I must start with an apology because this is a very harsh indictment of Husain Haqqani.
It is harsh because he has caused and continues to cause immense harm and damage to Pakistan through his narratives.
In some macabre way, which only makes sense to really evil but brilliant minds or to serial murderers, he probably relishes this notorious reputation as he has gleefully expressed in the past.
He continues to attack Pakistan, as an Indian lobbyist would or an extreme right wing BJP or RSS satrap would. And he does it through the power of his powerful pen.
And that is why he’s so dangerous because he lures the reader into his web through his brilliant intellect and powerful pen and once in, people believe what he says. This they do as he weaves an evil tapestry of incredible poison, interspersed with half truths and some facts to make them appear believable.
I would have honestly read him with an open heart and mind were he like many others who I disagree with. And transparent with his agenda and objectives.
But he’s a terribly flawed man both personally and professionally and like a woman scorned is out to destroy Pakistan and that one institution he believes that snatched away the Holy Grail which was almost in his grasp. The Pakistan Army.
Here are my reasons:
1. Despite his holier than thou protestations and rejecting the charges of being an Indian mole as a “figment of the ISI” with people like me being it’s willing instrument. I can say with a fair amount of certainty that he is an Indian official mole (if one can call a deep undercover mole “official”). He was likely turned during his Hong Kong days in the 80’s.
2. He believes the creation of Pakistan was a mistake and Quaid e Azam an ignorant misguided person. While others may subscribe to this thought and they’re welcome to it, for me it’s as close to treason as one can get if people living in Pakistan or holding a Pakistani passport still actively work to weaken it, as Haqqani. But as point of historical discussion, It’s a personal opinion. And that is why he has no qualms of conscience in trying to weaken Pakistan and destroy it’s image.
3. He has no ideological moorings except that of a person who wants to remain in the corridors of power to do what all moles or rats do. Husain Haqqani has been to every port. From a hard core Taliban type Zia ul Haque Jamaathia ideologue to a right wing Nawaz Sharif supporter where he wllingly forged Peter Galbraith’s signatures in a classic case of falsehood to besmirch Benazir’s name and reputation.
And then this amazing man shifts gears and becomes a left wing secular jumping ship (the parallels with rats and moles are amazing) to Benazir Bhutto as Secretary Information and then Chairman House Building Finance Corporation. He ingratiates himself to Benazir by marrying the sister of Benazir’s closest confidant, Naheed Khan.
Out in the woods during Nawaz’s second term, having unsuccessfully tried to worm his way back into the PMLN again, found a golden opportunity when Nawaz was overthrown by Musharraf.
In the words of three people who he approached, one of them being General Musharraf himself. “Hussain Haqqani offered his service to Musharraf / me in any capacity possible and wanted to become Musharraf’s /my media advisor”. So smooth and convincing was his pitch that Musharraf nearly took him on, till advised by his close advisors about this persons highly doubtful credentials.
But, he claims, as is his want, that he was exiled for criticising Gen. Musharraf’s government. Far from it. He cunningly turned the Musharraf rule to his advantage and convinced gullible US intelligence handlers of his value as a strong anti Musharraf source. The latter at this time still not the darling he would become after 2001. I’ve wondered how beautifully Haqqani managed to create such an alternate reality to the actual facts on ground.
Under Asif Zardari, arguably Pakistan’s most corrupt politicians, (I say arguably because ex PM NAWAZ SHARIF seems to have edged him off the ladder to second place in recent days), Haqqani, this “great supporter of democracy and anti military rule”, after being shunned by Musharraf, wormed his way into becoming Pakistan’s Ambassador to the USA when the PPP came into power in 2008.
This was his finest hour but a period of infamy for Pakistan. He did everything possible to ingratiate himself with the US power centers, including feeding them classified information he was privy to, at the cost of the integrity of the country.
He claims that as Ambassador it was his job to establish close ties with US power centers.
Absolutely correct!
But not at the expense of your Country and its sovereignty.
Not when you hold an office of Public Trust.
Not when you’re privy to highly classified and confidential information.
And certainly not when you Sir, are the Pakistani Ambassador to the US and sell out your country!
His objective was and still is simple. Undermine Pakistan. Weaken Pakistan. Denuclearize Pakistan and in the process, personally acquire more political power and influence. National Security Advisor. Foreign Minister. Heck maybe even Prime Minister.
The Memogate scandal is in the same realm as the OJ Simpson murder and Panamagate. Everybody knows who did it. Husain Haqqani did Memogate but lots of technical confusion surround the truth. Enough for him to create periodic smokescreens to hide his guilt.
For all those in the know, and I am privy to much of the evidence, Memogate was a flagrant attempt by a serving Pakistani Ambassador to deliberately harm the interests of Pakistan and colluding with the US with the primary aim of Denuclearizing Pakistan.
It was planned, spearheaded and executed by this man who today writes his bile and poison and invective against Pakistan and his favorite whipping boy, The Pakistan Army. And he had the support of Asif Zardari, then President. Asif Zardari will eventually have to answer for his role in this as well.
Haqqani issued thousands of visas to “CIA contractors” and has the gall to say that he got them cleared by the “Defence Atrache”. A classic Haqqani deflection tactic. The DA in DC had no process to check the antecedents of people being issued visas without clearance from intelligence agencies in Pakistan. And all the gentleman could do was alert the authorities in Pakistan what “Our Ambassador” was upto, which he did.
Haqqani says he was following the orders of the PM. Hogwash and bunkum. The unrestricted visa policy was planned and executed by Haqqani, convincing Asif Zardari that it was in Pakistan’s interests. The PM, a cluless man, just a mere rubbet stamp. And no match to this man’s evil genuis.
History tells us how harmful this Haqqani Visa Policy was to our national interests.
Please understand I’m no apologist for the Pakistan Army leadership and it’s many indiscretions in the past.
But I’m a nationalist and will not poison the well to kill the entire village, simply because I’ve a beef with the local strongman.
Our military leaders have made monumental blunders both military and political. They have been the cause of much that has harmed this country. But the institution of the Army has also been the bulwark against our enemies.
It has shed much of its colonial credentials and in treating people like colonials as it once did. Especially in Sindh and Balochistan.
But It has also paid it’s price in fighting terrorism with blood, sweat and tears. And it has successfully countered the deliberate evil designs of people like Haqqani.
And above all It has managed to stay stable despite the harmful acts of commission and omission of its own senior leadership in the past.
It really is a different Army evolving into a Nationalist force vs what it was earlier. An elitist colonial one.
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Of course we’re not a perfect country with stable institutions. Far from it.
Lets not forget we’re an incredibly young country. Fledglings really. Totally agrarian at Partition and Feudal with virtually no institutions in 1947 except a highly disciplined “gora colonial army”.
And unfortunately they did in 1958 was written on the cards and subsequently as well. Totally wrong. Totally unacceptable. Not justifiable but unfortunately inevitable!
But today things have changed. The Military, very powerful, is unlikely to embark on a foolhardy adventure of taking over.
And yes, admittedly, it has huge influence on the country’s politics. No different to power centers in the world, including the US.
