In a post-bin Laden Pakistan,loud ramblings in the media and the tough line taken by Nawaz Sharif on the armed forces accountability have led some to suspect that a shift in the power equation between the army and the government may be under way. This is simply not true,because the government remains as ineffective as ever,and the army,though not seemingly as collected as before,is still the only stable institution. Not only that,the brave and ferociously independent judiciary under the reinstated Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry has done little else in public interest than threaten to bring Asif Ali Zardari to book which remains a moot point as long as Zardari is the occupant of the presidency. Any accountability of the army will have to take shape under overwhelming public pressure,of which there are few signs.
The entire debate on Osama bin Ladens killing by the American Navy SEALs here has been twisted: from the disturbing question as to why Osama was found in Pakistan to the violation of Pakistans sovereignty by the Americans. Few are saying that if Osama had not been here,the Americans would not have intruded deep into our territory to take him out. Fewer still question the readiness of the army in case of another similar intrusion and reasons thereof,or the alleged complicity of elements from within the forces in sheltering Osama. Why? Because doing so hurts our sense of pride as a nation and demands that we snap out of the state of perpetual denial which has brought us to this sorry pass.
Then,if Islam was Zias hypocritical diversion to contain public anger against Bhuttos judicial murder,anti-Americanism will similarly save the existing power paradigm between the Zardari government and the army. Nawaz Sharifs earnest calls for the armys accountability will only work to cement PPP-army relations,even if both do it grudgingly. The PPP has a history of appeasing the military establishment whilst in power,no matter how dearly it has paid for it in the past. After the 1971 East Pakistan debacle,it was Z.A. Bhutto who resurrected a totally demoralised army,hoping the generals would be indebted to him and remain loyal; they were,until they decided his favour was adequately returned; when he insulted Zia-ul-Haq after he was taken into protective custody,Zia made a horrible example of him. That Musharraf in his hubris spared Sharif tells the army what not to repeat.
Because of the armys continued interference in the political process,Pakistani politicians whilst in power know what they are in for. They also know that they have to be extremely lucky to complete their five-year term in office even if they came with a thumping majority,like Nawaz Sharif did in 1997. His two-thirds majority could not save him from a coup because he had shown little in terms of governance,and sought only to strengthen his own powers which he used ruthlessly. Benazir Bhutto too made compromises when she was twice allowed to run to the victory line. Her third success,cut short by her tragic assassination,was also after she struck a deal with Musharraf. In her two stints in government,like her husbands now,she had also incurred public displeasure by the time she was sent packing. Similarly,Nawaz Sharifs ouster in 1999 saw no public outcry. That sitting in the opposition he now feels he must atone for his mistakes and speak the truth is indeed an original stance; the only problem is hes in the wrong country,and doesnt know it. That his stance is popular remains a seriously moot point because his party has shown much worse governance in Punjab than Zardaris has done at the centre.
Pakistan has serious problems of governance because every time democracy has been derailed,the new dictator has reinvented the wheel in his eventual journey back to a democratic dispensation. The political order has thus shamelessly remained one based on oligarchy,with or without democracy. The people have had little say in reversing this recurring vicious cycle,and have been fed on a make-believe narrative that presents one villain after the other,stoking xenophobia. From the 1950s to the 1970s,India was the enemy No 1; then came the former Soviet Union riding its red,ungodly tanks into our backyard to proudly don that mantle; and now we have the India-US partnership,with its eyes set on our Islamic nukes. That we ourselves have had no hand in multiplying our misfortunes all these years remains the elusive truth if truth must be told.
Meanwhile,a very lively media is an excellent public platform from which to vent your anger against the powers that be. We remain a proud,sovereign nation despite our consistent failings in taming ourselves!
The writer is an editor with Dawn,Karachi
express@expressindia.com
