"Caviar to the general"

Pakistan's politics is manipulated by the "patronage networks", as somebody termed it, thriving on appeasement of opponents and winning hearts and minds of constituents with temporary, superficial and "popular" measures. 64% people living in rural areas end up being decision-makers of the fate of the rest of the country. In other words, urban and aware population is taken hostage by the rural voters. Rural politics is about family and tribal ties. It is about who will ultimately come to your rescue when you are bogged down by court cases over land owndership or division disputes. The ideas of good governance, independent foreign policy, education and health reforms may fall flat on these ear. As Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet:
"For the play, I remember, pleas'd not the million,
It was caviar to the general."

Feudal politics has had its debilitating effect on the political consciousness (if ever there was any) of the urban people as well. We have seen it evolving from agricultural to industrial feudalism. But it shows no signs of letting up. Then how do you bring a sweeping change? Urban, educated people who got excited by the slogan of change seem disconnected from that obsession now. And this slogan of change will be muted if it ceases to be an obsession. Then the country will remain a ticking bomb with a hijacked foreign policy, collapsed economy, crumbling infrastructure, poor education and a frustrated youth living literally in the dark.   
  

      

     

"I must be cruel only to be kind. Thus bad begins and worse remains behind." Hamlet (William Shakespeare)

"Ex-Turksih president on trial". So read the headline today.

Let's refresh our memories because in many ways the story can be that of Pakistan. In September 1980 Kenan Evren led the senior command of the Turkish army to overthrow the government. The years leading to the coup were characterized by a fierce struggle between the rightists and leftists. The left wingers took to riots in the streets hoping for a communist revolution; on the other hand, the nationalist rightists fought back the left wingers and provoked religious arousal. Universities had taken sides and each became headquarters for either the leftists or rightists.

The National Security Council became the ruling body after the coup. This council was composed of the commanders Kenan Evren, the Chief of Staff and President of the State. The parliament was dissolved.

And now note this: CIA's Ankara bureau chief at the time, Paul B. Henze, received a call from the White House Situation Room saying "Paul, your guys have done it".

It was no surprise that after the coup, in 1982, Kenan Evren was elected the President of Republic of Turkey with the 90% approval through a controversial referendum. Evren replaced the old constitution which, according to him, had liberties "luxurious" for Turkey. He suspended many forms of civil liberties and human rights on the grounds that it was necessary to establish stability. He claimed great admiration for the founder of Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, however he shut down many institutions founded by Ataturk and is often accused of deforming the country's legal system against Ataturk's principles. During his military regime, many people were tortured and executed due to their political beliefs. 50 people were executed and half a million arrested, hundreds died in jail, and many more disappeared in three years of military rule after the coup.

All of the above sounds unbelievably familiar to Pakistanis.

Kenan Evren's trial was unimaginable only a few years ago. Today the prosecutors are seeking life sentences against General Kenan Evren and General Tahsin Sahinkaya, former Commander of the Turkish Air Force, for their role in the 1980 coup. And how did it become possible to put these generals on trial? In 2010, Turks voted to approve reforms one of which was to strip Kenan Evren and the other coup leaders of "IMMUNITY".

Two points to ponder.

Do the courts in Pakistan have the will and courage to stand up to all those who abolish the constitution and overthrow elected governments?

When and how will Pakistanis strip Zardari of the presidential immunity and drag him to the court of law?

I believe that the courts alone cannot take such big decisions. People of Pakistan will have to stand behind the judges. Only then will the judges derive their strength from the public and make historic decisions that will no only make the nation proud but also bring the billions back from Swiss banks.

Established by the Establishment?

IK seems to be supported by the establishment. How will he bring about any change?

People leave behind a trail of evidence to show their past behavior, and their consistency predicts their likely future course of action.

Look at BB. She was always defiant. Amicable and compromising with establishment in order to get into the PM office. Not so friendly with them when in the office. She was never a favorite of the establishment. Her killing may very well be an act of Musharaf in cahoots with US in order to bring in an acquiescent PPP government, headed by Zardari.

Now look at Nawaz Sharif. He was established (as a political figure) by the establishment. Hence, not defiant till Musharaf threw him out of office. That too happened because he made a lame attempt at becoming mightier than the establishment. Since he is deemed to be very weak and lacking mental toughness, he is not considered a threat by the establishment despite his rhetoric against the role of military in politics.

