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UNCLAS ISLAMABAD 000231 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR KPAO OIIP OPRC PGOV PREL PK
SUBJECT:  PAKISTAN MEDIA REACTION: FEBRUARY 03, 2009 
 
Summary:  Reports and photographs of the "abduction of a top UN 
official and killing of his driver by unidentified militants in 
Quetta" made front-page headlines in most major dailies on Tuesday. 
Also receiving extensive coverage was President Zardari's 
reiteration to a visiting U.S. Congressional delegation that the 
"U.S. financial support is must to defeat terrorists."  All 
newspapers highlighted President Obama's remarks that "his 
administration wants to make sure that Afghanistan is not a safe 
haven for al-Qaeda and that the insurgency-hit country does not 
destabilize its nuclear-armed neighbor Pakistan." In an exclusive 
story from the Washington-based correspondent the daily, "Dawn" 
reported that "President Obama ordered three more brigade combat 
teams for Afghanistan." 
 
Most major dailies ran editorials on the perilous situation in Swat, 
and the possible outcome of the military operation that is underway 
to rout militancy and fanaticism from the valley.  The English 
daily, "Dawn," observed that "if the Pakistan Army fails the Swat 
litmus test, any notion of the sovereignty of the state will be 
destroyed."  The Lahore-based liberal daily, "The Post," noted that 
"with the increase in military operations in Swat another problem of 
mass exodus is confronting us."  The leading mass circulation daily, 
"Jang," advised that the "scholars from all schools of thoughts, 
spiritual figures, intellectuals and academicians must come forward 
to contain the growing 'Talibanization' of Pakistani society."  End 
Summary. 
 
----------------- 
News Stories 
----------------- 
 
"Gunmen Kidnap UN Agency Official In Quetta; Driver Killed In 
Ambush" "Dawn" (02/03) 
 
"A top UN official was kidnapped and his driver was killed after his 
vehicle was ambushed in Quetta on Monday.  An American national, 
John Solecki, head of the UN refugee agency in Quetta, was going to 
office from his nearby residence in the Chaman Housing Society when 
the gunmen in a white car opened fire on his vehicle." 
 
"UN Chief Condemns Quetta Attack" "The News" (02/03) 
 
"UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Monday condemned 'in the 
strongest terms' the attack in Quetta on Monday in which a senior UN 
official was abducted and his driver was killed, his spokesperson 
Marie Okabe said in a statement." 
 
"U.S. Financial Support Must To Defeat Terrorists, Says Zardari" 
"The News" (02/03) 
 
"President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday stressed the need for 
financial support from the United States and said that that the war 
against terrorism could not be won without the financial support of 
the U.S.  The President was speaking at a luncheon meeting hosted by 
him for a U.S. congressional delegation at the Presidency.  The 
delegation members discussed bilateral relations and the regional 
situation with the President...." 
 
"Militancy To Be Eradicated. Zardari Tells U.S. Lawmakers" "Dawn" 
(02/03) 
 
"President Asif Ali Zardari said on Monday that terrorists would not 
be allowed to hold the country hostage and the government was 
determined to root out militancy.  During a meeting with a U.S. 
congressional delegation, the President expressed the hope that the 
Obama administration would help Pakistan in the war on terror and 
make policies on the basis of ground realities." 
 
"U.S. Afghan Objective Is To Save Pakistan: Obama" "The News" 
(02/03) 
 
"U.S. President Barack Obama has said his administration wants to 
make sure that Afghanistan is not a safe haven for al-Qaeda and that 
the insurgency-hit country does not destabilize its nuclear-armed 
neighbor Pakistan.  Obama told NBC in an interview aired on Monday 
that his administration is for having clear objectives in 
Afghanistan and wants to fix the drift that occurred there over the 
last two years." 
 
"Obama Orders Additional Troops For Afghanistan" "Dawn" (02/03) 
 
"U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday ordered three more brigade 
combat teams for Afghanistan.  The decision was announced after a 
meeting of America's three most powerful men - President Barack 
Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Defence Secretary Robert Gates - 
met at the White House earlier on Monday.  The three reviewed a new 
strategy for dealing with the insurgency in Afghanistan and FATA." 
 
"U.S. Wasted Billions In Iraq, Afghanistan - Congressional Report" 
"Dawn" (02/03) 
 
"The United States has wasted billions of dollars in Iraq and is 
making the same mistakes in Afghanistan, warns a Congress-mandated 
report released on Monday.  The report by a Congress-auditor, known 
as Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, blames both 
fraud and lack of planning for the waste." 
 
