We’re all at sea — like fish out of water ONE of the defining images of the Marriott blast wired around the world was literal in content: fish out of water. Gasping for breath after the lovely fish tank that followed the entrance of the five-star hotel was smashed on impact, it did more than just symbolise a few things. Television has always had this potential to accentuate Ground Zero. The image of fallen fish, palpably fighting for life, pretty much summed up the current state of the federal capital — and in the larger context, that of the State of Pakistan itself. It also reflected — philosophically, if you like — on the life of the average resident teetering on the edge as he or she is, thanks to the many faces of terror stalking the land. But the Nine-Twenty (September 20) imagery manifested itself in more ways than just fish out of water. Live pictures of the Czech ambassador holed up amid raging fires and pleading for help was enough to send a chill down one’s spine. A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words and the Czech ambassador’s agony offered not just a reality check but also served as a classic depiction of how Pakistans image constituted the biggest loss in the fire. The failure to rescue the desperate envoy and subsequent beaming of pictures showing his body being received by the Czech president back home will haunt Pakistan for a long time to come. These powerful images can wreck the most fervent appeals like Islamabads ongoing attempt to rekindle familiar ideology pertaining to friends being species, who turn up, not turn the other cheek, in times of need. But as if proof was needed the so-called Friends of Pakistan initiative is already a reluctant starter and it seems a few states find the idea of coming to the aid of a country in terror-induced flames an exercise worth their coveted dollar/pound/rial/dirham so to speak. May be we can pamper the heart a la Ghalib by blaming it on the debilitating current global economic meltdown. Meanwhile, at the nursing station — that is, Islamabad the Beautiful but no longer serene — the city’s godfathers are about to formalise a siege by extending the diplomatic area to Bari Imam and then building a wall along the whole stretch. For Islooites, until now Green Zone meant just that — green (lush) zone. But with the baddies developing a taste for darting around the heart of Pakistans nerve centre, the interpretation has undergone a sea change. It would appear the new plan is a page right out of the Baghdad Book of (How to Avert) Blood Blister. Leaving aside for a moment what foreigners, especially wary westerners, think of such bright ideas, one can only imagine feelings of inferiority complex a measure like this is going to drive into the already perturbed minds of the locals, who will have earlier notions of being treated like lesser mortals in their own land reaffirmed. This is of course, not to suggest the diplomatic community does not have a call on getting the best security they can get from their hosts but it should not come at the expense or inconvenience of the citizen. In other words, Islamabads mandarins must find other, even if uncompromised, ways to make the diplomatic community feel secure. There is no argument about this being the host government’s responsibility but in the case of Pakistan, it is also critical to the country’s global standing. Recent reports in this regard are disturbing to say the least. For instance, UN security officials were excruciatingly, close to closing shop in Pakistan but, in the end, stayed put on watch while allowing families of staffers to leave. US ambassador Anne Patterson is also reported to have permitted American staffers in the diplomatic mission to quit the station if they desired, given the security threat. In the wake of the Marriott blast, both the UK and US diplomatic missions closed their visa sections and British Airways ceased flight operations. The US embassy also banned their personnel and advised their citizens from staying in any major hotel. In a related development, a number of foreign missions as well as international development agencies are not only planning to move offices to what they hope would be securer locations within Islamabad but also reviewing the viability of several ongoing/future projects critical to health, education and human rights and democracy elsewhere in Pakistan. These reportedly, include the two largest grant-in-aid donors, Japan International Cooperation Agency and European Union. The picture keeps getting bleaker and our lot… a lot like fish out of water. The writer is News Editor at Dawn News. He may be contacted at kaamyabi@gmail.com
ONE of the defining images of the Marriott blast wired around the world was literal in content: fish out of water.
