The Road Map of Democracy in Pakistan

by Syed Atiq ul Hassan

In an interview given to Indus Vision television network in April 2002, the President of Pakistan General Pervez Musharraf portrayed his intended changes in the establishment and in the constitution of Pakistan as necessary for the fair and cleaned democracy and to block the corrupt and incapable politicians from participation in the up coming election being held on October 2002. He said that he did not want to see the country to be brought again into the same anarchical situation prior to his take over, in 1999.

In the past few weeks, there has been several announcements in relation to the constitutional changes pertain to ruling powers, election process and parliamentary organism by Musharraf’s formulated National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB). President Musharraf himself appeared few times on electronic (national) media asserting his course of actions as measures to bring the fair democracy and good governance in Pakistan. No doubt, the NRB’s amendment package includes some fair and need of the time proposals. For example; the minimum voting age to be lowered from 21 to 18, minimum qualification for the contestant, changes in the number of seats in the national and provincial assemblies, cutting down the term of parliament and prime minister from five to four years and the formation of a 10-member policy-making National Security Council (NSC).

However, history shows that the military Generals in Pakistan are more skillful and diplomatic than the politicians. Analyzing the amendment package, one can also see that while General Musharraf has been saying repeatedly said that he wanted to see the Prime Minister with complete operational power; the amendment proposed which has the power to the President to sack the prime minister, unilaterally dissolve the parliament and choose his own prime minister. While the prime minister has been restricted to remain the Prime Minister only for 2 terms it did not say anything about President. According to the latest news, Musharraf’s government is now more softening on the other changes except for the revival of 58(2)(B), powers to appoint services chiefs, formation of the National Security Council where President is the head of the council and increase in the number of seats in the national, provincial assemblies and in the senate. Even his NRB is ready to withdraw the minimum educational qualification restriction which has already been approved by the Supreme Court.

In a land where nothing is surprising anymore, the politics is like Pakistani movies where the same old story repeated endlessly with the change of faces but in politics, even the faces remain the same with repeated role, which proves that while the world may have moved on we remain stuck in the same grooves. President Musharraf promised to the people of Pakistan to clean the country from incapable, fraudulent and corrupt politicians, block them from future democracy of Pakistan and bring a true democratic system. President General Musharraf may have done an excellent job for the country for its regional and international relations with the rest of world and with its neighbours but return the country to the true democracy and good governance was also the part of his agenda. Has the internal system been cleaned enough for fair democracy with freedom to the people of Pakistan to choose the real national leaders rather than the same crook politicians, in the upcoming election?

In the country where any type of power-sharing deal with military rulers is legitimate for the political gurus to gain the power and where the giant lords (Choudrys, Vadareys and Sardars) never allow people to vote with their own freedom of choice; except one or two odd examples, the same professional gurus are exercising their muscles again to plunder the coming October’s political exhibition and secure the seat in Islamabad in the name of democracy but this time it might be under the shelter of a competent General.

In March 1981 a similar exercise was ordained by another benign military figure, General Zia-ul-Haq, whose affirmations to hold elections in 90 days were, if anything, more vociferous than General Musharraf's proclaimed determination to return Pakistan to the fold of 'real' democracy. General Zia through its Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO) ruled the country for more than a decade. Interestingly, the master mind behind Zia’s PCS was the same old judiciary guru Syed Sharif uddin Pirzada. It is interested to mentioned here that Syed Sharifuddin Pirzada was active in General Ayub Khan's service when many of us were in school. Today, he has raised a monument to longevity by serving the 3rd military General (Musharraf) for providing the legal stratagems (to retain power) as being Musharraf’s principal legal adviser with a seat in the National Security Council and the freedom to continue with his legal practice.

The painful dilemma in the political fête is that the politicians who always cry for democracy are unable to produce democracy in their own parties. When the national political figureheads could not maintain fair and clean election within their parties how can they provide or maintain the true democracy in the country. When the power greedy politicians are ready to split their parties to retain the headship of the party or not allow the other person to contest for party leadership, how can one expect from them to run a true democracy in the country. The recent party election of major parties PML and PPP are the true example of what could different the people of Pakistan would get in or after the October 2002 election. Pakistan’s major political party where the front-row party leaders left the party in the past and formed their own (separate) party on the dispute of party leadership could not find any other party leader who would show willingness to participate in the party election. Benazir Bhutto again elected unopposed as a party chairperson. The Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz-group elected Shahbaz Sharif as Party President in their general council meeting - another unopposed candidate. Upon Shahbaz announcements as new President, his elder brother and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif said in a message, "We will not allow our opponents to succeed in their conspiracies” but he never mentioned what conspiracies and who is doing against who. Another Muslim League, PML-QA (Qauid-e-Azam group) split on the day of its party election. Mian Azhar was announced as new party leader while Ijazul Haq unaccepted him and is intending to form another group.

When one looks at the history of democracy, from 1988 to 1998, in Pakistan; Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif who, in many ways, represent a new generation of leaders, created an expectation for a democratic rule. Both in their own ways restored and reorganised their respective political parties, i.e., PPP and PML (N). Both created expectation about upholding the rule of law. As opposition leaders, in a limited way, they contributed towards expansion of democratic processes. But both have shown strong, autocratic tendencies, as soon as they assumed power. Instead of upholding the rule of law, both have flouted it, both have shown little respect for minority rights and views, both have suppressed dissent and restricted opposition. Both have made little effort in engaging the opposition parties into a dialogue and create conditions for consensus-building. Through personal projection-based policies and bad laws, both have encouraged social attitudes that promote undemocratic norms rather than building mutual trust, accommodation and dialogue. So, when the same people, if not Nawaz Sharif, the former Prime Minister but his nominated younger brother Shahbaz Sharif and the same two times tried Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and their squads – whom ‘the only vision’ has always been to occupy a seat in Islamabad by any (right or wrong) means - will take part in the democratic process for next civilian government and when the people of Pakistan will find the same Choudhrys in Punjab, Vadareys in Sindh and Sardars in Balouchistan & Frontier to choose from in the next election then how can Pervez Musharraf claim that he will produce the true and fair democracy in and after the October 2002 election. And if he is ready to lead, as being President, the parliament of same immoral bunch then how will he justify that he wouldn’t be the cluster of same inept, insatiable and power gluttonous people.

Syed Atiq ul Hassan,
Freelance Journalist / Political Analyst,
Phone: 61-2-9707 1535, Fax: 61-2-9709 4867
P.O.Box: A1113, Sydney South NSW Australia.