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Saturday, March 17, 2012

Enough of ISI Bashing


ISI has many feathers in its cap to make it the most powerful, most professional and, yet the most attacked intelligence agency in the world.


It actually dawned on us the fact that constantly writing against our Military establishment and more importantly against our “powerful intelligence agency”, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) hasn't left much of a difference between us and the dubious Pakistani media, the corrupt politicians and the not-so-friendly foreign allies. Not for a moment, we want to emulate any of the three mentioned above because we don't want the power of the powerful to wane away one slight bit. We still want to see the apprehension in the eyes of the media who have more venom to spew against Pakistan than against our enemies. We like the fear in the hearts of the politicians who have ulterior motives when in Pakistan and much of their belonging outside Pakistan. And most of all, we love to see super-powers brought to their knees when they thought they could trample over a minnow in a jiffy.

This and much more on ISI's achievement to warm the hearts of the nation and to wipe out a thick fog of doubt that one may have against ISI.

ISI is an institution powerful on an all new level that makes those vying for power in Pakistan really uncomfortable. Those who want power simply can't get through an institution credited for causing irreparable damage to countries that were considered untouchable and infallible.

Let us start from the departure of a man – Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha - who has been, though in hush voices, hailed for a successful tenure in the office where even with a pro-US government in Pakistan, the US is facing a shameful defeat in Afghanistan and a prospective war with Iran. It was widely believed that with a US-friendly government in Pakistan would make things easier for US in Afghanistan as well as in Pakistan. However, most of it has been put to rest with US contemplating an exit strategy from the region, with an imbalanced Afghanistan, a sterner Pakistan, especially after 26th November 2011 incident and a hostile Iran refusing to back down.

If we are honest, we admit that the former DG-ISI didn't exactly had everything under control but then things were already in a mess when he took over charge of the office. He may have definitely found himself on the wrong side of his luck as a non-existent (according to us) Osama bin Laden was found in the garrison city of Pakistan and then killed in an operation by the US Navy Seals. And it was a taint big enough to generate massive campaign against him, but we believe he is the man responsible in the defeat of CIA in Pakistan as well as Afghanistan.

The other notable points of his tenure were the ouster of Hussain Haqqani from the office, though he may be free but the bone of contention between him and the Pakistan's intelligence agency was issuing visas to US citizen without ISI's clearance. Now with Hussain Haqqani not in position, the visa procedure has to filter through as per ISI's directives. The bit we are interested in is the astute planning to remove Haqqani from the office started with Raymond Davis-case which was due to the former Pakistani Ambassador but the execution of that plan came into force after OBL operation.

Secondly, and weirdly enough it also has to do with a Haqqani but on a different terrain. Since the start of the military operation back in 2009 in Swat-Malakand and South Wazirstan, the US has put tremendous pressure on Pakistan's military to start a likewise operation in the North Wazirstan, home to one of the worst nightmare of the US-NATO forces in Afghanistan – The Haqqani network. It is definitely to ISI's credit that they have unequivocally refused such demands of the US, as the intelligence agency clearly saw it against its national interest.

In our The Hole in Pakistani Nukes we stated that the US had some suspicious activities in Sihala Police College in the garb of training our police force. The Police Academy is perilously close to the Kahuta Nuclear Facility but the US contractors in the academy were also shown the exit door out of it by our former DG-ISI Pasha. The realisation that nuclear is dearer to Pakistan than a few trained police officers at the cost of our deterrence resulted in the move.

A lot has been written and said about Balochistan, and it is no shame to admit that there are mistakes made by everyone when it comes to Balochistan. But this is also no secret that there is a widespread propaganda by local and foreign media with direct intervention of foreign forces, fanning the issues further in the province. It is no secret either that Brahamdagh Bugti, the so-called nationalist leader, is residing in Afghanistan under the watchful eyes of his US and Indian masters.

Apart from Pasha himself, ISI has many feathers in its cap to make it the most powerful, most professional and, yet the most attacked intelligence agency in the world. Last year, a news report did rounds of the internet where ISI was the top most intelligence agency in the world, leaving behind the likes of KGB, Mossad and CIA. The ISI has kept the entire world away from its nuclear weapons, and to an extent that no country in the world can dare attack Pakistan, not only because of the weapons but because no one knows where they are stashed in. It was responsible to bring down one super-power of the cold, USSR and the world may see the fall of another super-power in the next few years – USA. And all this by an intelligence agency that is said to have the least funds at its disposal than the others.

No matter what ISI does and how we look at it, they are the guardians of Pakistan on the earth. Their doings may be out of norms and against a man-written constitution that holds value in those secular countries that believe in no God. But to deal with threats and dangers of such inhumane political leaders, insensitive media and some belligerent foreign forces, it always requires an organ that operates with an iron-fist, ready to lay their lives for the country (nearly 100 intelligence officers have laid their lives in a decade for Pakistan) and even break that meaningless constitution of Pakistan to save the latter.

Don't fall for the propaganda; believe what your heart says.

Read more of Live Wire here.

2 comments:

  1. ISI is more Pakistani than our immature,fascist and so-called journalists are!!
    Good post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. if he had a political wing then why he didnt make a media wing ?

    ReplyDelete