ARTICLES OF THE DAY

September 1, 2021

DR SYED AKHTAR ALI SHAH, THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE .............................................................................................. 2

HARIS IQBAL, THE EXPRESS TRIBUNE ..................................................................................................................... 4

MUHAMMAD HASSAN ILYAS, THE NEWS ............................................................................................................... 6

CONSTANTINO XAVIER, NITIKA NAYAR, SOUTH ASIAN VOICES .............................................................................. 8

MALIK MUHAMMAD ASHRAF, DAILY TIMES ........................................................................................................ 13

SIKANDAR NOORANI, DAILY TIMES ...................................................................................................................... 16

RAFIA ZAKARIA, DAWN ........................................................................................................................................ 18

NEBOJSA MALIC, RT NEWS................................................................................................................................... 20

 State of human rights in Afghanistan
Dr Syed Akhtar Ali Shah, The Express Tribune
U
ncertainty over the
political and
diplomatic future of
Afghanistan loom large as the
world is still bewildered over
the blitzkrieg of the Taliban that
resulted in a bloodless takeover
of Kabul. The country now
stands divided over the
Taliban’s victory, which has
received mixed reactions.
Many have eulogised the
Taliban’s takeover as a
transnational movement,
interpreting sharia in their own
sense. Violence is rational
behaviour because the sword is
the deciding factor against the
enemy. On the contrary, those
who believe in liberty, freedom,
and right to life have expressed
anguish and concern over the
Taliban’s takeover. The use of
violence is considered an
anathema.
The tragic events that unfolded
in Afghanistan in recent days
left everyone traumatised and
sorrowful. Babies were thrown
over walls in a bid to protect
them, young men clung to
airplanes boarding foreign
troops in attempts to escape the
country but only ended up
falling off the sky. The situation
was further worsened by a
suicide attack at Kabul airport,
which killed members of
foreign troops as well as
Afghan civilians. The recent
scenes of barbarity have
exposed the devastating
situation in Afghanistan, which
is only expected to further
deteriorate.
Human rights under the
shadows of guns and bombs are
a farfetched thought. A refugee
remarked, “I left my whole life,
my home to continue to have a
voice. Once again, I am running
from my motherland. Once
again, I am going to start from
zero. I took only my cameras
and a dead soul with me across
an ocean. With a heavy heart, [I
say] goodbye [to] motherland.”
This demonstrates the dire
human rights conditions in the
country. People have the right
to enjoy an environment free
from coercion and uncertainty,
which cannot be provided in
state ruled by men with mob
mentality.
There is a need for laws and
rigorous reforms. The laws
should be in accordance with
the Universal Declaration of
Rights. Certain rights are
intrinsic in nature and cannot be
taken away. In all civilised
nations around the world,
human rights have great
precedence in their
constitutions. The political
systems of these civilised
nations are built around the
values of democracy and
human rights. A democratic
system is essential for the
provision and protection of
human rights. The theocratic
model, under whatever
nomenclature and concept,
negates democracy and is a
replica of totalitarianism. In a
model that is based on the
notion of divinity, the ruler
cannot be questioned. Under
the divine right of rule, it is the
ruler’s word that carries the
finality.
The jubilant supporters of the
Taliban’s governance argue
that peace has returned, and life
will be safer. However, in
today’s world the “right to life”
is defined and understood in a
wider scope. Life does not
mean mere survival but also
includes the quality of life.
Under this wider scope, instead
of interpreting life as
vegetative, the boundaries are
extended to various rights that
make the right to life
meaningful.
Under the UN declaration,
human rights include respect
for the norms of international
law, especially relating to the
use of force. The recognition of
the primary responsibility of
states is to protect their
populations from genocide,
crimes against humanity, ethnic
cleansing, and war crimes. The
human rights framework also
includes addressing the reasons
for displacement and
statelessness.
The proliferation of hate
speech, incitement to violence,
and violent extremism threaten
human rights. Fundamental
rights such as the right to free
movement, right to form an
association, right to freedom of
speech, right to religion, and
freedom of choices aid a
meaningful life. At present, the
chaotic situation in
Afghanistan, with images of
gun-toting persons all around,
has put the whole population in
a state of siege. People’s
movement has been restricted
which demonstrates the
absence of even the most basic human rights watchdogs?
of human rights in the country. Those who understand the
worldview of the Taliban are
A country that does not follow
already aware that the future
a constitution or prescribed
political setup will be highly
laws cannot be deemed suitable
centralised. The Ameer ul
for the provision and protection
Momineen will be the head of
of human rights. Amongst
the temporal and spiritual
many others, UN high
world. In this form of system,
commissioner for human rights
there will be little to no space
Michelle Bachelet also
for any political groups. To
expressed concerns over the
mitigate their image and
violations of human rights in
showcase freedom, the Taliban
Afghanistan. She urged the
may include some influential
Taliban “to adopt norms of
people from the past
responsive governance and
government in subordinate
human rights, and to work to re-
positions. But this would most
establish social cohesion and
likely be a temporary
reconciliation, including
adjustment. Human rights in a
through respect for the rights of
broader context will not be
all who have suffered during
conspicuous in a Talibanised
the decades of conflict”.
Afghanistan as they are in other
The question at hand is: will the civilised nations.
Taliban adhere to appeals of the
 Friends not masters: are we there yet?
Haris Iqbal, The Express Tribune
“P
akistan acts as an
arsonist and poses
as the fireman.
They should suffer diplomatic
and economic isolation.
Pakistan should be faced with a
future that looks like North
Korea.” This was the measured
reaction of previous US
national security adviser Lt Gen
HR McMaster in response to
the recent carnage in
Afghanistan. He was supposed
to be one of the ‘adults in the
room’ who would moderate the
unpredictable tantrums of
Donald Trump. Didn’t we have
this old perception that
Republican pro-military
establishment was favorable to
Pakistan than Democratic
administrations? With loyal
friends like these, who needs
enemies! Twenty humiliating
years of ‘do more’ and when
the time for withdrawal comes,
place the blame on a convenient
bogeyman. This is the price
paid by a country which chose
to be a mercenary for the
highest bidder under the facade
of national interest. Isn’t it time
that we reflect on our
inconvenient truths?
After 9/11, it was only a matter
of time before the war of
vengeance needed to be
initiated to restore the honour of
America. Taliban’s offer to set
up an international tribunal for
Osama bin Laden was quickly
