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PM resignation: maximalist OR unconstitutional?

Moeed Pirzada
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Moeed Pirzada |

Responding to Ayesha Hasan:- I never said that demanding PM Nawaz’s resignation is “unconstitutional” – I have repeatedly said it was a “maximalist” demand which in politics means that you will ultimately settle for lesser but substantive concessions from a regime. I have not supported this “resignation of PM Nawaz” demand because he came through a process in a federal scheme of things and demand for his resignation is coming from political parties in two provinces; parties with strong presence in Sindh and Baluchistan are not demanding that so it looks less than convincing; however PM and his team have continuously mismanaged the political situation creating an atmosphere of violence & counter-violence and it looks they don’t want to agree on a meaningful Election Audit through a JIT under a Judicial Commission; they want to resolve this political crisis by using Police and Administrative measures and by the support of Washington & international community – you can see that pattern; I am afraid this approach will lead to more and more unexpected problems in coming weeks with govt finding it more and more difficult to govern or deliver, it will also be more and more dependent on Police & Administration which will compel them to become dictators and civil dictatorship is very difficult…..but I gradually started to support the resignation of CM Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, who should resign and face courts and clear his name; this will be politically helpful in terms of resolving this crisis and will make Shahbaz Sharif politically stronger but as you can see he and his family does not want to take this risk – so we are facing a strange situation which is not finding a resolution…

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

PM Resignation: Maximalist OR Unconstitutional?

Admin
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PM Resignation: Maximalist OR Unconstitutional?

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

Responding to Ayesha Hasan:- I never said that demanding PM Nawaz’s resignation is “unconstitutional” – I have repeatedly said it was a “maximalist” demand which in politics means that you will ultimately settle for lesser but substantive concessions from a regime. I have not supported this “resignation of PM Nawaz” demand because he came through a process in a federal scheme of things and demand for his resignation is coming from political parties in two provinces; parties with strong presence in Sindh and Baluchistan are not demanding that so it looks less than convincing; however PM and his team have continuously mismanaged the political situation creating an atmosphere of violence & counter-violence and it looks they don’t want to agree on a meaningful Election Audit through a JIT under a Judicial Commission; they want to resolve this political crisis by using Police and Administrative measures and by the support of Washington & international community – you can see that pattern; I am afraid this approach will lead to more and more unexpected problems in coming weeks with govt finding it more and more difficult to govern or deliver, it will also be more and more dependent on Police & Administration which will compel them to become dictators and civil dictatorship is very difficult…..but I gradually started to support the resignation of CM Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, who should resign and face courts and clear his name; this will be politically helpful in terms of resolving this crisis and will make Shahbaz Sharif politically stronger but as you can see he and his family does not want to take this risk – so we are facing a strange situation which is not finding a resolution…

Storming Ptv: barbarians at the gates…!

Moeed Pirzada
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0

Moeed Pirzada |

Storming Ptv; Barbarians at the Gates: Entering PTV was Wrong: But the situation we are dealing with is now full of all “wrongs”. Marching to the Prime Minister House is also wrong, sitting endlessly on Const. Ave and holding Capital City to standstill is also wrong, forty thousand police & rangers terrorizing city and hospitals is also wrong and hundreds of Police Officers refusing to obey govt. commands is also wrong. But all these “wrongs” have now to be measured against other “wrongs” Question of “right” & “wrong” is fast disappearing. This is the definition of Chaos.

Why we have reached this stage of “chaos”? because many of us inside ruling PMLN, in political parties, so called Opposition, in bureaucracy, in judiciary and in media whose job was to take positions honestly and with sincerity to mediate conflict between warring sides didn’t. They failed us. And they failed us either because they didn’t understand the gathering storm or were insensitive and worse: in many cases they were bought as ‘voices’ to say what they were saying against common sense and collective interest. Protestors shouldn’t have entered PTV. Dr. Qadri and Imran should categorically tell their supporters not to enter any building and I have heard Qadri doing that; he should also apologize for the brief period of vandalism his supporters may have done in Ptv Cafetaria. But this ‘event’ however distasteful it may look is only part of a bigger picture and without resolving that conflict these events can get worse.

Armed Forces cannot and should not try to erode their moral authority to restore ‘physical authority’ of a regime that is tottering and is unable to restore its moral authority through a political process of bargaining.

I have read the comments on Twitter; the sense of shock, disgust awe and fear on protestors entering Ptv and endless conspiracy theories and spin. One is tempted to believe them, as good citizens but unfortunately I remember how many of these same people were defending the murders, killings and brutality on 17th June in Model Town. While “Political thugs & Mafia” used Police to terrorize their political opponents these same “decent people” on Twitter were justifying those acts of terrorism by spinning and at times by openly lying. For instance they kept claiming: Police reacted only because it was fired upon; why Qadri people are fighting police; why there are barricades; several policemen have died; huge caches of arms and explosives have been recovered that were to be used for terrorism across Punjab; people in Model Town wanted Police to do the clearing operation etc. Those who have read the JIT Report know that all of that was spin and lies. But it was obvious even then.

Read more: Pakistan’s political Sunday? What lies ahead for PTI & PMLN?

But why Model Town massacre is important now? Because that massacre, they way it was done, and the way endless attempts have been done, using levers inside executive, judiciary and the media to cover it up to stop facts from emerging has practically finished the moral authority of PMLN govt and the political system stitched around it. From a government of all people that rules with trust, they & their allies have reduced themselves to a “political group” wearing the mask of a government. Now they threaten to browbeat their “real opposition” by endless references to Constitution, law, 11 parties inside Parliament and the responsibilities of the Armed Forces. But the dynamics of “real politick” cannot be fudged by “fake matras” – What they want is that Armed Forces should use their ‘moral authority’ and ‘fire power’ to restore their ‘controlling position’ on the system so that they can fix up their ‘real opposition’. Its only common sense to ask: Why should they?

Dr. Qadri and Imran should categorically tell their supporters not to enter any building and I have heard Qadri doing that; he should also apologize for the brief period of vandalism his supporters may have done in Ptv Cafetaria.

Look at the insane propaganda being repeated adnauseum by “political & economic interest mafia wearing the mask of a govt” that there are just few thousand people sitting in Islamabad and how could we accept mob demands. Two days ago, the “political & economic interests” that call themselves “govt” tried throwing them out by finding an excuse; dozens died, hundreds were injured including policemen and yet crowds have not only stayed but have multiplied. Why? because apart from “spin & lying” there is another phenomenon that has escaped these ‘apologists’. This is an age of TV and internet and countless millions across a large country stand behind these ‘protestors’; they are not on roads now, but an extremely charged polarized feeling is there. If situation in Islamabad is not diffused politically, if PMLN & allies continue to deal with this as a mob, as a sect, as miscreants to be dealt as an administrative matter or even manage to kill a few hundred and throw them out this violence will spread across the country, if not in three days then in three weeks.

Read more: A conversation with Dr. Tahir ul Qadri

Armed Forces cannot and should not try to erode their moral authority to restore ‘physical authority’ of a regime that is tottering and is unable to restore its moral authority through a political process of bargaining. Supreme Court already sullied and bruised should also tread carefully; whatever authority it has ultimately depends upon “force projection” and Obama however it may love Nawaz is not going to ask Pentagon to restore order across Pakistan. And Modi is not interested either. To find the political solution PMLN & allies needed to give a serious “pound of flesh” a meaningful political concession, as Altaf Hussain had been hinting in his poetic harangues. 3-4 days ago, before the killings in Islamabad, this could have been “resignation of CM Punjab” plus some credible guarantees by Armed Forces for an Election Audit – saving PM Nawaz in lieu. PMLN lost this opportunity because they are continuously thinking of petty smart moves like creating a “Judicial Commission” here and there. But where is the trust after Judicial Commission on Model Town?

