PAKISTAN MEDIA REACTION: APRIL 14, 2009

UNCLAS ISLAMABAD 000785

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KMDR KPAO OIIP OPRC PGOV PREL PK
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN MEDIA REACTION: APRIL 14, 2009

Summary: Reports on the approval of a "controversial Sharia
regulation for the Malakand division" by President Zardari dominated
headlines in all newspapers on Tuesday. All newspapers reported
that Tehrik Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi (TNSM) and Tehrik-i-Taliban
Swat "welcomed the National Assembly resolution." Most
editorialists also focused their attention towards the issue. The
English daily, "Dawn," noted that "simply endorsing the Nizam-i-Adl
in a bid to bring peace to the Malakand division may be too little
and have come too late." Another English newspaper, "Daily Times,"
observed that "opinion is so polarized in Pakistan that developments
in Swat after the February 12 agreement can hardly be presented as
ominous. In the eyes of many, the agreement with Sufi Muhammad is
the treaty of the defeated."

Reports and photographs of Senator John Kerry's meetings with
Pakistani government officials also received wide front-page
coverage. Most major dailies quoted Senator Kerry as saying that
the U.S. aid to Pakistan is "not conditional." Also highlighted
were remarks by Interior Adviser Rehman Malik that "India has not
provided sufficient information required to proceed with the case
against alleged perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks." Reports that
"Pakistan would seek $4 billion at this month's donors' conference
in Tokyo" also figured prominently. End Summary.

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News Stories
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"Sharia For Malakand As Zardari Signs Law" "Dawn" (04/14)

"President Asif Ali Zardari approved a controversial Sharia
regulation for the Malakand division of the North West Frontier
Province on Monday after the National Assembly asked for what seemed
to be a clear concession to Taliban militants of the Swat Valley to
implement a peace deal between them and the Provincial Government."

"Sufi, Swat Taliban Welcome NA Move" "Dawn" (04/14)

"Tehrik Nifaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi (TNSM) and Tehrik-i-Taliban Swat
on Monday welcomed the National Assembly resolution, expressing
hopes that its implementation would restore peace to Swat."

"MQM Only Party To Oppose Deal With Taliban" "The News" (04/14)

"The Muttahida Qaumi Movement on Monday opposed the Nizam-e-Adl
Regulation and abstained from voting on the issue in the National
Assembly."

"Kerry Says Aid Not Conditional; Assures Coop" "The Nation" (04/14)

"Top U.S. Senator John Kerry, who arrived in Islamabad Monday
morning on a two-day visit, held separate meetings with President
Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, Foreign
Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and ISI chief Lt Gen Shuja Pasha.
President Zardari called for expediting the Kerry-Lugar Bill and its
passage without any conditions and the Reconstruction Opportunity
Zones (ROZs) legislation in the U.S. Senate, besides the need for
working out a joint strategy to counter terrorism. In his response,
Senator Kerry said no conditions were being attached to Kerry-Lugar
Bill and those were some measures for the effectiveness of the
projects to be undertaken once the aid was delivered to Pakistan."

"Negative Messages Creating Ill-Will, Gilani Tells U.S." "Dawn"
(04/14)

"Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani criticized the United States and
its Western allies on Monday for creating 'ill-will' about Pakistan
and cautioned Washington against attaching strings to its assistance
package. Prime Minister Gilani told John Kerry, Chairman of the
U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who is in Islamabad to
discuss the proposed aid package with officials in Islamabad."

"Kerry Conveyed Pak Concerns" "The News" (04/14)

"The United States on Monday held out an assurance that its
long-term partnership with Pakistan was not with any particular
government, but with the people of Pakistan. 'I am here to discuss
the new way forward. We have made it very clear that the U.S. has a
larger commitment (in Pakistan). That is why there is a 10-year
commitment in the (Kerry-Lugar) bill,' said Senator John Kerry,
Chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who is on a
two-day visit to Pakistan. He pointed out that the Pak-U.S.
relationship had to be seen beyond the allies' fight against terror
and extremism, and was hopeful that Pakistan's concerns would be
fully addressed in the final version of the legislation."

"ISI Protecting National Interests" "The Nation" (04/14)

"Director General Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt. Gen. Ahmad
Shuja Pasha has made it clear to the U.S. that ISI had no agenda
other than country's national security. Well-placed sources told
'The Nation' that ISI Chief made these remarks while talking to the
visiting Chairman U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator
John Kerry who met with in Islamabad on Monday."

"India Yet To Provide Adequate Information About Mumbai" "Dawn"
(04/14)

"Prime Minister's Adviser on Interior Rehman Malik said on Monday
that India had not provided sufficient information required to
proceed with the case against alleged perpetrators of the Mumbai
attacks."

"Pakistan To Seek $4 Billion From Donors For Education, Health"
"Dawn" (04/14)

"Pakistan said on Monday it would seek $4 billion at this month's
donors' conference in Tokyo for the badly neglected areas of
education, health and poverty alleviation."

