HEATED DEBATE IN PAKISTAN'S NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ON

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ISLAMABAD 002459 SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PK SUBJECT: HEATED DEBATE IN PAKISTAN'S NATIONAL ASSEMBLY ON KERRY-LUGAR BILL REF: ISLAMABAD 2448 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: In three days of intense debate in the Pakistan National Assembly October 7-9, the Kerry-Lugar Bill (KLB) has come under fire (reftel). Post has been observing the debates daily. During debates on October 8 and 9, criticism of the bill by opposition members of parliament continued, while the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) parliamentarians have had to come to its and their government's defense as well. The media has reported that a resolution on the KLB will come before parliament for a vote; however, some of our sources think such a scenario is not very likely. Debate on the Kerry-Lugar bill will resume October 12. End Summary. ¶2. (U) On October 8, in a two-and-a-half-hour session, former Interior Minister Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat of PML-Q and former Foreign Minister Sardar Asif Ahmad Ali of PPP made speeches on the bill. Hayat, who spoke for about 45 minutes, charged that the government was "about to trade" its national institutions in return for money offered by the KLB, adding that Pakistan is "mortgaging" its country for a pittance. Alluding to government corruption, Hayat asked how much of the aid from KLB would actually get to the Pakistani people if passed. He also questioned whether the amount to be given to Pakistan was commensurate with its importance to U.S. policy. In stark contrast, he claimed that in Afghanistan alone the U.S. spends $6 billion a month. ¶3. (U) Hayat further charged that for the last six months there has been a "campaign" against the ISI and security forces, and that by accepting the KLB, Pakistan is "giving permanence to this (negative) perception" of these institutions. Further speaking out in defense of the army, Hayat said that four or five months ago, the world was proclaiming that Pakistan had become a "failed state" and was on the verge of disintergration. It was the army that was responsible for avoiding such a fate despite all the pundits and think tanks, predictions, he said. Hayat stated that the KLB had now brought about a "serious divide" in relations between the civilian government and military. ¶4. (U) Hayat criticized aspects of the bill that seemingly make it a foregone conclusion that Pakistan is involved in terrorism and nuclear proliferation, which are charges repeatedly made by India and Afghanistan, he said. He argued 
that the bill takes India's concerns into account while failing to acknowledge Pakistan's concerns about India; he said there was not a single mention in the bill about India's involvement in Pakistan (i.e. Balochistan). In his closing remarks--to the sound of opposition members of parliament banging on tables in resounding approval--Hayat urged the government to "stand up the U.S.," and he promised that, in turn, the members of parliament will "stand behind you like a solid wall." ¶5. (U) The PPP's Ali, while conceding that he found aspects of the KLB objectionable and "highly intrusive," urged for sensibility and an emotion-free discourse from the opposition so that there may be "convergence" between the U.S. and Pakistan on areas of concern in the bill. He asked the opposition, in its zeal to appeal to the public's anti-American sentiments (which he said was well-deserved given the U.S.'s past support of Pakistani dictators and U.S. foreign policies in the region),not to lose sight of the substance of the bill; he said the KLB overall was in Pakistan's favor. He added that this was the first time the U.S. was giving substantial support to Pakistan's democracy and he could not understand why it was being perceived so negatively. Despite such views, Ali was also critical of the U.S. Congress for including provisions within the bill that he perceived to be pro-India, asking at one point whether the Indian lobby was responsible for the inclusion of concerns about Quetta and other issues in the bill. ¶6. (U) Ali remarked that previous Pakistani governments had never brought such a bill before parliament for debate, and now a democratic government was giving it an opportunity to analyze the bill, not to approve or oppose it. He reminded parliament that the KLB was not a "treaty to be signed," but that rather once signed into law it will be binding on the USG not on Pakistan. He further argued that the U.S. has ISLAMABAD 00002459 002 OF 003 included "reservations" in the KLB because it wants to ensure that the aid it is giving to Pakistan from American taxpayers