Army defiant despite Pakistan's divide
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - General Ashfaq Parvez Kiani, within days of taking over as chief of
army staff from General Pervez Musharraf, who is now Pakistan's civilian
president, is expected to reshuffle his top brass, including the five
corps commanders and head of military intelligence.
The message coming from army headquarters in Rawalpindi is that while
politically the country will attempt to institute a "liberal democracy"
following national elections next month, the fight
against the Taliban and al-Qaeda will be orchestrated by the Pakistani Army in
direct coordination with Washington.
Contacts tell Asia Times Online that sector commanders of the powerful
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in the country's four provinces will also be
changed. In September and October, Musharraf made sweeping changes to his top
cadre, so it is clear Kiani is building a new team of his own. Kiani himself
was made a full general in Musharraf's reshuffle, as was Tariq Majeed, who was
made chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.
On the political front, a major opposition alliance, the All Parties Democratic
Movement, said on Thursday it had decided in principle to boycott the January 8
parliamentary elections. Its prominent parties include the Pakistan Muslim
League, led by former premier Nawaz Sharif (recently returned from exile), the
Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan and the Tehrik-i-Insaaf, led by
cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan.
This move shows the sharp division that has emerged in Pakistan. The above
parties have now distanced themselves from Islamabad's link to Washington in
the "war on terror".
Those backing this nexus now include Musharraf's ruling Pakistan Muslim League
Quaid-i-Azam; the Pakistan People's Party led by Benazir Bhutto; former
pro-Taliban cleric and former leader of opposition in Parliament, Maulana
Fazlur Rahman and his Jamiat-i-Ulema-i-Islam; and the sub-nationalist Pashtun
Awami National Party led by Isfandiyar Wali. Also in this bloc are the
Muttehida Qaumi Movement and the Pakistan People's Party (Patriot group).
Bhutto further emphasized this division by meeting with Musharraf on Thursday.
The realignments in the army and on the political landscape will have a direct
bearing on how Pakistan proceeds at a strategic level. In theory, broader
policy matters have to be approved by the National Security Council headed by
Musharraf, but in fact the chief of army staff - Kiani - will make the
decisions.
Kiani, incidentally, was not Musharraf's first choice. Insiders tell Asia Times
Online that Majeed was preferred. His new position as chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff Committee is ceremonial. Washington fancied Kiani, the former
director general of the ISI, in which position he had extensive interaction
with politicians and foreign intelligence agencies.
Kiani took over the entire operations of the "war on terror" in October when he
was promoted to vice chief of army staff, which coincided with Pakistan raising
the level of its operations against militants in the Waziristan tribal areas.
F-16 fighter aircraft were used to bomb suspected al-Qaeda and Taliban
sanctuaries. The entire town of Mir Ali in North Waziristan was cleared, with
most of its residents leaving for Bannu, Peshawar and Dera Ismail Khan in
North-West Frontier Province (NWFP).
The present operations in the Swat Valley in NWFP are another example of
aggressive military tactics under Kiani. The valley is not a tribal area and
comprises settled districts that have fallen under control of renegade
militants led by Maulana Fazlullah, a self-proclaimed Pakistani Taliban leader.
The army used heavy artillery and gunship helicopters to bomb the positions of
Pakistani militants and civilian casualties were reported.
Fighters loyal to Fazlullah tried to test Kiani this week by announcing a
ceasefire and sending a message to the army that since Musharraf had gone, they
wanted to give peace a chance.
Kiani's answer was swift. He sent the army into positions abandoned by the
militants and even into urban areas in the valley. Kiani seems to be in no mood
to show any sympathy towards the militancy and has threatened to bomb any
suspected hideouts without first trying to negotiate a truce with tribal
elders, as was the case under Musharraf.
The immediate post-military rule period after eight years of Musharraf has
clearly thrown up stark political divisions, but at the strategic level (that
is Kiani) it guarantees Pakistan's smooth relations with Washington.
Syed Saleem Shahzad is Asia Times Online's Pakistan Bureau Chief. He can
be reached at saleem_shahzad2002@yahoo.com
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