Adil Najam
The stream of disturbing images from Islamabad continues. It has left one dumbfounded. But one must never be silent in the face of injustice. Of the many disturbing reports and images that have been floating in, there is probably none more poignantly disturbing than this one from ARY:
Violence, of course, can only beget violence, and one saw this too in the manhandling of the State Minister for Information, Tariq Azeem. Yet more evidence that violence is replacing discourse as the mode of disagreement in Pakistani society.
This is not a question of which side you are on. Ultimately you have to be against violence. We have written about shameful violence and police brutality before - tearing down the shalwar of a young man in a ‘missing persons’ protest and then also against the lawyers during the CJ movement. But this is not just shameful; it is needless. Now there are also reports of muzzling the media; another tactic we have seen before. It demonstrates the government’s slipping grip on power, but it also demonstrates a society that is so torn that every issues - may it be religious, social or political - has to end in violence.
The government, after all, has already gotten the verdict it wanted. At least let the people vent out their anger. There is nothing to be gained from this violence. For a nation that has already lost so much, this is merely also losing whatever little dignity that might have remained. As I have written already in a comment elsewhere, history shall judge the merit of the decision that was given by the Supreme Court on the 28th of September, but the violence of the 29th of September was shameful and needless and will remain (yet another) blot of our national political psyche.
Peaceful protest is the key but the PEOPLE MUST STAND AND DELIVER now or remain silent forever. I again remind those ATP readers who favour the Mush rule that all of this chaos could have been avoided by him and him alone. My open letter to him as shown here http://www.otherpakistan.org/archive.html simply depicts the death of Mush’s own Pakistan first idelogy for a selfish ‘Musharraf first’ ideology. Compare his lust for renewed power with the distaste for power that Justice Wajihuddin has but he has entered only in the interests of serving a nation. Such actions are befitting that esteemed office and Mush could take lessons from him.
Finally I stil ask where are the Pakistani people?, is it too much to ask them to stand up for Pakistan or are they waiting for an archangel to beckon them? This time will not come again, all we need to do is make a peaceful protest in our own bazaars and chowks be it Quetta or Karachi, we need not travel to the capital or make loud gestures, we can do it all from the comfort of our own neighbourhoods, so Pakistan jaagoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
Feimanallah
Wasim
This is the end of the road for me and I am sure for a vast number of Pakistani hyphenated into this or that or whatever team we are on or whatever crowd we hang out with. When the Supreme Court of Pakistan removes the last fig of dignity and exposes itself, than whatever little dignity or pride one may have for the nation are also shattered.
With the Pakistan’s judiciary decimated, and with the continuing state terrorism and violence and ethnic politics, any semblance of the facade of state or government or even of unity of the various communities are also shattered and exposed. We have all hoped and prayed that we might recover from our heighten level of political misfortunes that had befallen us. But when the Supreme Court is annihilated, than whatever little hope one may have that we might recover from the heighten level of political misfortunes that had befallen us are also shattered.
…. and they are talking about their manhood and “karr lo jo karna hai”! I give up.
It is surreal… it was like that scene out of Jinnah the movie where Jinnah throws himself at the Police officer stopping him from carrying out lathi charge against the protesters…
But this is not a movie… this is real.
Is there no shame … is this enlightened moderation of which the regime is a spokesperson?
God save Pakistan.
I don’t know what is more apalling; the violence that was exacted, or the divided opinion among Pakistanis for and against it?
Those defending gun and danda do not realize that bombs and suicide attacks are all they are going to get in return. You cannot win the war against extremism as long as you believe that you can beat people into submission. All you will end up doing is creating more extremists; and not just among the madressah uneducated.
Zahid Khan of ANP said the same thing in different words: “If you push my back to the wall, there are only two possible outcomes. Either I’ll be on your feet, or at your throat”.
Yesterday’s developments are ominous.
There is no point in saying “God Bless Pakistan”, if this is what half of the Pakistanis stand for.
As a show of his protest, Mr. Kurd was burning the order of the Supreme Court right in front of the Election Commission. This is a lawyer disrespecting the rule of law which he has been assigned to uphold??? That to me is the simple case of contempt of court.
Had the lawyers protest & their political masters been peaceful, everything would have been fine. Lest a few got overly emotional and kicked the doors of the car being driven in the ECP, they immediately announced themselves as RIOTERS. Rioters all over the world are dealt with STICK & TEAR GAS and this incident was no different. So what if a few journalists got bashed (they always want to be IN the action)? Can you tell a difference between the two if you are a Police-wala charging head-on on rioters?? Journalists all over the world get injured (even killed) during riots and this incident was no different.
The journalists are no different than the Black Coats. They clearly displayed their ‘highly ethical’ morals by severely bashing government ministers!
Simply, it was a riot and the rioters got dealt with accordingly while they also got a chance to hit a few government functionaries, end of story! Great TV coverage though, may get a few ads! If the Black Coats and the so called chest-pounding politicians think that they have the support of the Pakistani common man on this crusade of theirs the same way as that of the CJ-issue, the are gravely mistaken and are in for a rude awakening.
These lawyers threaten to be-siege Election Commission and Supreme Court, and then launch riots. Govt has to respond to this.
Looks like lawyers and opposition got real pumped up after Cj restoration and simply could not swallow SC ruling against them.
Why not let the people of Pakistan decide on Classof71’s list/diatribe?
The army and civilian Ziaists have been making these same arguments for three decades. If the people still vote for PPP and Benazir Bhutto then maybe it is time for Classof71 and others of his ilk to shed their anti-bhutto hysteria and think up new arguments.
Also, to describe MQM thugs as the party of tax-paying middle class is a travesty. MQM’s bahevior is as fedual as it comes and Altaf Hussain, though not born in a feudal family, behaves worse than a Nawab or jagirdar in refusing to tolerate dissent or criticism.