Nawaz's compounding of his folly

The Frontier Post

Had he had to compound his folly? In itself, Mian Nawaz Sharif's foolish call for unilateral withdrawal by Pakistan from the Siachen glacier was a stunning absurdity. It had left the nation utterly aghast and bewildered, and may have embarrassed even the few sensible people in his own party. But was that not enough of it that he had also to mix up his folly with an astounding naivety? He says if Pakistan pulls out from the glacier, India too would follow suit. Really? If indeed it is that simple, why didn't he pull out the troops from there during his two stints of the prime ministership and lay to the grave for good this imbroglio that has cost so many precious lives and so much treasure to us, though no lesser to India? And by his own same logic, couldn't he unilaterally withdraw troops from Azad Kashmir as well that would have led up to the occupied Kashmir's vacation by India, which if nothing else would have at least saved the Kashmiris from the continuing brutalisation by a trigger-happy Indian military, which has inflicted untold atrocities on them to quell their indigenous uprising for freedom? He says even the army chief has endorsed his views on the issue. But General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has spoken very sensibly. He has not talked of any unilateral pullout. He has spoken of the glacier's demilitarisation through negotiations, which in any case are on since long futilely, primarily for the obduracy of the Indian military establishment. Nonetheless, no lesser is despicable the perfidy with which the Indian officialdom and our own palmed-off galaxy of commentariat and chattering classes have received the general's statement and are playing it out to their own end. Both are feigning as if this is some sort of a unique statement, representing some kind of a change in the stance of the Pakistan military, whereas our military establishment has throughout been on board for a negotiated settlement of the issue. Yet the thrust of their discourse is more than obvious: it is to hold the Pakistan military responsible for the continuing tiff over the demilitarisation of the glacier. But the spoiler in reality is none else but the Indian military establishment which wants the settlement to be wholly on its own terms and conditions. Almost a dozen rounds of talks have gone through over the issue. But a settlement remains elusive for the Indian military's adamancy alone. It doesn't want to vacate certain top peaks and air force facilities in any settlement, and wants its 1984 aggression on the glacier to be represented in bold ink on the map too. But why is Nawaz so resolved to get on this deeply-wronged harried nation's nerves with his one stupidity after the other in endless succession, with no contrition or remorse? When a true leader commits a folly, he shows the great grit to confess his mistake and say sorry for it. A lesser leader lets his folly pass, keeps his mouth shut, hoping it would pass away undamagingly and vowing in his heart never ever again to commit such blunder. But then Nawaz is no leader in the real sense. He is the product of a conspiracy of circumstances that has catapulted him to where he is, not befittingly. Still, he can afford some sense of shame. He must not drag on his initial sin to the nation, by compounding his stupidity by piling folly upon folly. He cannot imagine with his foolish call how potent a handle has he put in the hands of the Indians to beat Pakistan with over the Siachen issue. The poor Pakistani negotiators will feel its hurt to their great grief when they meet their Indian interlocutors to talk the Siachen imbroglio's settlement. Let there be no doubt about it, such a cruel cut has Nawaz imparted to this wretched nation with his unpardonable stupidity. It is not an ostentatious bravado he should now put on display to wash off the embarrassment of talking an utter nonsense. It is the repentance that he must show to clean the slur on his face for being so sinful to the nation's cause.