Good news for economy
On January 11, the IMF Executive Board completed its first review of the $3 billion Stand-By Arrangement for Pakistan, allowing the disbursement of the second tranche of funds worth $700 million. The IMF press release states, “Economic activity has stabilised in Pakistan, although the outlook remains challenging.” The Nation (January 13) calls it “a crucial vote of confidence” while Dawn (January 13) believes this is “breathing space” for the nation’s economy, which has been in crisis for more than a year.
The Nation (January 13) says that the completion also “reflects a tangible affirmation of Pakistan’s efforts in addressing vulnerabilities and implementing policies for sustainable growth… [and it] has played a role in stabilising the Pakistani rupee”.
Deliberating on the long-term implication of this, Dawn (January 13) says, “The success of the current IMF programme is also crucial since the country needs to negotiate a bigger and longer funding facility from the lender soon after the new government is formed after the Feb 8 elections for addressing domestic and external balances and secure financing from other multilateral and bilateral partners.”
PTI’s loss
Ahead of Pakistan’s general elections scheduled to be held on February 8, the Supreme Court — in an unanimous verdict — announced the repeal of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) election symbol, the bat. This was in response to the Election Commission of Pakistan’s petition that deemed the party’s conduct of its intra-party polls illegal as they were held “secretly and not per the rules laid down by the party’s own constitution” (News International, January 14).
Daily Times (January 14) comments on the nature of the decision and the apex court’s credibility saying, “The short order… pronounced the death of PTI as a political party. That there are no winners here and by choosing a side for the neutral institution of the judiciary, the honourable Supreme Court has hurt itself the most does not need to be spelled out loud”.
News International (January 14) talks about the options for PTI: “… for now its candidates will now be contesting as independents, with their separate election symbols. This is a huge blow to the party, since these candidates will now not be bound by the rule of party discipline either… the PTI will face an uphill task in getting its candidates to not just contest but win and then stay within party discipline”.
Bilkis Bano and religious tolerance
News International (January 9) appreciated the decision of the Supreme Court of India that reversed the remission of the 11 convicts in the heinous Bilkis Bano case. It said, “Not only does the verdict provide some relief to the country’s minority communities… but also assures the country’s women that the law is not going to abandon them.”
Even so, the editorial warned that “the rise of Hindu extremism has crossed all the red lines… Modi government has to pay attention to the deep frictions that have been created in Indian society. Its goals of development and growth will not bear any fruit if the strategy is based on empowering one majority group in the country.”
In another incident regarding India, the US State Department issued a list of countries “of particular concern” in terms of religious freedom and excluded India from that list. Dawn (January 8) believes this to be a case of “selective outrage”. The editorial notes, “America’s geopolitical foes such as China, Russia, Iran and North Korea are on the list of alleged violators of religious freedom, as are Pakistan and Saudi Arabia”. At a time when India “is no haven for minorities, especially Muslims and Christians. Indian Muslims are the favourite targets of Hindutva mobs, while the government apparatus, particularly in BJP-ruled states such as Uttar Pradesh, is openly hostile to the community… It is difficult to see how the State Department can turn a blind eye to such repression.”
Meanwhile, The Nation (January 10) says that “Pakistan has adamantly rejected the recent ‘Country of Particular Concern (CPC)’ designation by the US State Department under the International Religious Freedom Act”. Countering this claim, the Foreign Office (FO) “highlights the urgency for a more comprehensive and objective evaluation that captures ground realities and acknowledges the proactive measures taken by Pakistan to foster religious harmony and protect minority rights”.
Sheikh Hasina is Bangladesh PM, again
On January 7, Bangladesh voted Sheikh Hasina as Prime Minister for the fifth time in a row. Many from the international community were critical of Hasina’s record on democracy and questioned the fairness of the recent election. This includes the US State Department, the UN and the media in Pakistan.
Express Tribune (January 10) attributes this to the fact that the Awami League is essentially the only party in Bangladesh. It says, “The recent Bangladeshi elections saw the Bangladesh National Party — led by Zia and her son — labelled a ‘terrorist organisation’, and international observers slamming Hasina’s government for human rights abuses”. As a result, the editorial states, “The election in Bangladesh is a reminder that in broken democracies, elections are not the vehicle by which the people choose their leaders, but only a tool used by the ruling party to maintain their grip on power”.
adya.goyal@expressindia.com