Imran Khan, on the other hand, has always shown defiance. He led a cricket team in what some call a dictatorial way. But he led them to glory. It was a team plagued with politics and leg-pulling. He made them see dreams they had never seen. And they themselves made those dreams come true. His leadership gave the team the strength it never had and the passion to win that they always lacked. This passion got them the world cup and many other victories that are usually less talked about. He then built the cancer hospital against all odds. And went on to establish the university town in Mianwali...again against all odds. And now plans to build two more cancer hospitals. For fifteen years he faced bitter defeats in politics but stayed on his path of reforming the country...against all odds. That is who he is. He never gives up. Never gives in. He may not have the best team but he aims to steer them to glory.

Is he a man from the establishment?

My hunch is that even if he is, it is not in the same fashion as was Nawaz Sharif. Imran Khan would never accept a penny from establishment...only to make sure that he is never put in a compromising position by the establishment. He may appreciate the help from establishment but on the condition that he would be independent in his decision-making once he came into power. That is what he told Musharaf when he (then Chief Executive) offered him to become the Prime Minister. That never suited Musharaf so it never materialized.

So does that work for us?

I think it does. A team may be weak and may be lacking in many ways. But one strong leader sitting at the top can change its destiny.

Those of us who work in the corporate sector know very well the impact one individual Managing Director or CEO has on the way of thinking, attitude and performance of the entire organization. We have tested PPP and PMLN twice each in the past. They failed. Is there any reason why we should trust them again?

And should we vote for Imran Khan only because there is no one better?

I would say, NO.

PPP is bitterly exposed and PMLN got two chances to change the destiny of this country. They only strengthened themselves (politically and financially) and did next to nothing for the people.

We should side with Imran Khan because of his being a great leader in the whatever he has done in the past. Because he is the pride of Pakistan and we want to give him a chance to change the course of this nation. Because he is not just better than the rest, he is also a man with vision and passion. A man on a mission. And unlike others this mission is not to grab power but to bring glory to this nation. I will vote for him because I want to give him a chance.

Learn From Thy Neighbor

It was embarrassing to read a page 2 report and the editorial of Gulf News this morning. The report and the editorial talked about the continuous efforts of KHDA (Knowledge and Human Development Authority of UAE government) to improve the standards of school education in the emirates. The embarrassing part...three Pakistani schools were inspected in Dubai and all three of them were rated "Unsatisfactory".

Schools are inspected every year by Dubai School Inspection Bureau for performance review. The bureau rates schools on various parameters and speedy response is expected from school management in improvement areas. What is more embarrassing is that one of these three Pakistani schools has further deteriorated its rating from "Acceptable" last year to "Unsatisfactory" this year. The other two schools already had Unsatisfactory rating last year and did nothing to improve it and maintained their low standards.

What is even more embarrassing for Pakistanis is the fact that two Indian schools got "Outstanding" rating, moving up from "Good" last year. Seven other Indian schools got rating of "Good", and only two out of twenty one Indian schools had Unsatisfactory score.

Now comes an even more embarrassing news. The inspection bureau witnessed children being subjected to corporal punishment at one of the Pakistani schools. Dubai School Inspection Bureau comments about Pakistani schools adn I quote, "Inappropriate measures are taken to discipline students. Due to this, relationship between students and teachers are often negative. This results in poor behavior and a lack of respect. We came across cases of spanking at a Pakistani school. Teachers is some of these schools need to be trained on behavioral management."

How many of us back in Pakistan can relate to the above? I am sure many, if not all. The other day a friend of mine who took up part time teaching at Roots School in Rawalpindi told me she developed severe headache from the constant yelling of one of her female colleagues who was trying to discipline children of Grade 3?!?! Soon after that same teacher started insisting that weather (mausam) is spelled "wheather". My friend didn't go to work the next day and subsequently quit the job.

If there is any School Inspection Bureau (for both public and private schools) in Pakistan, it is definitely not doing its job. And that is not any different from other government departments. Standards of education have deteriorated and the quality of teachers has been compromised because of (a) lack of training and inspection (b) low salaries.

