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A friend for all seasons

Once in a long while, it is time to eulogise such men who deserve to be praised. This praise should stem neither from any reason for sycophancy or out of contrived motivation but should be an expression of sheer respect for natural merit, both in performance as an individual and as a human being. That the person happens to be an American and a friend of Pakistan makes it all the more a privileged pleasure to write about it. One has need of good friends and God alone knows Pakistan has need of all and each true friend. In the words of George Santayana, “One’s friends are that part of the human race with which one can be human.” One such friend is Morton Zuckerman, US citizen by right of birth and Pakistani by heart. More than anything, destiny has played a part in his singular attachment to Pakistan and his contribution can be measured not only in the many millions of US Dollars that he has recovered in various legal claims for Pakistan over a span of more than four decades but also in the unbending faith Pakistan has in him to protect Pakistan’s interests in the US of A. For his part, it has been a relentless crusade,complicated by various obstacles, both seen and unseen, over many seasons. One doubts that many Pakistanis would have heard about this remarkable American and his love for Pakistan, a relationship which has remained sacrosanct through the vicissitudes of over 40 years, a roller-coaster ride through which Morton Zuckerman has remained for Pakistan, a friend for all seasons.

Besides being the Standing Legal Advisor to the Government of  Pakistan in the USA, Mr. Zuckerman is also the President of the US-Pakistan Economic Council, Inc, a non-profit organisation designed to promote and strengthen mutual ties between Pakistan and American business and industrial communities. With most of its members drawn from elite business circles of both the countries, regular discussions are arranged for the circulation of information on the current economic environment. This has contributed to better understanding of each other’s laws and other conditions peculiar to two disparate countries.

Morton Zuckerman graduated from Columbia University as a Doctor of Jurisprudence in 1938 and has been a practising lawyer since then. After Pearl Harbour and United States entry into the Second World War, he joined the Army of the United States and was subsequently posted to India in 1944. His first stint in Calcutta was with the Military Criminal Investigation Department, thereafter with the Branch office of the Judge – Advocate General for the China-Burma-India Theater. Students of military history will recall that Calcutta was an important staging point for this war region. During the war, many Americans serving in India became passionately involved in the dream of South Asian independence after two centuries of British rule and this was emulated by the American Administration as a not too subtle pressure on the then British Government. Mr. Zuckerman, even while serving as an officer of the United States Army, made many speeches strongly favouring political independence for the South Asian sub-continent. He also visited Sarhad and Kashmir at the invitation of muslim political leaders. One can safely say that even before destiny brought him together with a lifetime service for Pakistan, an unerring instinct was guiding him in that direction.

An honourable discharge from the US Army followed the end of the Second World War and Mr. Zuckerman resumed his law practice in New York City in 1946, becoming an unofficial legal advisor to the many aspirant and impending independent nations. In June 1947, a Pakistani group which was designated to set up the Consulate in New York and the Embassy in Washington DC and was searching for accommodation, moved in temporarily into young Zuckerman’s law offices. Thus did a long and affectionate association commence, even before the birth of Pakistan in August 1947. For more than 40 years, Morton Zuckerman has been giving legal advice to the Government of Pakistan in the USA. One of his first acts was to negotiate the purchase in 1949 of the properties presently owned by the Government of Pakistan in New York for its Mission to the United States and the United Nations. There has been no looking back since those early heady days, with Mr. Zuckerman and his law firm vigorously acting as Counsel to the Pakistan Embassy in Washington DC, the Consulate General in New York and the Pakistan Mission to the United Nations. This has covered both diplomatic and commercial activity with his active participation in the various negotiations for foodgrains, edible oils, shipping and finance involving many billions of US Dollars. Of particular mention are several sensitive diplomatic affairs involving local New York City and State authorities. He is also, as mentioned earlier, a founding director and legal advisor to the US Pakistan Economic Council.

In all this he has been ably supported by his “ Begum Sahiba”, a  wonderful lady who has been a full time partner in all of his  activities in support of Pakistan. She remains an affectionate “Auntie” to a generation of Pakistani students, Mission wives and their children, guiding them with affectionate care during their stay in the US.

Aristotle stated that “dignity does not consist in possessing honors, but in deserving them.” Such a dignified couple need to be honoured and on August 14, 1987 a grateful Pakistani nation bestowed the Sitara-i-Quaid-i-Azam on Mr. Morton Zuckerman. Tomorrow, he will be decorated formally with this honour by the President of Pakistan at the March 23rd Investiture ceremony in Islamabad, while his wife who has braved sickness to fly all the way from New York to be with him, watches proudly. Seldom has a medal been so well deserved. This belated medal is small recompense for a lifetime of dedicated service. Morton Zuckerman has made himself precious not only to those of us who have intimate knowledge of him, but to the many beneficiaries of his benevolence and this honour is extremely well appreciated not only by those who know him but also those who know of him. His legal acumen has been appreciated by friend and foe alike; his penchant to solve cases by compromise from a position of strength without going to the court of law is legendary, saving precious time and expense. In the words of his intimates and associates, he is apt to make his opponents “an offer they cannot refuse”. To many of those who know him well, “GODFATHER” not only serves as an affectionate nickname, but aptly describes his legal style and expertise, very much like Oliver Wendell Holmes statement that, “the life of the law has not been logic; it has been experience.” His vision for the developing Pakistan-American economic relationship needs to be nourished and inculcated further into our foreign trade policy. USA is a vast market and any third world country hoping for economic emancipation needs to exploit this potential. It is our good fortune that we have honest, dedicated men like Morton Zuckerman to show us the way into the US market. While we honour him for undoubted capabilities of the heart and mind, it becomes incumbent upon us to take up the challenge for the economic largesse that he beckons us with. An enlarged trade with the United States will not only benefit Pakistan’s millions but will remain a lasting legacy to this remarkable man.

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