PPP: Rescuing Pakistan Army, once again

Contrary to the steps taken by Junejo and Nawaz Sharif, Mr Zardari and Mr Gilani have come forward to save the face of the army and to rescue the generals caught red-handed. PPP leaders, perhaps, are trying to pre-empt any desperate action by the army

Irony of fate has struck again. ‘Civilians will take lead in handling the fallout’ of Abbottabad’s happening. Meaning that the civilian government, led by the Pakistan Peoples Party, will be bailing out the generals as pressure arises, particularly at home, for their sacking for failing the nation once again. Reportedly, the meeting between president Asif Ali Zardari, prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and chief of army staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, held on Saturday, decided that the political leadership will defend the defenders.

It is an open secret the Pakistan army and its intelligence arm, the ISI, kept the PPP government and its leadership at its toes during the past three years. President Zardari remained under constant threat. The embedded media wizards kept on harping ‘minus one formula’ for months. The army openly confronted the elected government on Kerry-Lugar Bill. A corps commanders’ conference was called at that time too but to show its resentment and anger over the bill passed by American Congress. Certainly, it is the ‘state interest’ that has forced the PPP leadership, despite the permanent animosity since the overthrow of Z. A. Bhutto government in 1977, to come forward to shield the army brass. The high sense of responsibility, statesmanship, political acumen and, when human being is concerned, a big heart is needed to make such decisions. 

This is tyranny of history. It was Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, the founder chairman of PPP, who signed Simla Agreement in 1972 under which more than 90,000 Pakistani prisoners of war were released by India. Over 90,000 Pakistani troops surrendered to the Indian forces making it the largest surrender since World War II. As the result of Bhutto’s diplomacy, nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for war crimes by Bengalis were also pardoned. Bhutto made the defeated army strong again. In 1977, however, the army took over the government after a coup staged by Genral Zia-ul-Haq which saw the end of a democratically elected government. The event led to the hanging of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto by Zia's handpicked judges.

Mr zardari often quotes history. Perhaps, he has learnt a lesson from the history that, in Pakistan, politicians were punished when they tried to punish the generals for their failures. He has learnt from the fate of late Mohammad Khan Junejo and Mian Nawaz Sharif.

The Ojhri Camp blast (April 10, 1988) happened during tension between General Zia-ul-Haq and prime minister Muhammad Khan Junejo. First, they clashed over Zia's refusal to sign the Geneva Accords. Junejo had also organized a round table conference of opposition leaders to get his way. Secondly, Junejo challenged the appointment of two generals and, reportedly, demanded that General Zia should quit as the army chief of staff, a position he held since 1976. After the blast, Junejo demanded punishment for the army generals who he deemed responsible for the catastrophe.

Eventually, on May 29, 1988, after one and half month of the blast, General Zia, under article 58(2B) of the amended constitution, dismissed Prime Minister Junejo's government and dissolved the national and provincial assemblies.

Mian Nawaz Sharif faced the same destiny. After the Kargil War ended with unconditional withdrawal of the Pakistani forces from the Indian controlled peaks, the army once again overthrew the democratically elected government of Nawaz Sharif. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif sacked General Musharraf and appointed General Ziauddin Butt as the army chief. The corps commanders acted swiftly in whole Pakistan defying the prime minister’s action and restored General Musharraf as the army chief. Resultantly, Nawaz Sharif’s government was dismissed and assemblies dissolved. Later, Nawaz Sharif had to leave the country for ten years.

Contrary to the steps taken by Junejo and Nawaz Sharif, Mr Zardari and Mr Gilani have come forward to save the face of the army and to rescue the generals caught red-handed. PPP leaders, perhaps, are trying to pre-empt any desperate action by the army, after another debacle, after another failure.