Hatred for US on rise among Pakistanis: US author

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Waqar Bhatti
Hatred for the United States among the citizens of Pakistan is increasing with each passing day, probably due to the killing of innocent people in drone attacks by the US forces within Pakistani territory; it is hoped, however, that the Obama administration will soon realise this mistake and take corrective measures.

This was stated by Ethan Casey, a freelance US journalist and author of a book about Pakistan, titled, “Alive and Well in Pakistan: A Human Journey in a Dangerous Time,” while delivering a talk on Tuesday at the Pakistan Press Foundation’s (PPF) Vickey Zeitlin Media Library.

Casey said Pakistan was perceived wrongly in the West owing to the negative media coverage that it receives there, but said that his visit to Pakistan this time and writing another book was aimed at correcting and changing common western people’s perspective of about 98 percent Pakistanis. He said that he first visited Pakistan in 1999, prior to the military coup, and at that time, Pakistan was not so important to the West. However, 9/11 drew lots of attention.

Recalling events happening here in 1999 prior to the Musharraf-led military coup, he claimed that Nawaz Sharif’s government was in trouble in those days while the media, especially the Jang group was also having a difficult time owing to government action against it.

Casey said he began his journey from Mumbai and entered Pakistan through the Wagah border. He visited Lahore and Islamabad, spent a couple of days in Kharian, and then came to Karachi. “I’m planning to write another book on Pakistan, which would be a sequel to my previous book,” he said.

According to him, visiting Pakistan these days was a bit more interesting than in 1995 and 1999 because the political scene had changed drastically. The role of the media in Pakistan was fascinating, Casey said, adding that over the last five years, the media had done an excellent job here and he believed it was freer than the US media.

When asked as to why he did not visit the NWFP, FATA or Balochistan as these areas were of more interest to the West rather than the rest of Pakistan, he said he had been advised by family and friends, both in the US and in Pakistan, not to visit the troubled areas of the country.

Commenting on any possible shift in the Obama administration’s policy towards Pakistan, he thought US policy was like the turn of an aircraft carrier, slowly and gradually but it does changes its position.

When asked if he saw any change in Pakistan since his last visit, he observed that Pakistani youth were more energetic these days and the country should utilise their energies and potential for its progress.

On the possibility of a further military coup in Pakistan, he said he watched the events of March 15 and 16 from India through the local media and the present situation provided rife conditions for that but said General Kiyani acted wisely for which he praised. According to him, most of the commonfolk in the US perceive Pakistan as a primitive society while ordinary Pakistanis hated US although many also wanted to move to US temporarily or on a permanent basis.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=171351