  when US forces announced her arrest in Afghanistan on July 17th 2008 .  ”Siddiqui, 36, was arrested outside the governor’s office inAfghanistan’s Ghazni province on July 17, 2008 after police searched her handbag and found documents on making explosives, excerpts from the book “Anarchist’s Arsenal” and descriptions of New York City landmarks, federal prosecutors said in a statement.

 

Mr. Aitzaz Ahsan, President of Supreme Court Bar Association of Pakistan, one of the leading intellectuals and human rights defenders in Asia, a nominee for UN award for Human Rights and recipient of Asian Human Rights award, declared Dr. Afia Siddiqui’s case as “a test for US judicial system” on his return from US after attending the proceedings against her in the US court.

 

However, the US judicial system, failed the test against the expectations of Human Rights defenders and plethora of evidence for her innocence.  Against the plea of Dr. Afia’s council, “We do know she was at Bagram for a long time. It was a long time. According to my client she was there for years and she was held in American custody; her treatment was horrendous”. The court charged a weak and badly wounded lady, to face trial for assault on highly trained and strong male US marines, while trying to snatch their weapons.

 

“What a mockery that after five years’ detention Afia is suddenly discovered in Afghanistan,” said Dr Fauzia Siddiqui, the missing woman’s younger sister, at a press conference in Karachi. While her minor children are still in illegal custody of US forces in Afghanistan, as per the recent admission of US authorities, one might wonder, why a terrorist lady planning an attack on US forces on foreign land was accompanied by her minor children, but certainly, it’s not important for a court working on principle of national security rather then rule of law.

 

Based on few of the facts of Afia’s case stated above (not all in the particular case), any person of average understanding will reach the conclusion that she is a victim of ‘state apparatus’, not a terrorist. Despite her illegal detention for several years, not a single piece of evidence was brought against her connecting her to any terrorist activity. However, only on immense international pressure by media and Human Rights organizations, she was produced before a court. The crime of her illegal detention is being covered with a concocted story and US court has provided an escape to the criminals, who illegally detained and tortured her for six long years

 

If we look in to history of third world states which are facing poverty, higher crime rates and terrorism, we will find that at some stage in past, the ‘state’ become victorious over judicial system, leading in to a process of judicial degeneration and social destruction. Similar, to the case of Pakistan, since we went under dictatorship; our judicial system was sacrificed for ‘broader national interests’ to state apparatus.

 

This is the first victory of ‘US lead war against terror’ over US judicial system and human rights. The defeat of helpless and weak lady who is a victim of cruelty of Pakistani and US agencies will open doors for further sacrifice of US judicial system over ‘national interests’, leading the world military and economic might to the path of self destruction. Similar, to what we did, back in history by making our judicial system a slave to powerful agencies. But, a simple difference is that while we are working to achieve the ‘rule of law’ the people of United States have just entered in process of ‘judicial degeneration’. We, the people of nations oppressed by US backed dictators, sympathetically, welcome the people of US, a champion of human rights and rule of law, to join the club of nations where judiciary is overpowered for ‘national interests’ by state and agencies.