JUI(F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman chose the run-up to the elections to go to Kabul, and though he met the acting PM of the Afghan government, the Pakistani Foreign Office, in a statement by its spokesperson, washed its hand off him, saying that the visit was in a personal capacity. Still, though the Maulana has ideological links to the Taliban, there is some difference on the Tehrik Taliban Pakistan. While the Islamic Emirate has given it asylum, it has attempted to assassinate Maulana Fazal. The Maulana’s opinion is shared by the establishment now, which is very different from when the Taliban first took over in Kabul two years ago, when a strange triumphalism prevailed, with ISI chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed behaving as if he had masterminded the US withdrawal. However, the tone of the establishment changed after the uptick in the attacks by the TTP, which not only attacked Pakistani law enforcing agencies, but got not just safe havens in Afghanistan, but also the American arms abandoned by the US forces when they retreated. While the Maulana has been denied by the state, it is difficult to believe that the establishment was unaware of the visit.
However, at this stage, an emissary, even one having more official status than the Maulana, would not serve much useful purpose. The Kabul government may consist of mullahs, but it would be aware than the current government not only represents no one, but has also overstayed its constitutionally mandated time limit. As such, there is no need to search for better representatives than the Maulana, but it is now time to wait until elections throw up a government representing the entire nation.
Such a government would do well to have a large and well-balanced delegation go to Afghanistan, which includes those who know the country and the issues bedevilling ties, so that outstanding issues like trade (not the present smuggling) and refugees (rather than illegal immigrants) can be discussed in a result-oriented manner. Until then, there seems no point in such quasi-free-enterprise missions as Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s. All that allows, is what he is doing, exploiting such issues for partisan purposes. Does the country really need to have as its representative someone with the chequered history that Maulana Fazl and his family have?
