Pakistani 'mercenaries' being sent to Syria?

Senator Afrasiab Khattak of Awami National Party (ANP) on Friday made shocking revelations on the floor of Senate that Pakistani labourers working in the Gulf are being sent to Syria as mercenaries to fight against the Syrian government. Speaking on a point of order, he said Pakistani labourers in the Gulf are being exploited by their Saudi sponsors and being sent to Syria to fight along with insurgents in order to topple Bashar al-Assad's regime.

He said the government should ensure its citizens working in the Gulf must not indulge themselves in such activities as it would tarnish the image of the country in the comity of nations. At the same time, the opposition lawmakers in Senate called upon the government to review its foreign policy by breaking the alleged links with militant groups in Afghanistan.

The senators said in the last two years, the region witnessed some major changes as new governments took over in Pakistan, Iran, and China while the process of elections was almost completed in Afghanistan; and elections were under way in India. They maintained that the situation therefore required Pakistan to formulate its foreign policy mindfully, focusing on regional peace and stability especially in neighbouring Afghanistan.

Opposition senators were expressing their views during a debate in Senate on a motion on foreign policy moved by Senator Raza Rabbani of Pakistan People's Party (PPP). They called for ending 'duplicity' in foreign policy formulations and stressed the need to retrieve the ground lost by civilians to the security establishment over the past decades. The senators called for a serious rethink of policy formulation in light of emerging realities as a result of political transitions.

According to Senator Farhatullah Babar, the basis of foreign policy formulation has been laid out in Article 40 of the Constitution of Pakistan. Reading out Article 40, he said that "if we have to adhere to them we must break alleged links with any Afghan insurgents and stop the ability of Afghan fighters to seek refuge in Pakistan." He added: "a stable and democratic civilian government leading foreign policy formulations would be welcomed by all parties, as compared to the security establishment leading it without any accountability."

"Although the government has said several times that Pakistan will not take sides in the Syrian civil war, a suspicion has been lingering that non-state actors are being encouraged to move to the Middle East with weapons and armaments." He informed the house that in a recent television programme, the finance minister said that if people went to Bahrain and Syria then it should be seen an "employee-employer relationship" that had nothing to do with the government. He warned against letting such 'relationships' run to such an extent that Pakistan was "sucked into another Afghanistan, this time in the Middle East."

ANP Senator Afrasaib Khattak said the security situation in the neighbouring Afghanistan was fragile and Pakistan had to quickly frame its policy keeping in view fluid developments in the region. He claimed that 'a Taliban project' had isolated Pakistan from the international community, adding the foreign policy of the country should be totally in control of civilian government.

Former Interior Minister Rehman Malik also called for an urgent in-camera briefing by the government on security and foreign policy. The house should be briefed on Pakistan's policy towards Syria, he maintained. Senator Hasil Bizenjo cautioned the government over the activities of elements who are trying to tarnish the relations with Iran. "Iran has a great role in the region therefore Pakistan must not spoil its relations with it," he said.