The Formation Commanders Conference at GHQ chaired by COAS Gen Syed Asim Munir last week resolved that the desecrators of monuments of shuhada and those who attacked Jinnah House and military installations would certainly be brought to justice speedily under the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act, which are derivatives of Constitution of Pakistan. It was further decided to tighten the noose of law around the planners and masterminds who mounted the hate-ripened and politically-driven rebellion against the state and the state institutions to achieve their nefarious designs of creating chaos in the country.
The commanders also reiterated that efforts to create distortions and attempts to take refuge behind imaginary and mirage of human rights violations to create a smokescreen for hiding the ugly faces of all involved, were absolutely futile and did not stand up to the abundantly collected irrefutable evidence.
It was followed by the passage of a resolution by the National Assembly which extended unqualified support to the decisions of the Formation Commanders Conference. Nobody in his right mind and imbued with patriotic sentiments can take issue with the determination expressed by the formation commanders and the National Assembly. It was a rebellion against the state and it goes without saying that all those who executed the plan and those who masterminded it deserve the harshest possible punishment.
It may be recalled that the statement issued by ISPR immediately after that dastardly event, explicitly called it the darkest day in the history of Pakistan and also minced no words as to which political party was responsible for it. The Corp Commanders meeting on May 15 had expressed the resolve to try the masterminds, planners and those who actually carried out the plan under the Pakistan Army Act and Official Secrets Act. The National Security Committee meeting that followed the huddle of the Corp Commanders also thought on the same lines and decided to observe May 9 as a dark day.
However the formations commanders Conference in addition to the endorsement of already taken decisions also took notice of the campaign by the PTI and its supporters, both internal and external, who have been trying to stoke the issue of arrests made in regards to the attacks into a situation of human rights violations. It rightly pointed out that they could not take refuge behind this façade because the government and the establishment were in possession of irrefutable evidence of their criminality.
The formation commanders, in view of the existence of some support within the country for Imran Khan, also thought it appropriate to sound a stern warning to those elements that any attempt on their part to obstruct or thwart the process of defeating the inimical forces would be dealt with iron hands. Some quarters believe that it is a warning to the judges sitting in d will be used the judiciary who have a soft corner for Imran Khan. It may or may not be so, but it surely represents the impregnable resolve of the Army to punish all those responsible for the May 9 mayhem and even deal the same way with those who try to create hindrances in the process.
It is an undeniable reality that the party and its leadership, instead of expressing remorse over what it had done, upped the ante against the establishment. Its social media warriors and foreign elements supporting the party unleashed an unrelenting campaign in regards to violation of human rights and seeking intervention of the foreign powers to put pressure on the government and also link military assistance to human rights and rule of law.
Perhaps it would be pertinent to mention a few examples of the propaganda that was unfurled to malign the country and portraying it in dismal colours at the international level. A few days back Imran Khan in a video chat with US Congresswoman Maxine Moore Waters emphasized that Pakistan was facing an immensely challenging situation and it was the most difficult period in the history of the nation. Shifting the blame for attacks on military installation on the military establishment and intelligence agencies he insisted that these institutions wielded significant power within Pakistan. He pleaded with her to support him and raise her voice in his favour.
Imran has also been involved in discussions with several representatives of California including Ted Lieu, Eric Swalwell, Brad Sherman and Mike Leven. Representative Sherman composed a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in which he expressed apprehensions regarding infringement upon human rights, and the rule of law in Pakistan.
Reportedly the PTI’s US chapter is campaigning for linking Washington’s military aid to Pakistan to the human rights situation. Sajid Burki, a focal person of PTI for the USA, met US congressman Greg Casar along with another party member Atif Khan and requested him to play his part in bringing a resolution against the human rights violations in Pakistan.
The Congressman pledged his support for democracy, human rights and rule of law in Pakistan, adding that he was co-sponsoring a bill concerning military aid to human rights conditions in the country. It is pertinent to point out that a campaign by Pakistani-American Political Action Committee (PAKPAC) also led to more than US Congressmen approaching US Secretary Antony Blinken to pressurize the Pakistan government to improve the human rights situation in the country. A rally organized by the PTI outside the White House also appealed to President Biden to refrain from engaging with Pakistan.
It was also propagated that the Army had killed 30 people on that day. It was also alleged that the women arrested in connection with these attacks were tortured and raped in the jail. None other than Imran Khan himself tweeted in this regard.
Doctored pictures of women showing marks of torture on their bodies were also circulated on the social media. This was followed by a deluge of such fake stories on social media. Based on these reports, some voices were also heard from foreign countries showing concern at the human rights situation in the country.
It is pertinent to point out that when the CM Punjab asked Imran Khan and his party to name anyone who was killed by the Army there was no response. The allegations regarding torture and rape of women were rubbished by the incarcerated women themselves during their appearance in the court exposing the ill-designed of the party and its leader.
The formation commanders, in view of the existence of some support within the country for Imran Khan, also thought it appropriate to sound a stern warning to those elements that any attempt on their part to obstruct or thwart the process of defeating the inimical forces would be dealt with iron hands. Some quarters believe that it is a warning to the judges sitting in the judiciary who have a soft corner for Imran Khan. It may or may not be so, but it surely represents the impregnable resolve of the Army to punish all those responsible for the May 9 mayhem and even deal the same way with those who try to create hindrances in the process.
