Dawn Editorials (with Summary and Vocabulary)
DAWN EDITORIALS
February
4, 2024 (Sunday)
Day’s Vocabulary
- Incarceration. the state of being confined in prison; imprisonment
- Plausible. (of
an argument or statement) seeming reasonable or probable
- Ebbing. (of
an emotion or quality) gradually lessen or reduce
- Vigour. physical
strength and good health
- Vitiate. spoil
or impair the quality or efficiency of
- Travails. engage
in painful or laborious effort
- Stalwarts. a
loyal, reliable, and hardworking supporter or participant in an
organization or team
- Pandering. gratify
or indulge (an immoral or distasteful desire, need, or habit or a person
with such a desire, etc.)
- Acquiesce. accept
something without protest
Summary
Pakistan's Elections 2024:
- Taliban's influence on voters
seems to be declining compared
to 2002 elections, despite concerns.
- Elections will be a test of
public sentiment towards
the Taliban, especially in Pashtun-dominated areas.
- TTP actions might have damaged
the Taliban's image in
Pakistan, impacting religious parties' support.
- Economic issues and sympathy
for Imran Khan might
influence voters more than ideology.
Religious Parties and the Taliban:
- JUI-F could benefit due to ties with Taliban
and potential ceasefire with TTP.
- This involvement might come at
a cost,
strengthening pro-Taliban elements in border regions.
- Reconciliation with TTP is
risky as
past attempts led to regrouping and increased threat.
Other Concerns:
- Taliban seen as a desirable
Islamic state model by some, impacting Pakistan's stability.
- Religious narratives opposing
state policies can
be used as political tools, distracting institutions.
Article
A POSITIVE development for Pakistan’s
upcoming general elections on Thursday is the declining influence of the Afghan
Taliban as a source of inspiration for voters. This starkly contrasts with the
2002 elections, where a pro-Taliban religious alliance secured record votes,
particularly in Balochistan and KP. Back then, the Taliban’s recent overthrow
by the US-led coalition stirred sympathy votes. Conversely, with the Taliban
now ruling Afghanistan, concerns arose about a similar pro-Taliban wave in the 2024
elections. However, initial indications suggest the Taliban’s appeal has
diminished in Pakistan, although a deeper analysis is still needed.
The upcoming elections in Pakistan are a crucial test of public
sentiment regarding the Taliban’s influence. The election results, particularly
in the Pakhtun-dominated areas, will provide valuable insights into the
evolving dynamics of power and ideology in Pakistan.
While the JUI-F might benefit from established support in some
constituencies, it is crucial to recognise its potential role as a tool by the
Pakistani establishment to counter the PTI in KP. It is worth noting that the
2002 general election saw the religious parties’ alliance Muttahida
Majlis-i-Amal win due to Gen Pervez Musharraf’s strategy of marginalising major
parties like the PPP and PML-N. While the MMA touted their victory as a success
of religious unity, they failed to replicate it in subsequent elections. The
JUI-F’s and Jamaat-i-Islami’s attempts to position themselves as
anti-establishment also failed to win the public’s trust. This ultimately led
Maulana Fazlur Rehman to realign himself with the establishment.
One aspect of
the polls will be to gauge how much TTP actions have damaged the Taliban’s
image.
The alliance between the religious parties and the establishment
is widely recognised and enduring despite the complexities in their
relationship. In the 2018 general elections, the Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan
(TLP) was utilised (in Punjab), in a manner similar to the MMA in 2002. With
over two million votes secured in the previous election, the new leader faces
the challenge of maintaining the party’s voter base.
Elections have long been held in a controlled environment, with
the establishment often ensuring its desired outcome. However, the 2024
elections occur in a more tightly controlled context due to the country’s
political turmoil and economic crisis. In this scenario, voters in Punjab, KP,
and urban Sindh may prioritise issues such as inflation, price hikes, and
unemployment over traditional ideological or ethnic considerations. General
sympathy towards Imran Khan and PTI may also influence their choices.
A few political pundits forecast that the TLP would be used
again for electoral engineering. However, it would be risky for the PML-N and
pro-establishment parties, as they have failed to dent the PTI vote bank. The
TLP can prove counterproductive for them as it holds more lethal narratives
against the PML-N and its allies.
