From its inception in 1947, Pakistan has been a close friend of Sri Lanka. Perhaps it was because, with its friction with the new India, a friendly country located in the southern tip of its adversary was a vital strategic advantage. Also, Pakistani rulers were aware that Sri Lankan Muslims identified themselves with the new Islamic state, which was perceived to be under threat from the stronger – and more aggressive – Indians, particularly those represented by Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

Even today, Patel is celebrated as a key Indian freedom fighter by his fellow Gujarati, Narendra Modi. There are many in India who think that the first Indian Prime Minister should have been Patel but was thwarted by another Gujarati, Mahatma Gandhi, when he nominated Jawaharlal Nehru for that post with the concurrence of the Indian Congress.

Pakistan and Mohammed Ali Jinnah

Mohammed Ali Jinnah, the founding father or the Quaid-i-Azam of Pakistan, died of tuberculosis a few months after independence. He was succeeded by Ghulam Muhammad, who was his deputy. Muhammad visited Sri Lanka in 1954 for the ‘Colombo Powers’ meeting summoned by Sir John Kotelawela, which comprised India, Pakistan, Burma, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka. This meeting was the precursor of the Bandung Conference held in Indonesia, which led to the formation of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

Though reviled by the leftists of his time, this was a high point of Sri Lankan diplomacy comparable only to Sirima Bandaranaike’s chairmanship of the non-aligned conference held in Colombo in 1975. The Muslims of Sri Lanka gave Ghulam Muhammad a rousing reception and he opened the Jinnah Cultural Centre in Kandy to mark his visit.

But Muhammad was shot dead a few months later and the Pakistani Army dominated by Pathans or Panjabis became the de facto rulers of the country. This was not only because of the perceived external threat, particularly from India. It was also because several tribes on its northern borders – Pashtuns, Baluchis, and Afghans among others, organised in their traditional kin-based assemblies or ‘jirgars’ – were not amenable to the laws of the new state and had to be suppressed to maintain the integrity of the new country.

The British creation of Pakistan – which Jinnah called “a moth-eaten Pakistan” – was a crazy quilt of different tribes, clans, and communities as well as sophisticated middle classes from Lahore and the feudal landlords of the Sindh. It could not be encompassed within the liberal and secular dreams of Jinnah for his new state.

Pakistan Army, ISA and 9/11

What held the country together was the army and its feared ISA or Internal Security Agency, which controlled the state and brutally stamped out dissent, particularly among the tribesmen who had links across a porous border with Afghanistan. The ever-present fear of the ISA was the likelihood of Indian penetration of Afghan tribes and the fermenting of revolt by them.

The Pakistan Army, like its Indian counterpart, was modelled very much on British lines. The famous General of Pakistan Ayub Khan was not very different from the famous Indian General Manekshaw. Both had been recruits to the British Army and had fought the Japanese together until partition forced them into rival camps. 

What changed this sleepy military ‘canton’ culture, so well described by English novelists like E.M. Forster, was the war in Afghanistan and the carnage of 9/11. This well-planned and executed attack on the heart of the American military, administrative, and financial centres during the presidency of George W. Bush sent shock waves through the US, from which it can never recover. 

This attack and the decision of Bush to “hunt down the killers no matter the cost” changed the fortunes of Pakistan irrevocably. The alliance of the two countries became an underpinning of American military strategy and Pakistan became a ‘client state’ forced to do the bidding of its paymaster in Washington.

General Pervez Musharraf

Washington decided on a ruler drawn from the army and their favourite was General Pervez Musharraf – a much decorated and daring army chief called ‘Cowboy’ by his friends and the news media for his swashbuckling style. Musharraf was a new type of army officer. He and Bush were always portrayed together as partners and cash-strapped Pakistan became eligible for large grants from the US and its sponsored multilateral agencies – the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

Of all the Pakistani leaders, Musharraf was the closest to Sri Lanka. He did not come from the Panjabi military class. Born in Delhi in pre-partition India, he relocated to Karachi, around which town the Muslim refugees from North India congregated. They were so strong, especially the professionals, that as the ‘Muhajirs’ they had established strong political roots in that part of the Sindh. 

Their political party, run from London, the MMM, was often a partner in the civilian coalitions, especially of the Bhuttos who periodically ran the country. Musharraf shone in the Army and got regular promotions as well as a reputation as an intrepid soldier. He tended to stay away from the Panjabi military cliques and won the admiration of civilian political leader Nawaz Sharif, who became the Prime Minister after winning a general election.

Afraid of the Panjabi domination of the Army and the ISA, Prime Minister Sharif chose the safer option of making the popular Musharraf the Army Chief under his dispensation. But he was involved in corruption scandals. Even more importantly, the Generals thought he was getting soft on India and planned a coup to displace him and resume military rule. 

Sharif also strengthened ties with the Islamic rulers of the Middle East, which may have angered the US – an unhealthy development at that juncture. Musharraf was in Colombo for talks with his Army friends when the coup talk reached Nawaz Sharif, who refused to allow the plane bringing him to land in Karachi. This hastened his end. The coup succeeded. Musharraf landed, imprisoned Sharif, and assumed office as Head of State. This move was welcomed by the US authorities.

Sri Lanka and Musharraf

Sri Lanka has much to be grateful to Musharraf for. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (CBK) appointed General Weerasuriya, the retired Army Commander and personal friend of Musharraf, as our High Commissioner to Pakistan. The two of them were colleagues and friends as trainees at the Army Training School in Murrie. This friendship brought many benefits to us. 

When the LTTE attacked the Army with recently-acquired Multi Barrel Rocket Launchers (MBRLs), our under-equipped Army was on the verge of abandoning Jaffna. Minister Anuruddha Ratwatte boldly visited the front, which at that time was commanded by Major General Sarath Fonseka, but was helpless due to lack of the latest weaponry.

At this point Musharraf came to our rescue. He ordered the dispatch of his MBRLs to Sri Lanka, even at the expense of denuding his northern defences. He did not ask for an immediate payment. MBRLs were airlifted to Colombo, but here again a problem arose. The locally-registered ships refused to carry them on board to Jaffna as the Red Cross, which usually escorted such vessels to the northern seas, refused to accompany them. Only Ariyaseela Wickremanayake who owned a ship agreed to sail to Jaffna and thereby reinforced our troops in Jaffna with MBRLs which turned the tide. If not for Musharraf’s personal intervention, we may have lost Jaffna.

Later Musharaff was overthrown by a mass movement and Benazir Bhutto, who managed to get American sympathy through the efforts of Ambassador Peter Galbraith, came to power. He went into exile in the UK and Dubai and died a few weeks ago in Dubai at the age of 79.