Dr Hasan Askari in his article “Redefining civil-military ties” has rightly suggested to redefine the civil-military ties but at the same time has expressed his apprehensions that in view of the divergent views of major political parties this appears to be a difficult task. I agree that two odd incidents and criticism on the armed forces cannot bridge the gap between civil and military leaderships. The basic point to understand is that army has dominated the country’s politics for a decade not by force but by choice. When they were not ruling even then they were calling shots.
Under the prevailing conditions it is not possible to change status quo until and unless some revolutionary steps are taken. How can you redefine the civil-military relations when parties are divided on basic issue whether it is our war or the US war. We must not forget conspiracies hatched against Pakistan are meant to further divide an already divided nation.
Political leadership must wake up to the ground realities and stop fooling people. It was hoped that after two major tragedies politicians would unite and give line of direction to the armed forces but it appears lesson has not been learnt and they would prefer pulling each others’ legs.
The government must react quickly and establish think tank to guide them in all policy matters. We must understand that our image and credibility as a nation has been damaged greatly and people are eagerly watching the developments. Parliament has already passed resolution on drone attacks; it must be implemented. Let us be more careful.
LT COL (Retd) MUKHTAR A BUTT
Karachi