This political crisis will not go away by petty smart moves; Cinderella and the handsome prince can’t live happily ever after; there are no kind witches around to create a horse carriage out of pumpkins and rats; this is a ‘real politick’ situation and needs a larger political vision for future ahead…we will find out in next 48 hours…more later.

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

Storming Ptv; Barbarians at the Gates…!

Admin
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Storming Ptv; Barbarians at the Gates…!

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

Storming Ptv; Barbarians at the Gates: Entering PTV was Wrong: But the situation we are dealing with is now full of all “wrongs”. Marching to the Prime Minister House is also wrong, sitting endlessly on Const. Ave and holding Capital City to standstill is also wrong, forty thousand police & rangers terrorizing city and hospitals is also wrong and hundreds of Police Officers refusing to obey govt. commands is also wrong. But all these “wrongs” have now to be measured against other “wrongs” Question of “right” & “wrong” is fast disappearing. This is the definition of Chaos.

Why we have reached this stage of “chaos”? because many of us inside ruling PMLN, in political parties, so called Opposition, in bureaucracy, in judiciary and in media whose job was to take positions honestly and with sincerity to mediate conflict between warring sides didn’t. They failed us. And they failed us either because they didn’t understand the gathering storm or were insensitive and worse: in many cases they were bought as ‘voices’ to say what they were saying against common sense and collective interest. Protestors shouldn’t have entered PTV. Dr. Qadri and Imran should categorically tell their supporters not to enter any building and I have heard Qadri doing that; he should also apologize for the brief period of vandalism his supporters may have done in Ptv Cafetaria. But this ‘event’ however distasteful it may look is only part of a bigger picture and without resolving that conflict these events can get worse.

I have read the comments on Twitter; the sense of shock, disgust awe and fear on protestors entering Ptv and endless conspiracy theories and spin. One is tempted to believe them, as good citizens but unfortunately I remember how many of these same people were defending the murders, killings and brutality on 17th June in Model Town. While “Political thugs & Mafia” used Police to terrorize their political opponents these same “decent people” on Twitter were justifying those acts of terrorism by spinning and at times by openly lying. For instance they kept claiming: Police reacted only because it was fired upon; why Qadri people are fighting police; why there are barricades; several policemen have died; huge caches of arms and explosives have been recovered that were to be used for terrorism across Punjab; people in Model Town wanted Police to do the clearing operation etc. Those who have read the JIT Report know that all of that was spin and lies. But it was obvious even then.

But why Model Town massacre is important now? Because that massacre, they way it was done, and the way endless attempts have been done, using levers inside executive, judiciary and the media to cover it up to stop facts from emerging has practically finished the moral authority of PMLN govt and the political system stitched around it. From a government of all people that rules with trust, they & their allies have reduced themselves to a “political group” wearing the mask of a government. Now they threaten to browbeat their “real opposition” by endless references to Constitution, law, 11 parties inside Parliament and the responsibilities of the Armed Forces. But the dynamics of “real politick” cannot be fudged by “fake matras” – What they want is that Armed Forces should use their ‘moral authority’ and ‘fire power’ to restore their ‘controlling position’ on the system so that they can fix up their ‘real opposition’. Its only common sense to ask: Why should they?

Look at the insane propaganda being repeated adnauseum by “political & economic interest mafia wearing the mask of a govt” that there are just few thousand people sitting in Islamabad and how could we accept mob demands. Two days ago, the “political & economic interests” that call themselves “govt” tried throwing them out by finding an excuse; dozens died, hundreds were injured including policemen and yet crowds have not only stayed but have multiplied. Why? because apart from “spin & lying” there is another phenomenon that has escaped these ‘apologists’. This is an age of TV and internet and countless millions across a large country stand behind these ‘protestors’; they are not on roads now, but an extremely charged polarized feeling is there. If situation in Islamabad is not diffused politically, if PMLN & allies continue to deal with this as a mob, as a sect, as miscreants to be dealt as an administrative matter or even manage to kill a few hundred and throw them out this violence will spread across the country, if not in three days then in three weeks.

Armed Forces cannot and should not try to erode their moral authority to restore ‘physical authority’ of a regime that is tottering and is unable to restore its moral authority through a political process of bargaining. Supreme Court already sullied and bruised should also tread carefully; whatever authority it has ultimately depends upon “force projection” and Obama however it may love Nawaz is not going to ask Pentagon to restore order across Pakistan. And Modi is not interested either. To find the political solution PMLN & allies needed to give a serious “pound of flesh” a meaningful political concession, as Altaf Hussain had been hinting in his poetic harangues. 3-4 days ago, before the killings in Islamabad, this could have been “resignation of CM Punjab” plus some credible guarantees by Armed Forces for an Election Audit – saving PM Nawaz in lieu. PMLN lost this opportunity because they are continuously thinking of petty smart moves like creating a “Judicial Commission” here and there. But where is the trust after Judicial Commission on Model Town?

This political crisis will not go away by petty smart moves; Cinderella and the handsome prince can’t live happily ever after; there are no kind witches around to create a horse carriage out of pumpkins and rats; this is a ‘real politick’ situation and needs a larger political vision for future ahead…we will find out in next 48 hours…more later

Time line of violence in Islamabad…!

Moeed Pirzada
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0

Moeed Pirzada |

Time Line of Violence in Islamabad – Given continuous claims & counterclaims and official lies its important to know how it all started. Protestors marched towards the road that enters the Civil Secretariat, they started to loosen wires and remove a Container right at the entry point, when Police started heavy shelling. Crowds then reacted with sticks and stones, Police followed by Rubber bullets and very heavy shelling. Crowds then broke grills and gates. But those actions of the crowds being referred repeatedly by govt ministers as initial actions came later.

in a modern republic you don’t become a PM by occupying a building. I considered that a frustrated symbolic act to prove an old fashioned point of ‘storming Bastille’ However I was also sure that Imran & Qadri would not go that far; and if crowds go close to the actual perimeters then the presence of the Army would discourage any penetration inside the premises.

Why Police initiated action at the point where it did, will remain a difficult question to answer. My best guess is that they were under strict instructions not to bear any more assertiveness by the protestors and once the protestors actions made it clear that they will remove the containers and seek access to the road that gives access to the Civil Secretariat on both sides and then winds down behind the Secretariat towards the President House and Prime Minister’s House then Police reacted. However it is important to understand that President House and PM House are very far off from that point. Could crowds have gone there? if there leaders would have encouraged that, then they could have ventured that far, but there is evidence to suggest that both Qadri and Imran were making speeches to stop their protestors to stop in front of the Civil Secretariat. They wanted to make it their next station to show their assertiveness. Police had ample opportunity to stop the crowds between that point and the real gates of the President House. As far as PM House is concerned; all those who keep visiting know that it is very far off with a private access road that originates from the road behind the Civil Secretariat making a T-Junction.

Read more: Storming Ptv: barbarians at the gates…!

When all that started, I was sitting in a live program with Jasmin Manzur, 10-12, and all those who might have watched that will remember that I was very critical of the apparent decision to enter the Prime Minister’s House – which I declared a stupid move. My comments were: in a modern republic you don’t become a PM by occupying a building. I considered that a frustrated symbolic act to prove an old fashioned point of ‘storming Bastille’ However I was also sure that Imran & Qadri would not go that far; and if crowds go close to the actual perimeters then the presence of the Army would discourage any penetration inside the premises.

