Some good news
IT should be a moment of pride for the country that the film Joyland has become the first Pakistani film to be shortlisted for the best International Feature Film category by an Oscar committee. Joyland is one of 15 films that made the cut in the category which saw nominations from 92 countries. The development is a huge honour for the team that worked on the film, and will serve as encouragement not just for the film crew but also the independent film community in Pakistan.
It is an unfortunate reality that though the film has been appreciated by the Academy Awards and gained recognition at several other international film festivals, it is still not being shown in Punjab. Earlier, it was banned across the country, but after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif ordered a committee to review the film, thankfully the ban was lifted. It reminds one of the numerous other instances where Pakistan has been celebrated by the international community for an achievement that has hardly been recognised at home. Dr Abdus Salam, Pakistan’s first Nobel laureate, was recognised for his work in physics internationally, but unfortunately at home, his name and legacy are largely absent from the history books. Such occasions must compel our leaders to reflect on why the nation has reached this unpleasant juncture, and what can be done to address it. Joyland explores the relationship between a married man and a transgender woman, and while it is a novel subject when it comes to films made locally, it is by no means offensive. In fact, it tells the story of a community that is vilified and violently attacked. As the people celebrate this piece of good news, its political stakeholders must do more to support art and creative expression as well as deliberate on ways to promote tolerance. It is disappointing that despite the court and parliament recognising the rights of transpeople, there are many elements in society who are able to create a climate of fear that leads to such bans.
Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2022
Dry-cleaned politicians
THE dry cleaning of our political elite continues unabated, thanks to the controversial amendments made to our accountability laws just a few months earlier. The most recent instance is quite outrageous, considering that it allegedly involves past misappropriations from the Toshakhana by a different set of prime ministers.
According to reports, an accountability court, citing recent changes to NAB laws, has granted a reprieve to Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari and Yousaf Raza Gilani in a case concerning the alleged appropriation of vehicles from the Toshakhana in return for paltry sums of money.
The former two leaders allegedly ‘bought’ vehicles from the state gift repository at throwaway prices with the help of Mr Gilani, who, according to NAB, “dishonestly and illegally” relaxed the procedural requirements for the disposal of state gifts in order to facilitate them.
Separately, Mr Zardari has also won relief in a case concerning the alleged use of ill-gotten money in the construction of his residence in Clifton, Karachi. According to NAB, Mr Zardari could never sufficiently account for where the funds used to develop the residence came from, and it is suspected that the money was channelled through a third party under a shady deal.
Both cases are now back with the NAB chairman because the court hearing them says it no longer has jurisdiction following the National Accountability (Second Amendment) Act of 2022.
After the PDM parties’ breathless outrage over the watches and other items appropriated from the Toshakhana and later sold by PTI chairman Imran Khan, it is difficult to square these developments with the loud pursuit of Mr Khan on charges of malfeasance.
How do the PML-N and PPP expect the public to buy into their narrative about the PTI chief when their own top leaders are cynically manoeuvring their way out of similar charges, with the help of changes that they forced onto NAB laws soon after seizing power?
If the cases in question against the PML-N and PPP leaders were frivolous or falsified, it would have been much more appropriate to win an acquittal from the courts. Neutralising these legal challenges in such a manner leaves little doubt about the PDM parties’ intent behind ‘reforming’ the NAB laws all along. The fig leaf has been cast aside with nary a thought as to what message it is giving to the citizenry about accountability and the abuse of power.
Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2022
Islamabad LG delay
THE sad fact is that many of our ‘committed democrats’ are working very hard to ensure that elections to the third tier — where the public is in closest contact with elected officeholders — are delayed as much as possible. This regressive attitude is apparently fuelled by fears of losing influence at the local level, as well as the rise of alternative leaderships that may challenge the mainstream parties. The fact that a law related to changing the number of union councils in Islamabad was recently bulldozed through the National Assembly and the Senate, effectively delaying polls, is ample proof of this. Polls in the capital were supposed to be held on the last day of the year, but with the PDM-led treasury steamrolling a bill that changes the number of UCs from 101 to 125 and calls for direct election of the mayor and deputy mayor through parliament, timely polls will be impossible. Moreover, the IHC has set aside the ECP’s decision against the increase of UCs in the capital.
Similar legal subterfuge has already been employed in Punjab, where frequent changes to the LG law have delayed polls. Meanwhile, in Sindh, the second phase of polls has been delayed multiple times this year as the provincial government has claimed force majeure because of the devastating floods, while also saying it lacks the security personnel to guarantee safe conduct of the polls. Though the floods argument initially made sense, the waters have receded and Karachi was never as affected by the monsoon deluge; therefore, the Sindh government’s excuses to delay the polls sound increasingly hollow. In fact, if not for the courts and the ECP, political parties in Pakistan may indefinitely delay the constitutional requirement of an elected third tier. Thanks to the ECP’s efforts, LG polls have now been set for mid-January in Karachi and Hyderabad, while Punjab is due to hold the electoral exercise in April 2023.
It is sincerely hoped that the parties that rule Sindh and Punjab no longer use excuses to delay the polls, and that the elections are held on time. Islamabad also deserves an elected local government, therefore a new timeline should be set and adhered to. From delivering basic services to putting in place plans to counter climate change, hardly any liveable city in the world has progressed without a responsive elected local government. However, Pakistan’s political class believes that cities and even neighbourhoods can be micromanaged by MNAs and MPAs, whom voters have to run after to get their streets swept or their gutters cleaned. This is not a viable state of affairs. The political parties need to change their mindset about local polls, which will only strengthen democracy in Pakistan, and not create hurdles in their way. Moreover, state institutions such as the courts and the ECP must also keep reminding political parties that holding local polls is a constitutional requirement.
Published in Dawn, December 25th, 2022