My take on Obama's speech and Pakistan [from Pakistani-American perspective]

[TeamJordan23]

Well, before I express my views. I should let you know that I am an Obama supporter. Also, my other mother was born in Pakistan, so I have a lot family members in the country and visit there ever 2-3 years. And I say the below statements are bases on my views and experiences in Pakistan.

Now to Obama's speech:

1. Obama DID NOT say we are going to invade Pakistan or remove their dictator to bring democracy to the country. The argument that Obama is a Neo-Con is ABSURD. Look, I hate Neo-Cons more than anything and I was strongly against Iraq War from the start. But what Obama spoke out in the speech, is not any type of Invasion or Neo-Con agenda. There is a difference between neoconservatism and fighting religious extremism. I really strongly urge you to read Obama’s whole speech: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/08/the_war_we_need_to_win.html

2. What Obama did say, and I believe that ALL AMERICANS (Dems + Repubs) agree is that if we know where Bin Laden is and if the Pakistani army refuses to take action; I think we are all for sending US troops to taking him out or taking out some other senior leader. All the major Dem candidates have stated this, and it is the correct thing to say.

However, I think a lot of this is just tough talk, because in reality, I don't see a scenario where Pakistan would not go after Bin Laden or other major terrorists if they had good intelligence on their whereabouts. Contrary to the American media, most regular people in Pakistan reject religious extremism. And Musharaf, himself, is a target of assassination attempts by terrorists.


3. Is Pakistan doing enough on Terrorism? I would say Pakistan has taken great strides to combat terrorism since 9/11. Can they do more? Absolutely. Should we demand them do more? Yes.

Religious extremism exists in Pakistan. I remember being in Islamabad two years ago, and hearing a mosque imam preaching Anti-American hate. And this was in a suburbia area of Islamabad. I think this area is where Musharaf has not done enough. Madrasas still exist in Pakistan - and they do teach hate in them. And imams of some mosques do preach hatred. And don't get me wrong - the majority are not all are bad and hateful. But you only need a handful for them to impact people.

This is where I agreed most with Obama's speech today when he said:

"As the Pakistani government increases investment in secular education to counter radical madrasas, my Administration will increase America's commitment. We must help Pakistan invest in the provinces along the Afghan border, so that the extremists' program of hate is met with one of hope. And we must not turn a blind eye to elections that are neither free nor fair -- our goal is not simply an ally in Pakistan, it is a democratic ally."

This is the one area that I would make military aid to Pakistan conditional. Because not only is it in our best interest for Pakistan to do a better job at combating these schools, but it is in Pakistan's interest. Like I said above, contrary to what most see on the American MSM, Pakistanis are tired of religious extremism. Most are fairly moderates and do not want these types of people near their homes or their children. Because not only do religious extremists groups encourage Anti-Americanism, a lot of new religious factions use religion to encourage and engage in criminal behavior in Pakistan. It's no wonder why every house in middle class Pakistan neighborhood needs security guards nowadays.

Extremism can be very powerful among the poor in Pakistan. It is a sort of a haven for the poor and the hopeless (sort of how Gangs are in US urban neighborhoods). This is one area I believe Musharaf has done some good work, but there is a lot of area for improvement. Every big city is known to have still have religious schools. And its worse in some rural areas.

4. The tribal areas of Pakistan/Afghanistan. This is the biggest obstacle to combat terrorism. Al Qaeda and the Taliban do exist in these regions. The problem is that there is no governance in this area. And bribes are very common in the area (and in the country of Pakistan in general). The geographic terrain also makes it tough to combat terrorists in the area. Pakistan does have the capability to do more in the region, but the time/costs often to do so don't often warrant on-going action there. As far as Obama's speech on this. I interpreted his speech (and also the view of most other Politicians) that the US would go into this area with US troops only if there was credible evidence of terrorists there and than the Pakistani army did not want to go after them.

However, Obama or whoever is President should make sure that the evidence is credible. I think any Dem candidate would do a better job on making sure the validity of the evidence than Bush.

5. What is Pakistan's future? Pakistan is a country that has been slowed by religion. It is falling behind India in economic power, and progression. It seems like most of my family members are never truly happy there. And there has not been much progression in the country as a whole for the past 10 years. The majority of the country has been in stagnation. And now its starting to show in the polls there also. Musharraf poll numbers have fallen a lot in the last few months, and a lot of people are now in favor of brining back the old Prime Mininster, Benazir Bhutto (who is a woman - Yes, Pakistan is not as backward as Faux News tries to make it out to be). See http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070801/ap_on_re_as/pakistan_musharraf_5 for more on this. I have been a Musharaf supporter but I think is time there is running very thin. I don't think he has made the progress that many had hoped for. I think economic progress will be one reason for some to stay away from religious extremism. It will not eliminate all of it, b/c in all honesty, American hatred will always exist because American foreign policy will likely always be tilted to Israel.

Overall, I would love the country of Pakistan to improve and get past religion issue. The recent Mosque hostage situation showed that some people are really committed to religious extremism. I for one, would love to see religious extremism reduced for the benefit of the Pakistan people. Its quite funny that mostly all the Pakistani's I have met love Pizza Hut and McDonalds in Pakistan. But these western restaurants are often the first one destroyed during religious protests.

I do not, and I don’t think Obama believes that terrorism can be won by just killing people. In the end, you need to change the views of the people of this country. Although his statements today might enrage some people, I think the majority of Pakistan is okay with taking extra measures to get rid of religious nuts in the country.

Finally, I would like Sen. Obama and other politicians to have 'reasonable' expectations from Pakistan. Pakistan does not have the money, resources, infrastructure, organization among different agencies, etc.. as say, the US. Therefore, Pakistan's methods and time period to bring down terrorism are sometimes not up to our standards. This is one thing I would like our politicians to take into account.