Religiously motivated groups openly oppose electoral processes
and democratic principles. Recent statements condemning elections and threats
to political leaders highlight this challenge. Religious political parties face
pressure to denounce groups like the TTP and IS-K and counter their narratives
online and in communities. However, concerns about safety often lead to
silence, which can embolden these groups. While their direct impact on voter
participation remains unclear, these militants continue influencing public
perceptions and potentially expanding their reach. A recent report by a UN
monitoring team suggests the TTP established a new base in KP in mid-2023,
where individuals trained as suicide bombers were reportedly located.
Among the religious political parties, the JUI-F could
potentially benefit significantly. Besides their internal political dynamics,
their ties with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and direct contacts with the
TTP make them valuable for the establishment. Recent reports suggest Maulana
Fazlur Rehman brokered a temporary ceasefire with the TTP during his visit to
Afghanistan, facilitated by the Haqqani Network. This ceasefire coincided with
a decrease in claimed terrorist attacks in Pakistan. However, some factions
within the TTP remain dissatisfied and continue to launch attacks.
If these reports are accurate and the JUI-F secures enough seats
in the elections, the party could become crucial in back-channel negotiations
with the Taliban. Nonetheless, this involvement would likely come at a price,
with Maulana Fazlur Rehman seeking a significant share in the future set-up and
pro-TTP and Taliban elements gaining strength in the bordering regions with
Afghanistan.
The Taliban, the maulana and his party share similar views on
the TTP, favouring reconciliation with the militants. However, any attempt at
reconciliation could have severe consequences for internal security, as
evidenced during the PTI-led government’s attempt at peace with the militants.
It allowed them to settle in KP, but according to a UN report, the returning
TTP terrorists regrouped, instead of laying down arms, thus posing a greater
threat to Pakistan’s security.
While the Taliban may influence some voters, their regime is
also seen by many in Pakistan as a desirable model Islamic state. This
narrative has serious implications for institutional stability and the state
and society of the country, as Dr Akmal Hussain briefly discusses in his recent
book, Pakistan, Institutional Instability and Underdevelopment. Ideological
narratives that contradict state policies and social norms can distract state
institutions, especially when they are used as cheap political tools.
Summary
- Imran Khan's future:
- The recent court verdicts
suggest a "reset to 2016" with PML-N likely winning the
upcoming elections.
- If Khan
wants to limit the establishment's influence, he'll need to build
alliances with other parties.
- Challenges for Khan:
- He faces legal challenges and
needs to appeal court verdicts against him.
- His past
policies might make it harder to gain allies.
- Establishment's role:
- They seem determined to
weaken Khan after his alleged "coup attempt".
- They
prioritize economic stability and might back PML-N for that reason.
- Nawaz Sharif's return:
- If he wins, his commitment to
democracy will be tested as he governs without establishment support.
- Khan's
supporters might see him as vindictive if he continues targeting Khan.
- Importance of alliances:
- No party is happy with the
establishment's interference, but they often seek their help
individually.
- Achieving
civilian supremacy requires cooperation among all major political
parties.
Article
THREE court verdicts in one week on top
of everything else should leave very little doubt in any mind that the ‘reset
to 2016’ is being delivered, and by this time next week it will be clear
whether or not the carefully crafted plan was successfully implemented.
The only outside chance, the slimmest if you like, of it failing
will be on polling day. What if the rage of the supporters at what they see as
injustice to their leader manifests itself in their voting in droves for the
candidates endorsed by the party? How many votes can be tossed in the rubbish
bin for one reason or another?
Given the sequence of events since Imran Khan’s falling out with
his erstwhile backers and all the developments resulting from the crackdown on supporters after the May 9, 2023 folly,
to the arrest, incarceration and sentencing of the leader, to the
Supreme Court-endorsed ECP decision to leave the PTI bat-less on the ballot, there seems
only one plausible scenario.
Yes, at this stage that, too, is no more than an educated guess
but the wait isn’t too long now to see if the hypothesis is borne out by
unfolding events. If it is, the PML-N will emerge as the winner and will be
able to form a government, in all likelihood headed by Mian Nawaz Sharif.
If Imran Khan
wishes to curtail the establishment’s role in politics, he would need to build
bridges with potential allies.
