Missing Good Faith Overtures
In the wake of the universal shock over the attacks on Mumbai, Pakistan's president sincerely and perhaps politically rashly promised India that Pakistan's ISI and its military would work hand in glove with the Indian government to reveal the attackers' identities and those for whom they acted. A pledge hastily revoked when President Asif Ali Zardari returned home to Pakistan and was confronted with the white-hot anger of his military and secret service chiefs.He is, after all, only the president of Pakistan, a figure of state, a puppet diplomat, not to be confused with the authority of those who wield real power.
As far as the military chief and that of ISI are concerned, India is their enemy and they will have no truck with forging an alliance for peace. Hindu-dominated India exists as a corrupting influence to the greater legitimacy of Muslim influence in the region, a provocation and insult to Islam.
India's resolve in holding on to geographic territories that Pakistan believes should rest with them will never reconcile her to Islamist Pakistan. That undeniable breeder of world-class jihadis, intent on their mission to Islamasize the the world at large for the triumph of a resurgent Caliphate.
Pakistan, claims its foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, is prepared for war against India. War if necessary, he expounded. But, on second thought, not necessarily war. The potential clash of two nuclear-armed neighbours sends shudders throughout the world.
"We want friendship, we want peace and we want stability - but our desire for peace should not be considered Pakistan's weakness", explained Mr. Qureshi. Fair enough, and well said, if representing an unnecessarily pugnacious response to India's reasonable request for extradition of Pakistan's murderous malefactors who conspired to assault Mumbai.
For their part, Indian police have identified and released the names of the nine terrorists whom they had killed in the three-day assault against Mumbai. A highly successful assault by any measure, whereby well-trained and -geared jihadists murdered with great discrimination, Hindus, Jews and foreigners in their gambit to greet their maker in Paradise, mission fulfilled.
In the process holding thousands of ill-armed Indian police and militia and secret agents at by for a frantic full three days, dispatching their hostages at leisure until they were themselves dispatched. The sole surviving attacker revealing identities, times and places of training.
In identifying the attackers as Pakistanis, and naming their home towns, official India also placed pressure on Pakistan to root out the hierarchy of its involved terror groups. Pakistan undertook to raid five known jihadi sites, taking prisoner high ranking men of terror-inspired distinction who had been allied with some elements of the Pakistan military and its ISI service.
The man considered to be the mastermind of the Mumbai attacks, among them. But Pakistan is firm that it will conduct its own internal investigation. It has no intention whatever in handing over to Indian authorities those whom they have taken into custody. Show them the proof of involvement, they iterate and reiterate.
And India reiterates its demand for the surrender of a previously-identified 20 terror suspects. "The arrests are being made for our own investigations. Even if allegations are proved against any suspect, he will not be handed over to India" assured Mr. Quershi. Sovereign Pakistan will look to its own devices, and India can bow out.
Practicalities intervene, in fact. How difficult to explain, how inconvenitnt it would be, to turn over the suspects in the certain knowledge of their involvement, and to have them scorn their Indian interrogators, informing them of their status in Pakistan as state-approved para-military entities, encouraged, aided, funded by an obliging Pakistan military and secret service.
Labels: Justice, Political Realities, Terrorism, World Crises
posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, December 10, 2008
<< Home