Time To Say Goodbye

The tip toeing to bring TTP and the government at the negotiation table is going on. Sitting on chairs in various, sometimes secret locations, walking off and coming back in different formations, the protagonists exchange demands, ideas, offers and threats. TTP demands the release of all its non-combatant prisoners and immediately denies releasing their own abducted persons (being obviously noncombatants as well, as the son of Salman Taseer or the son of former prime minister Gilani), that the government asks in return. The floor is open to negotiations among Pakistanis, meeting and facing their own and supposedly familiar culture of arguing.

Tensions with all the neighboring countries are raising. After three wars with India in the past and serious differences with Afghanistan, pressure is now building up from the two other neighbors:
China expresses deep concerns about potential threats in their border area and Iran's president Hassan Rowhani picks up the phone to call prime minister Sharif personally to protest against the murdering of one of their young border guards. He demands that Pakistan takes immediate steps to find and release the five border guards still in the hands of militants (Jaishul Adl) - and finally secures its borders with adequate measures, signaling determination to send Iranian task force units to attack the bases of terrorists inside Pakistan. Iran also addressed the UN, demanding action from the international community, insisting that mere condemnation of such acts of terrorism would not be enough anymore.
The Shia communities in Pakistan's western area, bordering Shia-majority Iran, are increasingly targeted by Sunni militants.

A truly generous gift of 1,5 billion dollars has reached the coffers of the Pakistani treasury and let the people wonder for a few days about the donor, who wishes allegedly to stay anonymous. As the announcement - and the raise of the value of the Pakistani rupee - followed a short, but very cordial visit by crown prince Salman of Saudi Arabia, the guessing did not last long.
This "friendly gift" and "unconditional grant" is met with some suspicion about the true nature of the astounding generosity - "there are no free lunches in foreign policy, let alone free feasts", as a journalist put it. Syria and Sunni-Shia conflict is on the mind of many and raising concerns of potential requests that Pakistan might be obliged to fulfill in the future.

All petitions from former president Musharraf's defense lawyers have been rejected, even the one against the non-bailable arrest warrant and his trial at the special court, being accused of high treason,  is about to begin, the outcome and its potentially destabilizing consequences uncertain.

My four years in Pakistan will soon come to an end - the "trailing spouse" is packing her bags again and is sailing to new shores. I am ending with this blog three years of writing about personal views "behind the veil", about various facets of this multilayered society, that gets everyone immediately involved who sets foot in this incredibly fascinating country!

The people of this country are of course much more complex than what one might assume when reading the international press. The caring, sweet sentiments and softness of Pakistani men is a side of their character that is hardly ever written about - but I can assure it exists, regardless the area or social background.
One only needs to stop at a Daewoo highway station to discover fairyland. No female customers, as it is a rest area for truck drivers, but the entrance is adorned with "Love" pillows of many colors.
This the welcome to a paradise for shopping for gifts on the way home for your beloved and adored wife - which are celebrated in poetic poems on Valentine's Day all over the newspapers.

The countless flights during the past four years in this part of the world revealed an abundance of colors and styles in uniforms for airport personnel and flight attendants - taking every shape from comfortable to fashionable, covering for elegance or decency and respect for religious sensitivities, or less so… They might dribble in Saris or Sarongs - with hats or shawls or fake hair knots - or run along the aisles in short pants.

I found artistic masterpieces in the plainness of washrooms aboard - leaving no space for any complaints of lacking courtesy.
I have read the kind suggestion, to "please wipe out the sink as a courtesy to the next passenger" so many times, that I was just short of asking the staff of providing me with a choice of detergents and a mob, to comply thoroughly.

I can even handle the remote controls by now, dear Lukas and Carla!, without a beginners class given every time by my children. Adjusting volume - no problem, even shutting down appears doable and only advanced technical tricks can challenge my skills.


Calling home this amazing country I shared the daily life, the joys and sorrows with my dear Pakistani friends and the ones from the diplomatic community, who became so close companions, as we have the pleasure of seeing us just about every day, that - "see you tomorrow!" became the self-evident adieu.

The farewell will be much less formal, but all the more cordial than the official beginning of our remarkable stay...

The hotel Serena became virtually my second home, sometimes several events on the same day - some of the waiters, the chef, the doorman greet me by name by now and I can find not only the halls of Shesh Mahal and Shamadan in the labyrinth of the corridors with closed eyes. I have no worry that my picture will vanish once I am gone, as thousands of photographs of our activities have constantly been taken. None of them were ever to be seen and we keep wondering, for whom on earth these photographers might be working.
Always good to have your own in house photographer who fully grasps the mastery of how to avoid any complaints about protagonists who might not like their smile on the photo.

The countless succession of National Days, sometimes several in a week, for sure stimulates the creativity of the pastry chefs that adorn the cakes for the "cutting ceremony" with whole landscapes, even winter sceneries, blooming rose bouquets and black forests - being then cut by a long sword that several hands of dignitaries press into the soft layers - wondering, if ever anyone actually eats a piece of it. I know the Pakistani national anthem that follows the one of the respective country by heart, in every version, and soon better then my own - I start humming the tunes with the first beat at this solemn occasions.

The fascinating voyage of the last four years has carried me to the southern desert in Sindh and confronted me within the same day with extreme poverty and illiteracy, sophisticated education and splendor. I have shared the joy of elaborate weddings and the unspeakable sadness of women who fell victim to acid attacks by their husbands. I have experienced the silence and majesty of the stunning Himalayas and the hustle and bustle of the boiling city Karachi, felt excitement and freedom cantering on a not so tamed horse in the hills near Islamabad as well as the seclusion in a sealed off diplomatic Enclave during days of threats.  I was welcomed at abundantly rich buffets, filled with all delicacies the Pakistani cuisine offers and sat in the intimacy and semidarkness of a women's quarter in a remote village in the Swat Valley, waiting for the water to boil over a small fire for chai, then for an egg to boil - the only thing that these hospitable people could offer me to eat and would not hesitate to do so.

The political developments are of constant concern, the militants, the growing religiosity and intolerance and then, still, improvements in education, in trade, democratic structures.
And everywhere an incredible resilience, a warmth and generosity by the people we meet, that melts away doubts about the future. Everyone who is leaving and has to move on to another posting, as I will do in a few weeks, does it with a heavy heart, worrying and full of empathy for the wonderful friends and the challenges they face ahead.