Periscope on Pakistan

No incentive for signing CTBT
THE NATION: It is understood that the government has established contacts with religious parties which have been quite vocal in their opposition to signing the CTBT in order to convince them that no harm would come to Pakistan8217;s nuclear programme even afterwards. The question is that when even Washington, Moscow and Beijing have not ratified the CTBT and our main adversary next door has not even signed it, what incentive is there for Islamabad to accede to it? Pakistan cannot forget the discriminatory sanctions to which it has for long been subjected on suspicion of preparing or possessing nuclear weapons, while India had been allowed an open field to develop its lethal potential. What guarantees are there that the Western powers would not pressurise Pakistan, as they did when India tested its devices in May 1998, not to follow suit if New Delhi opts to make another try. Even if Islamabad feels safe in going ahead with signing the Treaty, what will constitute a worthwhile quid pro quo, like reducing thedebt burden. After all, with the US itself having failed to ratify the Treaty, it has no locus standi or moral right to ask us to do so.

General does well to devolve power
THE NATION:Today, the wealth produced by agricultural, industrial, mining and service workers and by other economically deprived classes is being wantonly plundered and transferred abroad and consumed locally. Huge transfers of wealth have been taking place under the governance of the Permanent Ruling Establishment of Pakistan PREP. The country has been rendered bankrupt. Presiding over the fate of 140 million people and their productive potential are members of the salaried Establishment, their collaborating feudals, industrialists, big trader and the colluding foreign patrons. General Pervez Musharraf has rightly decided to decentralise and devolve power to the grass-roots level. That is the best service that can be done to the people. Give them the power and they will serve themselves. The PREP was not created to serve the people. Empower the people to take care of thieves and plunderers in their villages and cities and remain assured that they will do the job. No one should be surprised that manywell-known and recognised political leaders are critical of the government8217;s resolve to devolve power to the grass-roots level. Some of them fear that the process of devolution will delay the ushering of an elected government, and some others feel that it will politically strengthen the present non-elected government, which will also delay the holding of the next general elections. Both these arguments are not without weight. But what are the chances of the next elected government carrying out the devolution exercise? None whatsoever. The record of elected governments, which emerged after dictators in Pakistan and Bangladesh, in ushering genuine democratic rule at grass-roots level is dismal. The concept of devolution of power strikes at the roots of the present unjust and iniquitous political and economic order in its ruling elites.