rejected as a ploy. The
restrained threat of bombing
Pakistan “back to the stone
ages” convinced General
Musharraf to join the hippie
trail of Operation Enduring
Freedom. There was no public
discussion on the merits of war
on our neighbour as the sword
of “either you are with us or
against us” was dangling above
our necks. We rejoiced at the
prospects of US economic aid
and glowed in the aura of being
praised as a responsible partner
state. Thus, there were no moral
qualms about international law
when we arrested Taliban
Ambassador Mullah Zaeef and
handed him over to the
Americans where he was given
state hospitality at Guantanamo
Bay. We didn’t blink an eye
when thousands of US drone
strikes happened on our own
country as we were told that it
was all in our national interest.
An armed insurgency started at
our western border, and after
countless sacrifices, we started
realising that perhaps there
were consequences of being a
mercenary.
However, it was hard to break
old habits and we continued the
business of detaining
‘terrorists’ with our US partner.
For example, Mullah Baradar
was arrested in a joint raid with
CIA in Karachi and was held in
our prison for eight years
without any trial or legal
representation. He was released
due to the US pressure in 2018
to help with the Afghan peace
process. Ironically, he is now
the highest ranking leader of the
Taliban movement and may
become the next head of state in
Afghanistan. It is now our hope
that he will forget the fond
memories of our land and
emulate Prophet Yusuf (peace
be upon him) when he forgave
his brothers.
Thus, it hurts us deeply when
our US ally threatens to make
Pakistan the next North Korea.
This is the sad and sorry state of
affairs of a nuclear armed
nation of over 200 million
people. We had trampled on
local and international laws to
ensure that the war on terror
was a success. We did not
respect the rights and dignity of
our own citizens, let alone
foreign diplomats and nationals
during the last twenty years of
war. A nation which is not
based on moral and ethical
principles is bound to be a
loser; this much is clear from
our religion which is supposed
to be the basis of the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan. It is
correct that our current the future. Hopefully, we will mercenary state for one
leadership is now united in also start to respect our own superpower to the next.
being a partner in peace and people and laws. Otherwise, we
will not host foreign bases in will continue to remain a
 Taliban: questions, answers, and facts
Muhammad Hassan Ilyas, The News
H
ave the Taliban
achieved power
through the process
of Shariah? Islam is clear that
transfer of power is only
credible through one route –
and that is through advice and
seeking the opinion of the
people. The Quran has
explained this in these words:
(Ashura; 83:38). “And their
system is based upon mutual
consultation.”
Religious scholars usually
explain this Quranic instruction
from two aspects. The first is
that this consultation would not
be with all Muslims but only
with those who have the power
to act and give solutions – that
is: scholars who possess firm
belief and also those leaders of
the nation who are recognised
for their religious identity. The
second aspect is that the act of
consultation is necessary after
coming into power, not before.
In our opinion, both these
points go against the principle
of what has been mentioned in
the Quran. This is because the
Quran has mentioned this in
relation to all people, not
restricted it to a specific group.
Hence the consultation must be
with all. Secondly, this
consultation is not an additional
or beneficial advice, but is the
basis of the formation of the
system. Every system that is set
up without it would be against
the instruction of our religion.
Thus, in our view, the control
on power by the Taliban is
against religious instructions
about transfer of power. All
such governments are
illegitimate by nature.
The Taliban talk about
installing the Shariah: does this
not provide justification to their
government? The first
requirement of the Shariah is
that one should follow it
oneself. In our view, the taking
over of power by the Taliban is
in itself against Shariah. We
should also understand that
there are two types of
instructions in the Islamic
Shariah. One relates to those
that are given to an individual
as a person. The other is given
for Muslim society as a whole.
The first type is between a
person and God: no state has
the right to intervene or enforce
these. The others – that are
given for society as a whole –
are a few.
But this system has been turned
upside down by the Taliban.
They have in the past forced
people to implement not only
those instructions that are
related to the individual, but
also took away the individual
right of a person to have a
difference of opinion about
these. The beard, purdah,
women’s education, their right
to work and travel, art, music,
television and cameras,
banking, sacred places of non-
Muslims, their religious
festivals and identity: in all of
these matters, they have forced
their own interpretations upon
others. This was not
implementation of the Shariah
but in fact a serious violation of
Shariah principles.
What can be the greatest
challenge for the Taliban
today? The greatest challenge
for the Taliban today is their
own past. If they compromised
now upon the things which they
had declared requirements of
religion earlier, they would
have to answer the big question
of whether their religious ideals
have changed.
We know that there is no
foundation for such a change
within the Taliban’s religious
thought. In reality, they believe
in the ideology they have been
practising. If this change in
their behaviour is a
consequence of global pressure
or the need to retain power, then
their status would be greatly
affected. Their internal groups
would insist upon
implementing their Shariah
along the lines of the past. And
in armed groups, this insistence
reaches chaos very quickly.
The movement of the Taliban is
really the realisation of the
ideas that were initiated during
the third and fourth centuries of
the Muslim calendar. The
background of this was the
psychology behind considering
the purpose of ending disbelief
(kufr) as the glorification of and
control by Islam at the global
level; division of the world into
regions of peace and regions of
war; and organising of ordinary
Muslims as subjects of rulers.
While history has brought
human beings to the heights of
progress in the social sciences
in the form of democratic
values, independence of
thought and freedom of
expression of opinion, it is no
longer possible to implement
these ancient social ideas.
Hence when the actions of the
Taliban would deny their own
ideals, the greatest challenge of
traditional religious thought
would be whether they are
ready for reconstruction of their
thought or whether they would
come to adopt the ways of the
world by giving up their
religious ideas as impractical.
Why is there so much support
for the Taliban in Pakistan?
Pakistan’s society is in reality a
religious society. Hence the
religious views which our
scholars communicate to our
people, the latter accept these as
true religious practices. At the
level of these scholars, it has
been accepted that democracy
is not desirable in our religion.
The religious parties that are a
part of this democratic system
also consider this to be merely
a ladder to reach their
destination.
Similarly, in the opinion of
these scholars, a religious state
has the right to punish crimes
that are concerned with God –
such as disbelief, polytheism
and apostasy. Third, they
believe in global control of
Islam and an end to the power
of disbelief. The Taliban have
