Musharraf’s Coup - Seven Years Later

It is hard to disagree with Dr. PH but he comes across as an analyst who is bent upon taking the negatives and making a case against mushy. Further, he rarely goes after the army which is really the source of Mushy’s power. Dr. PH has been going after Mushy for a long time without actually showing what the alternate is. Though it is not necessary for a political analyst to look at the alternates but an analyst should be aware of the ground realities that have often tied Pakistani establishment to certain sets of policies.

The very first paragraph of the article is telling. It does show Dr. PH’s frustration with Mushy but it also shows that governments in Pakistan, both army or civilian, never had many choices and they had to live with the hand they have been dealt.

Read the following from the article above:

“Like the other insecure governments before it, both military and civilian, the present regime also has a single point agenda – to stay in power at all costs.”

The question that Dr. PH fails to explore is: what makes governments -both army and civilian-in Pakistan insecure? That is to say that he understands the problem but wants to overlook it just to berate the mush govt.

As I said it is hard to disagree with Dr. PH and I will tread gingerly myself as I don’t want to come across as a mushy supporter which I am not and I too would prefer to see the army govt fold as quickly as possible from the political scene. However, being a realist, I think it is important to explore the causes of the insecurities that Dr. PH mentions but refuses to expand.

The conventional wisdom is that the army govts in Pakistan are strong and are pretty much able to do what they want. Dr. PH understands that the army governments in Pakistan are not as strong as the CW suggests and he knows that they are as insecure as the civilian govts but he turns around and a takes a position that only a common man on the street could take. He really wants mush to act like Ataturk knowing fully well that Mush is not Ataturk and there are inherent weaknesses in the political system in Pakistan that make pretty much all govts insecure.

The point that I am trying to drive home is that once a political commentator or an analyst figures out that the govt is inherently insecure, he should act and analyze better than a common person and NOT talk abt Ataturk type of changes in Pakistan by anyone much less an insecure army govt. Realize that the Ataturk type of changes really mean some autocratic actions to bring in a few alterations that perhaps a dictator would prefer.

So while Dr. PH would like Pakistan to be democratically governed, he still wants Mush to act like a dictator and make the changes Dr. PH would like to see in Pakistan.

Pakistan is not a democratic country but various groups in Pakistan work through a system of consensus. Needless to say that unadulterated democracy is not needed to develop consensus. Even dictatorial regimes have to develop a sort of consensus on some minimum program to govern. The lack of hereditary form of government forces everyone including the army generals and civilians with landslide victories to develop some understanding with various groups to govern effectively. An army general develops some consensus with various groups after he takes over and the politicians do it before they win elections.

Whereas it is far more easier for the politicians to develop a broad base consensus, the army generals due to the autocratic nature of the government find it hard to develop a broad base consensus. The lack of defined political goals and a smaller consensus also makes non political governments to swing widely between different groups or cave in quickly to vocal groups.

In Pakistan’s case neither the political parties nor the army have been able to develop a broad base consensus with different groups. The lack of the broad base consensus leads to insecure governments thus forcing both the army or the civilians to shy away from taking some actions that are vehemently opposed by the vocal groups or the groups that have the muscle to take over the streets to create law and order situations because they are armed to the teeth and can cause some serious damage to the government.

This post is already too long. People can hopefully figure out now as to why Mush can’t go full court press against the Mullah in one drastic Ataturk style move.

Bear in mind that people like Dr. PH or should I say the moderate groups in Pakistan also don’t have enough political muscle to provide counter weight to the rampaging mullah. In the absence of strong moderate groups, it is hard for any government whether it is managed by the civilians or by the army to take mullah supported laws off the books.

Pakistani moderates are not strong enough politically, despite the huge support in the country, to become a viable option for Mush to go to for support when he faces stiff opposition from Mullah and is forced to cave in thus causing serious indigestion to people like Dr. PH who analyze political situations without realizing the ground realities.

