The Australian describes Pervez Musharraf as “West’s most disappointing ally in the war on terror. Let’s be clear about this: Musharraf was a catastrophic failure for Pakistan.
“He claimed to have turned the country around and to have turned it against the Taliban terrorists it had created and succoured in Afghanistan. In fact, he did nothing of the kind. Or rather, at the same time as he did a bit of that, his military continued to co-operate with the Taliban, which is being battled by, among others, Australian troops in Afghanistan.
“But the endless cycle of Pakistani politics contains only a couple of variations. One is for a civilian government to fail amid corruption and incompetence and be replaced by a military dictator, who is at first welcomed for his effectiveness.
“But then the military dictator in turn fails and is replaced by a democratically elected government, which is at first welcomed for its democratic credentials and its promise of economic reform. It, too, then fails and is replaced by a new military dictator.
“But all the while that this cycle endlessly repeats, Pakistan sinks slowly into state failure and social chaos.” More here…
The AFP reports: “With Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf gone, Washington must work with Islamabad’s democratically elected government to wage the ‘war on terror’ — a task US experts say may be more challenging but could reap better results.
However, the challenges to the democratically-elected government in Pakistan are many. “Some US experts said that Musharraf, who ruled with almost unfettered power during most of his tenure, played a double game and was not a genuine US war-on-terror partner despite more than 10 billion dollars in US aid to his country. Since the September 11, 2001 attacks, Al-Qaeda’s safe haven in Pakistan grew rapidly under Musharraf’s watch, they said.” More here…
“Selig Harrison, head of the Asia program at the Center for International Policy, says Musharraf’s departure presents an opportunity for the U.S. to undo some of the damage caused by its relationship with the former general.
“Harrison says Musharraf’s resignation should allow the U.S. to let that anti-Americanism die down and to ‘shut up and do absolutely nothing but respond to initiatives from the new government’.” More here…
The Telegraph says: “Musharraf’s departure is certainly a watershed…However, the mess he has left behind is one that will haunt Pakistan and the world in the months ahead. ” More here…
Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd is worried about his country’s troops in Afghanistan. More here…
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.