demonstrated these ideas
practically. Its climax was the
attack on September 11 – that
was, for the Taliban, a
challenge to the status of
satanic forces and disbelief.
Hence, support for them in
Pakistan is natural. Through
this support, the people of
Pakistan not only agree with the
Taliban but are supporting their
own religious sentiments.
What lessons are there for the
US in this war with the
Taliban? The biggest lesson for
the US is that the life of
ideological groups is their
thought. Unless this thought is
challenged, their end or
survival is all temporary. The
Taliban represent the religious
thought of Muslims that has
approval from almost all
scholars. The Taliban have
shown their ideology in
practice. This ideology has its
own arguments and possesses
its own history. To fight this
thought, it is not sufficient to
bring in B-52 planes. It is
necessary to conduct a grand
dialogue on this thought at a
global level. Such a dialogue
should be held with Muslim
scholars.
Whether global peace is
desired, or the stability of the
region, the real war with
ideological groups such as the
Taliban can only be at the level
of intellectual argument. But
for this it is essential that there
should be a narrative to counter
the arguments of the Taliban –
and that such a narrative arises
from the sources that the
Taliban also believe in. Power
can only bring temporary
protection, but not end
permanent disturbance.
The writer is a young
theologian, researcher and
expert in ancient Arabic
language and literature.
 India’s New Consulates and Subnational Diplomacy in South Asia
Constantino Xavier, Nitika Nayar, South Asian Voices
ollowing the Taliban’s
F
sudden takeover in
Afghanistan in August,
India closed its five diplomatic
missions in the country.
However, this was a rare
exception to India’s recent
trend of expanding its
diplomatic network in South
Asia.
Our ongoing research finds that
over the last 20 years, India
opened or reopened thirteen
new consulates in seven of its
eight immediate neighboring
countries (excluding China).
This means that since 2001,
India has opened
approximately twice as many
new missions in the region as it
did in the previous fifty years
altogether.
These new consulates and other
missions are the most visible
aspect of India’s subnational
footprint across the region,
going beyond traditional
embassies or high commissions
situated in capital cities.
Located in second-tier cities or
peripheral regions, often in the
neighbor’s borderlands, these
smaller missions spearhead the
widening reach of India’s
subnational engagements in
South Asia. India’s new
consulates reflect the country’s
expanding interests in the
region, dealing with an
increasingly large set of
subnational entities in
neighboring countries,
including local or provincial
authorities, minority groups,
and economic actors.
A Growing Subnational
Footprint
Much attention has been given
to the domestic sources of
Indian foreign policy, including
the role of regional states and
other subnational entities such
as business houses, the media,
and religious or migrant
communities. But the reverse
aspect has been less studied:
how does Indian foreign policy
operate to engage subnational
entities abroad? What role do
India’s diplomatic missions
play in this outreach beyond
capital cities?
Reflecting their size and
diversity, many of India’s
neighbors have federal or
decentralized constitutions that
endow their provinces or
districts with significant
governance autonomy. India’s
consulates (or assistant high
commissions, as in the cases of
fellow Commonwealth
countries) play a critical role in
engaging these subnational
entities.
Since 2001, India has opened
approximately twice as many
new missions in the region as it
did in the previous fifty years
altogether.
To assess the historical trends
in India’s subnational
diplomatic network in South
Asia, we surveyed annual
reports published by India’s
Ministry of External Affairs
(MEA) since 1948, websites of
Indian diplomatic missions, and
media reports. We also
interviewed retired and serving
officers of the Indian Foreign
Service.
Including the five missions that
were temporarily suspended in
Afghanistan, India currently
operates 24 diplomatic
representations in eight of its
nine immediate neighboring
countries (except China). In the
last twenty years, India opened,
upgraded or reopened thirteen
consulates in the neighborhood.
The ten new consulates include
Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif in
Afghanistan (2002), Birgunj in
Nepal (2004), Phuentsholing in
Bhutan (upgraded in 2006),
Jaffna and Hambantota in Sri
Lanka (2010), and Sittwe in
Myanmar (2014). The latest
openings took place in 2018-
2019 in Bangladesh, with two
new assistant high
commissions in Sylhet and
Khulna. One more consulate
has recently been approved for
Addu, in the Southern part of
the Maldives (2021).
In addition to these ten new
consulates, India re-opened
three more. In Afghanistan,
Kandahar and Jalalabad were
reactivated in 2002, after
closing during the first period
of the Taliban rule. In
Myanmar, in line with
promoting its Eastern
geoeconomic reorientation,
India reopened its consulate in
Mandalay (2002), which had
been closed since 1979.
Today, India’s subnational
missions play different roles
that complement the embassies
or high commissions located in
capital cities. Functions range
from economic diplomacy to
political outreach, and from
cultural affairs to technical
assistance and development
cooperation. We identify three
significant roles—economic
diplomacy, development, and
community engagement—that
give India’s neighborhood
policy a focused subnational
dimension.
Economic Diplomacy and
Cross-Border Connectivity
First, India’s consulates play an
increasingly important role in
its economic diplomacy,
focusing on fostering
connectivity and
interdependence in South Asia. Asia. The missions in Khulna
The consulates help promote and Sylhet, for example,
trade and passenger movement oversee the implementation of
across land borders and also new inland waterways
support Indian companies protocols, as well as new rail
involved in cross-border and road routes via Bangladesh
infrastructure projects. that are spurring unprecedented
development in the landlocked
For example, the consulate in
Northeast region. The older
Birgunj, in southern Nepal,
consulate in Chittagong helps
supports Indian companies
in ensuring that this hinterland
building infrastructure for the
economy, from Assam to
Nepali government, including
Mizoram, is linked to the Bay
new cross-border check posts,
of Bengal. Further southeast, in
roads, railways and pipelines
Myanmar, the new consulate in
that are deepening economic
Sittwe is located at the coastal
and transportation links
hub of the Kaladan Multimodal
between both countries.
Transit Transport Project,
Located near the border check
which is also improving
post where 45 percent of total
connectivity with India’s
bilateral trade took place last
landlocked North East. The
year, the mission also helps
mission in Mandalay oversees
ensure smooth commercial
the India-Myanmar-Thailand
relations, assisting exporters
Trilateral Highway that plans to
and importers in overcoming
connect the state of Manipur to
difficulties in transit. Similarly,
Bangkok.
the consulate in Phuentsholing
is located near an important While many of these
border trade point, which connectivity initiatives are
oversees 75 percent of bilateral agreed upon between the
trade with Bhutan. central governments in New
Delhi, Dhaka and Nay Pyi Taw,
The importance of India’s
these consulates do much of the
consulates in implementing the
daily heavy lifting to ensure
regional connectivity strategy
that they become reality. This