I also thought that if they went and tried entering the premises then the whole country will condemn them, media will make fun of them, they will look stupid and will have to beat a hasty retreat within 24 hours. What I did not realize that Govt’s hasty action “let’s teach them a lesson” will change the whole political situation and will provide a pretext for these protests to spread across the country. From the ferocity of Police action it was clear that the goal was to kick out all the protestors from the Red Zone but facing severe resistance this goal was shelved then. Now this is 5.15am and when I last met Police officers 45 minutes ago, they were still hinting that action will be taken to kick protestors out of Red Zone. However this now looks more and more impractical for Police to achieve.

Sad & Stupid Day for all of us and has literally sealed govt’s fate.

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

Time Line of Violence in Islamabad…!

Admin
-
0
Time Line of Violence in Islamabad…!

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

Time Line of Violence in Islamabad – Given continuous claims & counterclaims and official lies its important to know how it all started. Protestors marched towards the road that enters the Civil Secretariat, they started to loosen wires and remove a Container right at the entry point, when Police started heavy shelling. Crowds then reacted with sticks and stones, Police followed by Rubber bullets and very heavy shelling. Crowds then broke grills and gates. But those actions of the crowds being referred repeatedly by govt ministers as initial actions came later.

Why Police initiated action at the point where it did, will remain a difficult question to answer. My best guess is that they were under strict instructions not to bear any more assertiveness by the protestors and once the protestors actions made it clear that they will remove the containers and seek access to the road that gives access to the Civil Secretariat on both sides and then winds down behind the Secretariat towards the President House and Prime Minister’s House then Police reacted. However it is important to understand that President House and PM House are very far off from that point. Could crowds have gone there? if there leaders would have encouraged that, then they could have ventured that far, but there is evidence to suggest that both Qadri and Imran were making speeches to stop their protestors to stop in front of the Civil Secretariat. They wanted to make it their next station to show their assertiveness. Police had ample opportunity to stop the crowds between that point and the real gates of the President House. As far as PM House is concerned; all those who keep visiting know that it is very far off with a private access road that originates from the road behind the Civil Secretariat making a T-Junction.

When all that started, I was sitting in a live program with Jasmin Manzur, 10-12, and all those who might have watched that will remember that I was very critical of the apparent decision to enter the Prime Minister’s House – which I declared a stupid move. My comments were: in a modern republic you don’t become a PM by occupying a building. I considered that a frustrated symbolic act to prove an old fashioned point of ‘storming Bastille’ However I was also sure that Imran & Qadri would not go that far; and if crowds go close to the actual perimeters then the presence of the Army would discourage any penetration inside the premises. I also thought that if they went and tried entering the premises then the whole country will condemn them, media will make fun of them, they will look stupid and will have to beat a hasty retreat within 24 hours. What I did not realize that Govt’s hasty action “let’s teach them a lesson” will change the whole political situation and will provide a pretext for these protests to spread across the country. From the ferocity of Police action it was clear that the goal was to kick out all the protestors from the Red Zone but facing severe resistance this goal was shelved then. Now this is 5.15am and when I last met Police officers 45 minutes ago, they were still hinting that action will be taken to kick protestors out of Red Zone. However this now looks more and more impractical for Police to achieve.

Sad & Stupid Day for all of us and has literally sealed govt’s fate.

Is Nawaz Sharif lying?

Moeed Pirzada
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0

Moeed Pirzada |

Why Nawaz Sharif is lying? – PM Nawaz was compelled to do this U-Turn on the floor of the Parliament because his assumption of Army intervention quickly succeeding into browbeating Imran Khan backfired and sharp criticism from other political allies like PPP, JI and media made him realize that his chess move has further isolated him. But by doing this flip flop Nawaz has seriously jeopardized Armed Forces position forcing them now to do something to save his politics and blunders. But how will Armed Forces do it without alienating the other side and its own officer corps? This is why Nawaz’s flip flop was very selfish.

Nawaz should have remained silent or could have at least spoken diplomatically the way Nisar did – by making it a generalized PTI demand – but he was so guilty and under pressure that he lied plainly to restore his position.

PM Nawaz felt cornered after Lahore Police was compelled to register FIR for Model Town Murders. Though till now Punjab Police is trying to water down the FIR by playing with its various sections but somehow in Sharif family’s mind this FIR is a huge red herring. Requesting Military Chief to intervene to help was to end the deadlock, reduce risks inherent for the family and find ways to defeat demands for Prime Minister’s resignation.

The central assumption was that military will not only have a strong influence upon Dr. Qadri but also Imran Khan. This fatal assumption existed because in its under-siege mentality PMLN leadership has become a victim of their own propaganda and disinformation. We continuously hear that people are even being paid for systematic disinformation and changing public debate. But the Risks of this media investment strategy are that PMLN fails to read and grasp the nature and direction of political change. They assume that once military comes in and shows its strong dislike or muscle to Imran Khan and PTI then all the protests will just disappear and Cinderella and her Prince Handsome will live happily ever after. This is flawed.

Read more: Storming Ptv: barbarians at the gates…!

There are elements of truth in PMLN’s calculation (hinted several times by PMLN leaders and even PM during his meeting with media) that Military Establishment may have played a role in orchestrating these protests. But even if it is true this political movement has assumed its own dynamics and unlike Dr. Qadri who commands a cult following that listens to him, Imran Khan represents a conglomeration of political and civic interests from urban middle classes who question all his decisions so it is not possible for Imran Khan to suddenly make decisions that can not be sold to this motely urban middle class intelligentsia.

The assumption of PMLN and many in the media was (see their tweets & comments and discussions last night) that Imran will be demolished after one hearing with the military chief. But Imran’s polite but defiant statement after 1am proved that wrong and immediately the emergent reality made Nawaz totally isolated and cornered. Because Nawaz had not neither consulted his allies nor his party or cabinet before involving military and tongues of his allies – PPP & JI – were lashing. And due to Imran Khan’s defiant response the chess move had back-fired throwing PM fate onto the military’s judgment.

PM Nawaz was compelled to do this U-Turn on the floor of the Parliament because his assumption of Army intervention quickly succeeding into browbeating Imran Khan backfired and sharp criticism from other political allies like PPP, JI and media made him realize that his chess move has further isolated him.

Nawaz should have remained silent or could have at least spoken diplomatically the way Nisar did – by making it a generalized PTI demand – but he was so guilty and under pressure that he lied plainly to restore his position. The assumption once again is that fierce disinformation and rhetoric by friendly or bought over sections of media will help create enough confusion to wriggle out of this fiasco or the ISPR can be forced to say something that shifts the blame to Imran or Qadri duo. But the damage has been done; There is a massive circumstantial evidence of the last 14-15 hours that proves beyond doubt that this initiative came from PM Nawaz – and was not necessarily an insincere initiative however flawed its assumptions were.

Read more: Time line of violence in Islamabad…!

Now Military has been placed in a very awkward position. If they try to rescue Nawaz from his lies then they risk alienating the crowds on the streets and also the rank and file of the military officers who will read this as overt politics by the Chief and is generals in favor of Nawaz Sharif. The best option for the military will be to keep their mouth shut and assess how to mediate and what options exist for a solution without blaming either side. Can Shahbaz resignation and the credible Election Audit Mechanism being offered by Nawaz be given strong genuine military supervision for all constituencies wherever strong suspicions exist of electoral fraud and rigging. Statistical models can be developed that can prove organized rigging. The only goal can be to save PM Nawaz from a possible resignation. (I don’t support Nawaz’s resignation).