This brings me to my request to IK of PTI. Some people have this understanding (or misunderstanding) that IK's education system reforms will take Pakistan back into the stone age by making every school Urdu medium. The perception is originating from IK's strong views against the Brown Sahib culture that the elite education institutes of Pakistan have been propagating. To my mind, that perception of ours is not correct, and IK needs to further elaborate on what his plans are. I hope and pray that the education policy makers do understand that the ability to communicate in English language has been a competitive edge for Pakistanis and Indians globally. For the same reason Germans have a competitive edge over other non-English speaking European nations, and now South Koreans and Chinese are stressing the importance of learning English language. Urdu is and will remain our national language and it must be taught as a compulsory subject/language. But it must not be the medium of instruction for all times to come. We have to uplift the government schools and gradually move all educational institutes to English language as the medium of instruction. If in doubt, ask small town high school students how lost they found themselves on the first day in the big city college when their Chemistry professor started his lecture in English, a subject these poor students have been studying in Urdu till Grade 10.

I also suggest IK to immediately hold an Education Conference and lay down his education reform agenda on the lines of his recent Energy Conference.

Ethics or Morals?

The other day I was sitting with some friends at an Afghan restaurant and we got engrossed by a passionate discussion on the ailments of Pakistani society. Somewhere down the road two words were spoken. Ethics and Morals. We finished our dinner, and therefore, the discussion, and went home. Since then I have been thinking about these two words. So I googled them and here are my findings.

The basic difference between ethics and morals is a subtle one. Morals define personal character, while ethics stress a social system in which those morals are applied. In other words, ethics point to standards or codes of behavior expected by the group to which the individual belongs. This could be national ethics, social ethics, company ethics, professional ethics, or even family ethics. So while a person’s moral code is usually unchanging, the ethics he or she practices can be other-dependent.

In society, we are all faced with the butting heads of ethics and morals. In many places abortion is legal and therefore medically ethical, while many people find it personally immoral. Fundamentalists, extremists, and even mainstream theists all have different ideas about morality that impact each of our lives.

In the case of homosexuality, many believe it is morally wrong, yet some of the same people also believe it is unethical to discriminate legally against a group of people by disallowing them the same rights afforded heterosexuals.

And after doing my tiny bit of research on ethics and morals the next question was whether we need to propagate ethics or morals in order to reform Pakistan. And then I thought I should write something about it. My objective here is to give some of my initial thoughts on this and then invite some comments from interested friends on the topic, hoping to have a meaningful discussion. Let's see where I go with this.

What I understand is that Ethics are codes of conduct that pertain to a community, company or a nation. Hence, an individual does not have the ability to change them. On the other hand, morality refers to personal sets of beliefs about what is right and wrong. And therefore, can be altered by an individual as and when he/she has a change of mind, or heart.

Because of this ability of individuals to reshape or redefine them, we often see moral brigades taking law in their own hands, be it the moral police of Lal Masjid "fixing" progressively dressed girls or Punjab assembly legislators discussing a bill to ban music concerts in colleges or the ridiculous Maya Khan and her vigil-aunties.

As a society we need to propagate ethics. Professional ethics that prevent corruption and encourage hard work and commitment. Political ethics that make us respectably accept an election defeat or vote for a legislation that is in the interest of the country, irrespective of our political affiliation and loyalty. Social ethics that keep us from discriminating against a fellow Pakistani based on his race, language, religion or sexual orientation.

The fundamental reason why young Pakistanis do not take religio-political stalwarts like Maulana Fazlurehman seriously is the fact that people like him lack political and professional ethics but preach "their" set of morals, exploiting the religion. Same goes for the "mullah" who lectures us on morality (his list of Dos and Don'ts of Islam) but himself fails to champion social ethics, namely tolerance towards people of differing schools of thought.

We need to encourage building a society that strives to tell the truth, despise corruption, tolerate fellow Pakistanis of all provinces and religions, empower women, uphold justice, educate children, be a good neighbors and a responsible and honest citizens of this country.

Once we as a society are on the course of serious reform vis-a-vis the above, we can then start debating the need for a woman to cover her face with a veil, making alcohol available and letting people make the choice of drinking or not and young people going on a date before wedlock.

This society will be reformed by ethics. Plain, simple and basic ethics.

Upon the heat and flame of thy distemper sprinkle cool patience. (William Shakespeare)

Yesterday Pakistan cricket team gave another heavy blow to the Brits in the second test match and bagged the series in UAE. The whole nation went wild, showering praise on the captain, the coach and the spin bowlers. Netizens went bonkers on the social media.

