Plea for sanity
IN these dangerous, overheated times, it is a plea as much as advice: the leaders of this great and proud nation need to step back from the edge of the abyss. No one appears willing to listen, not the civilians, either in government or the opposition, and not the military. But each of them must be reminded, and ought to remind themselves, why they hold public office, or are entrusted with the responsibility of being the elected representatives of the people. This country’s destiny and the success of its people depend on a democratic and constitutional order based on strong, representative institutions and the rule of law. Those goals, the fundamental reason for the existence of the state, are bigger and more important than the fate and peccadilloes of the PML-N, the PTI or indeed any given era of military leadership. But the more the current national leadership pledges to put ‘Pakistan first’ the more it becomes apparent that it is really ‘me first’ — a play for power at the expense of the good of the people and the republic.
The intensifying battle between the PTI and the PML-N is particularly dismaying because it has all the hallmarks of bygone eras, dark periods in this country’s history that the most sustained democratic transition was supposed to have left behind. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is a vastly experienced politician, but seems unable to bury a personal tendency to allow political crises to escalate until they threaten to reach unmanageable proportions. The Panama Papers could have been a watershed moment, a first family offering itself up for unprecedented financial scrutiny. Instead, Mr Sharif opted to resort to political sloganeering. Even now, in this moment of democratic peril, the prime minister and his PML-N appear more interested in cracking down on legitimate political dissent than restoring the legitimacy of the mandate the PML-N received in 2013.
Lamentable as the PML-N’s attitude is, the PTI’s wilfulness is of historically tragic proportions. There are 19 months left until the term of the current parliament expires and a general election has to be held. The government’s intransigence and the PTI’s principled opposition means the PTI has a realistic opportunity to compete for power at the next election. If it does win in 2018, the PTI could expect to rule until 2023 — and the PML-N’s stance on democratic continuity means it can be expected to remain in opposition without trying to overthrow a democratically elected government. Clearly, there are no guarantees for the PTI — as indeed there are none that the present course of agitation will lead to ultimate success. But the PTI and Imran Khan should consider what kind of Pakistan they want to rule over. A democracy gaining in strength, or a polity wracked by bitter divisions and the spectre of extra-constitutional forces willing to intervene?
Schizophrenia verdict
THE Supreme Court recently ruled that schizophrenia is a ‘recoverable’ disease that fails to qualify as a mental health disorder under existing laws, thereby, clearing the path to execute Imdad Ali, a 50-year-old mentally ill prisoner. In response, his wife, Safia Bano sought a stay order, filing a review petition with the court on Oct 28. Not only is this verdict controversial and inhumane, it also sets a dangerous precedent. Fundamentally, it notes mentally ill individuals are not precluded from the death penalty. Moreover, it represents the cruelty that embodies the death penalty — a form of punishment that this newspaper does not endorse. And, it puts at risk the lives of other mentally ill death-row prisoners, including Khizer Hayat (he suffers from schizophrenia and has spent 17 years in prison). More shocking is the judiciary’s inability to recognise schizophrenia as a genetically determined illness, severe and incurable as extensive medical evidence has proven. Consider the response by the British Pakistani Psychiatrists Association in this newspaper. Explaining schizophrenia as a “remitting, relapsing illness”, they recommend evaluating mentally ill offenders, especially their capacity to distinguish between right and wrong at the time of committing the crime.
Even though certified by doctors as schizophrenic, Ali’s medical reports presented as evidence were dismissed by the court. Why? If the reports were not deemed credible, an independent psychiatric evaluation panel should have been appointed. Also, why did the jail authorities fail to approach the home department to move Ali to a hospital for treatment? If an individual has schizophrenia, he must be treated to determine if the illness is ‘recoverable’ or not. Because the system is rigged against the poorer mentally ill prisoners, their cases hinge on inept state prosecutors and jail authorities — again, underscoring the need for reforming the criminal justice system. Also, executing mentally disabled prisoners is a misinterpretation of medical jurisprudence and in conflict with international covenants — the ICCPR included. With Pakistan’s UN human rights review due in July 2017, the government must improve its civil and political rights record. Executions of the mentally ill do not serve any purpose other than tarnish our rights record. And because the court has failed to acknowledge that punishing a mentally ill offender serves no criminal justice aims, it is imperative that Imdad Ali be given a presidential pardon. In doing so, the government would be showing its commitment to upholding human rights and dignity.
Pensioner’s suicide
ONE can only imagine what it would take for an elderly man to commit suicide. The recent case of one such individual, who had been making the rounds of Karachi’s Civic Centre to obtain pension that he had reportedly not been paid for 13 months, leaves one reeling with anger. His family says he had been making repeated trips to collect what was his due, and the staff that he spoke to made fun of him and his efforts to collect his pension. The resulting depression, according to his family, led him to take the extreme step of jumping off the building, and not the lack of payment. The explanations given by KMC, where the man worked all his life and from where he expected his pension, and by Karachi’s deputy mayor, somehow do not ring true. They claim that pension cheques worth Rs740m “have been readied” and will be disbursed once the Sindh government releases the funds.
Whatever amount may be ready, the fact of the matter is that if the pensioner had to suffer humiliation at the hands of KMC employees while visiting the office to ask for updates on his dues, then it just shows the level of dehumanisation that prevails in that organisation. Pensioners are one of the most vulnerable members of our society, and the sad part is that many governments, federal and provincial, balance their accounts on the backs of these aged people. Pensions are amongst the first payments to be blocked in the event of shortage of funds. The callousness that this category of citizens must suffer for each cheque is enough to break one’s heart. For pensioners, that cheque means the world because it is their own money, and gives them a sense of worth and independence. Karachi’s deputy mayor should do all in his power to determine whether or not the retired KMC worker faced humiliation, and ensure that others are not made to suffer similarly in the future.
Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2016