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

Is Nawaz Sharif lying?

Admin
-
1
Is Nawaz Sharif lying?

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

Why Nawaz Sharif is lying? – PM Nawaz was compelled to do this U-Turn on the floor of the Parliament because his assumption of Army intervention quickly succeeding into browbeating Imran Khan back fired and sharp criticism from other political allies like PPP, JI and media made him realize that his chess move has further isolated him. But by doing this flip flop Nawaz has seriously jeopardized Armed Forces position forcing them now to do something to save his politics and blunders. But how will Armed Forces do it without alienating the other side and its own officer corps? This is why Nawaz’s flip flop was very selfish.

PM Nawaz felt cornered after Lahore Police was compelled to register FIR for Model Town Murders. Though till now Punjab Police is trying to water down the FIR by playing with its various sections but somehow in Sharif family’s mind this FIR is a huge red herring. Requesting Military Chief to intervene to help was to end the deadlock, reduce risks inherent for the family and find ways to defeat demands for Prime Minister’s resignation.

The central assumption was that military will not only have a strong influence upon Dr. Qadri but also Imran Khan. This fatal assumption existed because in its under-siege mentality PMLN leadership has become a victim of their own propaganda and disinformation. We continuously hear that people are even being paid for systematic disinformation and changing public debate. But the Risks of this media investment strategy are that PMLN fails to read and grasp the nature and direction of political change. They assume that once military comes in and shows its strong dislike or muscle to Imran Khan and PTI then all the protests will just disappear and Cinderella and her Prince Handsome will live happily ever after. This is flawed.

There are elements of truth in PMLN’s calculation (hinted several times by PMLN leaders and even PM during his meeting with media) that Military Establishment may have played a role in orchestrating these protests. But even if it is true this political movement has assumed its own dynamics and unlike Dr. Qadri who commands a cult following that listens to him, Imran Khan represents a conglomeration of political and civic interests from urban middle classes who question all his decisions so it is not possible for Imran Khan to suddenly make decisions that can not be sold to this motely urban middle class intelligentsia.

The assumption of PMLN and many in the media was (see their tweets & comments and discussions last night) that Imran will be demolished after one hearing with the military chief. But Imran’s polite but defiant statement after 1am proved that wrong and immediately the emergent reality made Nawaz totally isolated and cornered. Because Nawaz had not neither consulted his allies nor his party or cabinet before involving military and tongues of his allies – PPP & JI – were lashing. And due to Imran Khan’s defiant response the chess move had back-fired throwing PM fate onto the military’s judgment.

Nawaz should have remained silent or could have at least spoken diplomatically the way Nisar did – by making it a generalized PTI demand – but he was so guilty and under pressure that he lied plainly to restore his position. The assumption once again is that fierce disinformation and rhetoric by friendly or bought over sections of media will help create enough confusion to wriggle out of this fiasco or the ISPR can be forced to say something that shifts the blame to Imran or Qadri duo. But the damage has been done; There is a massive circumstantial evidence of the last 14-15 hours that proves beyond doubt that this initiative came from PM Nawaz – and was not necessarily an insincere initiative however flawed its assumptions were.

Now Military has been placed in a very awkward position. If they try to rescue Nawaz from his lies then they risk alienating the crowds on the streets and also the rank and file of the military officers who will read this as overt politics by the Chief and is generals in favor of Nawaz Sharif. The best option for the military will be to keep their mouth shut and assess how to mediate and what options exist for a solution without blaming either side. Can Shahbaz resignation and the credible Election Audit Mechanism being offered by Nawaz be given strong genuine military supervision for all constituencies wherever strong suspicions exist of electoral fraud and rigging. Statistical models can be developed that can prove organized rigging. The only goal can be to save PM Nawaz from a possible resignation. (I don’t support Nawaz’s resignation).

PTI & PAT’s political movement…!

Moeed Pirzada
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0

Moeed Pirzada |

Multiple Dimensions of PTI & PAT Political Movement:- There are several aspects – some good some bad – of what’s happening in Pakistan at the moment in the form of protest marches, dharnas and rallies etc and we will continue to debate them for months to come. One interesting aspect is the political empowerment of Pakistani women; never since the Pakistan Movement in 1940’s more women have been on road with slogans. And this is not only with PTI which has often been described as Urban or middle class or mummy/daddy. This was equally true for PAT. Our offices in Aabpara became the venue for PAT dharna; and day after day we could hundreds of women – young and old – with their husbands, fathers and brothers participating in sit ins. And in a ultra-conservative country where women feel insecure outside the fore walls of home we saw hundreds of them openly sleeping on streets and sidewalks with men standing guard with sticks. Amazing discipline!

Read more: Time line of violence in Islamabad…!

Also throughout the last two weeks of this mass mobilization we have seen a relation of respect between men and women. True! there have been few instances of hooting (though in PTI gatherings and not PAT) but overall in a country brutalized by the sad stories of women being raped or assaulted we have seen a remarkable mutual respect and discipline allowing women to actively participate in political expression.

One interesting aspect is the political empowerment of Pakistani women; never since the Pakistan Movement in 1940’s more women have been on road with slogans. And this is not only with PTI which has often been described as Urban or middle class or mummy/daddy. This was equally true for PAT.

This time period has also seen unprecedented increase in young Pakistani women watching current affairs and political programs and commenting on politics in social media. This is not restricted to these two parties, but lot more women belonging to PMLN and other parties have actively participated in political debates – a political change created by one party then infects others, earlier PTI’s social media offensive had forced PMLN and other parties to organized them on Social Media where they now often outnumber the PTI attack teams or at least give them tough time. It reminds me of the way Margaret Thatcher’s “home & share owning society” changed the British politics for ever leading to the emergence of New Labor. Similarly this current movement in Pakistan has now heralded the entry of Pakistani women into politics in a big way. It will affect the character of all parties. Watch the next few month and years!

Let there be a great applause for this historic moment!

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

PTI & PAT’s Political Movement…!

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PTI & PAT’s Political Movement…!

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

Multiple Dimensions of PTI & PAT Political Movement:- There are several aspects – some good some bad – of what’s happening in Pakistan at the moment in the form of protest marches, dharnas and rallies etc and we will continue to debate them for months to come. One interesting aspect is the political empowerment of Pakistani women; never since the Pakistan Movement in 1940’s more women have been on road with slogans. And this is not only with PTI which has often been described as Urban or middle class or mummy/daddy. This was equally true for PAT. Our offices in Aabpara became the venue for PAT dharna; and day after day we could hundreds of women – young and old – with their husbands, fathers and brothers participating in sit ins. And in a ultra-conservative country where women feel insecure outside the fore walls of home we saw hundreds of them openly sleeping on streets and sidewalks with men standing guard with sticks. Amazing discipline!

Also throughout the last two weeks of this mass mobilization we have seen a relation of respect between men and women. True! there have been few instances of hooting (though in PTI gatherings and not PAT) but overall in a country brutalized by the sad stories of women being raped or assaulted we have seen a remarkable mutual respect and discipline allowing women to actively participate in political expression.

This time period has also seen unprecedented increase in young Pakistani women watching current affairs and political programs and commenting on politics in social media. This is not restricted to these two parties, but lot more women belonging to PMLN and other parties have actively participated in political debates – a political change created by one party then infects others, earlier PTI’s social media offensive had forced PMLN and other parties to organized them on Social Media where they now often outnumber the PTI attack teams or at least give them tough time. It reminds me of the way Margaret Thatcher’s “home & share owning society” changed the British politics for ever leading to the emergence of New Labor. Similarly this current movement in Pakistan has now heralded the entry of Pakistani women into politics in a big way. It will affect the character of all parties. Watch the next few month and years!

