IN his famous speech of August 11, 1947, the Quaid-i-Azam envisioned an elevated place for Pakistan among the comity of nations. However, in just over a year he had died and with him the dream.

The mediocre and parochial leadership that followed disappointed and disillusioned many.

Among them Shamshad Ahmad, Pakistan's foreign secretary during three crucial years (1997-2000), who unburdened his thoughts after relinquishing the office of Pakistan's permanent representative at the United Nations.

His book Dreams Unfulfilled is a compilation of 64 articles that are reflective of his experience and
insight into Pakistan's history and politics.

His opening essay laments the yawning gap between the dream of the founding fathers and the reality of Pakistan today. The Quaid wanted a progressive and democratic Pakistan; in reality for more than half of its existence the country laboured under military or quasi-military rule. Inept and venal political governments held sway in the remaining period, though in the view of the reviewer the 1971-77 period was an exception.

The principles of the rule of law and independence of the judiciary, so dear to the founder of the country and so essential in sustaining the democratic order, were seriously compromised. To compound the misery, violent confrontation with neighbouring India brought defeat and disintegration. The author believes that a strong 'commitment to the ideals of democracy and pluralism,' to the 'rule of law, independence of judiciary, good governance and people-centered development' and to the pursuit of an 'effective and realistic but low-key foreign
policy' is the only way to extricate ourselves from the mess in which we have landed.

Some of the most momentous events in the country's diplomatic history took place during the three years when the author was foreign secretary. These included the conclusion in June 1997 of a comprehensive agreement between India and Pakistan, wherein both governments agreed to hold periodical talks on eight major issues including the festering Kashmir dispute.

This has now become famous as the composite dialogue. It was suspended by India following the Mumbai terrorist attacks; Pakistan seeks its resumption.

The significance of the agreement can be gauged by the author's observation that it was for the first time in their 50 year history that Pakistan and India had 'agreed formally in pursuing an integrated and structured dialogue to address their outstanding issues including Kashmir.'

Regrettably, the potential that this mechanism held in improving Pakistan-India relations could not be harnessed. Within a year the right wing, supra-nationalist BJP government literally shook South Asia by multiple nuclear tests barely 100 miles from its border with Pakistan. It arrogantly asserted that the balance of power had been irretrievably altered implying that from on nuclear India would dictate and shape developments in the region.
It was only when Pakistan restored the balance of power that the very same BJP government's prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee travelled to Lahore and during an historic summit signed the landmark Lahore declaration.

According to the author the declaration 'marked a genuine breakthrough in the history of the two countries, covering the full spectrum of their relations.'

The optimism was, unfortunately, short-lived. A few months later, following Kargil, a downcast Vajpayee tearfully told foreign minister Sartaj Aziz in New Delhi 'Sartaj Sahib! Yeh aap ne kya kiya?' It was not till five years and many (unnecessary) crises later that formal dialogue was resumed between the two neighbours.

It is to Kargil that the author devotes considerable space. He characterises the Kargil adventure as 'controversial' and a 'painful saga.' The author, who was privy to many important developments as Kargil swirled out of control, desists from pointing a finger for the Kargil fiasco at either the former prime minister Nawaz Sharif or former COAS Pervez Musharraf.

But by reading between the lines the contradictions and lack of credibility in Gen Musharraf's account becomes evident. The impression is further reinforced following a detailed chronicle of the episode in former foreign minister Sartaj Aziz's book Between Dreams and Realities which has hit the news stands at practically the same time as Dreams Unfulfilled. According to him, the army's top brass provided the political leadership with information on Kargil in bits and pieces and only when circumstances left them with no option.

The concluding article in the book is a policy recommendation to President Obama on tackling terror. The former foreign secretary applauds the appointment of Richard Holbrooke as the president's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan. He advocates a deft combination of diplomacy, security and economic assistance in combating the menace.

He suggests a higher level of US sensitivity to Pakistani concerns regarding its sovereignty. He makes a case for the US president taking a personal interest in resolving Pak-India issues including Kashmir, and maintains that American non-military aid to Pakistan should be unconditional but then links it to Pakistan's commitment to democracy, the rule of law, etc.

Shamshad Ahmad's compilation leaves the reader in no doubt that the ship of state has hit rough waters and there is dire need to chart a new course. The author opines that the real threat to the country's survival and stability lies within, rather than outside. Unfortunately, our internal and external difficulties are so intricately intertwined that the task of undoing the knot is likely to be Herculean.

Iqbal Ahmad Khan is a former
ambassador

Excerpted with permission from
Unfulfilled Dreams
By Shamshad Ahmad
Jahangir Books, Lahore
ISBN 978-969-573-069-0
298pp. Rs499