During the third meeting of the Pakistan Afghanistan Joint Committee (PAJC), held at Karachi, as part of the outreach and university interaction planned for the group, one member each from the PAJC visited the Institute of Business Administration (IBA) on Wednesday, January 11, 2017. The Pakistani speaker was former Ambassador Mian Sanaullah while the Afghan speaker was Member of Afghan Parliament Khalid Pashtoon. Both spoke on “Pak-Afghan relations: Countering Misperceptions and Negative Narratives”. Executive Director of CRSS, Imtiaz Gul, represented CRSS while another member of PAJC, Mr. Qazi Humayun, former Pakistan Ambassador to Pakistan, was also present.
Dr. Bilal Munshi, Assistant Professor in the Social Sciences and Liberal Arts Department, IBA, welcomed the PAJC group members and introduced the two distinguished speakers from Pakistan and Afghanistan. CRSS Executive Director Mr. Imtiaz Gul gave a brief presentation on the project Beyond Boundaries, including phase one and the current phase two, and the project activities held so far through track II dialogues and other important sideline strategic meetings, to improve bilateral relations through such people to people contacts at civil society levels.
The session commenced with short introductions given by the students, followed by presentations by the guest speakers. Mr. Mian Sanaullah, having considerable experience at various diplomatic missions during his illustrious career, discussed how Pakistan and Afghanistan do not have strong political relations. The Afghan leadership believes that Pakistan is not a sincere friend. However, what is the truth? Nobody knows the answer to that question. Moreover, the future is uncertain with President-elect Donald Trump. The idea of peace returning to the region is not quite possible, according to Mr. Sanaullah. According to him, this essentially brings us to the point that each of us has a responsibility to remove mistrust so that we can understand each other’s aspirations.
Following this, Mr. Pashtoon started on a positive note by discussing the similarities between Afghans and Pakistanis. He talked about how he had spent a year in Karachi in 1981, since Pakistan had become a safe haven for Afghanis fleeing the Soviet invasion. Relations between the two countries were somewhat better. However, with the creation of the Taliban, the Afghan government turned cold towards Pakistan, blaming it for destabilizing the region. This was essentially where the blame game started. Mr. Pashtoon was of the opinion that Afghanistan expects more from Pakistan, and one only expects help from a friend. The role of India in Pak-Afghan relations was also discussed. India, being one of the largest economies in the region, has considerably helped Afghanistan economically, socially and militarily. According to Mr. Pashtoon, this was perhaps the main reason why ties between Afghanistan and India have become stronger over the years.
Mr. Qazi Humayun continued on this note by talking about the international situation – how the world is no longer unipolar but rather multipolar. Moreover, India’s part in this region has been enhanced due to the hegemonic aspirations of the present government. He also clarified Pakistan’s ethos towards the Taliban – that we are actively opposing them.
The floor was then opened for discussion whereby questions were raised by students and faculty members. CRSS Executive Director Mr. Imtiaz Gul again clarified that Pakistan’s ambivalent stance towards the Taliban ended in March 2007. A significant reason for this was the killing of Pakistani military generals and soldiers in North and South Waziristan by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. According to him, India is also involved in the dirty politics of the region. When former Ambassador, Tariq Aziz, was held in captivity by the Taliban, Baitullah Mehsud revealed to him how India had offered him help. A meeting of the top 12 security advisers was also held in India in 2009, which led to a report titled ‘How to deal with an obstinate Pakistan?’ A recommendation was given to conduct covert and overt operations in Baluchistan. The Indians felt that Baluchistan could be separated from Pakistan just like Bangladesh. Questions regarding the Durand Line, which was created by the British, and the status of Afghan refugees were also raised. To the latter, Mr. Khalid Pashtoon replied that he tries to ignore this problem and advises his colleagues to do the same. He also said that a decision regarding the refugees is also being made but nothing has been revealed to the media yet.
Mr. Sanaullah stated that the blame game between the two countries always results in negativity and misunderstanding. Furthermore, he also said that inter-state relations should not be based on religion only. If this were so then Bhutan and India, and Nepal and India would have strong ties. In the end, Mr. Pashtoon expressed hope that ties between the two counties would improve and there should be more projects like TAPI (Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India Pipeline) which will benefit this region.
The students then awarded shields to Mr. Khalid Pashtoon, Mr. Qazi Humayun and Mr. Sanaullah for sharing their views on Pak-Afghan bilateral relations with the IBA Faculty and students.
A university survey was also administered with the participating students and faculty members – post the lectures by PAJC members – to gauge the improvement in their perceptions on the other side; understanding of the challenges of Pak-Afghan relations, and awareness about the socio-political conditions in both countries.