is being well spent. Ali suggested that Pakistan should engage in back channel talks with the U.S. about its concerns to avoid a situation whereby, in all of the uproar and hysteria about the KLB, Pakistan "cuts off its nose to spite its face." ¶7. (SBU) During one of the breaks, PML-N spokesman Ahsan Iqbal told poloff that the USG's well-intentioned effort with the KLB has turned "sour" because the government--in its eagerness for KLB's passage--failed to get parliament's buy-in while KLB discussions were underway in Washington. He said that the government could have arranged for key parliamentarians from across the political spectrum to meet with Congress in Washington during the KLB debates so that they could have been properly briefed on Pakistani sensitivities. Iqbal said that the government was not only facing resistance on the KLB from the opposition, but also from some of its allies. He also claimed that some in the Cabinet were not consulted on the KLB. Iqbal said that had the army been consulted earlier, it would not have come out publicly about its concerns. Iqbal further charged that it was the government's responsibility to have flagged objectionable provisions of the bill to Congress. ¶8. (U) Prime Minister Gilani and Foreign Minister Qureshi attended an abbreviated (approximately one-hour) October 9 National Assembly debate on the Kerry-Lugar bill, during which Qureshi made brief remarks. The Foreign Minister informed the National Assembly that the Prime Minister had instructed him to return to Pakistan from Washington to brief the parliamentarians. Commending the assembly for its "healthy debate" on Kerry-Lugar, Qureshi called for a "balanced" and "dispassionate" discourse in addition to the expressed dissent. He reassured the parliamentarians that the government "will never surrender Pakistan's sovereignty" and would "never compromise" on its nuclear program. He informed that in his frank and candid meeting with U.S. officials, he made it clear that the Pakistani government "will never let anyone micro-manage Pakistan." ¶9. (SBU) MQM's Abdul Qadir Khanzada, PML-N's Makhdoom Javed Hashmi and Ahsan Iqbal, and PML-Q's Marvi Memon also spoke during the October 9 debate. MQM's Khanzada, a member of the coalition, was measured in his remarks. He said that Kerry-Lugar was a very important bill deserving of thorough study and that MQM's legal experts are in the process of reviewing it. (Note: Fouzia Khan, a long-time MQM member, told poloff following the debate that MQM will decide its position on the bill in the next day or two. End Note.). Khanzada added that the MQM was not taken into confidence when the PPP was reviewing the bill. MQM head Altaf Hussain was unhappy about this failure to consult with MQM, he said. Khanzada stated there should be an all-parties conference (including parties not in parliament) to review the bill before moving forward. ¶10. (U) PML-Q's Marvi Memon said that Pakistan should not tolerate any interference in its nuclear program and suggested that perhaps a clause should be added to the Pakistani Constitution making it a treasonous offense to compromise the nuclear program. She charged that "Mr. Obama will be deciding regional security" in South Asia through this bill and that RAW and the Mossad will be given greater entree. She added that clauses in Kerry-Lugar "fuel the civil-military divide," and accused the government of having sold out the country's nuclear program and sovereignty by accepting this bill. ¶11. (U) Hashmi, a major PML-N figure who has fallen out with Nawaz Sharif, criticized the government for having failed to protect the country's interests and declared that Pakistan had been "robbed." He equated Kerry-Lugar to a drone attack on Pakistan. He charged that the U.S., having failed in Afghanistan, is now focusing on Pakistan and turning it into a "battlefield." He claimed that the "war machines" of other Muslim countries (i.e., Iraq, Iran) are being dismantled and Pakistan is next in line. Hashmi asserted that while "America needs Pakistan," Pakistan does not need America and its money because "Pakistan is not a poor country, it's a poorly administered country." This statement led to applause ISLAMABAD 00002459 003 OF 003 from fellow parliamentarians. Iqbal, who does represent Nawaz Sharif, in very brief remarks before the October 9 session adjourned, requested copies of four agreements referenced in Kerry-Lugar (one of which he said involved DoD and the Pakistani military) to facilitate a meaningful debate. ¶12. (SBU) Comment: Press reports on October 9 state that parliament is poised to bring up a resolution on the KLB for a vote. However, we have heard from some sources that this is not likely. KLB debates will resume the evening of Monday, October 12. End Comment. PATTERSON