Now it is a separate subject why political parties have not been able to develop a broad base consensus and why the army cannot have a broad base consensus.

ally,

most things associated with govt of pak reek of mediocrity - pia for instance. its not surprising therefore that govt`s attempt to promote urdu seem hamhanded. i dont think performance of the govt will change until there is an improvement in our education system because people who staff our govt are a product of the system.

as far as reactionary islam is concerned, that has been around much before the creation of pak. maulana shibli naumani was for my money the biggest urdu and islamic scholar produced by the subcontinent. yet even he who was responsible for the most comprehensive biography on prophet mohammed ever produced was hounded by reactionary mullahs. shibli naumani also played a huge role in the promotion of urdu in the subcontinent. you are correct in highlighting the negative role played by reactionary mullahs in our society. the best way to tackle them is to take them on in their own territory. secularism is not the right antidote because people dont want that just like awam awam in places like turkey and iran.

Dr. Hoodbhoy,

I express my sympathy for ur rough handling of police in Islamabad, though u were peacefully protesting (a few months ago). The photo I saw in Dawn is a show of muscle power on a decent group of high-value individuals. Sorry abt that.

Best wishes to u & ur country till another Genearl turns up as saviour :-) (-:
(i.e mixed feelings).

VRV:67
I express my sympathy for ur rough handling of police in Islamabad

...............................................................................
Sympathy? which side are you on?!


This is revolution! Pakistan has arrived. If a lowly professor can rough handle police in Pakistan, it calls for celebration....congratulations Pakistan. Finally,Hoodbhoy did something right.

Sign me up...I am itching to rough handle a lot of uniforms in Pakisan.

and again VRV,

why do you say you are sorry to have looked at the photo in Dawn?

*the present regime also has a single point agenda – to stay in power at all costs*

The second agenda is to break PK into pieces as per his masters at RAND CORP

*enlightened moderation*

Most of the ppl don`t have a clue of what this enlightened moderation stands for. You wanna know? Google word ``Illuminati``.

*Citibank Prime Minister, Shuakat Aziz*

At the end of the day, This `short-cut aziz` works for ``Rothschild`` banking cartel.

*Balochistan*

if you wanna know why this HYPE about balochistan is being propagated and why musharraf the mason is doing the same thing as PK army did in Bangladesh, you need to read RAND CORP.`s report on PK and SE Asia

Re: # 68

Echo,

I liked ur manly language.

I side with the professor, obviously not that he`s from a family that had links with Bombay-Goa region in India but for his espousal of national concerns in Pakistan i.e making of Pakistan as a normal nation devoid of poison. It shud come of age. Shud say gud bye to old shibboleths. Say welcome to 21st century. Shud say bye bye to old theories and welcome to new changes. Shud always be open to changes that gives space for people of all religions, all shades of races.....many more preogressive issues.

Mine is similar to ur peoples` admiration for Arundhati Roy who speaks for the underdogs.

Any more questions?

Yes... VRV professor Hoodbhoy is a good man... and I support his efforts.

Are you ready to do the same thing for India... because in Modern 21st Century India we find this nonsense as below...


oy weds hill to ward off curse
Web posted at: 10/14/2006 3:5:49
Source ::: AFP

ranchi, India • A teenage boy in a tribal village in eastern India wed a hill in order to appease its goddess and remove a curse placed on his mother, a report said yesterday.

The boy, Robin, married a hill named Lakshmi after the goddess of prosperity in the presence of a large number of witnesses in Jharkand state, the Hindustan Times said.

The boy`s mother, who had fallen and hurt herself while trying to climb the hill, believed the goddess was unhappy with her. She started to pray to Lakshmi and after three months the deity visited her in a dream.

``The hill goddess asked me to get my son married with her. The marriage will help in getting rid of her curse,`` said Keswar Devi, who lives in Bordih village, some 170 kilometers southeast of the state capital Ranchi.

``I requested my son and he agreed for the marriage.``

On Tuesday, Robin wore a traditional bridegroom`s outfit and set out on foot with a large festive party from his village to the hill three kilometers away.

