Qadeer Nukes Back
A round up
of the Dr Khan controversy...
By Nadeem Iqbal
The recent statement of the detained nuclear
scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan -- that he was not
alone in the spread of unauthorised nuclear
technology -- has again created doubts about the effectiveness of
While the statement of Dr Qadeer
to the international media ensued a battle of words between Dr Qadeer and Strategic Plans Division (SPD) of the National
Command Authority, the PPP-led government remained a mere spectator and the
only comment the foreign office made was that the Dr Qadeer's
issue had been closed.
However, the PML-N spokesperson Siddiqul
Farooq held President Musharraf
squarely responsible for the whole controversy. Talking to TNS, he said that Musharraf is responsible for the controversy by adding a
chapter in his book 'In the Line of fire' in which he humiliated the father of
The controversy started on July 4 when an American
News agency, the Associated Press, quoted Qadeer as
saying that the uranium enrichment equipment was sent to North Korea in a plane
that was loaded under the supervision of Pakistan security officials and that
the army had "complete knowledge" of the shipment of used P-1
centrifuges to North Korea in 2000, and Musharraf
must have given his consent.
Later talking to local television channels Qadeer backed off from this account, referring instead to
passages from Musharraf's autobiography, published in
2006.
Earlier, Qadeer alleged
that the Feb 2004 confession was extracted out of him under coercion.
The back-tracking from his confession was an
expected improvisation by Dr Qadeer, a metallurgist,
who in his televised address to the nation in Feb 2004 said he was solely
responsible for the unauthorised proliferation of nuclear
technology.
Though he was pardoned, he remained under house
arrest. Only after the inception of the new government in April this year was
his house detention relaxed, allowing him to meet friends and talk to media. Dr
Qadeer, 72, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in
2006 for which he was operated; later there were reports that he was suffering
from deep vein thrombosis.
Reacting sharply to Dr Qadeer's
claims, Director-General Strategic Plans Division (SPD) Lt Gen (r) Khalid Kidwai said, "There
had been no involvement by the Army or the president, in the transfer of
centrifuges. Technically, yes it happened in his (President Musharraf)
tenure, but giving an impression that he or the Army was aware or supervised it
is wrong."
In a rare briefing to some media persons, Kidwai said the pardon was conditional on two counts:
First, he would not commit any breach of national security, and two, if any
other evidence or any other country emerges in this case, the granted pardon
would be reviewed. "The government took all the flak and now the present
government is grappling with the issue."
Kidwai said all the statements made by Dr Khan -- that he tendered a public apology under coercion, or through
a deal or for the sake of taking the blame on his shoulders -- are far from
truth and reality."I would like to categorically
say it is absolutely false."
Kidwai added they had evidence about Qadeer's
network which was dismantled more than four years ago. "We can produce it
on camera at any level, court, parliamentary committee, tribunal or any group
of people." Kidwai said a dozen centrifuges --
used for enriching uranium -- were sent to
In his Feb 2004 statement that he read out on TV,
Dr Qadeer never gave details of the unauthorised proliferation activities. He said: "I
wish to place on record that those of my subordinates who have accepted their
role in the affair were acting in good faith, like me, on my instructions. I
also wish to clarify that there was never ever any kind of authorisation
for these activities by a government official. I take full responsibility for
my actions and seek your pardon. I give an assurance, my dear brothers and
sisters, that such activities will never take place in the future. I also
appeal to all citizens of
These activities were detailed by President Musharraf in his book giving space to Dr Qadeer to say now that Musharraf
was responsible for the proliferation. Musharraf in
his book dubbed Qadeer "a self centered and
abrasive man who could not be a team player. He did not want anyone to excel
beyond him or steal the limelight on any occasion on any subject related to our
strategic programme. He had a huge ego, and he knew
the art of playing to the gallery and manipulating the media. All this made him
a difficult person to deal with."
Many in
The recent controversy might be another attempt by
the nuclear scientist who is commonly regarded as the father of
Courtesy: The News