By Prof Dr. Muhammad
Hafeez
Reportedly, a bill is
being tabled by a PPP Senator in the Senate of Pakistan to constrain the
legal/constitutional status of the ISI (Inter-services Intelligence Agency).
Such attempts had failed in the past and Pakistani public must understand the
intricacies of such moves/intentions particularly in the context of ongoing war
on terror.
War on terror is a “war
of hearts and minds” as said by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. In
other words, it is a psycho-social war to transform the attitudes, minds, and
social values of people across nations. In such a war, intelligence agencies
have become increasingly important; and the ISI is no exception. It has a very
important role to safeguards the interests of Pakistan in short, medium, and
long terms.
The ISI is a
well-respected organization and has been ranked first among the top ten secret
agencies of the world in the recent past. The American CIA has been rated
number two in the hierarchy of important agencies of the world. The question
arises why has the Pakistani agency been the top agency of the world?
On November 8, 2012, the
then CIA Chief, General David Petreaus resigned apparently on account of a sex
scandal with his mistress Paula Broadwell. She was promoted to the rank of a Lt
Colonel in American army at that time; and has written a book on Gen Petreaus
(All In: The Education of General David Petreaus).
Due to the alleged sex
scandal and her role about divulging sensitive information, her promotion in
the army was stalled. She is presently living with her family in Charlotte, NC,
USA and is trying to reconcile with her scandalous past.
While resigning, General
Petreaus said that that he was married for 37 years and held a responsible
position; and on account of that he had decided to resign from his position as
the Chief of CIA. While reading this explanation by the General in 2012, I was
surprised as such sexual matters remain a sort of social norm in American
society.
On January 6, 2015, New
York Times reported that Feds recommended charges against General Petreaus.
While learning this development, it occurred to me that his resignation alluded
to something deeper than just a sex scandal; and I thought there must be
something serious behind the indictment. The development of the story suggested
that the indictment of General Petreaus might have links with covert operations
in Afghanistan and Pakistan. These findings indicated the complexities of the
War on Terror and we must be careful to make comments on the work of different
security agencies in Pakistan.
Accordingly, the Senate
of Pakistan is advised that it should recognize the importance of security
institutions in local, national, and international perspectives in the frame of
continuing war on terror. The Senators and members of parliament should
understand global and regional connections with Pakistan’s survival and growth
strategies/priorities. The political parties and relevant individuals should
move away from party/personal interests and promote the confidence of
Pakistan’s security apparatus.
To conclude, we must
gain confidence as a nation and in its bright future as we have survived
through a long war on terror since the events of 9/11. We know that several
countries including Libya, Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan have been destroyed while
Pakistan did not suffer that much. We should be proud of Pakistani nation and
its armed forces, particularly the ISI (the eyes and ears of Pakistani armed
forces). We are fighting this complex war on terror and I am certain that a
prosperous future of this nation is around the corner. Long live Pakistan.
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