Cyril Almeida, a Pakistani of Goan origin, wrote an interesting story which was carried by the cautious Dawn as its lead story on October 6, 2016. A spokesman for Prime Minister Office the same day denied the story “regarding `purported deliberations’ of a meeting held on security issues. The spokesman termed contents of the story not only speculative but misleading and factually incorrect, describing it as an `amalgamation of fiction and fabrication’”. Dispelling the impression created by the report, headlined “Act against militants or face international isolation, civilians tell military”, the spokesman said that intelligence agencies, particularly the ISI, are working in line with the state policy in the best interest of the nation, both at the federal and provincial levels to act against terrorists of all hue and color without any discrimination. Indeed the Army’s and ISI’s role and contributions towards implementation of NAP have been proactive and unwavering. Meanwhile, the office of the chief minister of Punjab also denied the comments attributed to Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif in the news story. Dismissing it as a baseless table story, the CM emphasised that besides his respect for the institution of the armed forces, on an individual level he also had the highest respect for the present ISI DG for his professionalism, commitment to duty and sincerity of purpose.
The matter did not end there. A joint session of the Parliament was taking place at the time to discuss Kashmir. Some of the PPP Parliamentarians perceived the Dawn story as a carte blanche to launch criticism of the ISI and its support for some of the non-state actors, without saying a word about the fact that their Party was in power for five years and did not address this issue.
PM Nawaz Sharif hates meeting people so much so that some of the federal ministers cannot meet him in years despite repeated requests for a meeting; federal cabinet meets once in a blue moon when it is suppose to be convened weekly. However, one person the PM cannot refuse is the Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif who met him on October 10 in the presence of Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan, CM Punjab Shahbaz Sharif and DG ISI Lieutenant General Rizwan Akhtar.
The agenda was the Dawn story. The Government till then was totally silent about it. However, after this October 10 meeting, the Prime Minister suddenly woke up and ordered authorities to take “stern action” against those responsible for publishing a “fabricated” story about the military and ISI. According to an official statement, matters pertaining to national and regional security and the publication of news story in the Dawn newspaper was also discussed during the meeting.
“The participants of the meeting expressed concern over the publication of a fabricated news story in Daily Dawn pertaining to security issues purportedly discussed in a meeting of National Security Committee in the last week.” “The participants were unanimous that the published story was clearly violative of universally acknowledged principles of reporting on national security issues and has risked the vital state interests through inclusion of inaccurate and misleading contents which had no relevance to actual discussion and facts.” The participants felt that it was imperative that Print and Electronic media refrained itself from speculative reporting and issues of national security and interests of the state. “Prime Minister took serious notice of the violation and directed that those responsible should be identified for stern action.”
The Pakistan Foreign Office also then discovered the Dawn story and vehemently rejected the report and termed its as “speculative”.
The Dawn story was suddenly rediscovered by all concerned including the media. The issue was discussed threadbare in the media, without much to hinge on. Cyril became silent and moved to a friend’s place to avoid his unceremonious abduction after his name was placed on the ECL.
The Dawn in an October 12 editorial reacted to placement of Cyril on the ECL. The editorial said that:
“There are times in a news organisation’s history that determine its adherence to the highest principles of journalism – its duty to inform the public objectively, accurately and fearlessly. The fallout of (our) story has been intense, and on Tuesday evening, the government placed Dawn’s senior writer, Cyril Almeida, on the Exit Control List. While any media organisation can commit an error of judgement and Dawn is no exception, the paper believes it handled the story in a professional manner and carried it only after verification from multiple sources.
Moreover, in accordance with the principles of fair and balanced journalism, for which Dawn is respected not only in Pakistan but also internationally, it twice carried the denials issued by the Prime Minister’s Office. It said such a furore over the Dawn report was not unexpected. However, this news organisation will continue to defend itself robustly against any allegation of vested interest, false reporting or violation of national security.
As gatekeeper of information that was ‘verified, cross-checked and fact-checked’, the editor of this paper bears sole responsibility for the story in question.
The government should at once remove Almeida’s name from the ECL and salvage some of its dignity.”
The next day, the Interior Minister responded to the editorial and stated that his government would have been blamed if Cyril had left Pakistan and the matter could not be investigated. He announced an investigation and said that its outcome will soon be available.
Did the polite mild mannered Cyril fabricate the story? Why on earth will he do it?
Dawn displayed the story as its lead one; it thus realized its importance. The Oct 12 editorial says that it cross-checked and fact-checked the story. How it did it is beyond my comprehension. But the Dawn management must have talked to somebody.
Was the fabricated version leaked to Cyril by a federal minister like the defense minister at the behest of the PM or on his own to embarrass the ISI? Or by a low-key functionary sitting in the meeting? Or by someone within the military?
One thing is for sure: the story is not totally accurate. Unfortunately, nobody in Pakistan, without exception, has the courage to criticize the ISI at its face and particularly the Sharif brothers. Pakistan may be criticized by a few Western countries for its support of the freedom fighters in Kashmir but it is definitely not diplomatically isolated. Accordingly, it makes no sense at all for the Foreign Secretary to mention this in his briefing in the meeting mentioned by Cyril. Diplomatic difficulties may have been implied in the meeting but isolation is a word that is used by the Indian policy-makers for Pakistan and is unexpected to be used by a Pakistani functionary.