"Pakistan Loses $35 Billion In War On Terror: Tarin" "The Nation"
(04/14)

"Pakistan had lost $35 billion in the ongoing war against terror
during the last eight years. Due to security concerns in Pakistan,
foreign investors were also not coming, Advisor to Prime Minister on
Finance and Economic Affairs Shaukat Tarin said, adding the number
of large operational industrial units in the country had reduced
from 2,250 to 550."

"Some Taliban Leave Buner" "Dawn" (04/14)

"A group of 60 Taliban vacated the Bagra police post and left Buner
on Monday, but their colleagues will continue 'peaceful preaching'
in mosques till further orders from their leadership."

"Baitullah's Close Aide Arrested In Karachi" "Dawn" (04/14)

"A man suspected to be a close companion of Taliban Commander
Baitullah Mehsud was arrested in Karachi on Monday."

"U.S. Drones Fly Over Swat" "The News" (04/14)

"The U.S. spy planes were seen flying over Matta Tehsil of Swat on
Monday, sending a wave of fear among the residents across the
troubled valley."

"Three Militants, Soldier Killed In SWA Clash" "The News" (04/14)

"The government finally turned its guns on the previously
pro-government tribal militants in South Waziristan, as four people,
including three militants and a soldier, were killed and several
others injured in the first-ever clash after the 2007 peace
agreement."

"Qureshi For Climate Of Trust With India" "Dawn" (04/14)

"Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said that a climate of
trust and cooperation with India would ease the pressure enormously
on their shared border to allow Islamabad to direct its energies on
the volatile western front. 'If we have to concentrate on the
western border obviously we have to be comfortable on the eastern
side.' Mr. Qureshi said in an interview broadcast by CNN-IBN
channel on Monday.'"

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Editorials/Op-eds
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"Time To Show Spine," an editorial in the Peshawar-based,
independent regional daily "The Frontier Post" (cir. 7,000) (04/14)

"Senator John Kerry, heading the U.S. Senate foreign relations
committee, has descended on Islamabad.... What they talk with our
movers and shakers we will never know, as always. Habitually, these
bigwigs keep that a closely guarded secret. It is only a positive
spin they put on display for public consumption. It is days later
that we come to know from American, and now also Indian, media that
the honorable U.S. dignitaries had come to administer admonition and
a dressing-down to our top echelons and twist their arms and that
they had had the fun to their fill, with our grandees taking the
punishment without any fuss or complaint but rather gleefully.
Puppies have the American lords used them in the past; and will keep
using them so now and hereafter, unless and until they show the
spine and demand respect.... Isn't it time our top echelons show
the spine, tell the Americans to pack up lock, stock and barrel from
here, shut their Kabul shop of subversion and sabotage in Pakistan,
keep their money with them, and leave us alone to cope with their
work of wreck and ruin in our country?"

"Nizam-i-Adl Regulation," an editorial in the Karachi-based
center-left independent national English daily "Dawn" (cir. 55,000)
(04/14)

"The Nizam-i-Adl has been approved by parliament and promulgated by
the president. But the debate in parliament was yet another missed
opportunity. The bigger point is that the politicians still need to
reach a consensus on how to counter militancy.... If Swat and the
Nizam-i-Adl were a test case, then the politicians have not done
justice to finding that credible strategy. Simply endorsing the
Nizam-i-Adl in a bid to bring peace to the Malakand Division may be
too little and have come too late."

"Getting Parliament To Endorse Seat Laws," an editorial in the
Lahore-based liberal English language daily "Daily Times" (cir.
10,000) (04/14)

"Opinion is so polarized in Pakistan that developments in Swat after
the February 12 agreement can hardly be presented as ominous. Facts
are being juxtaposed with blind faith in the saintly person of Sufi
Muhammad to transform Swat into a cradle of peace. The Taliban,
after entering Buner for Tabligh (spreading the faith),have killed
a number of people supporting the local Jirga and are using local
mosques to recruit the youth of the district. Such is the effect of
intimidation that it is the fresh 'Mujahideen' of a victimized Buner
who will now ensure that the reign of warlord Fazlullah is
perpetuated. In the eyes of many, the agreement with Sufi Muhammad
is the treaty of the defeated."

"Need For Moderation," an editorial in the center-right national
English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000) (04/14)

"It is unfortunate that in a democratic set-up vital decisions are
being taken in a hush-hush manner. The federal and provincial
governments and the TTP had kept the details of the Nizam-e-Adl
Regulation, and how it was going to be legislated, a closely guarded
secret.... To allow every Parliamentarian to freely express his
opinion, there is a need to debate the legislation in an in-camera
session...."

"Adl Regulation: A Challenge Successfully Met," an editorial in the
country's premier business newspaper, "Business Recorder" (cir.
25,000) (04/14)

"The National Assembly has passed a resolution urging President Asif
Ali Zardari to back imposing Nifaz-e-Nizam-e-Shariah (Adl)
regulation for furthering the objective of peace in Swat Valley....
Perhaps, President Zardari's move was also motivated by the
hindsight that the people of Pakistan never forgave his predecessor
for his infamous yes to Bush administration on joining the war on
terror without consulting the Parliament.... Indeed, it was a major
concession to consistent public demand for 'supremacy of
parliament.'"

