A FAMILIAR RANT
The convulsion in Pakistan which has placed Mr. Bhutto at the unsteady summit of power in the country may not be the last. Himself a super-hawk, he has unceremoniously dispatched the known hawkish Generals in the ruling clique. Among the few Generals not to have been discharged “honourably” is Tikka Khan who seems to have mastered the art of ratting on doomed patrons and provinces alike. Mr. Bhutto would not have wielded the axe so sweepingly had he not found that power has slipped the brass hats to officers in the middle echelons over whom he has considerable influence. Mr. Bhutto may be their choice, and the army remains the grey eminence of the new regime he heads. More convulsions will be unavoidable when Mr. Bhutto begins to repay his debt.
Lest the elimination of the military junta should create an impression that he has been chastened by defeat and responsibility, Mr. Bhutto has, in his first broadcast as President and Chief Martial Law Administrator, described “East Pakistan” as an ‘inseparable and indissoluble” part of Pakistan and promised a formual to meet the aspirations of the people there within the framework of Pakistan. What Mr. Bhutto refused to admit is that the war has finally crased East Pakistan from the map of South Asia and it is now an illusion cherished only by those who are still unable to reconcile themselves to the reality. The people of Bangladesh have not waited for Mr. Bhutto to meet their aspirations; they have carved out their future finally and irrevocably as a sovereign nation state outside Pakistan. Neither Mr. Bhutto’s blandishment nor his threats will make them put on the fetters they have so valiantly cast away.
If Mr. Bhutto’s democratic professions were sincere his first act on assumption of office would have been to release unconditionally Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the chosen leader of not only Bangladesh but undivided Pakistan. He has not done it for he is no less responsible than Yahya Khan for the perversion of the clear verdict of the first general election in Pakistan and setting in motion a process disastrous for the country. The cancellation of the so-called by elections in Bangladesh is an empty gesture, especially after the induction of Mr. Nurul Amin as Vice-President of Pakistan. The new Pakistan Mr. Bhutto has promised to build up will have to do without Bangladesh, and for this own sake he should carefully weigh is consequences before he allows his foollhardiness to seek another trial of strength with India to efface the disgrace that India’s “temporary military victory” has heaped on Pakistan. (Editorial]
Reference: Hindustan Standard 22.12.1971