Let there be a great applause for this historic moment!
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Pakistani pipe dream: Democracy sans independent police?

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Pakistani pipe dream: Democracy sans independent police?

Moeed Pirzada |Pakistan Today|

Whereas the Model Town tragedy of June 17 – where Punjab police ended up killing at least 14 innocent men and women – has filled the media space with the news of an uninspiring judicial commission and strange political alliances (APC of June 29) the real questions at the core of this administrative fiasco have not been addressed – not so far.

The questions to be asked by a genuinely empowered Supreme Court Commission, by political opposition, by civil society, by cerebrally viable sections of civil services (whatever remnants are left) print and electronic media, think tanks (that can think), NGOs, development community, diplomatic stake holders and people at large are: Do we have in Pakistan an ‘operationally independent police’? Do we now even understand what it is supposed to mean? Can there be a democracy without an ‘operationally independent police’? Can there be a civilian ascendancy in a country like Pakistan without first designing a police that operates in public interest within the confines of law and constitution?

This second part is least understood. Only a professionally autonomous police operating within the framework of democratic constitution and regulatory powers; a police that is not seen to be subservient to the political needs of ruling parties and families can provide a space in which “free, fair and transparent elections” can be held and “non-violent resistance” is possible by myriad opponents of a regime. Without the genuine presence of such a space, opponents will seek help elsewhere including beyond the borders; in Pakistan they will soon land at the doorsteps of a better armed, organised and ambitious force: the army.

So, forget about the purposefully used dishonest expression “meaningful democracy”; question is could there be “democracy” when police forces don’t have a professional mind or conscience of their own? Can there be a democracy when police have become mere extensions of the political parties in power – like apparatchiks of communist parties or like Cossack troopers of Russian Czars – and when political parties themselves are nothing more than collection of few powerful families?

Today Ch Pervaiz Elahi is sitting next to Dr Tahir-ul-Qadri in the APC, demanding resignations of chief minister Punjab. He argues that as ex-chief minister Punjab he knows that police could not have done all that violence, that level of brutality, without clear instructions or nod from the top, ie from the chief minister himself. Maybe Pervaiz Elahi is right; because it is widely believed that before and after the elections of 2002 he was the principal villain that worked to undermine the concept of an operationally independent police force as enshrined in the Police Order 2002.

Research by United Nations and other independent bodies affirm that Police Order 2002, in Pakistan, was the most ambitious effort attempted anywhere in South Asia within the past 140 years to conceive an operationally independent, community based police force accountable within multiple levels. It is said that it was Pervaiz Elahi and his political supporters that conspired to bring police back under political stranglehold in the name of supervision. His successors – after 2008 elections, both PML-N in Punjab and PPP in Sindh – hated him but nevertheless they obediently carried his mission; by totally obliterating whatever Pakistan had gained in terms of local governments and modern policing. Mao had argued that all power flows from the barrel of a gun; Pakistan’s constituency politics, pillar of its democracy, revolves around control of police and its guns. To win elections you need a subservient or friendly police, after elections you consolidate your power through your hold on police. People fondly watch Turkish soap, “Mera Sultan” where mistresses and concubines dance for the favours of an Ottoman Sultan. In the harem of Pakistani politics, politicians of all sides fight for “mera thanedar” and “mera SP” (my SHO and my Superintendent Police).

Research by United Nations and other independent bodies affirm that Police Order 2002, in Pakistan, was the most ambitious effort attempted anywhere in South Asia within the past 140 years to conceive an operationally independent, community based police force accountable within multiple levels. Together with the Local Government Act of 2001, the Police Order was an attempt to place police in the context of community needs, human rights, minority protections and gender sensitivity. Regulatory powers of the deputy commissioners were given to the elected Nazims, judicial functions to the district session judges and policing responsibilities to the district police officers (DPO).

In the administrative system that had started to breathe as a neonate in 2001-2, political bosses could set overall goals and give broad directions but were prevented from day to day micromanagement of police actions. Attempts were made to limit politician’s ability to control police by creating security of tenure for police officers and checks were placed on arbitrary use of executive authority by politicians and senior bureaucrats working on their behalf by bringing in the concept of public safety boards at the national, provincial and district levels. Sudden transfers and postings of police officers were not possible without the concurrence of public safety boards; safety boards were to consist of equal number of parliamentarians from treasury and opposition benches. Half the members of these boards were non-politicians from community or civil society. The very fact that political elite and bureaucracy got united to extinguish this policing system in its infancy speaks volumes about the nature and direction of political change in Pakistan.

Let’s come back and apply our lens to what happened in Model Town and what follows from it. Few people, if any, have faith in the working of the one man judicial commission in Lahore, especially when victims have boycotted it leaving it with only one version to investigate; most expect the commission to come up with obfuscations instead of clear answers. It is seen at best a time tested mechanism to pacify feelings and to provide space for political settlements; for instance a government that set the stage for killings on the pretext of removing barriers has since then permitted these barriers. But the issues thrown up by the Model Town fiasco are bigger than the fate of Dr Tahirul Qadri’s revolution, Pervaiz Elahi’s ambitions, Imran Khan’s tsunami and Shahbaz Sahrif’s mantra of progress or the musical chairs of power politics they and their supporters may like to play amongst themselves. Questions are: How and on what considerations we make decisions in a system of power we cleverly sell to the west as democracy? Can we be defined as a democracy without an operationally independent police? For how long this system of control and deceit can continue?

Hypothetically speaking, if there were a carefully selected Supreme Court Commission then the most important enquiries it will launch will be into the nature of those high level meetings that took place between June 13 and 16 – some of them attended by Rana Sana Ullah, but not all. Yes, the series of meetings held in Rawalpindi and Lahore, at 7 Club Road and at Civil Secretariat. What was the nature of the crisis that demanded so many meetings; involving amongst others: Chief Secretary Punjab, IGP Islamabad, Regional Police Officers (RPOs) from all Punjab, top executives from NADRA, HEC, Intelligence Bureau and FIA, etc? Was this a national crisis or all organs of administrative system were assembled to manage what could at best be defined as a political challenge for the ruling party? Were minutes kept of these meetings? And if minutes were not kept then why not?

Hypothetically speaking, if there were a carefully selected Supreme Court Commission then the most important enquiries it will launch will be into the nature of those high level meetings that took place between June 13 and 16 – some of them attended by Rana Sana Ullah, but not all.
If minutes are not available – which is surely a scandal in itself – then participants of those meetings should be called in front of a commission to explain the proceedings, the arguments, the counter-arguments given by different sides. This is the single most important exercise that needs to be done. Because it was here in these meetings decisions were taken that set the stage for subsequent police action in Model Town. Also, a Supreme Court Commission will need to carefully examine the Lahore High Court proceedings, petitions, arguments and admissions by police, interim orders (between Jan19 and May 2011) on the application of Tehrik-e-Minhajul Quran asking police to provide them security against terrorism. Especially important is the letter of Instructions which Model town police itself had written to Minhaj-ul-Quran in April 2011 that recommended actions like large number of armed guards, several security check points around premises for vehicles, CCTV cameras, and so on.

