The cryptic comment above comes from a European diplomat based in Islamabad. This was his reply when the New York Times reporter asked the diplomat his reaction to the serious allegations by senior US officials that billions of dollars in American aid given to the Pervez Musharraf regime for anti-terrorism efforts have been wasted, and much of it was diverted to help finance weapons systems designed to counter India rather than fight al-Qaeda and Taliban.
India has been protesting to the US administration for the past decade or more that the American aid to Pakistan is being primarily used against India and not for the so-called ‘War on Terror’. But no one cared to listen.
Was this a part of the overall American strategy to run foreign affairs through bribery? Does this not promote a chain of bribe giving….from Musharraf downwards who would use it to purchase his detractors or buy loyalty of his own men??? Musharraf’s civilian opponents say he used the reimbursements to prop up his government.
Probably this US administration strategy is also in operation in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it appears to be a myopic plan which would fan the fires of terrorism instead of controling it. Because the day this bribery ends…so does loyalty!!! Those leaders caught in this vicious circle of bribe giving would not only endanger themselves but their own countries.
Let us get back to the New York Times story: “After the United States has spent more than $5 billion in a largely failed effort to bolster the Pakistani military effort against Al Qaeda and the Taliban, some American officials now acknowledge that there were too few controls over the money. The strategy to improve the Pakistani military, they said, needs to be completely revamped.
“The $5 billion was provided through a program known as Coalition Support Funds, which reimburses Pakistan for conducting military operations to fight terrorism. Under a separate program, Pakistan receives $300 million per year in traditional American military financing that pays for equipment and training.”
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.