An Open Letter to Gen. Pervaiz Musharaff

Mr batley and mr saeed!

You are talking about which constitution: The one which was so badly deformed to suit those corrupt and illegal rulers who have ruined the country and looted the national wealth and tried to flourish one part of the country at the expense of the efforts and hard earnings of other parts of the country, and what kind of democracy you are talking about in pakistan, can I ask you one question?

Is there really a constitution in good spirits intact in pakistan?

DO YOU REALLY KNOW WHAT DOES DEMOCRACY MEANS?

Is this called democracy or civilian dictatorship?

You are talking about restoration of democracy?

Is there really any democracy in pakistan to restore ?

If this is democracy then I hate it and pray Allah that may Allah keep pakistan from this democracy for ever? and you know that this is not democracy

Is promotion and practice of racism and nationalism is called democracy according to your definition?

Please do not get so much blinded in pursuit of nationalistic agendas like nazis or there would be a repetition of germans nazis` or serbs` treatment by the international community.

How could you say yourself a pakistani and blindly favour the most corrupt and Baeghaerat ruler of pakistani history, a parasite who was sucking the blood of poor pakistanis. I have one more question for you. Are you one of the realtives of those most hateful parasites belonging to PML or paid employee working for their benefits and objectives? I think you should come to pakistan and live there and feel what pakistanis are feeling and going through.

I think it is better to wait and see what the army people are planning to do. They are talking about accountibility of all those parasitic character politicians, and that is what we really need now. We do not need democracy and we do not need politicians. We need peace, religious freedom, economical stability and safety and equal rights and equal sharing of our resources according to our efforts and abilities and limitis. I think you should voice for the dismissal of benazir and nawaz sharif from the politics for ever, and pray for kind, honest and sincere rulers and it does not matter from where they come from, democracy may not always be the solution to our problems and we can not prosper by continuously begging money from western world.

Snahmed

Better to have a country with no constitution than to have no country at all-- which was the direction in which we were heading.

Sitting in a democratic environment in the democratic capital of the world Washington DC., how can the authors even think of writing on the affairs in Pakistan. I would welcome their comments if they were in Pakistan and tasting the ``fruits`` of Pakistani Democracy over the past decade .. the fruits of decadent politicians, corrupt to the bones, opportunitists, self serving , characterless leaders.

With a ``real`` literacy rate of hardly 10%, with abject poverty, vedara shahi, chaudhries, ul Haqs, Watoos, Qazis, Bhutttos, Sharifs, Rajas, Rehmans leading this unfortunate nation, like a game of musical chairs. Democracy in this country has been the biggest farce ever. The masses being illiterate and down trodden and living a life of servitude never had a voice in the so called ``democratic`` governments. Our people are like sheep following whoever leads them to be slaughtered.

The mindset of our so called leaders has been never different from their vedera shahi backgrounds .. a mindset worse than any military rule.

The vedara shahi mindset produced statements from these soul-less leaders such as Bhuttos famous ``yeh kursi bohat maz boot hay`` to Benazirs` ``Bhuttos are borne to rule``, and similar utterings by other leaders. They have all sought to own the Country .. lock stock and barrel .. no questions invited.

The military is the only institution left in Pakistan, rot has demolished all others. This infact may be the only chance left for Pakistan. Corruption has been so wide spread in the past decade that even for an appointment as a peon huge bribes are required, the ultra rich belonging to the above families hardly pay any taxes while the middle classes and salaried class are squeezed. Banks are looted, state lands are given as bribes, lucrative contracts are doled out to near and dear ones, bureacrats roam around in luxury cars, taking bribes left right and center; what democratic institutions and constitution are the authors referring to ?

Democracy works where there is some awareness and public conscience and public voice and freedom. It does not work in countries like Pakistan where institutions do not exist any more.

Long live Military Rule .. At least until this country has a functioning accountability system in place, institutions are cleansed, the public becomes educated, the rich pay their taxes, and the corrupt are punished for their evil deeds.

