Mohsin Hamid Quotes
It may be hard, with bearded rioters filling their televisions, for westerners to see Pakistan as a bride left at the altar. But that is how many Pakistanis view their relationship with the fickle west, and they have good reason to do so. In the 1980s, when Pakistan signed up as America's ally in the west's last war in Afghanistan, the war against the Soviets, Pakistan was rewarded with billions of dollars of military hardware and economic aid. But Pakistan paid a price: heroin flooded our cities, Kalashnikovs became common on our streets and young boys were left trained for jihad instead of university. When the Soviets were defeated, Pakistan did not share in the long-awaited peace dividend. Although the country was making its transition from dictatorship to democracy, aid began to dwindle and the rhetoric of western governments became increasingly unfriendly. Pakistan was left with training camps for religious guerrillas, a mountain of debt, 2m Afghan refugees and little else.
He does not completely blame the United States or the West but places a large part of the blame on the corrupt Pakistani governemnt and military which would not curtail the growing Jhadi menace becasue they wanted to use them as a weapn against India, which gained independence at that same time but has been much more successful and democratic.
Mohsin Hamid, "Pakistan must not be abandoned", The Guardian, 14 October 2001
Sourced by: Eigen's Political and Historical Quotations
Al Qada and Taliban insurgents fighting in Afghanistan had a sanctuary for training and resupply in the rugged mountains of Pakistan near the Afghan border. Many American military and policy makers believed that we did need Pakistan to close down the sanctuaries and lines of supply if the war was to end. However, the Pakistanis, as Mr. West stated, extracted much from the United States while at the same time, not only refusing to try to control their frontier, but several elements of the Pakistani government were actually assisting the Taliban and Al Qada while taking U. S. Military Aid to suppress them.
This quotation is important because it was typical of the view of many Muslims in the world in the beginning of the 21st century. However. What most of these Muslims ignore is the fact that Islamic Nations have ben warring with each other since there have been Islamic nations. In addition, the different Muslim sects have been brutally trying to exterminating each other since the death of The Prophet and civil war broke out over his successor.
Most American felt that way at the time of the Russian occupation and the Mujahedeen resistance.
Most experts believe that this objective was sustained all through the Afghanistan War in the early 21st century.
At the time our strongest allies in the Middle East were Monarchies, dictatorships, and Principalities. See {586706}
Mohsin Hamid is a British Pakistani novelist, writer and brand consultant. His novels are Moth Smoke (2000), The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2007), How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia (2013), and Exit West (2017).
