No Fake Receipts!

"We apologize for being unable to issue receipts in excess of actual amounts."

The unhappy ordinance with a happy end

After preventing the government from slapping the 'carbon tax', the judiciary seems to be willing to face an executive on the 'routine' matters of business.

While auguring well, it sets the stage for a showdown between the two branches of government. In response, the government has issued a Presidential Ordinance in the form of a "Petroleum Development Levy" which attempts to collect the 122 billion rupees the initially proposed "Carbon Tax" was meant to do.

Naturally all these are good signs for developing institutions of Pakistan.

While I should have filled my car tank yesterday when the prices of petrol had been cut by 10 rupees due to the court order, I missed the window of opportunity as within 24 hours, the prices are back to what they were due to the use of an ordinance.

Personal anguish aside, the fact that the Parliament has once again been side-stepped, reflects the tension and conflict that is rising in the pillars that hold this state together. Whereas the earlier order by the court clipped the 'irrational' exercise of decision by the parliament, the Presidential ordinance enters to side-step both the activist courts as well as the irresolute parliament.

Despite the 'powers' seemingly enjoyed by the President, one cannot help but note that by unwittingly utilizing the tool of the ordinance, Zardari has forced the people to start looking at his powers with a microscope. The lawyers are already threatening to hold daily 'dharna' in Lahore and elsewhere until the ordinance is repealed. The civil society, which was already burdened with taxes, and saw the court a harbinger of good news, will join. The media will highlight the conflict on the street to the very end. Analysts and various stakeholders will have a shootout.

In the end, the powers of the President will be permanently clipped with the Parliament reemerging as the central force of the executive and the judiciary emerging as the arbitrar of justice. Or so I would like it to be scripted...

Electrified Judiciary

In a repeated series of activist undertakings, the supreme court, lead by CJ Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary continues to become a stumbling block in the face of government's financial wizards.

The government had attempted to increase power tariffs once again. However, the court has prevented the government from doing so. While it is clearly a sign of judicial activist, that we all feel happily surprised is because we have never known the judiciary so willing to step in and actually do something about a government bent on applying fixes in the form of excessive tax increases.

The electricity crisis has brought the most difficult summer and with the complete shutdown of the Mangla Dam power units, resulted in the lowest point of this government. To then see its ministers apply 'solutions' in the form of even more taxes is not only ridiculous, it smacks of stupidity. If this electricity crisis was entirely the result of Musharaf's incompetence, the current management decisions reflect a desire to outdo that incompetence.

Iranian Revolution and Neda

Whatever the outcome, the ruling hierarchy of Iran stands exposed and shattered. The aura of purity, integrity, discipline and sanctity stand obliterated with every passing day the protesters in Iran defy authority.

We don't know who Neda Soltan was but like the many young who have stood in the face of authoritarian high handedness, her spirit was not unknown. I only heard her name today and was stunned by the video of her death.

There are already a series of videos commemorating and will keep the spirit of defiance alive until the ayatollahs buckle.

Video 1
Video 2

The Ayatollahs of Iran have taken pages off of Shah's book. The rule of 'vilayat-e-fiqh' is as unnatural and as undemocratic as rule of a one-man dictatorship. As former Iranian President Khatami once said: "If you read the pages of history, anything that has stood in the way of freedom has been damaged. If religion stands in the way of freedom, it will be damaged. "

The clerics may win this battle, but they have already lost the war.

An assertive judiciary

Amongst some of the other instances highlighted whereby the judiciary is seen to be taking on vested and criminal interests, another story in The News reveals the extent to which the 're-throned' judges are itching to go. It was not long ago that the judiciary was seen as an instrument of oppression, a decadent institution that functioned to deny justice.

So it is important perhaps, to magnify any incident in which we can see the judges taking on the interests of the status quo forces. Having 'non-bailable arrest warrants' issued for 30 policemen including the low-ranking officers is not a regular story. Nor is it usual to see the judges commanding the SSP Police to arrest EDO's, DDO's or Deputy Directors.

The judiciary is finally flexing its muscle. And we ain't seen nothing yet!

Alternative views on Iqbal

From time to time, this blog will attempt to critique Allama Iqbal, considered to being Pakistan's national poet and its leading 'intellectual'. Whereas all great philosophers and thinkers have numerous critics who critique, find flaws and reevaluate their philosophies, testing to see if they stand the test of time and expansion of knowledge, Allama Iqbal has no critics.