The 400 villagers washed the hill with water and Robin placed a garland at the top.

After the priest performed the wedding rituals, a reception was thrown by the groom`s family.

``I have accepted the hill as my wife,`` said Robin. ``I have no remorse.``

A local anthropologist said it was not uncommon for tribal people to marry objects or animals.

``There are scores of examples that tribal people got married with trees, dogs and other animals,`` former Ranchi University anthropology professor V S Uppadhyah said. ``Their life is inextricably associated with nature.``

I dont want to adress u in any board except on Zafrullah Khan`s and UP. Since u raised it I must say this:

We in India fight all kinds of obscurantism, individually and institutioanlly. There`s a world of diff between ur Constitution and ours, in ur passports and ours and many more issues.

I like Dr. Hoodbhoy since the infomation scene was opned up between our 2 countries. He`s one of the first columnists I read in mid-90s. I changed my view on Pakistanis by reading him coz, he`s not the dark-minded Pakinstani I thought abt an average Pakistani.

Institutianally Pakistan and India are two diff worlds.

Echo,

I didnt phrase the sentence properly.

It was the professor who was seen being pushed by the security staff in Islamabad.

The author has made some interesting observations, but ignores the elephant in the room, the U.S. US military reports are already envisioning Pakistan sans Balochistan. So their role in both issues (Wazirstan and Balochistan) should be seriously investigated. All movements require money and these forces are getting money from somewhere. Follow the money. Perhaps to opium fields across the border. Pakistan and Musharraf are pawns in the great game. The average person on the ground knows this all too well. Also, For all his weaknesses Musharraf has pushed the peace process with India further than any other leader. I don`t beleive there is any one else in Pakistan today who can or even has the will to do this.

The complete dissolution of whatever is left of post 1971 Pakistan is definitely in the interests of atleast Sindhis, Baluchis and Saraikis. It will also be of great help to Kashmiri people and Indians as Waziristani Talibans and Muridke`s Lashkar e Taiba will have to attend to a more urgent task of creating Islamic Caliphates in Lahore and Miranshah instead of creating troubles elsewhere.

Re: # 71
mantolives writes:
>Are you ready to do the same thing for India... because in Modern 21st Century India we >find this nonsense as below...


>Boy weds hill to ward off curse
>Web posted at: 10/14/2006 3:5:49
>Source ::: AFP ``
>The hill goddess asked me to get my son married with her. The marriage will help in >getting rid of her curse,`` said Keswar Devi, who lives in Bordih village, some 170 >kilometers southeast of the state capital Ranchi.
>``I requested my son and he agreed for the marriage.``

If the above comment represents the mental state of an ivy league educated
pakistani like mantolives, i see no hope for pakistanis. They all seem to be idiotic to the
core with mental comprehension of the 7th century bedouins they follw.
Any ordinary indian would only see positive in the above news. The boy wants to help
her sick mom which is commendable. The woman believes in a hill goddess which
is no more weird than believing in a prophet who heard voices in air. And more
importantly that tells you how free india really is. It is a truly spiritual nation where
new ideas/faiths are not just tolerated but are thriving. The only nation in this world
that is progressing on a spiritual path and has a chance to give birth to new religions.
This is an important freedom which is far above what an average pakistani like yourself
can fathom.

Re: # 68

//Sign me up...I am itching to rough handle a lot of uniforms in Pakisan.//

lol.... arent you in canada?.... you coward..... at least the lowly professor is not living on canadian tax payer money....

Re: # 71

your comments are highly amusing..... while the hindus are marrying hills and trees.... good ol muslims are keeping the tradition of their prophet alive.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5541006

allah-o-akbar.

This has been languishing on unplugged.
From Malangbaba`s blog.

A madressa student gives it real good to a Ba Ba Blacksheep in Uniform. Worth watching!
This belongs here

and then there is this anal cyst....the anglo-Uungleed PhoodBhoy

This connects directly to ``Musharraf in the catbird seat``