Shameful
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
It is as if we are seeing an action replay of events from the Musharraf era and it is the ugliest and most unfortunate of the events that are being repeated – under an elected government which had sworn it would respect media freedoms. Just as happened before, a foreign government has been pressurized into banning the broadcast of a popular talk show from its soil. Its host, Dr Shahid Masood, has told viewers of Geo News that he is now broadcasting the programme, without studio support, from a secret location. He has spoken too of threats made by PPP members, warning him that he would be dealt with in no uncertain terms if he returned to Pakistan. It is shameful that so blatant an attempt should be made to clamp down on the basic right to free expression. This is all the more so given the condemnation that had come from the PPP when the 2007 media crackdown under Musharraf took channels off the air. The fact that one of the same channels and one of the same hosts have been targeted suggests that they are indeed doing their job – by talking about and exposing the doings of whatever government is in power, without bias and without discrimination.
This after all is the primary duty of the media and what millions of viewers expect from it. The president and his henchmen must also realize this action will serve no purpose at all. Not so very long ago a man named Musharraf learnt this to his cost. The vibrant news media of Pakistan has acquired a life and strength that enables it to fight back against such illegal censorship. To do so it can draw too on the support and goodwill of people. It has done so in the past, it will do so again. It is the government which, as a result, will suffer and stand still further discredited. The days of monopoly by a single state-controlled channel have gone forever. The president clearly has difficulties accepting this. Perhaps like others who have things to hide he cannot bear to hear things that may not, for him, be particularly pleasant. This lack of tolerance has been seen before in our history. We now encounter it again in its worst form.
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The fallout
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
The political stability that Pakistan so badly needs still seems elusive. The latest dose of instability has had an impact on the Karachi Stock Exchange and on other facets of life, with nobody quite knowing what lies ahead. The future of some ministers is at stake, though the information minister has said they will not be displaced. A cabinet reshuffle has been delayed. There is conjecture that the NRO cases may yet have an impact on the top beneficiary of the controversial law – a certain Mr Asif Ali Zardari. Certainly, many are uncomfortable with the idea of having as head of state a man who faces so many charges of corruption. It is sad that he, and indeed others on the list, have – with the exception of an adviser to the Punjab CM – not done the honourable thing. By stepping down they would have played a part in reviving some faith in government and in Pakistan as an entity. This is badly needed for reasons that go well beyond the limited arena of politics.
Our economy has plenty of potential. Lately, even as bombs rip apart our cities, it has shown some resilience and an ability to fight back against adversity. Pakistan's ratings by global agencies have held stable. But this does not mean that a system that can inspire greater confidence would not bring many rewards. It is not just terrorism that scares away foreign investment. The perceptions of rampant corruption do so just as much. From around the world there are business groups who, when faced with a choice, have opted to put money in nations that they feel are run by more committed leaders who seem likely to remain in office. The talk of ministers seeking bribes, 'commissions' and favours for every small matters placed before them – even for signing bits of paper – reassures no one. At the same time the constant feeling that we walk on a wobbly air-bed, that change may lie just weeks, or months, away, does nothing to build peace of mind. Yet a lasting sense of calm is something Pakistan needs more than anything else, for it to find a firm economic footing, to stop the new brain drain we are seeing and to build confidence in people. The NRO fiasco has further detracted from this and that will do no good at all.
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The stark reality
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
The British Council's "Next Generation Report on Pakistan" provides perhaps the clearest picture of how our younger generation thinks and feels about their homeland. Its measured tones and careful analysis make uncomfortable reading despite both positive and negative paths being detailed. The sampling of the surveys that underpin the report is broad and its conclusions derived from data which is comprehensive. The report identifies something called the 'demographic dividend' which is a period where there is a favourable ratio of potentially productive young people, to old. The window of opportunity to exploit this began in 1990 and we have done nothing to take advantage of it since; and the window will close in 2045 (by when society will be aging rapidly) giving us thirty-five years to turn the tide. Alongside the possible opportunity there is demographic disaster which will only be averted by aggressive and sustained action by successive governments. The research indicates that one-third of the growth experienced by East Asian economies in their boom years can be traced to this demographic structure; and if we are able to harness it effectively we could see economic growth increase by as much as one-fifth by 2030.
Our young generation is politically disillusioned. They are very loyal and strongly nationalistic but only 10 per cent have any faith in the key institutions of state – national and local governance, the police and the courts. In terms of identity 75 per cent see themselves as Muslims first and secondly as Pakistanis with just 14 per cent seeing themselves primarily as a citizen of Pakistan. Democracy gets short shrift with 33 per cent seeing it as the right system for us and another 33 per cent preferring some form of Sharia. A majority are critical of the way Pakistan has been manipulated by the international community for most of its life. Despite attempts at optimism, there is little cheer in the report, especially when it is laid alongside the failure of virtually every government we have had to address the issues it identifies and which have been there from the beginning. We cannot throw up our hands and claim ignorance because this particular elephant in the living room has been standing there for over sixty years. Either we invest in our young generation now or we wither and fail in thirty-five years time — our choice is that stark.