"NATO Not Involved In Drone Attacks, Kayani Told" "The News" 
(02/03) 
 
"NATO Commander in Afghanistan General David McKiernan held an 
important meeting with Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez 
Kayani on Monday and discussed the ambit of issues pertaining to war 
on terror, situation in tribal areas and Afghanistan and to make 
NATO supply route safer.  According to sources, General David 
McKiernan while talking on drone attacks in Pakistan's territory 
clearly stated that NATO is not involved in such attacks and it has 
a clear position in this regard." 
 
"U.S. Cops To Train National Highways & Motorway Police" "The 
Nation" (02/03) 
 
"A team of American Police professionals will impart training to the 
officers of National Highways & Motorway Police (NH&MP) to combat 
crime and terrorism.  In this respect, the Regional Security Officer 
Stephen F. Smith and Robert A. Clark, Program manager on 
Anti-Terrorism visited the headquarters of NH&MP, where they were 
briefed in detail about the working of the motorway policy." 
 
"Japan Plans Conference To Mobilize Aid For Pakistan" "Dawn" 
(02/03) 
 
"Japan is inviting key nations to a conference to drum up aid to 
stabilize Pakistan in what it hopes would be one of U.S. Secretary 
of State Hillary Clinton's first foreign trips, a senior official 
said on Monday.  Japan is eager to build ties with President Barack 
Obama's administration, which has vowed to focus on fighting 
extremism in Pakistan and Afghanistan." 
 
"Nine More Die As Swat Continues To Bleed" "The News" (02/03) 
 
"Nine more people were killed and 11 others injured during shelling 
and incidents of violence in the Swat Valley on Monday while 
internally displaced people continued to face problems." 
 
"Growing Number Of People Standing Up Against Militants" "The News" 
(02/03) 
 
"Though the price of opposing militants is quite high, yet several 
tribes and a few individuals have now decided to offer maximum 
resistance to the powerful attackers in their areas and not to give 
in....  There seems no government or security agency to give any 
hope to the public of improvement in the law and order situation. 
This is why the public has either preferred to rely on self-defense 
instead of police or have shifted to safer places." 
 
"Swatis Run For their Lives" "The News" (02/03) 
 
"Caught between the Pakistani military and their Taliban militant 
foes, thousands of civilians are fleeing from fighting in Swat 
Valley.  'We have been punished for no fault of our own,' said a 
man, Ikramullah on Monday." 
 
"U.S.-Spy Plane Hovers Over Chitral" "The News" (02/03) 
 
"Extending violations of Pakistan's air space, a CIA-operated U.S. 
spy plane flew over Chitral at a very low altitude for more than one 
hour and returned to Afghanistan without taking any action, causing 
panic among the locals." 
"Qazi Demands Halt To Swat Military Operation; Asks Govt. Sever Ties 
With U.S." "The Nation" (02/03) 
 
"Jamaat-e-Islami Chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad, has demanded the 
government break off its alliance with the United States in war on 
terror and halt the ongoing military operation and drone attacks in 
FATA and other parts of the NWFP, while addressing a press 
conference in Karachi on Monday." 
 
"U.S. Sees Kashmir Amongst Major Issues: Schaffer" "The Nation" 
(02/03) 
 
"The former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia, 
Teresita Schaffer, has said policy-makers in the U.S. see the 
India-Pakistan dispute as one of the world's major unresolved issues 
and Kashmir as part of this problem." 
 
--------------------- 
Editorials/Op-eds 
--------------------- 
 
"Will It Be Any Different?," an editorial in the Karachi-based 
center-left independent national English daily "Dawn" (cir. 55,000) 
(02/03) 
 
"If the Pakistan Army fails the Swat litmus test, any notion of the 
sovereignty of the state will be destroyed.  Maulana Fazlullah will 
not stop at conquering Swat; logically, he will move on to other 
parts of the Malakand division and soon arrive at the doorstep of 
Peshawar.  Moreover, if the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan continues to 
defy the Pakistan Army in Swat, the international 'do more' brigade 
urging Pakistan to fight the militants may reconsider its options on 
the pretext that we cannot win the battle on our own.  From there 
the unraveling of the state as we know it may be a rapid affair." 
 
"Swat Crisis," an editorial in the Lahore-based liberal English 
daily "The Post" (cir. 5,000) (02/03) 
 
"With the increase in military operations in Swat another problem of 
mass exodus is confronting us. People are finding it difficult to 
move to safer places because of perpetual curfew and escalating 
clashes in the area.  Even ambulances are not safe as they too are 
caught in the crossfire.  People are forced to stay indoors and are 
facing severe food shortage.  No relief camp has been set up for the 
internally displaced persons by the government." 
 
