The binding force

Strengthening civilian government is what the army should do

While meeting Gen Raheel Sharif last week, Secretary John Kerry described Pakistan’s armed forces as a binding force. On Wednesday the State Department spokesperson was at pains to explain that there was no hidden motive behind the army chief extending his visit to the US. At NATO HQs the same day, Secretary Kerry told that Gen Sharif had already met President Ashraf Ghani and both felt there was a new set of possibilities which could transform Pak-Afghan relations. There was no mention of the importance of the meeting between PM Nawaz Sharif and President Ghani in London the next day.

For the US it seems more practical to approach the army directly on a number of issues including Pak-Afghan relations and terrorism. They know that while the civilian government wavered for months regarding military operation, the army initiated it at a signal from its chief. The civilian government simply went along the decision. The government still continues to delay decisions on vial issues till the SC has to issue warning that it would have to call the Prime Minister if no action was taken by a certain date.

The indecisiveness encourages other government departments and state institutions to occupy the government’s turf. The extraneous intervention however weakens the civilian government. No foreign based Baloch separatist leader is willing to talk to Dr Abdul Malik as he has himself conceded. They would readily talk to the army because they think the army has the final say on issues related to Balochistan.

The army needs to realise that it is in the vital interests of national security to strengthen the civilian government. As a prominent speaker pointed out at IDEAS 2014 seminar, Pakistan’s principal challenge lay within — defeating militancy and extremism, reviving the economy, resolving the energy crisis, and training the burgeoning youth to avert a looming demographic disaster. These tasks need strong civilian structures and much larger diversion of funds to the social sector. The security and defence of the county are intertwined with strengthening the elected governments.