President Musharraf is fighting a very difficult war in Pakistan. The war is difficult on two counts. He is fighting Islamic guerrillas who carry out deadly attacks and suicide bombings even against innocent civilians, men, women and children and then mingle with the people, especially those from the NWFP and appear as innocent citizens themselves. In other words they are not easy identifiable.

Pakistan is a country where the majority population is Islamic but moderate. The majority of the people are also illiterate. This majority is generally poor and being Islamic minded sends its children to Madressahs which not only provide these children with housing, food, clothing but also education.

The education provided to the children is inherently Islamic. But as is known, religious education can be interpreted in many different ways as the many schools of Islamic thought show. But religious education can also be interpreted in a lopsided and radical way.

Some radicals, which are the by-product of the war-against-Soviets days, have got hold of some madressahs and are using them alongwith other radicals for furthering their nefarious ends. These elements take the young children from the madressahs, who have a poor or destitute background inevitably and with little or no worldy education except some sort of twisted religious indoctrination and prepare them to carry out deadly attacks which further their ends.

These terrorist atacks are carried out in the name of Islam! Nowhere during the prophet Muhammed’s lifetime do we see covert acts of defiance taking place that also in many cases take innocent lives! Whatever the prophet Muhammed SAW did was out in the open and not secretive.

So Musharraf is fighting a very difficult war. He is not only fighting against the militant religious groups but he is also figthing a political battle against civilians who may not be as violent as the militants but they are certainly no less mistaken or are only seeking power no matter what happens to the country. They are trying to remove Musharraf at all costs.

In other words, they are trying to remove a man who is figting to protect them from the radicals who instead of preaching good have gone over to the side of violence that has deteriorated into terrorism.

There is another cause for the fight being very difficult. The Pakistan army is having to fight it out in the tribal areas. It is common knowledge among all Pakistanis that the Tribal Belt is rife with weapons and is run under its own tribal laws rather than Pakistani laws. It is also said that one may commit any crime anywhere in Pakistan and go to the tribal area for sanctuary because it has its own set of laws!

Incidentally this tribal belt shares a border with Afghanistan. About thirty years ago, when the Soviet Union was still intact and had not collapsed, it had invaded Afghanistan. The United States, being the other supewr power, naturally did all it could to defeat the Soviets in Afghanistan. In its fight against the Soviets it found the people of the tribal belt in Pakistan, who also share the language and culture with the people ofAfghanistan, a ready ally. They were then given enormous amounts of American arms and money through Pakistan .

After some years the Spviets retreated but the US and its Western allies, instead of consolidating the situation, promptly left the scene. They returned after some years to Afghanistan, after 9/11, but this time to fight the Afghanis!

The Afghanis, along with their friends and relatives in the tribal areas and other adjacent areas of Pakistan are fighting the international forces in Afghanistan. They also escape to the Waziristan and tribal areas of Pakistan, which are just across the border, after conducting attacks and come back later for more fighting.

Musharraf being the President of Pakistan, cannot allow anyone to come to Pakistan or launch an offensive from its territory against the powerful ISAF force or any other force simply because there would be severe retaliatory measures eventually against Pakistan.

But in a very lopsided way this is projected as if Musharraf is toeing the American line. This is not so. As we have seen, Musharraf is fighting in Pakistan’s interests and not toeing anybody’s line. And the political forces in Pakistan must accept this.

Musharraf is fighting for the interests of common Pakistanis. It would be very easy for him to let things take their own course even if the country goes to the dogs in due course. But he has chosen the difficult path. May he serve the country and countrymen and gradually take the country towards real democracy.

In the meanwhile, while Musharraf is engaged in a very difficult war, the west seems to be putting undue pressure on him. Some on the pretext of democractic ideals, which they have achived only after enturies of struggle as against only 60 years f Pakistan’s independence, and some on the pretext of protecting Pakistan’s nuclear assets falling into the wrong hands.

The American presidential candidates seem in the forefront of Pakistan or rather Musharraf-bashing. They may be playing up to the anti-Pakistan voe in the US because they are in the primary elections currently. But it has been the Pakistani media, escpecially that opposed to Musharraf, which has carried the wild statements of these US presidential candidates given at the time of primary elections to try to badger Musharraf.

Fortunately, the American and UK governments seem to realize that their forces and that of other western countries can hardly be seen succeeeding against the terrorists in Iraq as well as in Afghanistan so there would be no cause for their forces to go into Pakistan and therefore they appreciate the difficult role that Musharraf is currently playing and are trying to lend support.

After all is said and done the Western leaders must decide what they want to do. Do they want Musharraf to carry on successfully against the terrorists in his own country for the sake of no one but his own country but which may also be beneficial for other western countries or do they want to be faced with the terrorist threat, a taste ofwhich they have had on 9/11.

Musharraf may be a military man, but events have shown that he has been more democratic than many so-called democratic leaders in the past. Any way, his rule has been free from corruption at the top, and has been good for Pakistan. He needs all the support he can get to overcome the radicals. Ends.

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