STRAIGHT TALK by Hafeez Khan
“The first casualty of war is truth” a famous quote attributed to US Senator Hiram Johnson regarding World War One in 1918. The underlying wisdom holds true in most conflicts; however, the premise has evolved due to the use of technology in our every–day lives. Previouslyaccess to media was through newspapers and TVchannels controlled by a few media houses who managed the narrative during wartimes. Under threat, a strong cohesion develops between media and Establishment whowork together to mold public opinion to further the State’s objectives.
That has drastically changed in the last two decades. Anyone with a smartphone is a potential journalist. Through internet and social media platforms, dissemination of information is immediate and unhindered. Therefore, controlled narratives are no longer possible and open to challenge. We witnessed this in the recent confrontation between India and Pakistan. Since Aprill 22nd, after Pahalgam incident in Kashmir, the clouds of war began to gather under PM Modi’s Government. Thisnarrative was adopted by Indian media. It turned more and more explosive with every passing day creating a momentum towards a war hysteria. It was self-imposed as Indian Government became the judge, jury and the executioner in deciding that Pakistan was the culprit without offering a shred of evidence. In response Pakistani Government was muted in seeking proof of such a sordid incident.
Indian Government had put itself into a corner through this self-created hype. They had no option but to attack Pakistan to maintain their macho image fueled by their Hindutva theology. The intense four-day high tech confrontation had the makings of a widespread conflict causing huge destruction on both sides till sanity prevailed through intervention of President Trump. Indians had made a huge miscalculation about Pakistan’s ability to counter. Credit of Pakistan’s response lies entirely with well-trained Airforce pilots and their back up teamlaunching missiles.
This is when the role of social media dominated by IK supporters came to the forefront. Indians had banked upon the divisive political scenario within Pakistan, assuming Army and public will not come together. Thisassessment was based on the poisonous conflict between popular will and the autocratic regime in power. During the entire conflict Form 47 regime was on silence mode. Their Godfather Nawaz Sharif went into lockdown. Brother Shahbaz and his cohorts came out with utterings that weakened Pakistan’s position. The lead example was Khawaja Asif admitting to harboring terrorists to support Western causes. Kudos to PTI for setting aside their differences to forge unity amongst the nation in support ofarmed forces during these trying times. This was acknowledged by DG ISPR. These youngsters created a coherent and a positive narrative in face of bludgeoning and yelling Indian counterparts.
Both sides made tall claims of damage caused to the opposing side while underplaying their own losses. Independent analysts and reporters have found them to be inflated. Facts have emerged under scrutiny. Indians attacked mosques and madrassas alleged to be harboring terrorists at multiple locations. It only caused civilian deaths. No known terrorist was eliminated. In a counter move by Pakistanis, based on superior Chinese technology, they were able to destroy Indian aircrafts using over the horizon missiles. The biggest blow was destruction of Rafale aircrafts supplied by French. This was a huge dent to both PM Modi and French aircraft manufacturers reputation. It is rumored that a potential sale of this aircraft to Indonesia is being re-visited.
We need to backtrack to Pulwama attack in 2019. IK was the PM. Under his orders, our pilots shot down a MIG21 and captured Abhinandan. PM Modi’s sole lament was “if we had Rafale aircrafts this would not have happened.” There is an unverified claim by Pakistan that they destroyed India’s state of the art S400 air defense system. Thus far there is no repudiation of this claim by Indian defense officials. Indian attack of Pakistani Air Force bases has caused damage; especially Nur Khan air base in Rawalpindi. This did not diminish the ability to launch fighter jets by Pakistan.
Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan. Both sides are claiming success. Independent analysts believe that Pakistan’s Airforce prevailed due to their expertise and superior Chinese technology. PM Modi is extremely upset. In his speech he indicated towards an understanding to attack defined terrorist targets. Pakistani pilots’ response was a shocker. He is under severe attack by his own media and many sticky questions have been raised. It will be premature to determine the conflict is over. Pakistani celebrations maybe short-lived. Look at Shakargarh tank performance by incoherent PM Shahbaz and puffed-up Army Chief. Not a single tank was deployed by either side!
The PML(N) leadership remains tongue-tied. Unable to mention PM Modi’s name. IK gave a bold statement from behind prison walls. One had hoped that the role of PTI in this entire episode would open the cobwebs woven aroundIK. There would be a re-booting of army-PTI relationship. However, from the way events are unfolding it appears that the Generals are stuck in their grove of IK hatred. As the drums of war recede, we are headed back to the hate-filled environment of “Crush IK”. The only way forward is re-mobilizing the masses to come out in huge numbers to force the hand of this autocratic regime to “Free Pakistan”.
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