is particularly visible in
includes monitoring progress
Bangladesh and Myanmar, in
on the ground, supporting
line with India’s “Act East”
Indian companies, and liaising
policy. These new missions in
with local authorities.
the borderlands of Bangladesh
and Myanmar are fleshing out Development Cooperation
the geoeconomic and Post-conflict
transformation of “East South Reconstruction
Asia” to connect with Southeast
Second, India’s new consulates
play an important role in
implementing India’s
development cooperation
initiatives. Half of India’s
international assistance is
concentrated in the immediate
neighborhood. This is
particularly important in South
Asia’s post-conflict areas,
where India has helped stabilize
and rebuild war-torn areas
through grants, loans, and other
development instruments.
This underrated peace-building
and developmental dimension
of India’s foreign policy relies
crucially on the role of these
subnational missions, located in
peripheral regions. They help
New Delhi assess needs on the
ground and monitor
implementation, especially
projects under the expanded
High Impact Community
Development program. This
requires travelling to project
sites, engaging community
leaders and ensuring smooth
communication with central
and provincial or local
authorities.
In Afghanistan, for example,
India’s four consulates helped
implement India’s mission to
stabilize the country beyond
Kabul, a developmental effort
of around USD $3 billion since
2001. The consulates in Herat
and Kandahar ensured that
India completed the
construction of the difficult
Zaranj-Delaram road, linking to
Iran. The mission in Herat
oversaw India’s efforts to build
the Afghan-India Friendship
Dam. And the consulates in
Mazar-e-Sharif and Jalalabad
helped implement hundreds of
small developmental projects,
including in the health,
education and irrigation
sectors.
The consulate in Jaffna, opened
just after Sri Lanka’s civil war
ended in 2009, is perhaps the
most important example of a
subnational diplomatic mission
spearheading rehabilitation and
reconstruction efforts. The
mission focused on a massive
outreach campaign to the Tamil
community, including
resettlement policies through
one of the largest-ever housing
projects in South Asia covering
around 300,000 people, as well
as financial support to set up
new health and education
systems. In 2015, this consulate
hosted the first-ever visit of an
Indian Prime Minister to Jaffna.
In Myanmar, India’s new
consulate in Sittwe has focused
on implementing India’s
support to stabilize the conflict
in Rakhine state, including
various grants under the Border
Area Development Programs
and relief to mitigate the
Rohingya refugee crisis. The
consulate also oversees Indian
projects in Chin State and the
Naga Self-Administered Zone,
under which 43 schools, 18
health centers, and 51 bridges
and roads have already been
constructed.
Community Engagement:
Reaching Out to Minorities
Third, India’s new missions in
the neighborhood have helped
formalize community outreach
to specific subnational groups,
including minorities who
sometimes share ethnic,
religious and other ties to India.
Situated in capital cities, India’s
diplomatic missions are often
embedded in more
cosmopolitan, majoritarian
settings. Consulates balance
this centrality by using their
peripheral location to connect
with minority groups through
focused cultural diplomacy
instruments, often in the forms
of scholarships, developmental
support and exchanges. This
may include specific support
for religious communities to
preserve their heritage, as well
as capacity-building programs
run by the Indian Council for
Cultural Relations and the
Indian Technical and Economic
Cooperation Program (ITEC)
that help empower
marginalized communities.
In Sri Lanka, for example, two
of the missions are
concentrated on engaging the
country’s Tamil communities
through cultural diplomacy.
The old representation in
Kandy supports the Indian-
origin and historically
discriminated “Plantation
Tamil” community. The new
consulate in Jaffna has financed
various community activities,
from supporting the renovated
Jaffna Public Library to
increased artistic and academic
links with the Indian state of
Tamil Nadu. Other examples
include the consulate in
Birgunj, Nepal, through which
India connects with the
Madhesi groups in the Terai
lowlands, where Hindi and
other Indian languages are
predominant. In Myanmar,
through its new consulate in
Sittwe, India has addressed the
specific needs of the
predominantly Muslim
population of the Rakhine state.
It also has jurisdiction over the
Chin state, which shares close
ethnolinguistic and religious
ties with the Indian state of
Mizoram.
Finally, in Afghanistan, the
consulates in Jalalabad and
Kandahar have played an
important role in India’s silent
but steady outreach to the
majority Pashtun population,
while the two Northern
missions in Herat and Mazar-e-
Sharif have a special role in
engaging the Tajik, Uzbek, and
Hazara minorities.
The Future of India’s
Subnational Neighborhood
Diplomacy
The three functions discussed
above sometimes overlap and
are not exhaustive. By flying
India’s flag in peripheral
regions, these diplomatic
missions also play symbolic
roles, an impact that is difficult
to measure. The growing
presence of these subnational
missions also signals India’s
far-reaching strategic
objectives in the neighborhood,
often in direct competition with
China. The Indian consulate in
Hambantota and the one
planned in the Maldives,
demonstrate how India tailors
its economic and security
interests in the Indian Ocean
region to two subnational areas
in these important island states.
As the region experiences a
new period of connectivity and
integration, and India’s foreign
policy interests multiply, there
has been a greater demand for
more, sometimes also smaller
and more nimble, subnational
missions across the region.
The rapid growth in India’s
diplomatic network in South
Asia over the last twenty years
reflects how the neighborhood
has become a priority for its
more diverse interests. As the
region experiences a new
period of connectivity and
integration, and India’s foreign
policy interests multiply, there
has been a greater demand for
more, sometimes also smaller
and more nimble, subnational
missions across the region.
Over a dozen new consulates
and other representations are
now complementing India’s
traditional embassies and high
commissions located in major
capital cities. This growing
network also brings new
challenges for India’s
neighborhood policy.
First, as the region’s
predominant power with a
history of interventionism,
India’s subnational missions
must be able to balance their
subnational outreach,
especially to minority groups,
with the security concerns of
the host country’s central
authorities. This is a sensitive
issue, particularly in border
areas, where much of India’s
connectivity focus lies.
Second, India’s subnational
diplomacy abroad will have a
limited impact unless it is also
able to further decentralize its
foreign policymaking at home.
Indian consulates across
borders will have to be
empowered to cooperate more
closely—and sometimes
directly—with subnational
entities on the Indian side,
especially governments in
border states.
Third, India must continue to
encourage its neighbors to
reciprocally expand their
subnational presence in India:
in 2018, Bhutan became the
second country, after
Bangladesh (2017), to open a
consulate in Guwahati, the
capital of Assam, in India’s
Northeast. In the future, one
could think of a Nepali
consulate in Lucknow or Patna,
or a Myanmar mission in
Guwahati or Imphal.
A final challenge relates to
India’s ability to deploy
adequate human resources to
