(6th May 2013)
First Address
In his first address to the nation, caretaker Prime Minister Mir Hazar Khan Khoso has reiterated the assurance made only a few days ago by the army chief that the general elections would indeed be held on time and power duly transferred to the elected government. Such assurances should, of course, not ordinarily be necessary. In any democracy, this should be the standard course of action. But we do not live in ordinary times. The frenzied spree of violence seen in each of the three smaller provinces has created all kinds of doubts about the polls and unleashed a flood of rumours. Even now, fear plays a dominant role in the process, and could, indeed, determine many things such as the turnout. And the turnout could have a very important impact on the results themselves.
Therefore, Prime Minister Khoso’s calm speech, offering reassurance that every effort will be made to hold a peaceful election is, in many ways, soothing. It helps generate some sense of confidence that the balloting exercise will take place on schedule, as planned and without any disruption. Such assurances are necessary in helping to bring out people to vote in the current environment of violence and uncertainty. This is important given that we are moving towards what we hope will be Pakistan’s first constitutional democratic transition. If all goes well, or relatively well as we hope it will, this would be a significant achievement for the caretakers.
It is also a good sign that they have accepted responsibility for making sure that this does, indeed, happen. We all know that an election that is in any way prevented from moving ahead as it should, or is tainted by violence and allegations of unfair play, would be disastrous for our nation at this juncture. We must hope, therefore, that Mr Khoso and his team have their plans well worked out and are able to conduct the polling exercise as is required so that we can vote for a government of the people’s choice and hope this administration will then be able to solve the many problems we currently face by adopting policies based on the wishes of the people and their desire for harmony within our country.
Foul revenge
The death of Sarabjit Singh, attacked by inmates at the Kot Lakhpat Jail in Lahore, has been followed by a terrible act of vengeance just a day later. At a Jammu jail, Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah Haq, on May 3, suffered severe head injuries after being attacked by prisoners apparently infuriated by the fate of Sarabjit. Sanaullah is being treated in a hospital in Chandigarh, where he was moved due to the severity of his injuries. The Pakistan Foreign Ministry, who summoned the Deputy High Commissioner, has demanded he be returned home immediately.
Here, of course, we see the worst possible example of an ‘eye for an eye’ mentality come into play. It must be stopped. More deaths like this must not take place at any cost. They indicate just how much hatred can be aroused in people, with the prison happenings, of course, a microcosm of a far wider problem. This matter needs to be discussed, negotiated and sorted out between the two nations. But this, of course, will take time. Months, years, very possibly decades; right now, what we need to do is ensure the other Pakistani prisoners are safe. They all face a risk in the current environment. Indeed, even in the past, they have been attacked or mistreated.
The two countries need to decide on security measures to be adopted. This should happen urgently. The possibility of sending prisoners home should also be discussed. We cannot have more incidents of this nature take place. Everything possible must be done to prevent them and also investigations carried out to ensure that those who attacked Sanaullah can be duly identified and punished under the law for their crimes. This is vital to set a precedent for the future so other killings are averted.
Polio eradication
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), only three countries remain polio-endemic, one of them being Pakistan. It is shameful that Pakistan has still not been able to counter a preventable disease. The first case of polio was reported in the North Waziristan Agency on May 3, since the Taliban imposed a ban on the entry of vaccination teams in the region in June last year. The Taliban do not even value human life so why would they care if our children are disabled? We must not allow the Taliban to dictate our lives.
Extremists have already given fatwas declaring polio vaccination ‘infidel vaccination’, resulting in deadly attacks on anti-polio teams. Despite these tactics adopted by the terrorists to scare away those administering polio drops, it is commendable that many humanitarian workers have not cowed down. If polio is to be completely eradicated from Pakistan, people will have to change their attitude towards the immunisation campaign. They must reject the absurd extremist view that the polio campaign is a conspiracy hatched by Western countries to reduce Muslim populations. In fact, it is a politically-motivated campaign by the extremists to defend their fanatic views. A similar anti-polio campaign was witnessed in the Nigerian state of Kano in 2003. We must not tread on a similar self-destructive path.
It is certainly not an easy task to eliminate extremism from our soil but we can certainly eradicate polio from our country. More than 125 countries have already eradicated this disease. People should be made aware through media and door-to-door campaigns, especially in far-flung areas, that polio vaccination can save children from permanent disability in life and secure a better future for them. Continuity in the immunisation campaign and a realisation of the importance of a polio-free society will make a lot of difference. The future of our children depends on our fight against polio. We must not fail them.