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| India-Pakistan |
| ‘Political wing of ISI not yet terminated’ |
| 2008-11-24 |
| ISLAMABAD: A senior security official has contradicted Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s statement that the political wing of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has been closed, BBC reported on Monday. Qureshi had told reporters in Multan on Sunday that the ISI political wing had been disbanded. “The ISI is a precious national institution and wants to focus on counterterrorism activities,” APP quoted him as saying. Without identifying the senior official, BBC said the ISI political wing exists, but has been made ‘inactive’. The official said the staff of the department had not been given new assignments. ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha had focused on counterterrorism during his previous assignment as the director general of Military Operations, the BBC said, and is expected to keep terrorism his top priority in his new office. The ISI has been accused of several questionable political activities in the past, including the creation of an anti-Pakistan People’s Party alliance in the 1988 general elections and uniting several factions of the Pakistan Muslim League to form a pro-Pervez Musharraf party in 2002. BBC said ISI officials admit that interfering with the political process had cost the agency the trust of the people. Transformation: The security official said the ISI was going through a transformation. “The agency wants to stay away from political issues,” he said. “It wants to quit its past activities such as keeping an eye on politicians.” Quoting other sources in the ISI, the BBC said politicians hoping to become senators still knock at the ISI’s door, and that the agency has complained people pose to have links with them to seek personal favours. The unidentified sources also told the BBC that the ISI did not select or approve government ministers. Without naming anyone, the BBC said analysts had warned that governments might use the agency for political purposes in future because its political wing had not been closed down. Only July 26, the Cabinet Division had issued a memorandum under Rule 3(3) of the Rules of Business of 1973, placing the ISI under the direct control of the Interior Division, but later decided to hold it ‘in abeyance till further deliberations’. “The prime minister is pleased to direct that the federal government will carry out further deliberations on co-ordinating the intelligence efforts. Till the completion of these deliberations, the Cabinet Division’s memorandum of even number, dated July 26, 2008, is held in abeyance,” says an official announcement called ‘Memorandum’ issued by the Cabinet Secretariat on July 29. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #1 wow, a Paki Pol lied? Whoda thunk it. And to those who object to the nym inflicting harm on the sensitivities of our Pakistani friends? Get over it. They aren't our friends. I'm not British, and we use the name all the time |
| Posted by: Frank G 2008-11-24 21:03 |