staff these new representations conditions of South Asia’s
and maximize their impact. hitherto neglected borderlands.
Besides the limited numbers of
As the periphery becomes
India’s Foreign Service, which
central to bridging South Asia,
has delayed the opening of
how New Delhi engages these
some new missions, there is
diverse subnational groups both
also a pressing need for
within and across its borders
specialized training for Indian
will help define the future
diplomats to engage with South
course of connectivity in the
Asia’s diverse subnational
region.
entities. This includes linguistic
expertise and training on the
political and socio-economic
 Climate Change and Pakistan
Malik Muhammad Ashraf, Daily Times
C
limate change
triggered by the
increased emissions of
green-house gases is
undoubtedly the biggest
challenge facing humanity in
the twenty first century.
Admittedly, the failure of the
international community to
check the continued rise in
temperature caused by the
emission of green-house gases,
can lead to catastrophic
consequences. Therefore, as
repeatedly reiterated by the UN
Secretary General, it is
absolutely essential to make
peace with the nature, meaning
thereby that there was no
escape from keeping the rising
temperatures below 1.5
centigrade as emphasized by
the scientists and
environmental experts. A report
released by UN on Monday
August 8, 2021 called ‘Code
Red for Humanity’ says that the
earth is getting so hot that
temperatures in about a decade
would probably blow past a
level of warming that the world
leaders have sought to prevent.
The climate change
phenomenon has already
started having devastating
impacts globally and Pakistan
is among the top 10 countries
which have been bearing the
brunt of this climatic onslaught
during the last twenty years.
While the world is still
indecisive – and some countries
including the major pollutants
are even showing reluctance to
cut down on the green house
emissions preferring industrial
growth over it– the developing
countries including Pakistan
perforce have to devise their
own strategies to minimize the
impact of the climate change till
such time a collective will and
commitment of the global
community crystallizes into
concrete actions to deal with the
challenge.
Pakistan, under the stewardship
of Prime Minister Imran Khan,
has given top priority to putting
in place steps and measures that
can be helpful in lessening the
debilitating impact of the
climate change. The central
theme of the effort is to make
Pakistan clean and green. It has
launched a number of
initiatives including the
landmark 10-Billion Tree
Tsunami which has won
international acclaim, including
from the World Economic
Forum.
Pakistan can also rightly boast
about myriad of other
initiatives including green
economic stimulus, Eco-system
Protection, Wild life
management, Protected Areas
initiative and Pakistan Clean
Air Programme. Prime Minister
Imran Khan also inaugurated
the world’s biggest Miyawaki
urban forest near Lahore on
August 9 as part of monsoon
drive under the 10-billion Tree
Tsunami Project. All the
foregoing steps in the words of
Prime Minister are driven
solely by his commitment to
future generations of a clean
and green Pakistan to mitigate
the impact of climate change.
Pakistan, under the stewardship
of Prime Minister Imran Khan,
has given top priority to putting
in place steps and measures that
can be helpful in lessening the
debilitating impact of the
climate change.
It is pertinent to note that
Pakistan besides the measures
mentioned above has also
launched the initiative to
produce 60 per cent of all
energy in the country through
renewable resources by the year
2030. It has already scrapped
two coal power projects which
were supposed to generate 2600
MW of electricity and replaced
them with hydro-power units.
Prime Minister Imran Khan has
been a vociferous advocate of
collective action by the world
community on climate change.
In recognition of his discourses
at the Convention of
Biodiversity, in the UN General
Assembly and the nature based
solutions devised by his
government, UNEP
approached Pakistan for
hosting the UN Environment
Day 2021. Prime Minister
Imran khan addressing the
moot apprised the world
community regarding future
plans of this government to deal
with climate change, including
Recharge Pakistan designed to
divert flood water to wetland to
recharge water table and
Mangroves forestation which
absorb carbon besides green-
house gases. Explaining the
threat faced by Pakistan due to
climate change, he also urged
the need for the world to pay
attention to reducing carbon
emissions which cause glacier
melting posing threats to
countries such as Pakistan and
Central Asia where rivers were
fed by the glaciers. He also
called on the world community
to assist the poor countries
including Pakistan which were
bearing the brunt of this
phenomenon.
Pakistan also co-chaired the
multibillion-dollar Green
Climate Fund, established to
support climate actions in
developing countries, last year.
Pakistan as Vice President of
the UN Framework Convention
on Climate Change and
member of the
Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change has also been
playing a pro-active role in
shaping the global discourse on
fighting global warming.
Perhaps a cursory glance at
efforts at the international level
to deal with the climate
challenge would be quite
relevant here. The first ever
international agreement on
restricting emissions of green-
house gases known as Kyoto
Protocol was adopted on 11th
December 1997. The protocol
operationalized the United
Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change
by committing industrialized
countries and economies in
transition to limit and reduce
greenhouse gases (GHG)
emissions in accordance with
agreed individual targets.
Those targets were stipulated to
be met in two phases. But
regrettably the required
cooperation from the
participating countries did not
come forth. New Zealand, and
Russia did participate in
Kyoto’s first-round but did not
take on new targets in the
second commitment period.
Canada withdrew from the
Protocol in 2012 and the USA
did not ratify it at all.
The second international
agreement known as Paris
Agreement, was signed on
December 12, 2015 during the
United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate
Change’s (UNFCCC) 21st
Conference of the parties. The
Paris Agreement marked a
historic turning point for global
climate action, as the world
leaders were able to evolve a
consensus on its framework and
goals. But regrettably President
Donald Trump pulled out of the
agreement like he did in case of
other international
commitments by US.
However, it is satisfying to note
that President Biden has
announced to rejoin the Paris
Agreement. Not only that, in
view of the urgency involved he
also convened Leader’s
Summit on Climate on 22-23
April, 2021 attended by 41
countries including Pakistan.
The Summit underscored the
urgency and the economic
benefits of stronger climate
action. Its deliberations are
considered to be a key
milestone on the road to the
United Nations Climate
Change Conference (COP26)
this November in Glasgow.
In view of the foregoing
realities, Pakistan can rightly
take pride in the fact that it has
not only set the ball rolling in
the right direction in regards to
saving the country from the
vagaries of the climate change
but has also made a sterling
contribution to this global
cause. The initiatives taken by
Pakistan are surely worth The writer is a retired diplomat,
emulating by the world and a visiting professor at
community, particularly the Riphah International
developing countries. University, Islamabad.
 Changing Scenario in Afghanistan
Sikandar Noorani, Daily Times