For his part, the PTI leader will have to file and fight
multiple appeals in superior courts against lower court verdicts jailing him,
while also facing fresh prosecutions such as the one in the so-called Al Qadir Trust land deal where property
tycoon Malik Riaz is alleged to have handed over a large tract of land to a
trust managed by Imran Khan and his spouse in exchange for a £190 million
favour.
The establishment’s rage over what was seen as a coup attempt on
May 9 last year does not seem to be ebbing and it has pursued Imran Khan
and his party with brutal vigour, which one estranged PML-N leader
described as “worse than what we faced in 2018”.
Mr Sharif has long lamented about how his government was
destabilised from 2016 onwards, and appeared to place the onus on the
establishment to undo what it did then. Therefore, the crucial question is
whether the reset to 2016 will also mean a continuation of the strong-arm
methods used then and being utilised today.
Unless the economy stabilises and starts posting decent growth,
the share in the cake of defence will also shrink. For now, the establishment
and its current leader appear to have put all their faith in the PML-N and in
Nawaz Sharif’s ability to steer the economy to safe shores and attain stable
growth.
The signing of the Charter of Democracy with the PPP’s Benazir
Bhutto in London ahead of the 2007-08 election marked a turning pointing in Mr
Sharif’s politics. His travails since the 1999 coup threw him out of
power and into prison and then forced him into a long exile seemed to have
transformed him into a democrat.
From then on, he has by and large stood true to his new self,
putting considerable distance between his politics of vendetta of the 1990s and
his spirit of political accommodation which was underlined by the passage of
the 18th Amendment as also the National Finance Commission award.
When he came into power in 2013, many of his party stalwarts
from KP suggested that they form a provincial coalition government with allies,
new and old, as that was numerically possible, but he flatly refused, saying
the PTI, being the largest single party in the province, had the right to form
the government.
If indeed he becomes the next prime minister, his democratic
credentials will be tested soon after the government is formed, because the
establishment will recede into the background and he will have to take the
blame if the current state of play does not change for the PTI leader.
In opposition, as in government, Imran Khan has had little time
for other political parties that he has looked at with contempt. But if he
truly wishes to curtail the establishment’s role in politics, which grew
considerably during his tenure in office, he would need to bite the bullet and
build bridges with potential allies.
And these potential allies will inevitably include all major
political parties. None of them feels happy about the establishment’s overreach
and yet most run to it for help when one of them breaks rank to secure
establishment help or is propped up by it.
Much of the establishment overreach happens in this day and age
thanks to the assistance of civilian (political) proxies. So, whether in
government or opposition, political parties will need to understand that their
aim of civilian supremacy can only be attained in concert with their own kind,
ie, other political parties in parliament, and not by pandering
to extra-parliamentary forces.
Yes, you’d be right in saying this columnist is jumping the gun
and painting scenarios that the voter will shred to bits on Feb 8. That could
happen. Political analysis, especially in our conditions, is not an exact
science. One can only look at various possibilities and assign probabilities to
each. I’d be happy to be proved wrong by the voter as that would be democracy
at its best.
Summary
- Forgiveness as a path to
healing: The
article highlights the story of Amy Biehl's parents who forgave their
daughter's murderers and even hired two of them to work in their
foundation. This act of forgiveness is seen as a powerful example of how
reconciliation can lead to healing and progress.
- Anger and resentment as
roadblocks: The
author argues that anger and resentment stemming from political and social
issues are hindering Pakistan's progress. They emphasize the need to let
go of these negative emotions and move towards forgiveness.
- Challenges of forgiveness: The article acknowledges
the difficulty of forgiveness, especially when there's no accountability
or genuine apology. It questions who has the power to forgive and what can
be deemed truly forgivable.
- Importance of accountability
and leadership: Forgiveness
is seen as ineffective without accountability. The author urges leaders to
take responsibility for past mistakes and work together for a better
future.
- Hope for the future: Despite the challenges,
the article concludes with a message of hope, emphasizing the importance
of striving for a better future where people can disagree without being
disagreeable.
Article
COULD you forgive your daughter’s
murderers, and then hire two of them to come work for the organisation set up
in her name?
