Iran’s presidential election
Friday, 12 Jun, 2009
IRANIANS go to the polls today in what most observers believe is a race too close to call. Even though there are four candidates, the real contest is between President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the conservative incumbent, and reformist candidate Hassan Moussavi whose green-coloured rallies gave a new and popular dimension to the campaigning that ended on Wednesday. Unless there is an upset, none of the four candidates — the other two being former speaker Mehdi Karroubi and former general Mohsen Rezaei — is likely to get more than 50 per cent of the vote, thus forcing a run-off. Former President Mohammad Khatami quit the presidential race in March but he boosted Moussavi’s chances by throwing his weight behind him. The reformists seem to have learnt their lesson, for in the 2005 election their boycott of the polls helped Ahmadinejad. This time bands of ‘green’ throughout the country are urging young people to cast their votes to swing the election in Moussavi’s favour.
Iran’s 10th presidential election is in a sense a referendum on the hard-line president’s domestic and foreign policies, which enjoy the support of Iran’s powerful clerics, especially spiritual leader Ali Khamenei. The arch-conservative Council of Elders too has played its partisan role by disqualifying several candidates, including conservative Rafat Bayat, a female MP. Besides, Ahmadinejad enjoys popularity with rural people, on whose welfare he has spent a huge amount of money in violation of rules. With world oil prices down, the economic situation continues to be grim for a country which is the world’s fifth biggest exporter of crude. But inflation has come down from last year’s 30 per cent to 18.
The president has given no indication that he intends to give up his hard line toward the West and show flexibility on the nuclear question. Moussavi, on the other hand, stands for a flexible approach toward the West, because he believes Ahmadinejad’s policies enabled America to go the UN and place Iran under sanctions, thus aggravating the economic condition. What has endeared Moussavi to young people is his pledge to improve freedom of expression and liberalise the cultural scene. There is no doubt Iran stands at a crossroads. Victory for Ahmadinejad will mean a continuation of his hard-line conservative policies and a fruitless confrontation with America which under Barack Obama seems keen to turn a new leaf in relations with Iran and the Muslim world.
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Police recklessness
Friday, 12 Jun, 2009
DEATH is always unsettling. But it hurts more when it comes suddenly and that too at the hands of those who are supposed to protect life and property. It was this grievance that made the family and friends of a man who the Lahore police killed on Wednesday so enraged that they blocked roads and surrounded a local police station for hours. The circumstances that led to the death they were protesting are unclear. The dead man’s relatives say the police killed him without warning as he was driving to the police station in a car that had earlier hit his motorcycle. The police claim the owner of the car complained that someone was taking his car away; they cautioned the alleged car-snatcher to stop but he did not so they had no choice but to fire at him. One thing the two versions have in common is that it was a police bullet that killed the man.
This is definitely not the first incident of its kind, nor will it be the last. Shooting as the first recourse is a trademark of the Punjab police. They are also ill-trained and ill-equipped to tackle any situation without using violence. They lack the training and facilities to chase down errant vehicles and they are never prepared, let alone willing, to talk someone out of a crime situation. To top it all, they are jittery these days about their own security which makes them prone to knee-jerk reactions to anything looking remotely suspicious. But these are professional hazards the police should learn to live with, strongly internalising the notion that their job is to protect, not take, lives. They should know, in no ambiguous terms, that their powers and their weapons should be used to maintain law and order and not undermine it. Their valour should show through their discretion and their errors should result from caution, not from a wanton display of their authority and dubious expertise in using firearms. Every policeman should know that exceptional circumstances that may allow killing should be just that — truly exceptional.
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Curbing extremism
Friday, 12 Jun, 2009
AN amendment to the Pakistan aid bill moved in the US Congress requires, among other things, that Islamabad implement economic, legal and social reforms that would discourage “violent Islamic extremism”. Pakistani citizens must demand the same from their government. The fight against extremism in any form concerns Pakistan most deeply and directly, for as events in the country’s north-western areas illustrate, extremism and the militancy it sponsors represent a potent threat to the writ of the state. Firstly, of course, the militants must be effectively neutralised. The army operation should be taken to its logical conclusion and all areas be brought under the control of the government, while the millions of people affected must be rehabilitated. Reconstruction efforts need be initiated, in which regard the involvement of local people may well prove invaluable. Not only would they have an idea of where the money is best spent but such involvement would help return to them a sense of ownership.
Subsequently, the root causes of extremism will have to be addressed. It is vital that poverty alleviation measures be undertaken and employment opportunities be created in underdeveloped areas; an industrial base could be set up, for example. People with jobs and regular incomes are, after all, far less likely to turn towards extremism or militancy. And Pakistan will have to find ways of ensuring that development funds do not leak down corrupt or bureaucratic holes. Employment opportunities must be accompanied by the setting up of schools and vocational training centres. This requires a coherent education plan and a significantly bigger budgetary allocation. The education sector has traditionally been subjected to arbitrary changes; now a needs-assessment exercise by legislators and experts must lead to solid policy.
Concurrently, the madressah system must be reworked. Such institutions must be identified, counted and registered, after which curriculum reform can be devised. While all madressahs are not connected to extremism, their graduates are often unfit for the job market. This must be remedied. Furthermore, issues such as deficiencies in the state education system and the lack of access to it must be addressed, for these are among the factors that lead to the popularity of madressahs. Then there exists the pressing need for access to quality healthcare and, most vitally, justice in its real sense. We must learn the lesson taught by Swat, where the promise of justice under Sharia initially led many citizens to extend support to the extremists. Most importantly, perhaps, areas such as Fata, the rest of the tribal belt and the designated Northern Areas must be brought into the political mainstream. The Political Parties Act must be extended so that all political organisations can carry out their legitimate activities in all areas. Access to genuine representation allows citizens to effectively present their concerns, thereby reducing the need to bargain with a gun.
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OTHER VOICES - Bangladesh Press BNP’s reform agenda
Friday, 12 Jun, 2009
THE BNP’s reform plan, at least the first phase of it, has been executed as the party announced [the] formation of the convening committees for its district (organisational) units. It will pave the way for the participation of … workers and leaders in the party’s overall reorganisation scheme.
We welcome the move that will initiate the process of internal democratisation of one of the two major political parties…. The real benefits of internal democratisation can be reaped through developing a system that will enable the upcoming, committed and dedicated leaders to rise to prominence within the party hierarchy, while discarding the failed and the disgraced who have outlived their utility.
BNP chief Begum Khaleda Zia has to bear in mind that the defeat suffered in the Dec 29 general elections could be attributed as much to … corrupt party men as to [the] lack of internal democratisation which made it impossible for the party to face the situation as a compact outfit. The distance between the top leadership and workers … was far too visible.
The Daily Star
And what is particularly important here is to view the last election results as part of the cyclic ups and downs that any political party has to undergo in the highly volatile world of politics….
A party has to face such [a] political crisis by reinvigorating itself through new ideas, new plans and new faces of integrity and commitment…. But we notice that some of the leaders, having questionable credentials, have retained their positions in the committees. It may be rather difficult for the party to start anew while retaining the elements responsible to a great extent for the obloquy brought upon the party. The party has to concentrate on finding out the areas where things went wrong, instead of crying foul and holding certain ‘conspirators’ responsible for [its] election defeat. — (June 11)