Q uick meltdown
Ashraf Ghani’s regime
and rapid arrival of
of on inefficiency
government.
Official
of

response
his

on
and neutrality.

response to some highly

Pakistan
maintained patience earlier in

Taliban in Kabul palace can be provoking irresponsible

interpreted in many ways. It is
quite complicated to identify
the victor and loser as the
objective of US arrival in
Afghan arena still remains
vague. This policy flaw was
amply exposed by Washington
Post last year with disclosure of
nearly two thousand authentic
documents.
Based upon the disclosures of
Washington Post, an article by
a writer analyzing the negative
impacts of US flawed policies
titled ‘Intriguing Truth of
Afghan Papers’ was published
in Daily Times on 1 January
2020. What has transpired now
in Afghanistan at final phase of
US withdrawal was always a
writing on the wall. Recent
optics go in favor of Taliban
who emerged on Afghan arena
as a major unified group.
Taliban-US agreement inked in
Doha last year was actually a
formal recognition of former
group as a dominant
stakeholder in comparison with
much shaky Kabul government.
Obviously, unceremonious
sudden departure of Ashraf
Ghani from Kabul palace
further embossed a final stamp
Afghanistan’s chaotic situation
presented by President Biden in
his address has raised many
questions on credibility of the
US. While shifting the blame of
failure on Afghan army and
political leadership, Biden
categorically refused to invest
any more in Afghanistan on the
plea that continuation of such
folly might fulfill undisclosed
desires of China and Russia.
Interestingly, no such thought
came to the minds of US
decision makers ever before.
Though, Biden clearly
emphasized that hunting down
the AQ and OBL was the prime
objective of two decades long
stay in Afghanistan but
meaningfully he avoided to
comment on multiple
infrastructural development
projects accomplished under
various long term bilateral
agreements by none other than
America.
Besides practical end of Ashraf
Ghani’s government with entry
of Taliban in Kabul, arrival of
Afghan politician’s delegation
in Islamabad on same day
appeared as another important
development. Stance adopted
by Pakistan is based on solid
principle of non-interference
allegations from Ashraf Ghani,
and his close aides Amar Saleh
and Hamad Ullah Mohib.
Changing scenario has very
quickly exposed the reality of
these critiques of Pakistan as
they are now seen blaming each
other for the miserable failure.
Gradually, international
community is realizing that
Pakistan’s proposal of
stabilizing Afghanistan through
all-inclusive interim
government should be
supported to end the existing
chaos.
New government will be facing
a great challenge of harnessing
the terrorist organizations that
are left behind by the departing
players.
Pakistan has significantly
emerged as a true partner in
peace restoration efforts with
mature diplomacy and
undeniable assistance in
evacuation operations. When
US had announced completion
of withdrawal on 31 August as
per the Doha agreement, then
why its manifestation radiated
so much chaos in Afghanistan?
Apparently, it is due to
absolutely no resistance from
Afghan army for which corrupt
ruling elite and US equally
stands responsible. It will not
be wrong to say that US
decision makers already knew
about the defeat of Afghan
army but their time estimation
was inaccurate. This all came
much earlier than expectation
as Afghan army was nowhere
seen resisting the Taliban. This
may be taken as a blessing in
disguise as bloodshed was
averted in absence of
resistance. Though, western
media is demonizing the
Taliban, their entry in Kabul
without bloodshed and
subsequent actions so far have
effectively countered many
wrong speculations.
Key regional players Russia,
China, Iran, Pakistan and
Turkey seem much hopeful
about future interim
government in Afghanistan
which will be surely led by
Taliban. Western countries
have also softened their initial
hard stance and urged Taliban
to earn legitimacy through
abidance of commitments on
fundamental human rights.
Let’s be sure that process of a
big change in Afghanistan is
still evolving. Peaceful
takeover of Kabul is much
easier than governing and
stabilizing a war ridden
Afghanistan in coming days.
New government will be facing
a great challenge of harnessing
the terrorist organizations that
are left behind by the departing
players. Taliban have asked
constructive assistance from
neighboring states. These states
expect elimination of terrorist
groups from Afghan soil.
Future Afghan government
under Taliban is expected to
end the footprints of all militant
organizations such as TTP,
ISIS, ETIM and Jundullah who
have been a source of concern
for Pakistan, China, Russia and
Iran. If this issue remains
unresolved under future interim
setup, then a greater wave of
destabilization might shake the
whole region. India, being a
major supporter of Ghani
regime and sponsor of anti-
Pakistan proxies, seems in a
state of diplomatic dilemma
amid rise of Taliban in Kabul.
Mysterious paralysis of Afghan
army in recent scenario has not
yet been appropriately assessed
which as per US president
comprises three lac soldiers
equipped with latest combat
gadgetry.
A complex challenge may rise
for future government if
deserters of Afghan army join
the ranks and files of existing
terrorist organizations as it
happened in Iraq. Existence of
shadowy network of US
contractors in Afghanistan
must not be ruled out in the
context of prevailing tug of war
between global players. The