I was thinking that the same happened when Imran Khan took out that massively successful rally in Lahore which was famously termed "tsunami of change". Khan's fans, and even those who were never too vocal in his favour, were taken by a pleasant surprise for a change. I was one of them. Well, off and on I kept dedicating my FB status update to Imran Khan and his movement for justice. I did not mind sharing some of his YouTube videos either. But after this "tsunami of Imran Khan's fans" in Lahore I felt a strange excitement inside me. As if something good can happen and will happen in Pakistan. As if the nation's ability to think and the sense of judgement was hijacked by politicians of the status quo who are all in cahoots, but now Khan breathed a new confidence into the people that they could bring about a change. That they had a voice and it had to be heard. And this voice had the strength to wreck the rotten political system and bring forth a (famous) 3rd option.

The first demonstration of people power was obviously the lawyers' movement to restore the judges of the apex court. I would not give the credit for that movement entirely to the people. There were many stakeholders, political and non-political, who held hands together and turned, what started as a simple lawyers' movement, into a historic political movement to oust a dictator (Musharraf). Thousands of PPP fanatics, PML (N) workers, Imran's supporters and those with no political affiliation got together with a one-point agenda. But Imran Khan's tsunami in Lahore was a different ball game altogether. Many people have written about it already so I would refrain from going into the details of how and why it was a historic event. In a nutshell, it was a rally of aware and concerned citizens of Pakistan who believed that with Khan the country stood a chance of re-emerging from the darkest of times in its history. Interestingly, some of my friends on FB who were quite skeptical about Khan had now Khan's poster as their dp.

And then a few weeks later we all suddenly felt extreme disappointment and anger at Khan for allowing some controversial political figures to jump on the PTI bandwagon. I confess that I was one of the first few Khan fans who expressed his anger and decided to go silent on social media instead of actively propagating Khan's message on FB and Twitter. I saw a number of other friends doing the same. Yes our anger was well-founded because we were the "puritanical" Khan supporters. We believed that only fresh and honest faces on the political scene could drive the PTI agenda in its true form. Any migration from PPP/PML would compromise and jeopardize the mission for reforming the country.

It is only fair to be puritanical. But our political system is also a reality that we have to accept and live with. People like me and you cannot and will not contest elections. We neither have the will nor the money for such a commitment. So where will Khan find his candidates from? I asked myself this question and got no answer. Agreed that the general public is getting more aware and fast, and will go out and vote for Khan's candidates in the next polls, provided the new voters' lists are prepared diligently excluding the millions of fake voters and there is an impartial interim government to conduct the polls. But Khan needs to find those hundreds of candidates first. Candidates who have spare cash between 20-40 million each to invest behind their campaigns. That is no small amount of money. And the commitment for spending that much comes from the belief that one has, at the very least, a 50:50 chance of winning and losing. Do we know anyone around us who will take this kind of risk with his hard-earned millions.

The fact of the matter is that in order to succeed in the general elections and take reigns of this plagued country, Khan will mostly need "relatively" clean people from within the currently available pool of politicians. Like-minded people. Those who are well-rooted in this country and want to pull it out of this economic and political mire. Those who are professional politicians yet patriotic. Loaded yet clean. Tested and tried yet not rotten. And let's be fair with ourselves and Khan...we don't want him to sit in the opposition again and be a mere pressure group, leaving the country in the hands of those who have plundered it over the last 20 years.

As long as Khan himself is at the helm of affairs and his top brass is super clean and competent, we can hope for real reforms, justice and an end to "big" corruption. Just look at how the private sector corporations are run. If the top management has unquestionable integrity, the business is mostly well-managed despite teeny weeny hanky panky by the junior managers here and there. Big corruption is the real threat. Foreign investors are apprehensive, state-run enterprises are on the brink of total collapse, the culture of kick-backs is so well-rooted in the government sector primarily because of trickle down corruption. So I agree with Khan when he says, "The top shall be clean. With that I will wipe out all big corruption in the first 90 days."

Khan's supporters, and those who are still a little unsure about siding with him, will have to show more tolerance and patience. Afterall, we are a desperate nation looking for a ray of hope. We want him to win. We really want to give him a chance.

We are a little too emotional as a nation. And hence the intensity in our love and hatred. I find nothing wrong with that. That is who we are. That makes us a passionate people. We just need to commit ourselves fully. And perhaps a lot more patience will come in handy. Be it Khan's embracing of Makhdooms of PPP and PML or one bad performance by our cricket team.