Reproduced by Friends Not Masters A POLITICAL AUTOBIOGRAPHY MOHAMMAD AYUB KHAN PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN 'People in developing countries seek assistance, but on the basis of mutual respect; they want to have friends not masters.' 1967 Reproduced by SANI H. PANHWAR (2018) DEDICATED TO THOSE WHO HAVE WORKED FOR THE BUILDING OF PAKISTAN AS A PROGRESSIVE AND MODERN STATE AND TO THOSE WHO HAVE DEFENDED IT WITH SUCH DISTINCTION In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Surely Allah changes not the condition of a people, until they change their own condition. PREFACE This is essentially a spoken book. After I had defined the broad scope and outlines of the book I asked some friends to prepare questions on the theme of different chapters. The question-and-answer sessions began in June 1964 and continued till the end of the year. The tape-recordings of these sessions came to nearly thirty hours and the transcript covered more than 900 pages. I got the transcript some time in 1965. Since then I have been going over it and revising it from time to time. It is not customary for a man in office to write his life story. Apart from the limitations imposed by the consciousness of responsibility there is always the danger that any suggestion of success would be interpreted as an attempt at image-building. Let me say, therefore, that the credit for whatever may have been achieved in terms of political stability or economic development should go to those who were associated with me in the implementation of various reforms. I may have presented new ideas out these were refined and put into execution by my colleagues in Government and by able and dedicated men in the Services. Above all, the willing support and cooperation of the people of Pakistan helped to lift the nation from the social and political morass of the fifties to its present level of prosperity and growth. The narrative covers events up to the Presidential Elections in 1965, though there are references to later events particularly in the chapter relating to Foreign Affairs. While revising the manuscript I made use of my notes and other documents but situations and conversations have been largely reconstructed from memory. There may be some errors in my recollection of chronological and other details but these should not affect the line of argument. I undertook this exercise without quite realizing how long and arduous it was going to be. I also did not know that the people I had chosen for preparing and asking the questions would prove so persistent. Still, it has been a refreshing and rewarding job. I have tried, as dispassionately as possible, to revaluate the past and interpret significant developments which have influenced the history of Pakistan. Tills history is still in the making but I think it has taken a positive direction and a stage has been reached from where one can look back and sec an integrated picture. I hope this account explains the process through which I evolved some of my ideas and will help towards a better understanding of what I have attempted to do since becoming the President of Pakistan. I have tried to keep the narrative candid and objective, concentrating on problems and events rather than on personalities. Here and there I have had to give my impressions and assessment of certain people who were at the helm of affairs before the Revolution. Whatever I have said is intended to substantiate my interpretation of political situations and not to hurt the feelings of any individual, and I hope it will be read in that spirit. It is a story of struggle — struggle to get new ideas accepted, 'Whoever presumes to act as a pioneer in the field of ideas must be prepared to face criticism and resistance. I have had a good deal of both. But my conviction of the need and validity of the changes which I have tried to bring about in the social and political life of the country remains as fervent and unfaltering as ever. We gained freedom after a long period of domination which left in its wake a legacy of old attitudes and habits. The problem was to change these attitudes and habits and to bring about a more direct and intimate awareness of contemporary realities, I venture to think we have made progress in many fields. I have not hesitated to admit failures. Progress is a long and tortuous process, full of trials and errors. I have viewed problems as a Pakistani, a Muslim, and an Asian. Pakistan is my passion, my life. A look of happiness on the faces of people thrills and sustains me. Just as a shade of anxiety in their eyes causes me anguish. I have woken up from sleep to sec whether the sound on the window panes is of the long-awaited rain. I feel parched inside when I see a drought-stricken field. The soil of Pakistan fascinates me, for it is my soil. I belong to it. Every moment of my life I have dedicated to the service of my people, never for a moment yielding to any pressure or disappointment. Pakistan has to establish a distinct national identity of her own in moral, social, intellectual, and political terms and all my endeavors have been devoted to tills objective. While we may learn from the experience of others, we have to work out our own solutions and our own salvation. I have always pursued the possible in a pragmatic and moderate manner, conscious of the limitations inherent in our situation. And I have never introduced emotion in the presentation of problems to my people. We have a weakness for the dramatic and the sensational which I try to avoid. Too often we mistake the emotional for the ideal. For us, the ideal should be to develop a rational approach to life. We cannot allow our vision to be clouded by memories of past glory. It is the present, with all its complexities, on which we must concentrate, and it is the future, with all its promise, for which we must work. Our present destiny is to move from crisis to crisis. For us there can be no rest or relaxation. Internally, the major problem for us has been to establish political institutions and stable instruments of government. These institutions and instruments had to be fashioned according to our own thinking, temperament, and needs. The process has not been easy. In the earlier years, the whole approach was on a personal basis and problems were rarely seen in the broad national perspective. This, inevitably, retarded progress. The political system which we inherited had no relevance to our conditions. The result was that the system was misused and exploited to serve limited interests. It needed a revolution to replace the system by one which reflected the traditions of the people and responded to their aspirations. I cannot claim that the new system has found universal acceptance, but it has taken roots and people are beginning to recognize its advantages. We have yet to develop a strong sense of nationalism, which means rising above the personal and the parochial and evolving a mature mode of dealing with the problems of the country. As a Muslim my sole anxiety has been to unite the people of Pakistan in the light of their faith and ideology. This ideology I understand in terms of certain immutable principles: the unity of God, equality and brotherhood of man progress to higher levels of existence and adherence to the fundamentals of Islam. Our society is torn by a number of schisms; the most fundamental is the one which separates the educated classes from the traditional groups. It is vital that understanding and communication between these two sections should be restored. This can come about through a proper interpretation of Islamic principles and their application to the present-day problems. Unless this happens the gulf will grow which may eventually isolate the traditional groups from the modem educated classes and alienate the latter from Islam. In dealing with world affairs, I have viewed problems as an Asian. It is within the Asian community that we have to establish for ourselves a permanent place of respect and strength. This is what our national interests demand. And this is why we continue to work for peace and stability in this part of the world. We have been able to establish normal relations with our neighbors (with the unfortunate exception of India) while maintaining our traditional contacts with western powers, particularly with the United States of America. In this matter our thinking has been guided as much by our own interests as by the limitations of our political and economic resources. We are dedicated to peace because peace alone will give us the time which we need for our development. Our endeavor is to remain out of the orbit of major power conflicts. This we can achieve only through honest and straightforward dealings with others. A number of fateful events have taken place since 1965. I have not dealt with them in this volume because some of the events are too much a part of the present to permit a dispassionate interpretation at this time. I hope I shall be able to deal with them on some future occasion. I am grateful for the assistance which I have received in the preparation of this book from various people. I must also acknowledge the kindness of the Government of Pakistan in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cabinet Division in permitting me to make use of official documents in order to complete some of the details.