"Terrorism - Scholars Should Come Forward To Win Hearts And Minds," 
an editorial in the leading mass circulation centrist Urdu daily 
"Jang" (cir. 300,000) (02/03) 
 
". . . As far as the military operation is concerned, it must be 
confined to the establishment of peace and the protection of the 
lives of common people.  However, the scholars from all schools of 
thoughts, spiritual figures, intellectuals and academicians must 
come forward to contain the growing 'Talibanization' in Pakistani 
society, and to show the path of peace and harmony to our new 
generations." 
 
"Military Operation Isn't Solution Of Swat Problem," an editorial in 
the Karachi-based, pro Taliban Jihadi Urdu daily "Islam" (cir. 
15,000) (02/03) 
 
"Prime Minister Gilani while talking to the international leaders in 
Davos has reiterated that mere military operations aren't the 
solution of FATA and Swat problems.  Now question is that when the 
Prime Minister is convinced right from the beginning that the 
military option isn't a solution, then why has his administration 
resorted to this option in those areas like his predecessor?  Why 
did he not take other steps to improve situation in the NWFP?  The 
best solution of the menace of extremism is negotiations." 
 
"Mr. Prime Minister! Step Into Practical World," an editorial in the 
Peshawar-based Urdu-language daily "Mashriq" (cir. 55,000) (02/03) 
 
"No one can fail to notice the initial successes of the Pakistan 
Army in Swat and FATA against the foreign militants and their 
operatives, but the U.S. demonstrated duplicity and provided safe 
passage to the foreign militants from Afghanistan into Pakistani 
border areas, and now it is targeting Pakistan's local population in 
the garb of hitting foreign militants.  Our military rulers had not 
taken notice of this state of affairs owing to the U.S. support to 
their unlawful regime, and their hunger for the U.S. dollars.  But 
why is the incumbent democratic government not taking steps to stop 
the U.S. drone attacks now?" 
 
"People In Flight," an editorial in the centrist national English 
daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (02/03) 
 
"Over 50 per cent of the valley's 1.8 million people are said 
already to have fled.  More now follow them and with fears of 
intensified fighting over the coming days these numbers could 
increase.  The people of Swat, caught between the bombs of militants 
and the bullets of the military, are in no way responsible for what 
has happened.  They must then not be made to suffer....  One must 
hope the fierce operation now on will end in a decisive victory 
against militants, ending the reign of terror they have unleashed in 
Swat." 
 
"Mounting Civilian Losses," an editorial in the center-right 
national English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000) (02/03) 
 
"Part of the reason for the civilian losses is the type of weapons 
being used, artillery, mortars, and helicopters. The Army has no 
precision weapons system at its disposal. While the operation is 
being conducted in settled civilian areas, the U.S., which compelled 
Pakistan to pursue its anti-terrorism agenda militarily, has these 
precision weapons.  Unless it decides to hand over this technology 
to Pakistan, the rate of casualties will continue to mount.  This 
would also hurt the long-term interest of the U.S." 
 
"Injured Swat," an op-ed by a women rights activist Amar Sindhu in 
Hyderabad-based liberal and independent daily "Kawish" (Cir. 
105,000) (02/03) 
 
"The children in Swat now dread even the word of 'Taliban,' and the 
images of the war-planes and the armed Taliban haunt them even in 
their naove slumber. The demolition of schools has put an end to 
their schooling, and they are not aware of the phenomenon of the 
global war on terror.  The important thing to them is that their 
schools are ruined, and they may perhaps not be able to go to a 
classroom ever again." 
 
"U.S. Dollars In Exchange For National Sovereignty And The Blood Of 
Muslims?," an editorial in the second-largest, center-right 
nationalist Urdu daily "Nawa-i-Waqt" (cir. 125,000) (02/03) 
 
"The U.S. has reportedly signaled giving political and financial 
assistance to Pakistan in exchange for continuing drone attacks.... 
The present government is already being accused of permitting drone 
attacks; and [it is said that] the protest at the diplomatic level 
is only meant to befool the public.  Now if the drone attacks 
continue and the Army also increases its operations, the nation will 
be forced to believe that this is a result of [U.S.] political and 
financial assistance, and that the present government is protecting 
U.S. interests even more than General (retd) Musharraf did. 
Pakistani nation rejects any aid given in exchange for their Muslim 
brothers' blood, and in exchange for violation of their soil and 
sovereignty." 
 
