Work it out

Right and wrong

Cut off our aid at your own risk. It would be hard for the Americans not to classify this line of argument as anything but cheeky. But that is what the government conveyed to a US delegation the other day. The move would “send a negative signal to the public about the commitment of the US government towards the people of Pakistan.” That it would. Truthfully speaking, however, the US representatives could have just as easily turned around and said a negative signal is sent to the people of Pakistan even when the US does dole out aid. The Kerry Lugar Bill, after all, represented a huge investment at a time of great fiscal constraint. However, in light of previous mistakes, the bill strove for ensuring the money fell into the right hands. Madness ensued.

The US does have its sins to atone for. As the president reminded the delegation, the very mujahideen whose offshoots are now destabilising the country were once compared to George Washington and the other American founding fathers. A zealot military dictator was supported in suppressing liberal forces in the country. One who planted the dragon’s teeth networks of seminaries and militant religious outfits. US now expects instantaneous results in the pursuit of a newer paradigm.

At the end of the day, however, our need is greater. Out of the many insulting epithets regarding Pakistan, the most insulting has been that of the drunk with the car keys. Most insulting because it has a measure of truth in it. Channelising our weakness into a strength, we ask the world to imagine the dreadful situation of a state collapse in Pakistan. A nuclear-armed state going kaput is the sum of all fears for all those who study this region. Are we as Pakistanis really satisfied in exploiting that situation indefinitely? Is that the life we want for our citizens?