On numerous occasions I inquired from the Iqbal Academy (located on 6th floor of Aiwan-e-Iqbal, Lahore) to assist me on a book critiquing Iqbal's philosophy or poetry. However, the only book on 'criticisms of Iqbal' in their computerized database was 'Allama Iqbal's criticism of western philosophy'.

While Iqbal may have 'implored' Muslims of the subcontinent to 'think and contemplate', practically he has proven to be an extremely stagnant force in both the intellectual and philosophical realm. The reasons exist in the ideas expounded in his book, 'Reconstruction of religious thought in Islam', a series of seven lectures.

The only person who has attempted to 'critique' Iqbal without inviting accusations of 'unpatriotism' and such forth is Javed Iqbal, the poet's son. A open, broader discussion on Iqbal's philosophy, its limitations, potential and ramifications is needed.

Pakistanis will eventually come to understand that there is more to philosophy and intellect than Iqbal.

As Iqbal would say, 'sitaroan say aagay jehaan aur bhi hain..." [there are world's that exist beyond our imaginations...]

Cases for hope

Examples of cases where the judiciary has begun to do its job and ensuring justice is done.

In the poultry feed case, it has summoned the Federal Bureau of Revenue Chairman Ahmed Waqar on July 19 as per report (Dailytimes). The government's claim that the feed was composed of elements as declared was rejected and a more 'authentic' laboratory test was required. Latif Khosa, the Attorney General was (once again) snubbed.

In a case favoring the laborers, the court has ordered that daily laborers of CAA be regularized.

These cases come in the backdrop of the national judicial policy.

More such cases of the courts stepping in to enforce the law will be highlighted.

Countering Taliban Terrorism

The celebrations for the restoration of the Chief Justice had not even begun and the nation was gifted with the exorbitant rise in the plague known as the Taliban.

The lack of justice, collapse of the educational system, the failure to address the basic problems and defend the rights of the disenfranchised had created a vacuum in the state apparatus. The failures of successive government institutions over the past sixty years had become ingrained in the psyche of the population. No one seemed to rise up and offer a constructive, progressive and viable alternative.

In this vacuum, it was thus not surprising that criminal elements would rear their ugly heads. The lure of quick money for the unskilled, uneducated and indoctrinated in a state that had given up its responsibilities was too powerful and easy to give up. Just like criminals have a field day when security lapses, the Taliban and their decadent beliefs had a field day in wrecking havoc in Swat. Preventing children from recieving polio vaccinations, preventing girls from attaining education and banning music are some of the most assinine examples of their decadent ideology.

While understanding this phenomenon is critical to finding a solution, harping about the failures of the past helps no one. Often our political leaders stoop to constantly regurgitating the need to 'understand' the rise of criminals and Taliban. This explanation at some point starts to sound like a justification and becomes not only counter productive but self-defeating. Such arguments lead one into a corner. For example, earlier this year, some opposition politicians were eager to highlight that there is a difference between the problems in Swat and those of FATA. We were told that the militants in Swat are fighting for their brand of religion (and supposedly, justice). In contract, the fight in FATA was a result of the spillover from the failed policies of NATO. Yet, we find the same politicians today, perhaps to score points, link the fight in Swat to drone attacks in FATA because it has become impossible to give credible justification to the loonies operating in black turbans.

We all hear from our elders of how after partition in 1947, the courts, the police and the bureaucracy of the nation worked with extreme efficiency. The neutrality ingrained by the colonial system in the rules of governance was still in tact. Rulers, including the generals, took care to follow the law. The judges were seen as figures of worthy of extreme respect. Justice was done and seen to be done in most realms of Pakistan.

If today, that British-built system of justice no longer provides relief, should we all pick up guns and start become, looters, murderers and barbarians? Based on the constant rant bordering on 'justification' of rise of criminals, should Punjabis, who remember better days in the early stages of Pakistan, start to arm themselves? If these politicians were 'revolutionaries', then it could make sense. But they are self-proclaimed borderline reformist at best. Including most of us. We should act accordingly.

It seems the argument presented for Swat's demise to Talibanism is amateurish and increasingly sounds like a point-scoring exercise. Particularly if the fascist policies of Taliban are not treated with the same vehemence as those practiced in Karachi by Altaf Hussain. It is unfortunate that we refuse to see the synonyms between the two fascist entities and instead treat them with unequal ferocity. In fact, the Taliban were out rightly rejected by the people of Swat in what everyone considers was a free and fair election in 2008. Voters went to the ballot box despite threats of being bombed by the Taliban, kicked out parties lead by religious personalities and brought in ANP and PPP.