"The Knight's Move," an editorial in the centrist national English
daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (04/14)

"President Zardari has never seemed on the surface to be much of a
chess player but we may have to revise our assessment if his move in
respect of the Nizam-e-Adl, placing it squarely in the hands of the
prime minister and parliament is anything to go by.... What may
have stayed his hand and produced a move that has caught some
off-guard, is that had he signed off on it by himself and it had all
gone dreadfully wrong then he alone would be carrying the can.
Passing it to Parliament spreads the responsibility - and the blame
- around rather more widely.... The government late on Monday
afternoon said that it had referred the agreement to parliament
solely 'to allay international fears' about it - and this at a time
when Senator John Kerry is in town to have a tte-`-tte about
'conditionalities' attached to U.S. aid. The Dark Knight's move may
have far reaching consequences, and the game is far from over. Your
move, Parliament."

"Swat Deal's Approval In The National Assembly," an editorial in the
Lahore-based populist center-right Urdu daily "Khabrain" (cir.
50,000) (04/14)

"Pakistan is an Islamic country and was created in the name of
Islam. There is no Muslim in the country who would oppose
implementation of Islamic laws.... Although there was no
expectation that anyone in the Assembly would have opposed the
regulation, yet there was a possibility that a parliamentarian could
have come up with an amendment or improvement. Hence the
government, ANP, Maulana Sufi Muhammad and other parties should
accept the parliament's decision openheartedly."

"Costly Peace," an op-ed by Ejaz Haider in the Lahore-based liberal
English language daily "Daily Times" (cir. 10,000) (04/14)

"But while the Parliament's approval of the draft and the
President's subsequent signing of it might sustain the current peace
in Swat, it is a foregone conclusion it will not be able to stop the
domino effect that has begun in the area, Buner being an example.
The immediate question then is, and we can't go beyond the
immediate: where will the state draw the line; or will it?"

"Obama Must Think Again," an op-ed by Shahid Javed Burki in the
Karachi-based center-left independent national English daily "Dawn"
(cir. 55,000) (04/14)

"The new approach adopted by Washington has already moved in the
right direction by ensuring Islamabad and the people of Pakistan
that its engagement with them will be for a long time.... To help
develop Pakistan and save it from extremism, the U.S. will need to
factor in not just the quantity of money it can give but also
quality advice on its use."

"Obama's Flawed Af-Pak Strategy," an op-ed by Javid Husain in the
center-right national English daily "The Nation" (cir. 20,000)
(04/14)

"Obama like his predecessor has reversed the cause and effect
relationship between the situation in Afghanistan and FATA in the
formulation of his strategy. It was the U.S. invasion of
Afghanistan and the overthrow of the Taliban government which had
forced the Taliban in Afghanistan and their sympathizers to take up
arms against the coalition forces. It was this development which
had sucked the tribesmen from our tribal areas into the fighting in
Afghanistan because of close tribal ties, despite the best efforts
of the government of Pakistan. It is thus the continued fighting
and turmoil in Afghanistan which have embroiled our tribal areas and
virtually set them on fire with dire consequences for Pakistan."

"Drones Are A Red Herring!," an op-ed by Anjum Niaz in the centrist
national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (04/14)

"Who can deny that the militants have infiltrated all across
Pakistan. They are threatening Islamabad. But our blinkered media
continues to drone on about drone attacks not questioning their
rulers why they speak with forked tongues. Why are they not taking
the citizenry into confidence? Vigilantism is our only survival.
The initiated must move beyond the drones and fight to save
Pakistan. A nuclear country of 170 million does not 'disintegrate'
or does it? We're being reminded that we are on artificial
respiration and the plug can be pulled out any minute. The
Americans and the British have their finger on the hot button. It
will be a three-way war, between the U.S., Taliban and our military
guarding our nuclear assets. 'The Americans will take out the
nuclear arsenal, throw us to the Taliban and calmly walk away,' is
the common perception among people whose hearts and heads are in the
right place."

"Why Hate America?," an op-ed by Mir Jamilur Rahman in the centrist
national English daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (04/14)

"Historically, no ally of the United States has faced as many
sanctions from the U.S. as Pakistan. The Americans refused to
supply 28 F-16 fighter aircraft though the money had been paid in
advance. These acts did not endear U.S. to Pakistan. They created
a big hate wave against the Americans. With the withdrawal of the
Soviet military forces from Afghanistan, the nuclear weapons
development program of Pakistan came under intensive U.S.
examination again.... The invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan
generated more hate against Americans. They are Muslim countries
and Pakistanis have special regard for them.... They are killing
more women and children than Al-Qaeda militants. They will continue
their killing spree in their quest for Al-Qaeda for a long time to
come, unless the troops are tired and unable to function."

"India's Obstinacy," an editorial in the centrist national English
daily "The News" (cir. 55,000) (04/14)

"It should be quite clear to the Indians that terrorism is an
extremely ticklish, worldwide phenomenon, and the forces of major
powers are finding it hard to come to grips with it.... Under the
circumstances, they not only need to see signs of trouble within
their country and put their own house in order, but also display a
serious sense of understanding of the problems Pakistan, itself
fighting a deadly battle with militants, is facing."
Patterson