Now If Commissioner Lahore or Model Town Police in 2014 had made a professional determination that barriers violate the initial understanding of April/May 2011 then did they initiate any official correspondence on this? Was Minhaj-ul-Quran served notices? Late at night on June 16, SP Model town who was trying to remove these barriers had little idea of what he was doing and why? He was merely taking orders from DCO, and DCO from above? Only a high powered Supreme Court Commission may be able to find out who was above whom in the long chain of command that was determined to create a violent scene and how all that was related to the meeting between June 13 and 16. And finally the Commission may like to know that on whose “professional determination” these barriers have now been restored; what changed in terms of public or administrative considerations?

Why these details, the nitty-gritty, are important? Because once you examine the sequence of events, and the political context that prevailed in the country (with the expected arrival of government’s perceived arch enemy: Dr Qadri) you have to be exceptionally dumb – IQ below 30 – not to realise that police were helpless victims of a government’s self-serving political brinkmanship. Politicians, media, civil society bureaucrats and judiciary all have learnt to dump the failings of a system on the police. It’s police that is made to look odious, vile, cruel and criminal. But police, however frightening they may look with their rough looks, uniforms and guns, are not powerful in the system. They are not the decision makers; they are mere pawns in the hands of politicians and senior civil servants.

As a symptom of the misguided debate, even civil society pundits and think tanks keep on debating reforms of police in individual districts, as if more computers, training to shoot and learning to respect women can make much difference. The fundamental challenge we face is: de-politicisation of police and this is a battle we have to fight in Islamabad, Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar.

It will be a disaster of mammoth proportions if even if after “Model Town Tragedy” these questions are still not addressed and debated. If we – the politicians, civil society, media and the judiciary – didn’t fight for an “operationally independent police” then the future of Pakistan either lies with draconian martial laws or with the kind of chaos the world is witnessing in the images that pour from Bashar-al-Asad’s Syria and Nouri-al-Maliki’s Iraq. Any third scenario is a wishful fantasy.

The Pakistani Media: ‘Seth’ vs State

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The Pakistani Media: ‘Seth’ vs State

Moeed Pirzada | NewsLine |

There is a strong feeling of déjà vu and an admittedly perverse sense of satisfaction in writing this. It’s been almost two years since Newsline first asked me to analyse the media circus, then surrounding the controversy over property tycoon Malik Riaz’s alleged dealings with Arsalan Iftikhar, the son of the then Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry. In the article, titled ‘Pakistani Media in the Dock,’ I had argued that the Pakistani news media had gradually lost touch with its raison detre, which is to deliver information in the public interest. But the pusillanimous arguments being debated, such as the role of television anchors or journalists, are based on a dangerous misunderstanding of what is happening in the media.

Two years down the line, similar bogus arguments dominate the raging media debate. While TV channels, newspapers, columnists, anchors, cable wallas, maulanas and social-media aficionados of all forms, shapes and ideologies have declared war on each other; while an elected government stands aligned with a private TV channel against its own military; while the media regulator appears totally dysfunctional and inept and the courts continue to lose their moral authority; while GHQ appears to be shaping up an alliance with all sorts of religious groups and right-wing political parties around a loose idea of midterm elections, our liberal friends in the media and civil society are still debating this political transformation as an issue of freedom of expression, or what we in Pakistan call Azadi-Sihafat. Is this simple-mindedness a failure to grasp reality or a conspiracy to mislead the public and fudge political discourse?

Twenty-three months ago, I had argued that the real issues are: the economic structure of the Pakistani media and its relations with politics; the absence of an editorial layer between the seth and the screen; and the inability of the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to act as an autonomous body. The Supreme Court was then possessed by the role the media played in its own scandal and had appointed a two-member committee consisting of Justice Jawad Khawaja and Justice Khilji Arif Hussain to look into the scandal. I had argued that the court should broaden its focus and appoint a media commission with a combination of judges and eminent media experts such as Javed Jabbar to examine the fundamental issues surrounding the Pakistani media and to develop a framework of recommendations to help the government, media and civil society.

I wanted the Supreme Court to investigate who in Pakistan is exercising the freedom of expression guaranteed under Article 19 of the Constitution and under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – the seth or the journalists working for him? The fundamental question which I thought the Supreme Court should ask is: Is the Pakistani media a ‘private space’ to be governed by seths and corporations for their own economic and political interest, or is this a ‘public space’ that belongs to the citizens of Pakistan as a ‘marketplace of ideas,’ as once argued by John Stuart Mill?

In another article appearing in the Islamabad-based Pique magazine, in August 2012, I drew the Supreme Court’s attention to the contemporary German philosopher, Habermas, who had distinguished between the private space of business and the ‘public sphere’ of intellectuals. The political argument, around which the media exercises their freedoms in the West, is that the ‘public sphere’ is a space independent of both the government and business, and the independence and integrity of the public sphere is a must for democracy to flourish.

It is this ‘public sphere,’ that the Constitution of Pakistan, the international community, the UN and organisations such as the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and Reporters Sans Frontiers are committed to protect. Unfortunately, in Pakistan, in the absence of regulation, media tycoons have co-opted this space and converted it into a ‘private space’ that caters to their particular business interests. The conflict between Geo TV and the Pakistani military establishment is taking place in this context. It is not about freedom of expression; it is about political power and control by media tycoons who believe that they can overthrow governments. This is why the Nawaz government decided to side with Geo against its own military, why other media groups turned against Geo and the government and why PEMRA was turned into a dysfunctional, impotent body deserving of the contempt with which it is viewed. This is why courts look so partisan, why the military has mobilised all its political support and thrown all its assets into this conflict and why it is so important for genuine journalists, intellectuals and citizens to stand up for what is right, for without this nuanced understanding, we won’t find any solutions for the preservation of our hard-won media freedoms which are necessary for instilling democracy in Pakistan.

Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) control room.

The issue of media concentration thus assumes huge importance, especially in terms of cross-media ownerships. When any group owns newspapers, magazines and television channels, there has to be a ceiling on the size of the market share, viewership and readership that it can own. The internal structures of media groups and the presence of financial and legal firewalls that prevent undue concentration of authority in one or few hands, are relevant areas of concern for any sensible state. The initial framers of the Pakistani regulatory regime developed during (retd.) General Pervez Musharraf’s era, either did not understand these aspects, or were captured by the parties they were supposed to regulate. The cardinal principle of British media discourse is: If one voice becomes too strong, then democracy is at risk. But isn’t this what happened in Pakistan after the 2008 elections?

Why do liberal journalists, or most in civil society, fail to grasp these dynamics? Why have they always helped the seths by rejecting the idea of regulation? Why have they not allowed the market to develop along the trends of modernity? The answer lies in the peculiar history of the Pakistani media. Most of those who initially joined the newly burgeoning television industry spent their formative years in print journalism. Newspapers and magazines were mostly started by working journalists (some of whom got rich, but most of whom started their careers with a mission in mind and repeatedly struggled against both civil and military authoritarianism), and they brought with them their initial impressions, values and slogans.

But because of the nature of television as a mass medium, its wide-ranging access, expensive technology and large capital investments, its dynamics of control and its relationship with political power are different altogether. Most Pakistani journalists have nevertheless been slow or resistant to grasp these aspects, which has resulted in the total absence of domestic academic discourse on television, which has perhaps played a constricting role. That is why a prominent journalist, a leading voice, was recently heard – after the Geo crisis with the military – speaking vociferously about the days when journalists were sentenced to lashes by the military courts – an issue which is totally irrelevant in today’s Pakistan.

By the ’90s, Pakistani newspapers had, like print elsewhere, evolved through their struggle to self-regulate, but there has never been any such tradition or practice in the case of the electronic media. Ofcom in the United Kingdom, Television Without Frontiers (TWF) across Europe and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States are powerful, autonomous media regulators. Those who don’t understand these aspects of the television industry often argue against the very concept of media regulation – though the insincerity and malafide intentions of Pakistani governments certainly add to their concerns.

