Adil Najam
I have been traveling nearly non-stop over the last month, and events in Pakistan are headline news everywhere. More than that everyone is asking questions about Pakistan. An immigration official in Baku, Azerbaijan, asked me (2 weeks before the emergency) how long Musharraf will survive? A hotel receptionist in Musqat, Oman, asked more politely if “all is well in your country?” (one week before the emergency). In Pakistan (just days before the emergency) the question was more like “What is America planning for Pakistan?” A shop-keeper in Trondheim, Norway, asked (one day before the emergency) wondered if “Benazir will solve Pakistan’s problems?” And my driver in Cairo, Egypt, asked yesterday “Has Musharraf gone mad?”
You have to be impressed by how much ordinary people around the world know about Pakistan. But also sad that this is what they are thinking when they think Pakistan.
I do not think I have been able to respond to any of them satisfactorily. Politics in Pakistan is way too complex, even for us Pakistanis.
But to each I have said, in different ways, that the real story in Pakistan is not about Gen. Pervez Musharraf. The real story is about Pakistanis demanding democracy. The reason the general has had to use ever increasing pressure and more draconian measures is precisely because the people who want democracy are just not giving up. As we have said before, here is a democratic society trapped in an undemocratic state. This is a moment to be proud of Pakistanis. The failure here is not of Pakistan. It is of Gen. Pervez Musharraf (and he wrote his own indictment in his ‘emergency’ speech).
And this is what is most heartening. In response to a journalists question yesterday, I elaborated on something I have been saying already (here, here and here):
…this is a moment of great pride for Pakistanis. How can you not be proud of your people when ordinary citizens – lawyers, journalists, students – come out on he streets ready to be beaten up and put in jail… knowing that they will be crushed and yet demanding democracy…. this is NOT Pakistan’s failure… this is a moment of success for Pakistan’s people… the reason that the military government has been forced to apply ever greater force and every more draconian measures is simply because the democracy forces in the country (the lawyers, the students and journalists… unfortunately not the politicians as much) are simply unwilling to bow down. In the past people used to stop demanding democracy at much less pressure than this. Now they are resisting pressure and they keep demanding democracy and freedom.
Even as I travel (still on the road) and check email on unreliable connections and unfamiliar computers, I find my inbox and the comments on ATP innundated with information about what ordinary citizens are doing. This is most heartening.
The pictures say it all and I will let the pictures do the talking here. But as I look at teh pictures, some points do pop into the head about who is protesting here and who is not. Maybe our readers can comment more on this:
- Note carefully who is protesting for freedom, human dignity and democracy. These are ordinary people. Lawyers. Students. Journalists.
- Note carefully who they represent. These are amongst the most so-called ’secular’ and ‘liberal’ classes in society. The people who were supposed to be Gen. Musharraf natural constituency. Musharraf has lost the support of the very people who were supposed to be (but never really were) most aligned to him. [Readers, please spare us your diatribes and fatwas about what ’secular’ and ‘liberal’ means. Despite the propaganda from some, neither of those terms means anti-religious or un-Islamic… There is a huge literature on this, so please read it. But, for Allah’s sake, not on Wikipedia!!].
- Note also the solidarity being shown by Pakistanis within and outside Pakistan. While there are obviously those who do support the general, the opposition to the emergency is more widespread than anything one can remember. One can scarcely think of any political act that has united our otherwise divided society they way the general opposition to the Emergency has.
- More importantly, please note who is NOT in the pictures. Who is not on the streets protesting.
- Political activists and political leaders are not on the streets. They make statements, but half-heartedly. This is not a movement led by politicians. In fact, it is not even clear whether the politicians are smart enough to just follow the people on the streets. Really conspicuous by their absence are the ‘political workers’. The Million who greeted Benazir, or were supposedly stopped from greeting Nawaz Sharif, or routinely come out for the MMA, are nowhere to be seen. Their leaders have failed to mobilize them, or maybe not tried to do so at all.
- The one exception to the above may be Imran Khan, but I have long felt that at his core he is more of a civil society actor than a political leader in the true sense; his stance, his style, and even his vote bank seems to suggest the same.
- Also conspicuous by their absence are the religious parties, the MMA. Beyond statements they do not have much to contribute here. Their words and boasts onpeople’s will and democracy are large but their actions no different from the secular parties.
- Finally, and probably most importantly, missing from the streets and from protests are the religious extremists (not to be confused with the religious parties which are religious but, mostly, not extremists). The folks who were killing and terrorizing and blowing up ordinary Pakistanis in Swat, in Islamabad, and elsewhere seem not too worried about the Emergency and not to unhappy at the death of democracy. They may even like it that way. This is important because supposedly the Emergency was imposed to curtail them and their activities. However, they seem to be neither affected not interested in the Emergency or the opposition to it.
While the shape of things will obviously evolve, it does seem that a new politics is taking shape in Pakistan. A people-centered politics that might just sideline the mainstream political parties as well as the extremists. It is way too early to say that this will happen. It is quite probable that it will not. But one can certainly not be faulted for hoping that it just might.