obsession of US with anti-
China games in the region are
no more a secret. Quad alliance
has kept India in lead to counter
the growing Chinese ingress in
the region. US troops’
withdrawal should not be
weighed as a victory or defeat.
Terrorist attacks in Dasu and
Gwadar on Chinese led projects
are not good omens. Situation
in Afghanistan is still evolving
as calls for resistance are being
raised by Amar Saleh and son
of Ahmed Masood against
future set up. Blasts at Kabul
airport, subsequent drone
strikes by US on IS-KP targets
and terrorist attacks on Pakistan
posts from Afghanistan are
indicators of a complex
challenge. Pakistan should
cautiously keep all options
open to deal with whatever
emerges out of rapidly evolving
scenario in Afghanistan.
The writer is a freelancer and
can be reached at
sikandarnoorani@yahoo.com
 Empowering themselves
T
HE goal of course was
never to save Afghan
women. Everyone in
Afghanistan and the
surrounding region knew this.
But the superpower was in a
bloodthirsty mood, the tragedy
of 9/11 dictated the need for
vengeance. Afghanistan had
not been involved in the attacks
at all but Saudi Arabia, from
where the majority of the
attackers actually originated,
could not be attacked as that
would disrupt the world’s and
America’s own economy.
Afghanistan, already addled by
decades of foreign occupation
and CIA proxy wars, was the
answer.
The bombings began in the
autumn of 2001 and they have
continued right to the end. To
provide a cover story regarding
the necessity of the invasion —
they couldn’t openly state
vengeance as a reason — they
latched on to the deplorable
condition of women’s rights in
the country. It was true, Afghan
women lived in abject
conditions, but then so did
Afghan men, one in three
people quite literally at risk of
starvation. Bombing villages
that were scrounging around for
an existence unleashed new
heights of mayhem and
Rafia Zakaria, Dawn
carnage; but the narrative of the
war did not include that aspect.
The US-Nato coalition and the
taxpayers who were funding the
neo-imperial excursion wanted
to hear about the ‘good’ that
was being done in Afghanistan.
So front-page stories in widely
read newspapers were devoted
to ‘honour’ killings and
Western plans to eliminate
them, to the girls’ schools that
were located on the outskirts of
bombed-out shells of villages,
and to the ’new’ Afghan
woman who had been
employed by the Americans or
this or that NGO, and who was
now an independent woman.
The trick is an old one. Long
before the Americans got to it,
it was the British who were
resorting to ‘save the brown
woman’ slogans in order to
justify their own colonial
presence. At the time, only
those Indian women who
supported the British Empire
were included in the plans —
and sometimes they too were
left out. In the early 1900s, a
conference was held in London
on the topic of how best to
empower Indian women. An
Indian activist put it well: ‘To
have a conference about us
without us and decide what we
need is ridiculous; we don’t
need British women to
empower us, we can manage
quite well without them.’
Long before the Americans got
to it, it was the British who
were resorting to ‘save the
brown woman’ slogans.
Afghan women could not retort
this way. They were already
living in a ‘hellscape’, a
creation of the Taliban’s
misogynistic proclivities, of
public whippings, of
executions, of house-to-house
searches and so much else that
was part and parcel of the
militant group’s desire to
control and intimidate. Some
did protest the invasion, begged
again and again for peace, for
no air strikes, no invasion, no
occupation but their voices
were drowned out, in some
cases by the many wealthy
Afghan expatriates who stood
to gain from the invasion and
the aid money that was attached
to it.
Trickle-down feminism,
devised as it was by fervent
white middle-class feminists-
turned-warmongers, did not
work. For the 20 years of the
US-Nato presence, an aid
economy emerged in Kabul and
in some of the other provincial
capitals. The Afghan women
who found jobs attached to the
US presence, and in particular
those women who worked in
the Green Zone, found
themselves living some
modicum of ‘free’ lives where
freedom meant not wearing the
burqa and kowtowing to the
neo-colonial masters who
funded their paychecks. In this
small sense, the ‘liberation’ was
a success.
In all other senses, it was a
failure and evidence of that is
visible in just how readily the
structures constructed by the
invaders collapsed. Without aid
the economy will now shrink
and thousands of Afghan
women will be pushed out of it
even if the Taliban do allow
women to work. In the rural
areas, women will still face the
prospect of more air strikes,
dead husbands and sons and the
question of how they will
survive.
What was required in
Afghanistan was cultural
transformation and grassroots
change. This did not happen
because in connecting women’s
empowerment to foreign
occupation, drones and bombs,
the entire idea of it was
delegitimised to such an extent does not bode well for their
that any talk of women’s future.
freedom was and is considered
The US-Nato experiment to
to be a collaboration with the
transform Afghan women into
empire and its nefarious doings.
rough imitations of middle-
This last bit is crucial because it
class women in the white and
represents the gargantuan task
Western world failed. The
that faces the Afghan women in
consequences of it will be borne
developing an indigenous
by Afghan women, who never
conversation around