In January 2013, the Supreme Court finally appointed a media commission after subsequent petitions by Geo TV and two prominent journalists – Hamid Mir and Absar Alam – who mainly wanted the court to investigate charges of corruption against journalists and issues related to the use of secret funds by the governments. Though its focus was narrower than what it should have been, the Supreme Court nevertheless established an overarching framework of questions for the commission which consisted of Javed Jabbar and Justice Nasir Aslam Zahid. Its terms of reference included several issues raised in the original Newsline article. The media commission worked intelligently and produced a comprehensive document with detailed and meaningful recommendations by mid-2013. This was later published by a German think tank, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), in the form of a book and was widely disseminated. However, to this day, the media commission’s report has not been approved or forwarded by the Supreme Court to the government for implementation.

Much water has passed under the bridge. But even today, the only way forward for the Pakistani television industry is to join hands, work alongside journalists, legal minds and the government to develop a consensus around a powerful and independent regulator. International blue prints are available and our mistakes and failures are there to guide us. If there was a lesson to be learned from the current crisis of seth versus state, this would be it.

Honour Killing in Lahore: Condemning Versus Finding Solutions

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Honour Killing in Lahore: Condemning Versus Finding Solutions

Moeed Pirzada |Pakistan Today|

I thought I was unable to explain Farzana’s tragedy the way I wanted to do in my TV program,Siyasat Aur Qanoon; idiot box as repeatedly pointed out by many veterans of print journalism has its limitations as a medium, but the way it has been discussed and commented upon by our “neo-liberal columnists” in the newspapers was equally disappointing. First, they mislead the world by repeatedly using expressions as “Stoned to Death”, “Inside Lahore High Court”, “Police watching as spectators”. Second and perhaps the worst part was: they brought this reinforced emphasis on “making laws” and “strict enforcements” as if making and enforcing laws, without considering the social construct, history and socio-economic circumstances, will help in a country like Pakistan – already dealing with chaos created by thoughtless lawmaking and confused patchy implementations that not only negate each other but make a hash of the whole system of governance.

Let’s start with the basic facts: This murder took place, in a flash, around 7.40am, in the midst of two small mobs, each consisting of ten to fifteen, clashing with each other on Fane Road (heading towards Mall Road, surrounded by buildings of State Bank and Lahore High Court). These two rival mobs, one with Farzana and her second husband and the other with her family and her first husband were coming from the lawyers’ chambers walking towards the High Court. One of the brothers (reportedly Ghulam Ali) had a .30 caliber pistol as well. This family came with the clear intention of killing Farzana and in all probability her lover.As they started challenging each other, in shouts and abusive provocations and were getting into fist fights, her brother took out his gun and shot Farzana hitting her in the shin. Right at that moment, an off-duty Police Sub-Inspector, Arif (travelling from Sialkot to record statements in Lahore High Court), an unrelated pedestrian that just happened to be there intervened and snatched the pistol from Ghulam Ali and became part of the scuffle between several men. It is during that scuffle that other men – probably father and brother and cousins – got hold of bricks from an ongoing construction site and hit Farzana several times, killing her.

All that tragic drama, extinguishing one and destroying several other lives from the same family, was over in less than three minutes or perhaps two. So technically speaking it’s true that the poor woman – Farzana- was brutally killed by her family using brick as a “murder weapon” but which ever journalist – Pakistani or international – created the term “stoned to death” inside the Lahore High Court with very clear connotations of a religious style sentencing was deliberately sending a wrong signal to the whole world. Pakistani columnists have later only reinforced the same story with vehemence and without bothering to check. But our worthy columnists’ failure does not stop there. Their tragedy lies in knee jerk reactions, in not reflecting deeply, in not asking questions, and in not offering analysis or seeking solutions. They are clubbing together several incidents of violence and painting them with a broad brush; mostly in the realm of religion. Our columnists repeated lament: Oh! What is happening to us? is the tip of the ice-berg; most readers would expect them to provide answers instead of merely repeating what is on their own minds.

Unfortunately mere condemnation, however shrill the voice, will not resolve anything, and an unthinking tendency of blasting governments or pushing them to make more laws of social engineering may further aggravate such violence. What we need to realise is that many or perhaps most parts of Pakistan – in FATA, Baluchistan, Southern Punjab and interior Sindh – are still living amidst cultural values and social support systems anywhere from 8th century to 19th; depending upon where and in what circumstances you were born. But don’t be surprised if I argue that even the collective consciousness and value system in small towns in central Punjab, adjacent to Lahore, is locked in late 19th or early 20th century.

Many of us — sitting in our islands of Islamabad, Lahore and small parts of Karachi are experiencing 21st century glued to our Twitter handles on our fourth generation Samsung Galaxies – worry about what State Department or EU think about us. But we are not prepared to labour hard to analyse that how global integration, free flows of images and sounds, repeated waves of modernity and demands of change and our personal ambitions to transform lives of these communities, as per our desired self-image, merely through the tools of law making have created powerful pressures and uncertainties around “communities caught in time warp” and in many cases because we are the beneficiaries of an unequal society.

What we need are mechanisms of “alternate dispute resolution” and civil society institutions that can offer “structured counseling and solutions” tailored to local conventions, circumstances and needs within the overall ambit of national laws. What we need are mechanisms of “alternate dispute resolution” and civil society institutions that can offer “structured counseling and solutions” tailored to local conventions, circumstances and needs within the overall ambit of national laws. Such non-coercive institutions can function with informal or formal police support. Our goals should be to reduce the possibilities of criminalisation of intra-family disputes — FIR’s, arrests, coercive police interventions, court cases, lawyers and bails. It may help us to understand that Iqbal (Farzana’s second husband and main culprit) had filed an application in Lahore High Court to quash the FIR’s lodged by Farzana’s father. Court cases in such circumstances only exacerbate social tensions; this was third such hearing on which Farzana was killed by her family – and the whole country or perhaps the world was rocked.

Why Iqbal the incurable lover was the real culprit? He is around 45, married before, has five children to his responsibility (including three from the previous marriage of his first wife isha), had the audacity of initiating a socially repugnant affair with an 18 year old girl in 2007-9, in a household he enjoyed access based on family trust. He strangulates his first wife apparently for love of Farzana; becomes a police absconder, gets arrested in Farzana’s village around Nankana, in 2013; manages his pardon of Qisas from Aisha’s son and then demands Farzana’s hand who meanwhile gets into nikah with her cousin – Mazhar – in May 2012. Could Farzana’s father, existing in the social pressure cooker of a late 19thcentury place like Nankana, have married his daughter to this man; 20 years older, five children, murderer and very poor?

In Jan 2014, Iqbal made Farzana elope with him, got married on 7th Jan and Farzana described herself “unmarried” on nikah register; Iqbal – knowing the system – lodges Farzana into a Dar-ul-Aman, takes Fazana to a Judicial Magistrate where she admits of marrying him of her free will (she is 24/25 now) and then lodged application in Lahore High Court to quash FIR by Farzana’s father. Interestingly, while Iqbal, doing all this, was throughout on the right side of the law in 21st century Pakistan; he was totally on the wrong side of a conservative society. This extreme form of Ishq-e-Mamnoon, will not be easily solemnised by South Asian film makers (try asking Mira Nair to give it a positive spin) and certainly the social order the way it stands in Nankana (a town steeped in late 19th century) had to resist and react.

