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Print Print 2022-11-24

COAS terms East Pakistan secession ‘political failure’

  • Gen Bajwa vows Pakistan Army will continue to serve and protect the country
Published November 24, 2022

ISLAMABAD: General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Wednesday vowed that the Pakistan Army will continue to serve and protect the country.

During his last public address as the army chief that he delivered at the Defence and Martyrs Day ceremony, Gen Bajwa, once again, said that the military has decided that it would never interfere in any political matter.

“I assure you we are strictly adamant on this and will remain so,” he added. The ceremony is held annually at the General Headquarters (GHQ) Rawalpindi on September 6 to commemorate the sacrifices of fallen heroes of the 1965 war. However, it was postponed this year in solidarity with the flood-affected people across the country and rescheduled for yesterday.

Gen Bajwa also discussed the army’s performance and actions in the then East Pakistan.

“I want to correct some facts here. Firstly, former East Pakistan [debacle] was a political failure and not a military one,” he said.

He said the number of soldiers fighting was not 92,000 but 34,000 and the others were in different government departments. He added that these 34,000 soldiers were confronted by an Indian army of 250,000 soldiers and 200,000 members of the Mukti Bahini.

“Against these heavy odds, our army fought bravely and gave exemplary sacrifices which were acknowledged by Indian army chief Field Marshal Manekshaw.”

He said the nation had yet not owned up to these sacrifices which was a “great injustice”.

He also applauded the sacrifices of these heroes. “Taking advantage of this occasion, I salute these martyrs and will continue to do so. They are our heroes and the nation should be proud of them,” Gen Bajwa added.

He criticised the anti-military narrative and urged political stakeholders to avoid labeling each other as “imported” and “selected” so that the country can move forward.

“Today, I am addressing the Defence and Martyrs Day as the army chief for the last time,” Gen Bajwa said at the start of his speech. “I am retiring soon. This time, this [ceremony is being held] after some delay.”

Gen Bajwa is set to retire on November 29. “I, sometimes, wondered that the Indian army carried out the most human rights violations in the world but their people seldom make them the target of criticism,” Gen Bajwa said.

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“On the other hand, our army which day and night remains busy in serving the nation, is often made the subject of criticism,” he added.

He said that the reason for the criticism is the army’s interference in politics for the last 70 years, which is unconstitutional.

“This is why in February last year the army, after great deliberation, decided that it would never interfere in any political matter,” he said.

While talking about the anti-army narrative, he said that instead of welcoming the military’s decision, “many sectors used very inappropriate and undignified language while making the army the target of severe criticism.”

Criticising the army is the right of the people and the political parties but foul language must not be used, he maintained.

Gen Bajwa said that a “false narrative was created”, from which “an escape is now being attempted”.

He said the army had initiated its process of “catharsis” and expected that political parties would follow suit and will look into their behaviour. “This is the reality that there have been mistakes from every institution, including political parties and civil society,” he added.

Gen Bajwa said it is important to learn from such mistakes so the nation can move on.

He also urged the political stakeholders to set aside the egos and move forward for the betterment of the country.

Gen Bajwa said the country was facing “serious economic” issues and no one party could take the country out of the financial crisis.

He stressed the need for the nation to shed intolerance and adopt a “true democratic culture”.

He said when one party came as a result of the general elections 2018, others started calling it “selected” and when the vote of no-confidence came and the other party formed the government they were described of “imported”.

Gen Bajwa rued the political parties’ criticism, first after the 2018 general elections and then again following the successful of no-confidence vote this year, recalling that whoever lost branded the other as either as “selected” or “imported”.

“We need to reject this behaviour,” he said, adding that “victory and defeat are part of politics and every party will have to develop the strength to accept its victory as well as defeat so an elected government comes in the next election instead of an “imported” or “selected” one.”

The COAS lauded the sacrifices of martyrs and praised their families.

During the event, a video showcasing the military’s rescue, relief and rehabilitation efforts during the recent catastrophic floods in the country was played.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022

Comments

Comments are closed.

Hyder Nov 24, 2022 07:53am
That’s what you get when people who are trained to be skillfully ruthless in PMA Kakul make civil decisions, they do it with their military mindset. Let’s not learn anything from 71 and lather, rinse, repeat until there isn’t a Pakistan to call home.
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MKA Nov 24, 2022 10:02am
It was military's pollical failure. He forgot military's designs and involvement from 1951 to 1971. To learn from the mistakes, one has to accept the mistakes.
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KUKhan Nov 24, 2022 11:30am
''Serve and protect the country'' also includes protecting the country from elite criminals, who have robbed Pakistan for the last many decades. Our democracy is revenge against the people of Pakistan and stealing by the nexus of politicians, civil servants, and elites. The nation suffers from its leaders and needs to wake up and act decisively, but sadly fear rules the people.
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Tipu Nov 24, 2022 11:53am
Yes. Elites should be punished. Accountability start's from the top. Only then reforms have any chance of success
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HashBrown® Nov 24, 2022 12:49pm
This clown has the audacity to re-write history and then in the same breath innocently ask why his institution suffers so much criticism. Anybody who's read the Hamood-ur-Rehman report into the failures of 1971/2 will know precisely where the blame lies. Pakistan deserves better.
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Mushtaque Ahmed Nov 24, 2022 11:45pm
No party can raise finger on the election process if it is conducted in a free, fair and transparent process. The parties start crying hoax because of behind-the-scenes interference and manipulation in the exercise. If the nature of the election is impartial no party can object to it.
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Hujjathullah M.H.Babu Sahib Nov 25, 2022 10:42pm
Gen. Bajwa is absolutely right to term the defeat in East Pakistan as political. But that defeat happened within West Pakistan not in East Pakistan because both Islamic and democratic principles were ditched by Pakistani politicians of every shade within Pakistan. Unfortunately, this is true not only then but remains true even today, that is why alternating governments whether civilian or military are inveriably seen by even educated Pakistanis as being selected, imported or imposed and end up serving not the Pakistani nation or Islam but serving the foreign imperialists, illuminati or the globalists as reliable proxies dishing out expandable ordinary citizens as cannon fodders on a stupid mercenary role; because for all the sacrifices the poor Pakistani nation is made to do it is India and Indians, both within the USA and in South Asia, who are rewarded by America not its so called non-NATO "ally" ; isn't that gross STUPIDITY ?American generals get revolving doors, do Pakistanis too ?
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