Seen Unseen
By Ali Sukhanver
Intelligence agencies are established to strengthen and safeguard the boundaries of a country against the hostile forces. The working of intelligence agencies has always been one of the most favourite topics for the political analysts throughout the world but usually the writers and analysts avoid direct commenting on the working and organizational set up of the intelligence agencies of their own country and whenever this discussion is unavoidable, they try to portray a positive picture. Intelligence agencies are everywhere a part of the army or the police and honouring these institutions is considered a part of the patriotic passions. ‘The CIA’s Greatest Hits’ is a wonderful book by Mark Zepezauer. Commenting upon the working of the CIA, Zepezauer says, ‘In order to survive, nations need strong intelligence services. But the idea that the CIA is primarily an intelligence-gathering operation is itself one of the agency’s greatest propaganda triumphs. Despite its name, the Central Intelligence Agency’s main purpose is, and has always been, carrying out covert operations involving economic warfare, rigged elections, assassinations and even genocide. The CIA is also expert at distorting intelligence to justify its own goals, and this “disinformation” leads to dangerous illusions among our policymakers. But covert operations are its life’s blood. The stories of illegal, murderous CIA activity is enough to chill the bones of anyone who cares about liberty and justice. As long as the CIA exists, our government can break any law it chooses in the name of national security.’ We see that Zepezauer’s comments on the working of CIA are somewhat bitter but at the same time he has tried to give an impression that this intelligence organization is essential for the security and survival of the USA. Same approach could be noticed when the native analysts comment on the working of the MI6, the RAW, MOSSAAD and the KHAD. Astonishingly, at the desire of the western policy-makers and their benefactors in India, some unseen type of the forces in Pakistan have been trying their best to defame and disrepute the security forces of Pakistan for the last two decades. Thank God Almighty that these unseen forces never succeeded in their malicious desires but the game is still on. Recently a very popular and a very competent Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir was brutally attacked in Karachi and just after the cowardly killing attempt on him, the same unseen forces at once became over-active and started trying to drag the ISI into the matter.
The perpetrators of the Hamid Mir episode were never aware of the fact that this shooting episode would simply turn into a referendum in favour of the Pakistan army and the ISI. They were dreaming of defaming and slandering these most sacred and honourable institutions of Pakistan but their dreams shattered the way the cookies crumble. It seems that the plan of dragging the army and the ISI in a dirty game was prepared in a hurry and no proper paper-work was done before beginning the action. The authorities running the accused TV channel were misguided by the thought that the whole of the nation would come out of the houses and throng the roads and streets and join hands with the channel in this blame game against the ISI. But it all went the other way. People certainly came out of their houses, thronged the roads and the streets, but not against the ISI. Their protest was against that channel. The malicious blame game turned into a referendum in favour of the ISI and the Pakistan Army and the whole nation reacted so violently against that channel that even the cable operators had to boycott its transmission. Throughout Pakistan, all political and religious parties, the student unions, the teachers, the traders, in short people from every walk of life, expressed their strong protest and severe resentment against this blame game. Even different media groups got united and joined the people of Pakistan in this protest against the accused channel. We all must be thankful to that channel for providing the whole nation with an opportunity of expressing unity and solidarity. The nation is grieved at the sorry fate of the senior journalist Mr. Hamid Mir. This brave man is still in serious condition and no doubt needs a lot of sincere prayers from his people. The fact of the matter is that this brilliant journalist did not deserve the destiny he had been pushed into. And more painful is the attempt of dragging the security institutions of Pakistan into this dirty game. Though the people of Pakistan reacted very harshly and bitterly against the act of blaming the ISI and expressed their unshakable trust and confidence in this organization by protesting against the media group running that channel but the whole scenario however conveyed a very insulting message to the world around.
Throughout the world the intelligence agencies are given some ‘poetic licenses’. Just cast a look at the working of the CIA, the MI6, the RAW, MOSSAAD and the KHAD; all these intelligence agencies are given special privileges, permissions and special authorities. The officers of these intelligence agencies are usually never dragged in the courts. Their plans and programs are never discussed or criticized publicly but in Pakistan the situation seems quite different. Here, the intelligence agencies have been made so public that even a man in the street is allowed to blame and criticize not only their actions but also the hi-ups of these agencies. As far as the role of media is concerned there are a few media groups and some so-called human rights activists whose sole aim is to defame these agencies. The situation needs a very careful law-making to safeguard the sanctity, honour, prestige and esteem of the intelligence agencies and other security forces in Pakistan.