provided permission for an
empowerment that can
invasion in their name but who
legitimise the idea once again.
will nevertheless pay the price
In the current climate of
for it. The incoming Taliban
uncertainty and constraint, this
government, despite its efforts
seems nearly impossible to
to seem kindly and
achieve.
accommodating, is likely to be
In any case, in the near term, as retrogressive and repressive
Afghan women need the basics as ever.
required for survival. Those
The hope lies in the possibility
whose husbands, fathers,
of Afghan women, particularly
brothers etc have been killed,
those who are educated, in
and there are thousands and
devising a locally relevant plan
thousands of them, need help
for their own welfare and
just to live. Those who are
empowerment. This will take
internally displaced or are
time, quite likely a very long
refugees headed to Pakistan or
time and one can only hope and
Iran or elsewhere require
pray that they are able to
humanitarian assistance. The
survive until it comes.
need is urgent and the time is
dire because the twin The writer is an attorney
catastrophes of the Taliban teaching constitutional law and
takeover and the hovering Delta political philosophy.
variant-fuelled Covid-19 surge
 Biden doubles down on Afghanistan exit ‘triumph’ in belated,
recycled and rambling speech
Nebojsa Malic, RT News
T
he US pullout from
Afghanistan was a
stunning success, any
mistakes were someone else’s
fault, and the only other choice
was endless war, President Joe
Biden argued in a bid to
convince the media,
Americans, or even himself.
Almost 24 hours after the last
US airplane departed Kabul,
Biden appeared before the
White House press corps and
began reciting the speech in a
raised voice. He made the
decision to end the “longest war
in American history.” The
evacuation airlift was an
“extraordinary success.” No
one in history has ever done
anything like it, he said.
Then the excuses started. The
assumption that the US-backed
Afghan government could
resist the Taliban “turned out
not to be accurate.” The
Americans left behind had
ignored more than a dozen calls
to leave, some wanted to stay,
had dual citizenship and roots
in the country – but can still
leave if they want to do so, the
State Department will arrange
that diplomatically, he said.
Somehow, the withdrawal was
both the fault of his predecessor
Donald Trump – who
negotiated with the Taliban and
had 5,000 of their fighters
released from captivity – and
Biden’s own greatest
achievement, with the only
alternative another decade of
war for no purpose whatsoever,
he argued.
That was the choice, the real
choice, between leaving or
escalating.
Much of Biden’s speech was an
argument against staying in
Afghanistan. It’s the exact same
argument he had made multiple
times before, against a straw
man that literally no one – aside
from his newfound neocon
backers – actually believes in.
The actual criticism, that the
withdrawal was poorly
organized, mishandled, failed
to get everyone out and got
people killed, he simply waved
away by saying it couldn’t have
been done better.
Really? Would someone else
manage to evacuate a convicted
rapist deported from the US,
but leave behind the interpreter
actually involved in rescuing
him and two other senators
back in 2008, when their
helicopter was grounded by a
blizzard in potentially hostile
countryside?
Afghan interpreter who ‘helped
save Biden’ in 2008 pleads for
rescue after being left behind
Perhaps this really is the best
Biden and his administration,
the “adults in the room” who
“trust the science” and defer to
“experts” could do – but that’s
not really a ringing
endorsement of their
competence and expertise, if
you stop to think about it.
Which is why you’re not
supposed to. Instead, Biden
lapsed into a laundry list of
excuses, addressing the costs of
war in lives and treasure and
waxing empathic about
“national security” and actual
US interests. He once again
brought up that the mission was
to avenge 9/11, saying it was
accomplished in 2011 with the
death of Osama Bin Laden.
Great, but who was vice
president then, and said and did
nothing for the next five years?
No wonder he refuses to take
questions from the press.
While speaking of the deaths of
soldiers and veterans
committing suicide, Biden
inevitably brought up his late
son Beau in a bid for sympathy
and emotional manipulation –
even after the families of the 13
fallen troops told him to knock
it off.

The pinnacle of cynicism,

however, was arguably Biden’s
insistence that the US needs to
learn from its mistakes and
abandon the notion of nation-
building. This is not just about
Afghanistan, he argued, but
ending an era of major military
operations “to remake other
countries.”

This would be objectively true,

yet it’s also utterly absurd
considering who it’s coming
from – someone with a 50-year
career in politics and
committed to transforming his
own country in the name of
“equity” and “building back
better.” If you’re hoping Biden
will now stop trying to regime-
change places like Cuba,
Venezuela, Belarus, Syria, Iran
or anywhere else Washington is
determined to promote
“democracy” and “human
rights,” do I have a bridge to
sell you…
If anything, Biden voicing this
argument will only discredit it
in the eyes of a growing number
of Americans who are already
increasingly angry at his
administration. This, in turn,
would only help the
Washington establishment,
gripped by the dangerous
delusion that the US needs to be
a globalist empire. Perhaps that
was the entire point.