Despite all the inherent conflict, most men, even rural, are not as irresponsible or rash as Iqbal was; most young or uneducated women – unlike Farzana — are wise to rebuff slippery situations like these and most families, despite their time warp, even in rural Punjab don’t end up murdering their daughters with bricks. But merely condemning them, making laws for them from Islamabad, Lahore or Karachi and shedding crocodile tears on television, through columns and on twitter won’t help them. We need to think out of box to find solutions. Patriarchal family is still the center of power and control across the country; it has its defects, many of them plain evil. But this “patriarchal family” nevertheless holds the society together; preventing violent criminal ghettos and denying supplies of millions of confused, disoriented young men and women — lost in time and space — as potential recruits to extremist ideologies. Patriarchal family’s sudden collapse will add to the chaos in a country which is already struggling to keep its head above water. We need to find ways to let this governing structure, this basic building block of our society, enter modernity without letting it suddenly collapse.

This is a large borderless debate, but our immediate goal should be to save family structure from criminalisation for issues that have been part of the family’s internal conflict. In this day and age we cannot demand married men and women – like Farzana and Iqbal – not to fall in love, however forbidden it may be. But we can create intermediate layers of intervention, of counseling and support that can find solutions or offer palliative understanding to make things easy for families caught in the kind of traumatic situation that finally ended in the murder in Lahore. Dar-ul-Amman, the kind of which Farzana was in since January, only offers food and protection. We need to build their capacity to offer counseling to families to find acceptable solutions.

Police, local political elite and lower judiciary – most of whom themselves are convinced of the value of ‘honor’ — need to be trained to understand these conflicts in the context of modernity and to be able to help institutions like Dar-ul-Amman, local councils and government approved local bodies to find solutions. In most cases these negotiations to find acceptability for situations that are locally unpalatable can take weeks or months and intervening layers of institutions have to be trained for that. This is what their capacity building is about. And perhaps most importantly media and educational institutions need to change the narrative; with the help of celluloid and books we need to spread the message around that young adults have the right to make their choices in love – and this includes the right to make painful blunders. And there is no family ‘dishonor’ in matters of heart.

Failure for whom?

Moeed Pirzada
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Moeed Pirzada |

A court in Karachi has accepted a Letter from US Embassy to set this man – Joel Cox – free and ordered Police to return his things back to him. US Embassy Letter says that US officials like Cox were permitted to carry guns & ammunition. Ministry of Interior has confirmed the letter. On the face of it this looks outrageous but there are certain interesting issues of facts involved here & we must find answers to these before we make our judgments. One, was he carrying bullets & magazine in his carry baggage into the plane or into his booked luggage? Two, Where was the gun? in his booked luggage or not with him at all?

Pakistani reporters seldom raise critical questions to themselves, this is a training and capacity issue and without addressing these capacity issues we won’t create a stable media & political discourse, this is why our national politics is rocked since the shootings in Karachi on 19th; because many people have opinions without analyzing facts and often facts are not fully available; but lets see Why these facts are important?

We cannot judge the whole situation since our reporters don’t provide us these detailed facts. And often our reporting is so messed up, that it is difficult to find these detailed facts. (this is why rational & intelligent Media discourse especially in News Media is so important) But I suspect – without knowing the facts – that this case of Joel Cox must be something like this.

FBI Agent – giving training to Pakistani Police – is authorized to carry weapon to defend himself as confirmed by the US Embassy. Now he is taking a flight from Karachi to Lahore; where will be keep his gun, magazine and bullets? Should he carry the gun into the plane? this is perhaps not possible or allowed to even an authorized FBI agent, so what he should he do? Should he pack his gun into the “carry luggage” ? but what about magazine and bullets? What if this gun is stolen, misplaced and then used? may be his official standard issue by FBI? So what if he books the gun into the “booked luggage” and carries “bullets and magazine” into his “carry luggage”.

(Remember the lion, goat and grass bundle story?) If he had done something like this then he might have followed some sort of rational “SOP’s” created by FBI, but ASF was within its right to detect, question and arrest him since he could not satisfy them on his identity and motives. (another rational organization but with limited scope as all institutions have) And Police could not have left him on their own initiative without a judicial forum examining the facts. (politically controversial).

Read more: Are KP police capable of fighting terror and crime?

We cannot judge the whole situation since our reporters don’t provide us these detailed facts. And often our reporting is so messed up, that it is difficult to find these detailed facts. (this is why rational & intelligent Media discourse especially in News Media is so important) But I suspect – without knowing the facts – that this case of Joel Cox must be something like this. There is no other rational explanation that comes to my mind. I am committed to maintaining “rationality” avoiding “sensationalism” at this page. This element – of not rocking the system – runs through all my writings and comments and is often not understood. But If any body has a different rational explanation or facts then please do share…

I am like always open to all your criticism, this time of being an American Agent, now switching from anti-American ISI to pax-Americana – Where are my dollars?

 

Moeed Pirzada is prominent TV Anchor & commentator; he studied international relations at Columbia Univ, New York and law at London School of Economics. Twitter: MoeedNj. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy. This piece was first published in Moeed Pirzada’s official page. It has been reproduced with permission.

Failure for Whom ?

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Failure for Whom ?

Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog |

A court in Karachi has accepted a Letter from US Embassy to set this man – Joel Cox – free and ordered Police to return his things back to him. US Embassy Letter says that US officials like Cox were permitted to carry guns & ammunition. Ministry of Interior has confirmed the letter. On the face of it this looks outrageous but there are certain interesting issues of facts involved here & we must find answers to these before we make our judgments. One, was he carrying bullets & magazine in his carry baggage into the plane or into his booked luggage? Two, Where was the gun? in his booked luggage or not with him at all?

Pakistani reporters seldom raise critical questions to themselves, this is a training and capacity issue and without addressing these capacity issues we won’t create a stable media & political discourse, this is why our national politics is rocked since the shootings in Karachi on 19th; because many people have opinions without analyzing facts and often facts are not fully available; but lets see Why these facts are important?

FBI Agent – giving training to Pakistani Police – is authorized to carry weapon to defend himself as confirmed by the US Embassy. Now he is taking a flight from Karachi to Lahore; where will be keep his gun, magazine and bullets? Should he carry the gun into the plane? this is perhaps not possible or allowed to even an authorized FBI agent, so what he should he do? Should he pack his gun into the “carry luggage” ? but what about magazine and bullets? What if this gun is stolen, misplaced and then used? may be his official standard issue by FBI? So what if he books the gun into the “booked luggage” and carries “bullets and magazine” into his “carry luggage”.

(Remember the lion, goat and grass bundle story?) If he had done something like this then he might have followed some sort of rational “SOP’s” created by FBI, but ASF was within its right to detect, question and arrest him since he could not satisfy them on his identity and motives. (another rational organization but with limited scope as all institutions have) And Police could not have left him on their own initiative without a judicial forum examining the facts. (politically controversial).

We cannot judge the whole situation since our reporters don’t provide us these detailed facts. And often our reporting is so messed up, that it is difficult to find these detailed facts. (this is why rational & intelligent Media discourse especially in News Media is so important) But I suspect – without knowing the facts – that this case of Joel Cox must be something like this. There is no other rational explanation that comes to my mind. I am committed to maintaining “rationality” avoiding “sensationalism” at this page. This element – of not rocking the system – runs through all my writings and comments and is often not understood. But If any body has a different rational explanation or facts then please do share…

I am like always open to all your criticism, this time of being an American Agent, now switching from anti-American ISI to pax-Americana – Where are my dollars? $

Warm regards – Moeed Pirzada

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