Nazia Nazar
The editor of weekly “The Friday Times” has the inclination rather penchant for killing hope by spreading despair among the people. In an anti-state editorial “Hope vs Reason” in the issue of 31 May – 06 June 2019, he writes: “Both western and eastern borders are insecure – a civil war is threatening to spill over one border while an invigorated predator is sizing up its prey on the other…Both India and US will turn the screws on Pak, the US Treasury’s manipulation of the IMF and FATF and the latter by priming its “offensive-defence” proxy war doctrine.
The confrontation in FATA between the “patriotic” army and “treasonous” populace may get worse. Both sides have crossed red lines. If a new insurgency is born, it will doubtless be aided and abetted on a bigger scale by hostile neighbors”. But on ground the reality is different.
Despite differences over nuances, the US acknowledges positive role Pakistan has played for bringing peace in Afghanistan, and is not acting tough against Pakistan. The IMF has already agreed to advance $6 bn loan to Pakistan. Meanwhile, Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to give $3.4 bn loan as budgetary support.
The situation is that due to mounting tensions between the US and India over trade the US has withdrawn preferential trade status for India. Thus it is possible that the US uses its influence in the FATF to recognize Pakistan’s sincere efforts made in countering money laundering and terrorist financing, and remove it from the grey list.
In this backdrop, the editorial writer’s hopes seem to have dashed to the ground. Editor draws a gloomy picture that the US is gearing up India and others to confront and contain China in the Asia-Pacific and Asia-West region and CPEC will be targeted.
Though PTI government has not instituted cases against Asif Ali Zardari, Mian Nawaz Sharif and others, he tries to blame PTI government for imprisoning popularly elected leaders of Sindh, Punjab and FATA.
People of Pakistan are aware of their machinations and nefarious designs, but Pakistan’s leading lights, politicians, media men – reporters, editors, anchorpersons and ‘wise’ panelists are not discharging their obligations to counter malicious propaganda against Pakistan. Some of them tend to create divisions between the politicians, and are basking in the glow in the newfound freedom.
They pit one pillar of the state against another causing immense damage to the body politic of the country. About the US role and the situation in Middle East, he wrote: “It is also engaged, along with Saudi Arabia, UAE and others in trying to force regime change in Iran as a prelude to redrawing the map of the Middle-East”. This is a wishful thinking, and it is not going to happen.
Having intelligentsia of this kind, and political leaders that were hands in glove with enemies of Pakistan and were involved in Memogate Scandal and DAWN leaks, Pakistan does not need enemies.
In both the cases, efforts were made to blame military for being at loggerheads with India, and that government was unable to take action against banned outfits as demanded by the US.
This time round, after much debate and speculation following the February Financial Action Task Force (FATF) plenary, it was a foregone conclusion that Pakistan would be placed on the FATF grey-list in June 2018. Some analysts are of the view that the grey-listing will adversely impact Pakistan’s economy and make it harder for the country to meet its mounting foreign financing needs, including potential future borrowings from the International Monetary Fund.
But this is not likely to happen, as IMF has already agreed to give $6 bn loan.