This is what Linda and Peter Biehl did in South Africa following
the stoning and stabbing of their daughter Amy by a mob in Cape Town in 1993.
Amy, then 26 and a Fulbright scholar, was helping educate previously
disenfranchised voters ahead of the historic 1994 elections that would see
Nelson Mandela become president. Four men were found guilty of Amy’s murder but
they applied to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for amnesty. Amy’s
parents, who attended the hearing, did not object to their release in 1998.
Later, they met two of the murderers and then hired them to work in the
foundation they created in Amy’s name to continue her dream of imagining a
world where reconciliation was possible.
In September last year, the Amy Biehl Foundation marked 30 years
since her murder at one of the schools they’ve built in Cape Town. Linda was
there along with two of her daughter’s murderers, who continue to work with the
foundation; one of them told the media his relationship with the Biehls allowed
him to become the person he is today and also allowed him to forgive himself.
They have all shown what reconciliation looks like, and how it
can extend to, and then allow, a community to move forward.
The challenge
is to forgive the very people who caused the mistrust.
But getting there is a difficult process. In order to learn how
to let go of hurt feelings, I have been practising alternative forms of therapy
and reading ancient texts. We have much to learn from our elders.
The Buddhists, for example, say forgiveness ends suffering. It
is ultimately for yourself, for your peace of mind, to let go of the pain you
carry. Most religious teachings echo similar sentiments.
No one advocates holding on to anger unless they find gain in
it, and that thinking is not beneficial for societies. I believe we, as a
nation, desperately need to let go of anger, resentment and hurt caused by a
myriad of leadership failings and mistrust.
The challenge is to forgive the very people or institutions that
caused the mistrust in the first place. It is complicated, especially when no
one is asking for forgiveness or, they are forced to say sorry to avoid
punishment and then banished. This happens with one-time favoured groups who
run afoul of the powerful; their ‘crime’ is a damnation until it is not, and
then all is forgotten. This script is old and tiresome but there are too many
players who happily acquiesce in going along as they gain power.
Forgiveness will not work without accountability. But who has
the power to forgive? What is deemed forgivable?
Lucy Allais, a philosopher at Johns Hopkins University who
studies forgiveness and punishment, told Vox in 2022 that “forgiveness is most
fundamentally a release from blame and anger”.
There is certainly a lot of that in Pakistan right now and it is
proving a stumbling block to our progress. The anger is both online and on the
streets.
I watched a lot of folks share videos of journalists unable to
contain their excitement at the disqualification of Nawaz Sharif in 2017.
The video of a reporter showing viewers the inside of the former
prime minister’s fridge resurfaced as did the video of a journalist in a tub.
‘Do they feel shame now that Imran Khan has been convicted,’ screamed half of
Twitter?
I don’t know what answer — or apology, if it came — could have
pacified the outraged mob.
Does social media cause this anger or does it reveal it, as
Allais herself asks. We’ve seen how quickly a mob comes together to ‘cancel’
people in social media trials. There is no room for atonement in the virtual
world while in the real world, the judicial system seems to be failing people.
In this atmosphere, can one even talk of forgiveness and
reconciliation? We are days away from elections whose results will be rejected
by X percentage of the population. This is the self-perpetuating cycle that
does not allow room for reconciliation. Those to blame can also offer a way
out.
These stakeholders must reckon with their past and accept that
the only way forward is to come together as leaders invested in Pakistan’s
progress, with different ideas on how to get there. They can teach us how to
disagree without being disagreeable.
People tend to assume the best of themselves and the worst of
their opponents. “We need to see people as potentially better than the worst
things they’ve done,” says Allais.
It is a tall ask but one worth attempting. We will eventually
get it right. This hope is worth fighting for.
Summary
Pakistan's borders:
- Threats: Facing challenges on
both eastern (India) and western (Afghanistan, Iran) borders.
- India: Accused of using
assassins to kill Pakistanis and supporting terrorism.
- Afghanistan: Taliban's release of TTP
prisoners led to renewed attacks in Pakistan.
- Iran: Cross-border attacks due
to alleged presence of militant groups on both sides.
Security and foreign policy:
- Review needed: Current policies haven't
effectively addressed border issues.
- New government: Opportunity to reassess
and implement a "new agenda of peace".
