CAMPAIGN OF CALUMNY

Isolated on the world stage, Pakistan is now playing up the Kashmir card against India — but with little impact

Notwithstanding the absurdity of a country like Pakistan — where large-scale human rights abuses are carried out on a daily basis with state sanction, where the state uses terrorism as legitimate tool of its foreign and security policies — outraging over the unrest in Kashmir, our neighbour's painstaking efforts to get the world to chide India for the loss of lives in the valley in effect actually exposes its own fears and weaknesses. It is no coincidence that Pakistan's global campaign to highlight what it perceives as Indian atrocities in Kashmir comes at a time when it itself has been isolated on the international stage. Considered to be virtually a failed state, a hub for jihadi terror, and a serious threat to regional peace, Pakistan has few friends, and is faced with a growing list of powerful nations that have little patience for its shenanigans. Cornered and isolated, Pakistan's easiest option to get some traction globally is to play up the Kashmir card, no matter the latter's diminishing value.

And so it is that the Government of Pakistan commemorated Wednesday, July 20, as a Black Day to draw attention to the July 8 killing of the Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani and express solidarity with the people of the valley. The event was officially proposed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who described the operative of a designated terror group as a martyr of the Kashmiri independence movement, at a Cabinet meeting held last week specifically to discuss the situation in Kashmir. It was followed up with some enthusiasm by the Pakistani foreign office which took its India sob story to all and sundry.

It worked particularly hard at the UN, where letters were sent to senior officials and briefings conducted over supposed human rights violations in the valley. Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the UN Maleeha Lodhi sought to underline her Government's “serious concern at the alarming situation” and draw attention to the “brutal killings of innocent civilians and grave violations of the fundamental human rights of the Kashmiris by the Indian occupation forces.” Her efforts went down the drains though as India's Permanent Representative to the UN Syed Akbaruddin slammed Pakistan as the country that “covets the territory of others, a country that uses terrorism as state policy, a country that extols the virtues of terrorists and provides sanctuary to UN-designated terrorists and a country that masquerades its efforts as support for human rights and self-determination.” He also underlined that Pakistan's “track record” on human rights was such that it couldn't even get elected to the UN Human Rights Council, where even Saudi Arabia, with its stone age practices of torture and beheadings, has a seat. The only international outfit that gave Pakistan any attention was, expectedly, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, a grouping of mostly Arab countries of the Muslim world. And it too just issued a template response deploring the use of excessive force by the Indian military and para-military forces.

In terms of major powers, the US has effectively ignored Pakistan's efforts. It has only reiterated its standard line (which reflects India's position) that Kashmir is a bilateral issue that needs to be resolved between India and Pakistan. Other than that, it has refused to be drawn into Pakistan's game and has made no comments on the violence in the valley. Pakistan's other ally and all-weather friend China has also issued a similarly anodyne statement that it is “concerned about the casualties in the clash”, and hopes that “relevant incidents will be handled properly”, adding only that “Kashmir is a leftover from history and relevant parties should address the issue peacefully through dialogue”.

And if all of this wasn't enough, the July 20 itself was a big failure as not only the Pakistani public but even Government officials, who were supposed to be sporting black bands while on duty, seemed least interested. No major demonstrations or protest marches were reported at foreign missions abroad and at home even Prime Minister Sharif didn't make a public appearance (he supposedly took a sick day). The party, the ruling PML-N, organised no rallies in major cities like Karachi and Islamabad. In Lahore, it had a small event which, PTI reported, was poorly attended. Clearly, it had no intention of being at the forefront of this movement (though it did pay for TV advertisements that ran all day).

The only ones who, in a sense, saved the day for the Pakistani Government was 26/11 terror mastermind Hafiz Saeed and his Jammat ud Dawa'ah while took out rallies in Multan, Bahawalpur and Faisalabad. They also organised an all-party conference in Lahore, and led a ‘Kashmir Caravan' that journeyed from Lahore to Islamabad in 24 hours. Hafiz Saeed was joined in his efforts by Hizbul Mujahideen chief Syed Salahuddin and Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Azhar Masood. Not only does this speak volumes about the hollowness of Pakistan's campaign but more importantly gives credence to recent reports that the current wave of unrest in the valley has been largely manufactured across the border (even though it may seem like home-grown dissent with Burhan Wani being propped a local hero who embodied the fears and anxieties of the average Kashmiri).

The question then is: Why, after a period of relative quiet, has Pakistan now ramped up its efforts in Kashmir? There are a couple of reasons for this: First, as explained earlier, Pakistan has been completely isolated on the world stage. And so it is desperately trying to get some attention by India-bashing. Presumably, Pakistani officials can clearly see that this strategy is a non-starter but they are desperate and have few other options. Second, Pakistan's domestic political scenario remains a mess. An ailing Prime Minister Sharif is seen as incapable of delivering the goodies, while there have been suspicious calls for the military to take over already (in the form of large banners that lined Pakistani cities). Army chief Raheel Sharif has said that he won't be seeking an extension when his term ends but he remains quite popular with the masses especially after Zarb-e-Azb which the military has sold to the people as a hugely successful counter-terrorism operation.