"Pakistan Should Announce Dissociation From The War On Terror," an 
editorial in the Lahore-based Urdu daily "Din" (cir. 5,000) (02/03) 
 
"The losses Pakistan has faced in the last several years in the 
fields of tourism, culture, entertainment, economy and defense are 
the outcome of active participation in the war on terror.  Even if 
the Obama administration gives us a few U.S. dollars, the price 
extracted from us will be much more. Hence, the best stance would be 
for Pakistan to make arrangements to completely stop any movement 
between the Pak-Afghan border, and to announce a dissociation from 
the war on terror.  The immediate effect of this would be a 
cessation of insurgency in Pakistani areas, and a halt to U.S. 
interference in our domestic matters.  If today Pakistan announces 
separation from the war on terror, the U.S. would not only stop 
drone attacks, but would also be willing to give more concessions." 
 
"Obama's Approach In The Region," an editorial in the Lahore-based 
liberal English language daily "Daily Times" (cir. 10,000) (02/03) 
 
"President Barack Obama wants to try a different approach in the 
region that includes Central Asia, Iran and South Asia.  The latest 
move is to try some lateral thinking on Iran which keeps on harping 
on the theme of a 'new footing' to U.S.-Iran relations.  He wants to 
begin the process of thawing with Syria, persuading it to relent in 
its opposition to Israel, and thus discourage Iran in its 
anti-Israel policy.  But more importantly, it wants to align policy 
with Iran to isolate the Taliban in Afghanistan.  Needless to say, 
it wants to help Pakistan more in its effort to fight terrorism and 
re-establish its writ in the Tribal Areas." 
 
"CIA's Plan To Divide India," an editorial note in the 
second-largest, center-right nationalist Urdu daily "Nawa-i-Waqt" 
(cir. 125,000) (02/03) 
 
"[Indian] Colonel Purohit, involved in the Malegaon bomb blasts, has 
revealed that the CIA is working on a plan to divide India into 
smaller states by 2015.  He was present in a meeting where this plan 
was discussed....  The fact is that America cannot digest any 
non-white country becoming a nuclear power. Hence, it wants to 
dismember India as well as Pakistan....  It would be appropriate if 
both countries jointly counter the state that wants to break them 
up....  There is only one hurdle in the way of Pakistan-India 
cooperation against the U.S. - Kashmir issue.  If India resolves 
this issue according to UN resolutions, both countries could be 
saved from conspiracies by countries like the U.S." 
 
"Terrorism: Need For Joint Indo-Pak Efforts," an editorial in 
liberal Urdu daily "Express" (cir. 25,000) (02/03) 
 
"There are now reports that CIA has started work on a plan to divide 
India into several small states by 2015, and that this plan has the 
support of several intelligence officials including Indian Col. 
Purohit, involved in the Malegaon blasts....  This threat demands 
that India stop making false allegations against Pakistan and join 
forces with Pakistan to uproot terrorism from the region and counter 
such conspiracies." 
 
"Tale Of A Dossier," an editorial in the centrist national English 
daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (02/03) 
 
"The important thing is that some progress is being made.  Pakistan 
must take pride in its professional handling of the investigation, 
with even a hostile India now lauding its efforts.  One must hope 
that as the process continues it will lead towards a definite 
conclusion and that there will be a willingness to act on this." 
 
"Khuda Ki Kasam" [By God], an op-ed by Anjum Niaz in the centrist 
national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (02/03) 
 
"It's no state secret that the Zardari government is aimless and 
adrift and the Sharifs a smokescreen manufactured in the U.S.  With 
the brand name 'Democracy' the Americans have a copyright on this 
trademark.  Ambassador Anne Patterson has worked hard to plug the 
democracy package to the Pakistani people for over a year.  It's 
been a hard sell.  Why?  Because the product is poor....  The 
political laboratories in Washington under the Obama administration 
are carrying out new experiments - tweaking presidential powers; 
decreasing Sharifs' efficacy; vitamanizing Altaf Hussain and 
Asfandyar's political impotency.  Still all actors fall short of the 
man-meets-the-moment mix.  'You never want a serious crisis to go to 
waste,' says the wiseacre Rahm Emanuel, Obama's chief of staff. 
Their shake-and-bake recipe has therefore been repackaged and 
floated anew on our airwaves to test its salability. The 170 million 
Pakistanis are America's guinea pigs. We've been trapped into 
becoming political junkies." 
Patterson