Impetus for Pak Islamists to give up arms
Morsi came. No one protested. Rather he received a 21-gun salute and some tea time with President Asif Ali Zardari. And while here he also received an honorary doctorate in philosophy from National University of Science and Technology (NUST). The first elected Egyptian president, who has polarized many in his native Egypt for his right-wing leanings and closeness to the establishment, was received warmly in Pakistan. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry insisted that the visit is a “watershed and a landmark” in relations between the two countries and shall “give a new impetus to economic, trade and cultural relations.” It further said that “President Morsi’s decision to choose Pakistan as the first South Asian country for a bilateral visit manifests Egypt’s desire to add a new chapter to its bilateral ties with Pakistan.” Many in Pakistan keenly followed the happenings in Egypt as the former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was deposed and right-wing forces claimed it was an ‘Islamic wave’ that took him down. They claimed vindication when the Muslim Brotherhood candidate, Mohammad Morsi, was elected president. The closest parallel to the Muslim Brotherhood in Pakistan is the Jamaat-i-Islami and it found its inspiration in Morsi’s ability to take the reins. This meant there is much love for the current Egyptian president in Pakistan.
But what will the visit achieve tangibly? Perhaps very little on the front of trade and commerce, which would be Morsi’s priority in India with whom Egypt’s bilateral trade has gone up to $4.5 billion, up from $3.2 billion in the last year. Since Pakistan does not enjoy a similar trade relationship with Egypt, the benefits to Pakistan from the trip are more ‘symbolic.’ One of Pakistan’s greatest challenges is how to deal with two contradictory trends amongst those who wish to establish an Islamic system: some choose the democratic path while others have chosen militancy. The hope is to make the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and other such militant groups give up militancy, and see the benefits of taking the democratic route for pursuing their political ends. Morsi is an indicator to both that their struggle can bear fruit if their political work can develop stronger roots amongst people. The Muslim Brotherhood offers a successful marker of pursuing politics within the confines of the nation state for the right-wing.
Morsi, for good reasons at times has been bashed by the West, and is looking for support in the East. If Morsi manages to woo both Pakistan and India, his job will be done. But for Pakistan, the best case scenario is that a new relationship opens up in the Middle East and those who threaten its security today, see the light in pursuing the democratic path to change – be it Islamic or more development minded.