Imran Khan has always stood fast to his principles and has always been fighting for justice and rights. He has given up a lot, and now his freedom, to fight for Pakistan. Historically, he has delivered what he has promised; WC, hospital and now building school. We need to give him a chance to lead us. He fought for us and now we need to fight for him and all others that are languishing in Pakistani jails now. I feel ashamed that this is happening to good, decent people while, gundas roam are streets freely. Rise up people, demand your rights. Demand Imran’s freedom, demand the freedom of everyone who has been thrown in kail for speaking out, demand free judiciary and media. Then only can we think about elections!
very well said ahmed tariq — i am amazed at the general myopia found among most educated and apparently liberal pakistanis
adnan — no — GEO has not surrendered but rather the dubai govt has ordered it to stop broadcasting — quite different — talat hussain is privately v upset and i hear nusrat javeed has already left or is on the verge of leaving AAJ TV - ansar abbasi was published in the news today — no ban on him –
Today the channels are closed.
Tomorrow our tongues will be tied.
The day-after we will be imprisoned.
I hope this tyranny continues, so that we Pakistanis could understand what ‘freedom’ means. Only our forefathers knew what freedom meant. ALL of us are not protesting for our freedoms. Hence, We have a long way to go.
InshAllah the lawyers, the journalists, the students shall succeed.
I do not rate a few protests here and a few there as a movement. Without the ‘mass’ being behind this movement of a few students, lawyers and social activists will only be limited until the elections in January 2008.
Though I may not agree with the mode of emergency, I fully agree with the reasons behind its imposition.
I believe that what the Government is doing is the same as what Adil and his gang do everyday on this blog and under the ATP Comment policy! Read this policy as given herein and then tell me why blame Musharraf or the Government?
Why can’t we just wait for the elections? Itni be-sabri kyun hai? They’re inviting quite a lot of foreign observers and media. Voting would be in transparent ballot boxes. People are not dying, they’re not being fired at by the police (recall burma) phir bhi masla hai. If they allow open rallies, then you’d blame them again if there’re suicide blasts. Desperate times call for desparate measures.
Why couldn’t the CJ wait for Mush to doff his uniform? Why were they so hellbent on delivering the justice and uphlolding the constitution? Was that more important preventing what’s happening today.
They could’ve blocked this very site you know. They didn’t. They don’t have problems with us. At least not that much. And to some extent, it appalled me sometimes to watch those news channels involved in a relentless banter of everything. Every news was a breaking news. There’s so much ill-will among every facet of the society, it was sort of their duty to mend those gaps, not aggravate them. I watched burnt bodies, people crying and limping on the blastsites and what was the cameraman doing? filming them and showing GEO NEWS Exclusive. Instead they showed PG ratings not suitable for children. Was it suitable for the rest?
Let’s not forget that Mush did some good when he didn’t mess with the press in at least 7 of these 8 years. The media had all the time to learn how to stay free all this time. We want the militants to accept the writ of the govt. What about us accepting that writ as well? I guess there’s a lot more to learn. They’re so righteous that they wouldn’t say good things on their own but once paid they’ll start showing parha likha punjab 5 mins before every news.
I feel sad for geo, ary. I miss Capital Talk, Meray Mutabiq and especially that I love you so Ad before every news. Geo Super, Aag had nothing to do with it. They wanna fight the govt. till death, they should be prepared to take collateral damage as well.
One has to realize that this struggle is being hijacked by BB. She’s feeling so confident that she has apparently stopped worrying about the swiss cases. Must be thinking I’ll fix them once I get to be the PM. They’ve rarely criticized this govt’s economic policies in their bashings. Does this mean they agree to it? or they haven’t even thought about the alternatives. Please wake up. Major democracies of this world sacrificed a lot of blood to get there. Do we really want that? Things’ve gotten more ever since. We’ve got nukes to worry about. We’ve got two hostiles on both sides of the border. And yes, I feel agitated. I feel ripped off of my rights. Change cannot be done overnight until there’s blood involved. Trust me, no leader would give his life for us when the going gets rough. Why’s she being given so much protection. Doesn’t that make us “commoners”? Where was she for 8 years? neogtiating her comeback? with who? us or the US?
I can keep on blabbering…
Even I have not been reading Ansar Abbasi for last few days or maybe I am missing? is he put on ban as well?
Omar,unlike AAJ, geo had seperate news channel. Govt actually wanted to shutdown programs of Talat,Mushtaq Minhas,Hamid,Shahid Masood and Kashif abbasi of ARY. AAJ is Up without Talat and Bolta Pakistan, means they surrendered. Similarly GEO is up by surrendring GEO news which means NO hamid mir,Kamran Khan and Masood anymore.
GEO has been doing false propaganda. It does seem GEO also signed code of conduct. Now all GEO is up without all mentioned guys.