But knowing about the rise of Taliban terrorism is only one side of the coin. Pakistan's internal collapse was all the more notorious only because of the support of militant outfits that were operating at will in locations outside Pakistan. To date, there is no blunt condemnation of the role of the Pakistan establishment in arming and abetting the 'jihadis'. One the one hand the governance system was allowed to collapse and on the other, the state supported the mushrooming growth of decadence inspired by religion. That decadence was 'acceptable' as long as it was directed outside the frontiers, supported the local dictators or foreign powers.
Pakistan's policy of aiding the rebels in Afghanistan at behest of the West with full financial, moral, cinematic (Rambo III) and political backing is still considered the 'right policy' by many in the country. But today's war on terror suddenly seems unacceptable.

While the 'war on terror' should never have been Pakistan's war, the argument becomes difficult to sustain when the state has been complicit in perpetuating 'non-state' actors to commit their violent acts across international borders. Be it those in Afghanistan in the 1980's or in Kashmir in the 1990's. These 'non-state' actors and those supporting them only hurt Pakistan's ability to become a self-sustaining and respectable nation. The Afghan policy only harmed Pakistan in the 1980's under Zia. The same is true of Musharaf's policies in FATA. Unless we make blanket rejection of our past policies undertaken at the behest of and for the support of non-democratic and external forces, we cannot convincingly claim that this is not our war.

To a large extent we are reaping what we sowed.

If we are to understand the 'problem' we need to call out to amend our past policies as well as reform the state institutions. Taliban ideology is the manifestation of all that is wrong in Pakistan and is the 'jahaliya' of the era. It is the 'dajjal' of our time. The decadent ideology of the Taliban offers nothing but a relegation to a life of swine-hood.

Without a vision where justice is easily accessible, where a standardized school system will not disappoint, where basic health facilities are available, where peasants till their own land and the feudal lord has been decapitated, where men and women learn skills to become economically independent, where minds are taught to be progressive, to love and further knowledge, to make music, poetry, art, to create, without encouraging and establishing these ingredients and mechanisms, the war against barbaric Taliban terrorism cannot be won.

Let's be clear. Military might must be used with vicious force when barbarians forcefully overthrow the sacred legal system of Pakistan. We must support this with the same passion as we support the trial of Musharaf under Article 6 for subverting the constitution. But military might will be futile if it is not backed by plans for a better system as sadly is currently the case.

The spate of terrorist attacks which have begun across Pakistan threaten each of us. Today is our test - just like the two years of struggle to restore the Chief Justice was our test. But now, we must go further and re-imagine Pakistan. This is where the role of all political parties becomes vital as the Army cannot win wars.

Political parties, rather than engaging in point scoring exercises, should develop constructive models that offer us something more than apologetic arguments for reasons for the existence of swine known as the Taliban. Already we can see the superior courts lead by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary working to clean out the corrupt practices and personalities in the judicial system. The uplifting declaration that backlog of cases be cleared and that a case should be resolved within a year gives tremendous hope that this system, our system as ennunciated by the Constitution of 1973 is far superior to anything anyone has ever implemented in this land. The judiciary needs the focused support of all political parties as the CJ cannot clean house on his own. The political parties are the entities that can provide the support. If political parties like Maududi's progeny continue to obfuscate the issue, they are becoming an obstacle to the next critical steps in achieving judicial independence and deserve to be labelled as 'Taliban sympathisers'.

It is surprising that the political parties who were at the forefront of the movement for justice over the past two years have lapsed into bickering over whether Taliban terrorism has justification or not. Instead of this apologetic stance, it would be much better to continue supporting the cause for an independent judiciary by remaining true to this agenda and sticking with it, supporting it and condemning, opposing and rejecting anyone, anywhere in Pakistan who tries to destroy this agenda - be they in black turbans or in khakis.

If PTI and other important national parties take this stand, they will take the air out of any argument for an armed lunacy that is seeking to prop up a decadent and obscene system supposedly practiced in the past. We have a better system and it needs the support of all members of society - parliament, opposition, judiciary, military, bureaucracy and civil society to help reform and work.

Pakistan's people are our most precious assets. It is humiliating that we have to resort to armed force to restore order. Even more that millions of our people have to become homeless and live in a limbo and need all our support. Rather than constantly be swayed by these painful individual events, we should seek to tear out the source of this malaise. Supporting the process of democracy, no matter how flawed and upholding the constitution is the first step. Continuing to support our judicial system (rather than the fairy tales of the past) is another step. Anyone who blatantly rejects the constitution of Pakistan while simultaneously refusing to bring change via democratic means reflects a growth in the cancer. It should be dealt with accordingly.