C. Christine Fair - Pakistan's War on Scholars
Pakistan's military and intelligence agencies are waging a nasty war on
U.S.-based scholars whose writings and public statements undermine cherished
narratives promulgated by the army that has dominated Pakistan's governance for
most of the state's existence. These agencies aim to intimidate, discredit, and
silence us. Their tools are crude and include: outright threats; slanderous
articles in Pakistani papers and other on-line forums; an army of trolls on twitter and other
social media who hound us; and embassy officials who attend and report on our
speaking events on Pakistan. But we are lucky to be in the United States:
Pakistan's khaki louts disappear, kidnap and/or kill their critics within Pakistan
My own experience with Pakistan's harassment techniques
began in May of 2011 when I received an email threatening me with gang-rape by
an entire regiment. I had received a grant from the American Institute of
Pakistan Studies to complete research for my book "Fighting to the End:
The Pakistan Army's Way of War" and had intended to spend the summer of
2011 in Islamabad and Lahore. As I already had a valid, multiple-entry visa
they could not use visa denial as an instrument of coercion to influence my
writings before my planned visit. So, they tried to intimidate me with this
threat of physical harm.
At first, I was incredulous that this email was sent by the
"deep state"
and I did not immediately call off my travel. Serendipitously, my flight to
Dubai was cancelled. While I rebooked my travel, Pakistan's then ambassador
Husain Haqqani reached out to me to tell me simply "You have to cancel
your trip. The crew cuts are after you." Other embassy officials told me
privately that the ISI distributed a circular about me at the Pakistan embassy.
One officer asked me "You are in trouble. What did you do?" I was
sickened by the situation. Officials from the embassy were, and presumably are,
not allowed to meet with me.
When I confronted Brigadier Butt, the then ISI station chief
at the Pakistan Embassy and Defense Attaché --it became clear that he was
personally angry with me because he had seen or had heard about my book proposal
from a small number of persons who had seen it. He said that he felt let down
because the army had given me considerable access yet I was writing, what
he called, an anti-army book. I explained to him that I was doing
my job by being willing to go to Pakistan through various grants--despite the
security environment--to hear their side of the story. I also told him that
granting interviews to scholars is not tantamount to buying scholars
Since 2011 I have inspired several "planted"
stories that have appeared in Pakistani papers and obscure blogs alike. These
artless rants would be amusing if they were not dangerous. On one occasion, an
article actually gave information about where I was staying in Pakistan which
was a clear intent to cause me harm or signal the ability to cause me harm.
In the fall of 2014, two videos were circulated about me
that had the imprimatur of the army's media-management organization, the ISPR.
The videos included (not very danceable) sound tracks which were taken from
ISPR-produced entertainment. Since these videos were published on Youtube,
which is banned in Pakistan, the obvious audience of these productions was
Pakistanis outside the United States. (Both of these videos have since been
removed.).
In early February, The News, published an article that alleged that I have
nefarious links with Baloch insurgents. The Baloch are an ethnic group in
Pakistan whichresists inclusion into the state and its reliance
upon Islam as a tool to blunt Baloch ethnic aspirations. Pakistan's security
forces have waged five waves of brutal
military oppression, sometimes with U.S. weapons systems, which has been
widely decried by international as well as Pakistani human rights organizations.
Despite these well-documented abuses--which includes disappearances,
torture and murder by Pakistan's security forces--the United States has not
levied Leahy Sanctions as required by U.S. law. The ISI has
worked tirelessly to keep its actions in Balochistan a dark secret...
read more:
Purifying the pure: Mohammad Taqi examines Farahnaz Ispahani’s book, which traces Pakistan’s path to becoming an authoritarian, fundamentalist polity
Purifying the Land of the Pure: Pakistan's Religious Minorities
Purifying the Land of the Pure: Pakistan's Religious Minorities
