The month of the General

This new monthly column shall endeavour to look at South Asia in totality, as a region that is greater than the sum of its parts. For SOUTHASIASPHERE, political boundaries that divide the people of this region are facts, but what makes us all one is a more significant reality. Consequently, no member-country of SAARC gets a 'quota' in this column. 'Saarcy' will instead concentrate on issues, ideas and trends that affect us all in the region, for better or worse. Saarcy is a Nepali term for cobbler: the humble craftsman who repairs shoes, an untouchable in the hierarchy of caste-ridden Hindu society. The pseudonym perfectly suits a columnist who aims at nothing less than mending the shoes of readers' minds so that they can travel to what Kazi Nazrul Islam called the 'real' battlefield:.The heart is the battlefieldwhere Krishna sang the great Gita,it is the field where the shepherd Magi made friendswith God.This heart is the cave of meditationwhere Buddha heard the call of humanity's deep distressand renounced his throne.In this retreat the darling son of Araby heardthe great call;It is here that he sang the song divine that is the Quran.I have not heard it wrong, friend—there is no temple or Kaaba greater than this heart of man. .Interesting TimesThese are interesting times for South Asia. So interesting in fact that Colin Powell, Tony Blair and Zhu Rongzi have all been here within a month. The much-postponed 11th Summit of Heads of State or Government of member countries of the SAARC finally did take place in the capital city of Nepal, a country going through a period of political emergency caused by rising Maoist insurgency. The possibility of the Tamil Tigers and the government of Sri Lanka returning to the negotiating table never looked brighter. The crisis of 9 /11 across the seven seas seems to have brought the warring parties to their senses..In Bangladesh, the issue of corruption is centre-stage (once again). The royal government of Bhutan is back to the questionable game of repopulating areas vacated by Lhotsampas with ethnic Bhutias. Not much is heard from Maldives, but presumably, the senior-most and only participant of all 11 SAARC Summits to date has his island pretty much under control. Meanwhile, Pakistan and India are back to their war games. Troop mobilisation on both sides of the Punjab border is of a magnitude that has not been seen since 1971, not even during the Kargil mini-war. The most dangerous region of the world is sitting on a powder keg, except that everyone is proceeding under the impression that it is business as usual. But of course, it is not, and the one person who has caught history by the scruff of its neck is, ironically, General Pervez Musharraf, the selfdeclared President of Pakistan. His address to the nation on 12 January made him look like a statesman with a vision that extends far beyond the Wagah border..The millennium jihad.Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, dreamt of a Pakistan where Muslims would be Muslims and Hindus would continue to practice their faith. Qaid-e- Azam believed that the question of a separate homeland for Muslim Indians was settled with the creation of Pakistan. But those who took power after him subverted secularism and enshrined the Holy Quran and the Sunnah as the guiding principles of state..Zulfikar Ali Bhutto appropriated the process of Islamisation after the eastern wing became an independent Bangladesh, and the wily feudal wanted to wield more control over whatever was left of his country. It was Bhutto who had the weekly off-day changed from Sunday to Friday. After hanging Bhutto, the dictator Zia-ul Haq got even bolder and introduced the Blasphemy Law (see page 25). The process of Islamisation continued with even more gusto as the think-tankers of United States groomed jihadis for the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan. Enforcement of the Shariat continued under successive governments and the Qaid's dream of a secular Pakistan almost died when Islamabad groomed the Taliban to take over Afghanistan. The Buddhas of Bamiyan fell as Islamabad watched, and theocracy became the hard reality of contemporary Pakistan..General Musharraf used the excuse of American pressure to turn the heat on Pakistan's 'fundos' in the immediate aftermath of 9 / 11. But with his muchpublicised address of 12 January, he has done nothing less than make Pakistan take an about-turn. Granted that his address was full of sound and fury about how "Kashmir runs in our blood", but the operative part of his statement said, in no uncertain terms: no support to fundamentalism inside the country, no encouragement to cross-border terrorism in the region and no more taking more pride in religious purity above material achievement. This was nothing short of a declaration of jihad – a millennium jihad to transform a country that has remained a prisoner of history. General Musharraf in fact buried the two-nation theory for good with an about-turn on the very purpose of the existence of the Pakistani state: he took it back to the pledge that the Qaid had made to his people..Considering the hold that fundamentalists continue to have on the poor masses of Pakistan, successful implementation of