U.S. Congress members have written another letter in favor of the PTI Tehreek-e-Insaf founder. The second letter is written to the U.S. President Joe Biden. There has already been a like resolution passed by the Congress. However, it appears that neither the resolution nor the earlier letter produced any change in Pakistan’s policies. The situation is still the same, and it’s probably that nothing will result from this second letter either. For my part, such letters do not exert any significant pressure on states. And to top it all, in an era of transfer of power, when one government is out and another is gentry, the timing of these letters is just all wrong.
This letter from 46 U.S. Congress members reads like parts of a script ahead of the protest call on November 24. It would appear that PTI and its chief are gearing up to fight the state and the government, and this letter was written to preempt that inevitable clash in the U.S. The purpose appears to be to insinuate after that clash, the Congress of the U.S. will cite these as evidence of support, though everybody realizes no concrete action will follow this letter.
Political analysts argue that PTI and its leadership have deep ties with Zionist lobbies, who see the founder of PTI as a tool to improve relations with Israel. Another key question is the hypocrisy of U.S. Congress members who express concern for the treatment of PTI’s founder while ignoring the suffering in Palestine and Kashmir. The same legislators never wrote a letter regarding the injustices of Palestinians in Gaza, the bombing of Hezbollah in Lebanon, or the atrocities in Indian-occupied Kashmir. Their importance on PTI and its leader does raise suspicion regarding their agenda.
Diplomatic analysts are also quite critical of this new letter; they call it an open interference in the internal matters of a sovereign country and a violation of diplomatic norms. These analysts believe that Pakistan’s judiciary is independent, makes decisions based on the constitution of the country, and no foreign pressure should influence these decisions, especially about individuals such as those charged with corruption, terrorism, and incitement against the state.
Pakistan makes its position clear: The cases involving the PTI founder are under judicial review and that the courts can determine his fate. Repeated external interference by political parties to call for foreign intervention, again undermines Pakistan’s sovereignty and is something the judiciary should at least take note of.
Pakistani administration and state further state that there are some members of PTI in exile and also foreign lobbies and social media, which engage in anti-Pakistani activities by spreading propaganda against the state and its departments. This foreign lobbying is conducted in an organized manner and assisted by global media. Such lobbies do not serve the interest of Pakistan.
An important point made in this letter from U.S. Congress members is their criticism of the United States. They charge that Ambassador Donald Blome has defaulted on his role to meaningfully talk to relevant authorities on the issue of political prisoners and human rights violation in Pakistan. They suggest that he has failed to speak for the policy of United States regarding these issues but the fact remains that U.S. ambassadors are bound by their government’s policies, not those of Congress. Therefore, Ambassador Blome is not under any obligation to answer such letters.
Diplomatic analysts argue that charges against Ambassador Blome are baseless because he has performed a great service in improving U.S.-Pakistan relations. He is well aware of the fact that interference with the affairs of a sovereign state would further deteriorate those relations.
Political commentators agree that, similar to the first letter, this second letter carries no legal status. The letter narrates a half-baked story and has the ulterior motive of forcing Pakistan’s judicial machinery to toe its line. The threat calls put through by PTI on frequent visits to U.S. Congress members only eroded the self-written story of the founder “we are not slaves”.
It is thus important to note that U.S.-Pakistan relations are not yet strong enough for pressure from the United States to be a concern. For now, Pakistan matters little to the United States. There is no common war or agenda, and in the entire U.S. presidential campaign, Pakistan was hardly mentioned. The call to task for Pakistan to “do more” has also faded.
At present, Pakistan is not on the priority list of the U.S. hence I don’t think the U.S. will exert pressure on Pakistan on the issue of PTI and its founder that is unwarranted, besides it would not take any extreme steps either. Hence I feel that these letters and lobbying attempts are futile efforts like all such ones in the past. Even efforts like honorary chancellorship at the U.K. have already failed. These letters seem to be creating bitterness and problems for PTI domestically without giving any solutions.