Author: Kunwar Idris
Publication: Dawn, Karachi
Date: February 25, 2001
IT is a continuing paradox of Pakistan's
politics that every new declaration on democracy takes it closer to authoritarianism.
That was the result of Ayub's basic democracy as also of Zia-ul-Haq's Islamic
brand. Musharraf has chosen to call it "genuine" democracy. The result,
the people fear, would be no different.
The paradox is not confined to the
political system. Every law or decree issued to promote Islamic values
has exacerbated pain and conflict in society. Sectarian killings, corruption
and crime have become more brutal and rampant.
On a less deadly, but in a way more
beneficial plane, Sindh government's income from the sale of liquor and
other intoxicants since their complete prohibition has gone up from 65
million to 900 million rupees. This 14 times increase in revenue should
correspond to similar increase in consumption. The other provincial governments
must have reaped similar windfall. The bootleggers in Islamabad, it is
well known, stocked up as the parliament's session approached each time.
When interest on certain types of
financial transactions was replaced by profit-loss sharing, the cost of
borrowing for the small businesses and home-builders went up, yet the banks
and DFIs went under. Only the party bosses, their cronies and crooks made
fortunes. The trepidation of the investors and the people at the approach
of complete abolition of interest will not be dispelled by the verbal,
vague assurances given by the Chief Executive and his finance minister.
Despite the enormous harm done by
this approach, the zeal to make society more democratic and puritan remains
undiminished. In the vanguard of the reform, as in the past, are the military
and the clergy. Since the lesson of history is too obvious to be ignored,
a suspicion inevitably arises that the motivating force this time too,
as in the past, is the class interest and not the interest of the public
at large. From the government the people need material help and expect
justice. They can well take care of their own morality and traditions.
To allege that behind the facade
of genuine democracy - in plain words district government - lurks new authoritarian
rule does not cause much concern, for no government answered that description
better than the government that General Musharraf overturned. The 14th
Amendment to the Constitution (penalty for defection from parliamentary
party) made the prime minister virtually a dictator. The 15th amendment
would have raised him to the status of a demi-god (as the sole interpreter
of the laws of the Quran and Sunnah overriding the Constitution) had the
senate not blocked its passage.
The Musharraf government has the
time and capability barely enough to make the present system work rather
than change it. Its total concentration on changing the system is aggravating
incompetence and irresponsibility in public service, generating fractious
political debates and tussles incriminating the government.
The structural change General Musharraf
wishes to bring about can be made possible only by devolving power and
resources from the centre to the provinces and on to the districts. For
that the Constitution has to be amended. The military administration has
neither the need nor the mandate to do that.
The voter turnout in the first phase
of the local body polls by all accounts, other than the Election Commission,
was abysmally low; the local councils in their composition of parties and
clans are but a microcosm of the provincial and national assemblies; the
minorities abstained from voting in protest against the separate electorates;
and most women seats went uncontested or remained vacant altogether.
The new councillors in their first
meeting with the Sindh governor asked for grant to get going. The governor
told them to raise their own resources for the provincial government itself
was in deficit. People would not pay more taxes. The problem which the
authors of the local government plan brushed aside has, thus, come to the
surface before the councils have come into being.
The central and most important feature
of the devolution plan must be the redistribution of taxes among the central,
provincial and local governments. The provincial finance commissions on
which much reliance is being placed would come up with the same answer
as Governor Soomro did - the provisional governments have no funds to spare
and the local councils would be unable to raise their own. The game would
end there.
Despite these discouraging indicators,
the government is pressing ahead with its flawed electoral and governance
experiment while the drift and defiance grow in the country.
With the mainstream political parties
being leaderless and breaking up, the fringe extremists are creating conditions
and projecting an image which the government and the people will be hard
put to dispel. By their statements, not always backed by actions, the zealots
are only confirming what India alleges - which is that Pakistan is training
terrorists and exporting terrorism. Here are some instances from the recent
press reports.
Hafiz Saeed, the chief of Lashkar-i-Tayyaba
claims to be raising a guerilla force to liberate Muslim communities wherever
they may be repressed and to introduce an Islamic order all over the world.
Mufti Nizamuddin Shamzai says it
is the religious duty of every Muslim to help the Afghans. On the other
hand, the world media highlights the massacre of 300 unarmed Hazara Muslims
by the invading Taliban when they captured Bamiyan in the north last month.
And while thousands of Afghans are dying of hunger and cold, the ruling
Taliban prepare for a massive assault on the bit of territory held by the
of Northern Alliance.
The press and TV pictures show the
Christian, not the Muslim, planes and volunteers bringing food and clothing
for the battle-weary, starving people of Afghanistan. Yet Hamid Gul, a
retired general but serving zealot, is worried about the contemplated restrictions
on the forcible collection of funds to finance jihad, not to save the dying
women and children.
The age-old traditional and secular
festival of Basant has been dubbed a Hindu rite. A columnist of an Urdu
daily has traced its origin to a 19th century blasphemer named Hemat Raj
Dharmi. To the people it is just flying kites and making merry to mark
the arrival of spring when nothing else happens to make merry about. Amazingly,
firing in the air on the occasion of Basant once in a year arouses greater
ire of the religious leaders than round-the-year firing to kill people
in places of worship.
The images of pain and grief at
home, in Kashmir and in Afghanistan are taking a heavy toll of the people's
emotions and the nation's image. The vast majority of the victims are Muslims.
The Mujahideen who are risking torture and death to liberate Kashmir must
always keep in view whether the Kashmiris would like to exchange India's
military repression for Pakistan's violent zealotry. In accession to Pakistan
they would hope for peace and economic gain.
