Fazlur Rehman’s embarrassing diplomatic foray
Maulana Fazlur Rehman is known for his penchant for power, political power that is. With his vast experience, he indeed is a force to reckon with. How he manages to stay in power, government after government is a trick all his own – switching alliances is the key for him, and principles be damned. Being swift at switches makes him an unpredictable and often embarrassing coalition partner. With his latest press briefing following a visit to Afghanistan, he has plumbed the depths.
By putting the onus on the present dispensation to work with the Afghan government, the Maulana has caused double embarrassment: to his present and previous partners. The wily Maulana wasn’t satisfied with this statement alone, which makes the PML-N led federal government appear lacking initiative or conviction to pursue the diplomatic course, he went a step further and thought his accomplishment over three-day visit trumped eight years of diplomatic efforts by the successive governments. His grandstanding though is damaging not only for his own credibility, which he seems not to care about too much, but also for his successive coalition partners. While it remains to be seen whether his claims are independently verifiable, it is indeed interesting, and worth looking into, that the Afghan president was quick in responding positively to a leader who openly supports the Taliban. His unverified claims also put the Nawaz government in a bit of a quandary. Going by Maulana’s word, the Afghan government was ready to release Pakistani prisoners in its jails and it was up to the Pakistani government to seek resolution. His claim, “because of weak diplomacy of respective Pakistan governments the Indian lobby had become strong and active in Afghanistan”, is damaging for the present government too. Again this is his word, and one does not know whether the gloating of a self-absorbed politician is twisting the facts and by how much, but one thing is obvious: the Maulana has by far outdone himself.
What mandate Maulana had to conduct discussions on diplomatic issues is not clear, but it is quite obvious that post his parleys he acted in a totally undiplomatic manner. Even if he was mandated to conduct these discussions, it would have been better if he had conveyed his accomplishment to his coalition partners in private before going public. By playing himself up, the Maulana has indeed put his coalition partners in an embarrassing situation.