ISLAMABAD: As Pakistan’s decision-makers get into a huddle to deal with the impact of WikiLeaks, neither the politicians nor the army high command is under any illusion that limiting the damage caused by US embassy diplomatic cables would be an easy task.
A range of background interviews with the members of politico-military establishment indicate a growing anxiety over the trove of classified information that has come out. The primary concern is the possibility of further loss of trust among the three pillars of the system: the government (read presidency); the opposition; and the army, including the ISI.
Political sources privy to the preparations for the Defence Committee of the Cabinet cite half a dozen meetings aside from telephonic conversations between representatives of the army, the Pakistan foreign office, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani.
“These conversations went deep into the night as we all pored over the damaging material that has now become the most favourite topic of debate. Most of us are concerned that the attributed remarks (of President Asif Ali Zardari about his personal safety) and insinuations (about General Kayani’s growing political role) might poison even routine functioning of the system,” said one highly-placed government source.
“All three of them (the president, the prime minister and the chief of the army staff) have since then been in regular touch and every time a new cable is leaked or makes headlines a call is made to coordinate notes,” said the same source.
This highly-unusual hot-line arrangement is indicative of how seriously the threat of released information is being taken at the highest level.
Pakistan Muslim League-N sources also say that Mian Shahbaz Sharif has had more than one telephonic conversations with the chief of army staff and is also “engaging with the prime minister”.
“We see this as a national issue, and the way the information has been handled and reported (in the leaked documents) is lethal for the relationship among the main personalities who are responsible for running the country. How can we work together if we begin to believe that this side is always working to undermine the other side,” said a source close to Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
The second concern that is forcing this sober analysis of the situation is fear that after WikiLeaks the already dented public image of the country’s leaders now lies in tatters and rags.
In the light of the WikiLeaks information, almost everyone looks like ingratiating himself with the Americans, whose then hyper ambassador Anne Patterson, was given a red-carpet reception by everyone.
For parties like the PML-N, which always accused the People’s Party of pawning the country’s sovereignty for US support, being described as pro-American is politically costly. No less problematic is the situation for Prime Minister Gilani and President Zardari. They come across as weaklings who would want to “consult with the US” for everything, including indulging in doublespeak with parliament over the issue of drone attacks.
No less problematic is the situation for General Kayani, whose carefully nurtured image of a politically-neutral commander who could say no to the US is now getting a drubbing at the hands of critics.
“Whose hands does it strengthen? Of course of the right-wingers, whose rhetoric about the entire ruling class being corrupt and sold out to the US now got new life,” said a People’s Party member who has prepared a list of suggestions to be given to the prime minister on how to react in public on the issue of WikiLeaks.
“If everyone is corrupt and powerless, then the only alternative is to invite extremist forces,” he said.
Yet another concern over the leaked cables is that the national uproar, fuelled by endless discussions in newspaper columns and more significantly in television talk shows, has begun to reinforce the country’s image as a broken, satellite state where every foreign power has decisive influence in one respect or the other.
“It is one thing for a foreign diplomat to say that we are not ‘observers’ but ‘participants’ in Pakistan, but it is a matter of immense national dishonour when our people also begin to believe the same thing,” said a senior military commander.
“If this belief prevails we will all lose faith in our ability to change our conditions and will be permanently hooked on to the foreign support for making our decisions – now and in the days to come,” he said.
Beneath this fear of public losing the faith that it controls its own destiny lurks a more mundane but equally potent concern in the top-brass: After the leaks every move they make on the counter-terrorism front would be seen as “foreign sponsored”, undermining a slipping public consensus that fighting extremism is really in Pakistan’s own interest.
“Our success in combating terrorists in Swat was based on the public belief that this was necessary to restore sanity and balance in our system and to allow people to live according to their own will. If the Swat operation had even a suggestion of US sanction or involvement, the public sentiment would have stayed behind the Taliban and we would not have succeeded,” said the commander.
He then gave the punchline: “After WikiLeaks even the most forceful argument that Pakistan is fighting its own war looks shady. Everyone is out there questioning intentions and purposes of all that happens at the highest level of decision making. Now that is a real national crisis.”
Few would disagree.
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