PAKISTAN: Inside the national military economy
Updated
The United States has defended its support of the military-backed government of President Pervez Musharraf, saying it has faith in his efforts to implement political reform in Pakistan. Now, a respected Pakistani author has accused the government of blocking her new book about the military's grip on Pakistan's economy.
Presenter: Sen Lam
Speakers: Dr Ayesha Siddiqa, author of 'Military Inc - Inside Pakistan's Military Economy Military Inc' published by Pluto Press.
SIDDIQA: Yes, they'll try to do it. I mean people have asked me are you brave and my answer always is I'm not half as brave as they're stupid. Because what they've done is they're trying to block the book and the debate on the book, they've generated greater interest in the subject.
LAM: Can you tell us a little bit more about this private business empire? I understand it's worth as much as 20 billion US dollars?
SIDDIQA: It's difficult to estimate its worth. It could be more than 20 billion dollars. Because if you look at my definition in the book, it's not just the retired and the serving military. It's also certain civilian members who benefit directly from the military business complex. And so any calculation has to bring in the economic empire of the military fraternity.
What I've tried to do in my book, is at least describe the animal, to sketch out a map of what the military economy looks like. This hidden military economy looks like. There portions that are slightly more transparent than others and I've documented this, we've documented all of that. There are some on which I have data. There are other portions on which I have absolutely no data, and I've confessed that. But, basically, what was important was to draw out the picture.
LAM: The Pakistani military and indeed the Musharraf Government says that these businesses have nine million beneficiaries, that they benefit schools, hospitals and other welfare facilities. Is that your reading of the situation as well?
SIDDIQA: Look, that's quite true. I mean that is the data. But here, they issue is not of welfare. I think it is deviating from the main subject if you say that the focus is welfare. And what is more important is that this economy empowers the military politically and that is what I'm debating. This kind of military economy is hidden and it's not transparent.
LAM: What do you say to President Musharraf, who says that there's nothing wrong in.... He argues that there's nothing wrong with retired officers contributing to the Pakistani economy?
SIDDIQA: Look, contribution is always relative. What they say, what the military argues in terms of contribution is just one side of the picture. The other is that what is the cost of this contribution? It's almost the same colourful model as you had in the East India Company. I mean when you have the East India Company, it contributed tremendously to economic growth and development of the British Empire. Yet, there was a cost to it.
LAM: And what do you think the cost is to Pakistan of these military-owned businesses? What's the cost to Pakistan as a nation?
SIDDIQA: Well, firstly there is a huge opportunity cost, and that opportunity cost is primarily political. The more powerful the military group grows financially, it becomes more powerful politically. The more economic interest the senior officers have, the less likely are they to withdraw from politics. Then, of course, there is another opportunity cost which is the professionalism of the officers.
LAM: President Musharraf of course has been under a lot of pressure domestically over the last few weeks pertaining to his sacking of the chief justice. The United States now has come out in support of President Musharraf, saying that the US continues to have faith in General Musharraf's efforts to implement political reforms. Do you share that optimism?
SIDDIQA: I think what Americans are doing is supporting Musharraf because of their own interests. We are allies in a 'War on Terror' and they think that Musharraf has a secular face and therefore they're supporting him. But Musharraf's secularism is as skin deep as the secularism of anybody else like Benazir Bhutto. What is not said and what is not recognised is that all of them are highly conservative. They are not politically liberal. The generals will only dump him the day the cost of supporting him becomes higher than the benefits of maintaining him there.
LAM: But, according to your book, if the military interest, the business interest are so huge, there's no turning back is there? It must be very difficult if you try to dismantle it, or indeed try and get the military to distance itself from huge business?
SIDDIQA: No, that is my conclusion and it's not just the military. It's their cronies or clients as well which are civilians, who wouldn't want the military out of business, wouldn't want military out of the political business.
LAM: So in a way, it's in Pakistan's interests for 'Military Inc' to continue?
SIDDIQA: It's in the interest of the Pakistani elite to have military in business. It's not in the interests of the common man. Because with 'Military Inc', which is basically a very elitist kind of an economy. The common man is marginalised, and because of that the disparity between the rich and the poor continues to grow.
