Indian Express | Sep 21, 2009
C. Raja Mohan
There is a chorus of Pakistani voices opposing Islamabad's latest plan to sell vast tracts of agricultural land to Saudi Arabia. Yet, the weak civil society next door may not prevail over the ties that bind the Pakistan's ruling elite to the House of Saud. In the recent past, there had been reports that the military government led by Gen Pervez Musharraf was considering the sale or lease of land to the Chinese and Gulf investors. That policy appears to have acquired a new momentum. Reuters news agency reported last week that Islamabad was in talks with Saudi Arabia for the lease of 500,000 acres of land. The report also said Islamabad would offer generous tax incentives for the Saudi investors to ensure the availability of water and offer security protection. The produce from these farms would, of course, be exported to Saudi Arabia. From the perspective of Saudi Arabia, the land deal they are exploring with Pakistan is not the first or the only one. Amidst rapidly rising food and fuel prices, major food importing nations in the Gulf have been tying up farm deals in Africa and Latin America. The Subcontinent, however, is not Africa and Latin America that are under populated and may have land to spare. Given the pressure on land in South Asia, it was inconceivable that one of our neighbours would sell it to foreigners. The proposed land deal has drawn protests from across the civil society -- from I A Rehman, a leading human rights activist, to Dr Zafar Altaf, the head of Pakistan's Agricultural Research Council (PARC). But the leaders of Pakistan's two main parties -- the PPP and the PML -- seem to be eager to press ahead with the deal. Many Indians would wonder at the Pakistan's elite's seemingly casual approach to land and territoriality. The reality, however, is that Pakistan's politics are not a mirror image of ours. Pakistan's affirmation of sovereignty tends to be only in relation to India. How else would you explain the fact that Pakistan -- a country of more than 160 million people and has a powerful army that is equipped with nuclear weapons -- lets the House of Saud arbitrate its domestic politics? On what legal basis does Islamabad allow the US to deploy drones on its territory and launch attacks on Pakistani population? We raise these questions not to criticise Islamabad, but to emphasise that Pakistan's organising principles are unique. India has no right to be judgemental about Pakistan and must learn to deal with it as it is. If Islamabad chooses to sell valuable agricultural lands, may be India could help itself in partnership with the Gulf businessmen who want to produce fruit and vegetables in Pakistan. After all, the Gulf knows a lot less than India about agribusiness and we might well want to import food in the not too distant future.