Cyril’s October 6 story started by saying that “in a blunt, orchestrated and unprecedented warning, the civilian government has informed the military leadership of a growing international isolation of Pakistan and sought consensus on several key actions by the state.” Since when has Cyril expected the Nawaz Sharif government to have the courage to be so blunt with the military and ISI? And if he really believes that it was, then what happened to its courage and bluntness subsequently?
Cyril story continued to state that:
“As a result of the most recent meeting, an undisclosed one on the day of the All Parties’ Conference on Monday (Oct 3), at least two sets of actions have been agreed.
First, ISI DG Gen Rizwan Akhtar, accompanied by National Security Adviser Nasser Janjua, is to travel to each of the four provinces with a message for provincial apex committees and ISI sector commanders.
The message: military-led intelligence agencies are not to interfere if law enforcement acts against militant groups that are banned or until now considered off-limits for civilian action. Gen Akhtar’s inter-provincial tour has begun with a visit to Lahore.
Second, Prime Minister Sharif has directed that fresh attempts be made to conclude the Pathankot investigation and restart the stalled Mumbai attacks-related trials in a Rawalpindi antiterrorism court.
Those decisions, taken after an extraordinary verbal confrontation between Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the ISI DG, appear to indicate a high-stakes new approach by the PML-N government.
The following account is based on conversations with Dawn of individuals present in the crucial meetings this week.
All declined to speak on the record and none of the attributed statements were confirmed by the individuals mentioned.
Foreign secretary’s presentation
On Monday, on the day of the All Parties’ Conference, Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry gave a separate, exclusive presentation in the Prime Minister’s Office to a small group of civil and military officials.
The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Sharif and included senior cabinet and provincial officials. On the military side, ISI DG Rizwan Akhtar led the representatives.
The presentation by the foreign secretary summarised the results of the recent diplomatic outreach by Pakistan, the crux being that Pakistan faces diplomatic isolation and that the government’s talking points have been met with indifference in major world capitals.
On the US, Mr Chaudhry said that relations have deteriorated and will likely further deteriorate because of the American demand that action be taken against the Haqqani network. On India, Mr Chaudhry stated that the completion of the Pathankot investigation and some visible action against Jaish-i-Mohammad were the principal demands.
Then, to a hushed but surprised room, Mr Chaudhry suggested that while China has reiterated its support for Pakistan, it too has indicated a preference for a change in course by Pakistan. Specifically, while Chinese authorities have conveyed their willingness to keep putting on technical hold a UN ban on Jaish-i-Mohammad leader Masood Azhar, they have questioned the logic of doing so repeatedly.
Extraordinary exchange
The foreign secretary’s unexpectedly blunt conclusions triggered an astonishing and potentially ground-shifting exchange between the ISI DG and several civilian officials.
In response to Foreign Secretary Chaudhry’s conclusions, Gen Akhtar asked what steps could be taken to prevent the drift towards isolation. Mr Chaudhry’s reply was direct and emphatic: the principal international demands are for action against Masood Azhar and the Jaish-i-Mohmmad; Hafiz Saeed and the Lashkar-e-Taiba; and the Haqqani network.
To that, Gen Akhtar offered that the government should arrest whomever it deems necessary, though it is unclear whether he was referring to particular individuals or members of banned groups generally. At that point came the stunning and unexpectedly bold intervention by Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
Addressing Gen Akhtar, the younger Sharif complained that whenever action has been taken against certain groups by civilian authorities, the security establishment has worked behind the scenes to set the arrested free. Astounded onlookers describe a stunned room that was immediately aware of the extraordinary, unprecedented nature of the exchange.
To defuse tensions, PM Sharif himself addressed Gen Akhtar and said that policies pursued in the past were state policies and as such they were the collective responsibility of the state and that the ISI DG was not being accused of complicity in present-day events.
PM’s strategy?
Several eyewitnesses to the incredible events of Monday believe that the foreign secretary’s presentation and Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s intervention were orchestrated by the prime minister to stir the military to action, leading to the decision to dispatch the ISI DG on an inter-provincial tour.
Yet, according to the accounts shared with Dawn, the sparring between the ISI DG and civilian officials did not degenerate into acrimony.
Earlier in the meeting, ISI DG Gen Akhtar stated that not only is it the military’s policy to not distinguish between militant groups, but that the military is committed to that policy prevailing. The ISI chief did mention concerns about the timing of action against several groups, citing the need to not be seen as buckling to Indian pressure or abandoning the Kashmiri people.
Gen Akhtar also readily agreed to tour the provinces at the direction of the prime minister, issue fresh orders to ISI sector commanders and meet with provincial apex committees to chalk out specific actions that need to be taken in various provinces.
According to several government officials, Monday’s confrontation was part of a high-stakes gamble by Prime Minister Sharif to try and forestall further diplomatic pressure on Pakistan. In separate meetings with the army chief, participants describe an animated and energised Mr Sharif, who has argued that Pakistan faces real isolation if policy adjustments are not made.
Government officials, however, are divided about whether Prime Minister Sharif’s gamble will pay off. According to one official, commenting on the ISI DG’s commitments, “This is what we prayed to hear all our lives. Let’s see if it happens.”
Another government official offered: “Wait till November to see if action will be taken. By then a lot of things will be settled.”
Military officials declined to comment.”
The Last Stop 