General Musharraf's attempt to de- Islamicise his country is far from a foregone conclusion. Over the years, hard-core Islamists have made considerable inroads even into Pakistan's defence forces, whose institutions consider themselves the guardians of the state. Opposition to the general's grand plans may now be muted, given the extant world political opinion, but time is short and there is no guarantee the tide will not turn inside his country..This is the reason why General Musharraf needs India's support. Unfortunately, the decision-makers of New Delhi initially even failed to see the historic significance of General Musharraf's pledge. Put simply, the Delhi-born General Musharraf has done nothing less than concede ideological defeat. He is telling the world that his priority is the modernisation of Pakistan, not jihad against anyone anywhere. A leader of Sonia Gandhi's Congress realised the significance of the statement and declared in the Asian Age newspaper that General Musharraf was aiming to better Kemal Pasha. But even this leader 'chickened out' and refused to be named in the report. Such is the hold of Pakistan-phobia on the minds of Indian elite..Better sense seems to have begun to prevail. The cub- Abdullah, India's junior minister in the Ministry of External Affairs, publicly aired his view that transformation of the Line of Control in Kashmir into an international border was a distinct possibility. Sindh-born 'Pakistani' Home Minister of India, the hawkish Lal Krishna Advani, changed his tired script of Akhanda Bharat and talked instead about the possibility of a loose federation of Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, with each retaining its independence. These are incredible departures that indicates a light at the end of the tunnel..Repercussions.Reversing the process of Islamisation in Pakistan will have its immediate impact on Bangladesh, a country that broke away to assert its linguistic and cultural identity rather than subsume them under religious unity. However, in Bangladesh too, the journey of fundamentalism has continued ever since independence..The Constitution of Bangladesh in 1972 laid down the principle of secularism: it was declared a Peoples' Republic rather than an Islamic one. But as soon as Zia-ur Rahman assumed power after the assassination of Mujibur Rehman in August 1975, he got clauses related to secularism deleted. General Ershad, the next dictator along, introduced two key ideas – Rastra Dharma (Islam as state religion) and Masjid Kendrit Samaj (Mosque-based society) – to reinforce his control. Gulf money, support of overseas Bangladeshis and the leadership of the Bangladesh Defence Forces has given Islamisation a big push in the country that actually has elements of Hinduism in its typical Bangla culture..A reversal for fundamentalism in Pakistan in the region can encourage the secular voices within Bangladesh. In countries like Sri Lanka and Nepal, the effect will not be that direct or marked, but Pakistan opting for the Malaysian way will create a different ideal for the Muslim youths of these smaller neighbouring countries. But the repercussions of one good act can be far-reaching. It may be too much to hope, but General Musharraf's resolve for modernisation rather than uniqueness may prompt even the king of Bhutan to roll back the soft form of ethnic cleansing that his regime has been engaged in for over a decade..By far the most visible impact of General Musharraf's staying the course would be on India, where Pakistan has been made to look like a synonym of Islamic fundamentalism. Such propaganda by the formidable Indian publicity machine unites fundamentalist Hindus on the one hand and creates fresh recruits for militant Islamists on the other. The rise of a modern and secular Pakistan can help reduce the intensity of both these challenges at one go..The future.From here, the future is uncertain for three reasons. The first is we do not know the ability of General Musharraf to follow through on his domestic turn-around strategy. The second concerns the amount of international support the general can manage to garner for his plans for modernisation of Pakistani thought. The third and most crucial element that can decide the fate of Pakistan's escape from fundamentalism is the attitude of India..Indians need to give General Musharraf (and Pakistan) a chance to retreat with grace. However, this seems unlikely. The government in New Delhi is at this moment too insecure to take the bold step of toning down its anti-Pakistan rhetoric. The election in Uttar Pradesh is an important consideration, but the build-up of nationalism and the growing arrogance of the Indian upper-middle and middle-classes over the last decade forms the most sinister backdrop..It is sad that this first South Asian column should end on such a gloomy note. But it is our unfortunate reality that we cannot resolve our own problems and have to look to Uncle Sam to prevail upon the decision-makers of the colonial twins to see reason. Just to conclude on a cheerful note, rebuilding of Afghanistan may soon start despite the warlords who have started reappearing on the streets of Kabul. South Asia has, however, at least seen the light at the end of the Salang tunnel.