The Musharraf enigma
Following in the footsteps of military strongmen Ayub and Zia, Pervez Musharraf, the ‘saviour general’ who directly ruled Pakistan, will be remembered for bringing the democratic process in the country to an abrupt halt. He served as ‘chief executive’ after the 1999 coup, then as military, and finally civilian, president before stepping down in 2008 as the sword of impeachment hovered over his head.
Musharraf violated the Constitution twice, earning the dubious distinction of being Pakistan’s only military ruler to be sentenced to death for high treason for imposing his second emergency in 2007. He was something of an enigma as his authoritarian rule was also interspersed with liberal reforms.
The Musharraf saga began on a note of high drama, as his flight from Sri Lanka was initially not allowed to land in Karachi. Subsequent events changed the course of Pakistan’s history. The army leadership staged a coup to remove the elected prime minister Nawaz Sharif and the latter was sentenced on charges of hijacking and terrorism.
Thanks to Saudi intervention, Mr Sharif and his family spent the next several years in exile in the kingdom, as Gen Musharraf became the master of all he surveyed. Some liberal sections had welcomed the coup out of concern at Mr Sharif’s increasingly conservative inclinations. But the general was in no hurry to leave, and appeared intent on leaving his ‘mark’. The events of 9/11 brought this region into the global spotlight once again, with the West more than happy to work with the general to achieve their goals in Afghanistan.
He created an atmosphere of liberalism in the country and started the process of accountability, though the latter proved to be a controversial exercise. He restored the joint electorate, gave a relatively workable LG system and liberalised the media ecosystem, but cracked down on the press during his second emergency. Despite his reputation as the man responsible for the Kargil debacle, he advocated for peace with India, helping to bring Pakistan and India the closest to a settlement on the Kashmir issue they had ever been.
Yet the late general’s mistakes were considerable, the biggest and most unforgivable being the derailing of the constitutional order. In order to survive politically, Musharraf formed questionable alliances with the PML-Q in Punjab and MQM in Sindh. Under him, the situation in Balochistan worsened — and is yet to normalise — after the killing of Akbar Bugti in 2006.
The transition from Gen Musharraf to Mr Musharraf was an unremarkable one as his All Pakistan Muslim League suffered the fate of most other one-man parties, slipping into oblivion after 15 minutes of fame. The Musharraf era holds numerous lessons for Pakistan’s ruling elite, civilian and military. All can learn from his many mistakes, as well as his successes.
Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2023
Staying neutral
THE Election Commission of Pakistan has what is perhaps one of the most thankless jobs in the country. The countless variables in the electoral process, limited public understanding of the ECP’s role and capabilities, and our public’s general tendency to believe conspiracy theories more easily than they do simple, straight facts make its job all the more difficult to execute. These challenges make it incumbent upon ECP officials to develop a thick skin if they wish to remain focused on discharging their constitutional responsibilities under a strict code of impartiality. It is a big ask, especially when one is constantly being harangued and accused of all manner of impropriety by powerful individuals with a lot more reach and influence than an ordinary civil servant. While the ECP’s current stewardship deserves commendation both for resisting the extreme pressure it has been subjected to by certain disgruntled politicians, as well as for ensuring the conduct of various elections in a largely satisfactory manner, it must also be chided for lately allowing its critics to get under its skin. The sedition case registered against PTI leader Fawad Chaudhry by the ECP secretary has been seen as a vindictive act against one of the Commission’s fiercest critics. Likewise, the ECP’s prosecution of several senior PTI leaders for contempt — even though nobody who matters has taken their accusations seriously — can be seen in a similar light. There may be legal grounds for the ECP to proceed on both counts, but it must be asked: is it really more important for it to win against the PTI or to continue demonstrating impartiality in its conduct?
Its recent tendency to react to provocation has also cast a shadow on the ECP’s other decisions. For example, the announcement of dates for by-elections on recently vacated National Assembly seats and refusal to do the same for the KP and Punjab Assembly elections on a shaky pretext gives one pause. It makes it seem as if the Commission is acting in support of the federal government, which explicitly wants the provincial assembly elections delayed but has comparatively little to worry about when the National Assembly by-elections are held. The watchdog does not need reminding that it is entering a particularly sensitive period in which everything it does will be subject to scrutiny. It must not get distracted.
Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2023
Wikipedia ban
THE country was back in a familiar, dark place last week when the PTA blocked Wikipedia over the charge that it hosted and would not remove ‘objectionable content’ the government deemed blasphemous. After a warning to the information giant to remove the offensive content 48 hours earlier, the regulator went ahead with the ban. The blocking of Wikipedia followed a pattern we have seen numerous times, when major sites and social media platforms have been banned. The country went through years of banning Facebook and YouTube, and periodically bans TikTok when it deems the company isn’t complying with its instructions. The latest target of its censorship whip is a website visited by millions across the world daily to access information. It seems the government is clueless as to how Wikipedia works, and how users are able to edit and add information to its pages.
Much like the bans on other websites and platforms, the new curbs will hurt Pakistanis looking for information, as well as be seen as a negative move by foreign investors. At a time when countries are becoming less restrictive about access to technology and tech firms, Pakistan is going the other way. The previous set-up was obsessed with data being accessible to Pakistani users, and tried to push laws to access data servers and force tech companies to have a brick-and-mortar presence in Pakistan in order to enable its own policing. This shows a mentality where ignorance and fear dictate decisions on technological access, and highlights how poor the understanding of our leaders is. The fact that the authorities banned Wikipedia as a knee-jerk reaction to the accessibility of content they deemed controversial, instead of understanding that it is a crowdsourced website where content can be edited, even by the government, is unfortunate. It only underscores how arbitrarily our government can crack the whip of censorship, and how helpless the citizens are in the face of such ignorant actions.
Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2023