- Recommendations: Engage with neighbors,
address internal causes of militancy.
Article
PAKISTAN’S national security has lately
been under threat on its eastern as well as western borders. On the eastern
frontier, India’s attitude towards Pakistan has unfortunately hit a new low.
The Modi regime is constantly innovating prickly ways to assert its growing
hubris in the neighbourhood and beyond. Its latest practice is to deploy
assassins on foreign lands to kill so-called anti-India elements. The evidence
shows that Indian intelligence operatives managed to have not only Mohammad
Riaz and Shahid Latif assassinated on Pakistani soil, but many more Pakistani
citizens too, for which investigations are underway. This is in line with what
Indian operatives did in Canada and the US when they targeted Sikhs calling for
an independent state of Khalistan.
Using assassins to kill on foreign soil is a variant of the
earlier policy of sending in Indian operatives, such as Kulbhushan Jadhav, who
would enter Pakistan under fake identities to destabilise the country. However,
the cause of regional peace will not be served if India continues to commit
state terrorism while accusing Pakistan of cross-border terrorism. Both
countries would do well to eliminate transnational terrorism through
cooperation rather than confrontation.
Pakistan’s western frontiers are also in the grip of
cross-border terrorism. Last month, Iran attacked a target inside Pakistan,
ostensibly to eliminate an alleged hideout of Jaish al-Adl, an anti-Iran Sunni
militant group active in Sistan-Baluchestan. Pakistan responded with a strike
against Baloch terrorist elements in the border town of Saravan. Both
governments swiftly resolved the matter through diplomacy. But soon after, nine
Pakistanis were murdered in Saravan. The Iranian foreign minister has since visited
Pakistan to calm tensions. Ultimately, the root cause, which is the alleged
presence of terrorist elements on both sides of the border, would need to be
addressed to avert the recurrence of such incidents.
Ever since the Taliban came to power in Kabul in 2021, the TTP
has been reinvigorated. The group had been beaten in operations in Swat, South
Waziristan and North Waziristan as well as the countrywide intelligence-based
operation Raddul Fasaad. The TTP’s resurgence resulted from the Afghan Taliban
rulers’ release of TTP prisoners in the name of facilitating talks with
Pakistan. A tentative ceasefire was agreed to, leading to senior TTP leaders
being freed from prisons in Pakistan and the resettlement of hundreds of TTP
fighters in the country.
A detailed
review is needed of our security and foreign policies.
Instead of appreciating the gesture, the TTP used the
opportunity to regroup and resume its attacks against targets in Pakistan,
particularly the security forces. Despite this setback, Islamabad has,
prudently, maintained its contacts with Kabul at multiple levels to stress that
Afghanistan’s strategic interests would be better served if Kabul restricted
the space given to the TTP for cross-border terrorism, and reoriented its
policies to focus on peace and development.
Ever since the launch of CPEC in 2015, Pakistan’s detractors
have tried to carry out acts of terrorism against Chinese nationals working on
CPEC projects here. At the request of China, Pakistan’s steadfast friend, the
government constituted a strong force to safeguard CPEC projects and Chinese
nationals. This has improved the security situation, although occasional
terrorist attacks still occur.
All this requires an in-depth review of our security and foreign
policies. An opportunity will arise when a new government is elected this
month. After holding consultations with think tanks, academia, and
intelligentsia, the elected government must institute a mechanism to undertake
such a review on a new agenda of peace that should be pursued with not only our
neighbours but also other powers of relevance to Pakistan.
Recently, a national conference was convened in Islamabad by the
Sanober Institute in collaboration with two partners from academia and the
think tank community to prepare a strategy manifesto for the new government
with recommendations for Pakistan’s security and foreign policies. Similar
efforts are currently underway in several universities and think tanks, born of
a desire to see our country achieve the glory that Pakistan’s founder had
envisioned for it.
Based on the Quaid’s advice, and the imperative to stabilise its borders, Pakistan must address the internal and external reasons of militancy. Internally, militant, extremist, sectarian and sub-nationalist forces need to be dealt with politically first, and kinetically later if required. Externally, we should engage with all neighbours such that it builds their stakes in Pakistan’s stability. In the medium to long term, this approach can ensure border stability and progress.
Comments
Post a Comment