All posts tagged: democracy
Democracy in peril?
Democracy, certainly, is proclaimed loudly as the panacea of all troubles and tribulations we presently face. While this may be debatable, the democracy demands highest levels of integrity and honesty. The system is endangered more by lack of integrity, compromise on ethics, dishonesty, incompetence and deceit of the dêmos themselves, than any conspiracies. The article by Babar Sattar is an insightful analysis of the dilemma, we as a nation face. We are posting it from The News for the consideration of our readers. [Awaam] By Babar Sattar The issue of filing fake degrees to qualify as candidates for the national and provincial legislators is now haunting our politicos. Investigating the issue is a conspiracy against democracy, we are told, for at least two reasons: One, the graduation requirement imposed by a dictator as a mandatory criterion to be satisfied by public representatives in fact disenfranchised an overwhelming majority of our population and was a fraud on democracy itself; and two, with the graduation qualification no longer being a legal requirement for standing in electoral contests, …
Sham democracy
Fakir S Ayazuddin Politics in Pakistan has come to a grinding halt with the lukewarm statement emanating from Raiwind that the Lion does not wish to disturb the system, for fear of bringing down the existing setup. It is a setup which allows the PPP to continue its rampage across the country with the help of the corrupt officials it has appointed at every level. We, for our part, have been trapped by the politicians, and nothing short of a radical change can remove them now.
PAKISTAN’S CRISIS – ITS ROOTS
By Dr. Khalil Ahmad Pakistan is in the grip of a deadly crisis. Whether it is political or economic domain, social or religious life, private or public sphere, the chaos is overriding. Watch for the utter disregard for social and moral values, and social norms on the one hand, and on the other for rules and laws, and the constitution, rampant at every level without any exception. That tells not only of the moral bankruptcy of Pakistani society but of the gravity of the deep moral crisis also. This piece traces the roots of this moral crisis.
Democracy is the Greatest Revenge
By Asif Ali Zardari (writing in the Wall Street Journal) Two years ago the world stopped for me and for my children. Pakistan was shaken to its core and all but came apart. Women everywhere lost one of their greatest symbols of equality. And Islam, our great religion, lost its modern face. On Dec. 27, 2007, my wife, Benazir Bhutto, was assassinated. She was the bravest person I have ever known, and the second anniversary of her death is an appropriate occasion to reflect upon what she achieved for our country, and how her legacy must be preserved against those who would return Pakistan to darkness. Twice elected prime minister of Pakistan, Benazir had an immense impact. She stood up and defeated the forces of military dictatorship. She freed all political prisoners. She ended press censorship. She legalized trade and student unions, built 46,000 primary and secondary schools and appointed the first female judges in our history. And she showed the women of Pakistan and the world that they must accept no limits on their …
A tale of two classes
By Mohammad Wasim In Pakistan, two dominant classes compete with each other for influence and privilege. One is the middle class, which provides the catchment area for the civil bureaucracy, technocrats, the military’s officer cadre and the business community. The other can be called, for lack of a better term, the political class that includes political entrepreneurs of various kinds at various levels, led by the landed and tribal elite. These two classes represent the two power centres in the country. The middle class operates as the most stable, influential and status quo-oriented segment of society. The institutional expression of this class is realised through the state apparatus. The process of post-recruitment socialisation in the form of the training of the bureaucracy and army officers aims at merging their individual ambitions with an all-pervasive institutional ethos.
For Every Decent Human Being
By Bilal Qureshi Isn’t it time? For every decent human being, it is sickening to see people being butchered the way human beings are slaughtered in Pakistan these days. Human life has no respect or value for barbaric animals responsible for these bombings and suicide attacks. And if the news of bombings and killing was not enough, I was horrified to learn that Lahore’s commissioner (incorrectly) blames India for these attacks while Punjab’s law minister (correctly) believes that the thugs being smoked out from Swat and Wazirstan are actually behind these attacks to force the government to back down. Isn’t it time for Pakistan to get united? Isn’t it time stop obsessing about India? Isn’t it time to be realistic?
Pakistan and Democracy – Time to Be Realistic?
By Asim Salahuddin Its that time in Pakistani politics again, where after roughly two years of coming to power the ‘elected’ and ‘democratic’ regime is once again under threat of being thrown out on one charge of misdemeanour or another. It would really be a lot simpler in one sense if we all just accepted that Pakistan is going to have elections after two years rather than four; it would make the pretence of transparent and accountable rule a bit easier to swallow. At least the people would feel they have some power whilst the new overlords are installed after receiving their political baptism in Washington. The only drawback with this sort of plan is that the ‘disgraced’ politicians who are regularly recycled in Pakistan would not have had enough time out in the ‘sin-bin’ for their transgressions to make them palatable enough for the people to accept them as rulers again.
No time for non-issues
By S.M. Naseem Dawn- Saturday, 17 Oct, 2009 The challenges facing the Pakistani state — both domestic and external — continue to mount and periodically bring it to the brink of disaster. Whether through an act of Providence or the delicate balance of forces which keep propping up the state, the ‘existential threat’ gets averted. The last two years have been especially traumatic and have taken the nation on a roller-coaster ride of hope and dismay. Democracy by itself may not bring tangible rewards for the population in the short run, but it does rekindle the hope of future advancement and wellbeing for many. The February 2008 elections did raise such hopes.
This is a Defining Moment for Pakistan – A Clarion Call
Part I Azhar Aslam The current situation in Pakistan is chaotic rapidly descending into anarchy. Despite a democratic set up in place, the state institutions are absent. Rule of law is non-existent. Terrorism and unchecked and unabated criminal activity has become the order of the day. Sate is failing to provide even the basics: peace, security of life, food, justice and environment for economic opportunity to earn a dignified living. Then there are internal conflicts of all hue and kind: provincial, political, social, institutional. Emotionally charged and labile we Pakistanis continue to carry so much historical baggage that we are almost being crushed under the sheer weight of it. Finally to top it all we are under external ‘pressures” from ‘friends and foe’ alike. Governed by a group who even the outsiders are reluctant to hand aid money to, for the lack of trust and transparency, this vicious combination of mainly internal deficiencies and external threats have brought the country to the edge of a precipice.
Awaam by Vision21 