I think this article lays out national aspirations and in particular democratic ideals very well. Unfortunately the situation on the ground in Pakistan does not lend itself to accurate academic analysis - specially orthodox Western analysis based on democracy as a paramount. Pakistan was not moving forward in the last democratic decade. Rather, for those on the ground in Pakistan, decline and decay into chaos was apparent. Loans were not being repaid, corruption was rife, and the economic situation deteriorating. That is why successive governments called upon the Army as a last resort to clean up WAPDA, or Sindhi ethnic clashes or what have you. I myself was an avid supporter of Nawaz in the beginning because of this can do business ethic and his supply side economics and seemingly visionary measures in income tax rates, duties etc. But once again there was a huge gap between policy and its implentation. If the Army is considered capable and dependable enough to be used by successive governments to solve the most difficult political and governance problems - then it can be used to solve the most fundamental problems in our country i.e. corruption and the absence of law.

Mateen and Rahal,

You have no fucking idea wht you are talking about. Have you ever seen people gettign shor, tires burnign on the streets of Karachi, people getting slaughtered. When you have seen all that then come talk to me.

I will be in the forefront of your rallies. Why do you waste others` time if you have nothing to do.

Well said gentlemen,

What Pakistanis in general fail to understand is the rule of precdence - if you value a certain set of principles you dont violate them time & again - regardless of the situation. The past two prime ministers and Pakistani politicians in general are quite vile creatures, and deserve our
ill-wishes ... Nonethless - we are a nation of laws ( or so I pray ) and as a gradually evolving species ought to respect them ... THe action by the junta is imdefensible legally & morally ....

Actually Nawaz Sharif should have been impeached when he violated the sanctity of the Supreme court , any civilized people would have done so.... but not our Parliament - or public opinion ( if it mattered) and the few voices of reason & dissent were muffled by the apathetic majority ...

The problem lies not with the junta or the politicians - The problem gentlmen is you & I ....
We Pakistanis besides sloganeering & arm chair politics have no concept of collective good - educated or not.... - it will take another stratum of darwinian evolution for the right neurons to grow ( now that we know that brain cells regenerate - atleast in monkeys) - We practice stupidity as a virtue .....

So much for constructive criticism .... is there a sense of despondency .... perhaps so - but you Mueen were always the optimist .... sitting in the motherland after a long haitus I wonder if there is any good left in us .... BUt then again there are the Akhtar Hameed Khans & the Edhis that give us hope .....

Mueen & Rahul

You have harped so much that Gen Musharraf went against the constitution by removing Nawaz. Please understand that the people of Pakistan are superior to the constitution.

Yes. Gen Musharraf has gone against the constitution, but he has saved the people of Pakistan.To me the people of Pakistan are more important than a piece of document.

I am appalled at the tripe you wrote. A fellow reader referred to your being ``brown sahibs`` or too Westernized as an explanation for why you mindlessly favored ``democracy.`` I would beg to take issue with them. One can be a brown sahib and excruciatingly Westernized and still realize that, to quote the late Field Marshal Ayub, ``democracy is not suited to the genius of the Pakistani people.`` Even the West, the main exporter of democracy to the benighted darkies, did not rush to fully embrace democracy. There was a long transition period from initial ``democracy`` (read: republican government) to what we now consider democratic. For instance, the best estimates are that the franchise in the US in the late-eighteenth century did not extend to over 15 percent of the population. Similarly, in Great Britain, it was a series of reform acts that extended the franchise over the period of almost a hundred years.

I fully agree with Sir Winston Churchill`s assessment that India would be able to govern itself (i.e., reach self-governing dominion status) by 1960 or so, and to grant it independence before that would be to betray the Indian people to the mercies of their political leaders--for whom he rightly had nothing but contempt.

I would recommend to you Farid Zakaria`s excellent article on ``Illiberal Democracy`` in Foreign Affairs, where he points out why the wave of democracy spreading over the Third World has brought nothing but populist authoritarians to power.

There is nothing, I repeat, nothing intrinsically desirable about democracy per se. Being a highly-Westernized, brown sahib, what I want is a liberal democratic system: rule of law, constitutionalism, an independent judiciary, and so on. Are you seriously arguing that Nawaz Sharif provided that? While the track record of the Pakistani military is mixed, to be charitable, Gen. Musharraf`s coup is Pakistan`s last hope. If he fails, or turns out to be no better than Gen. Zia, than the best we can hope for is the continual Talibanization of Pakistan. The rise in fundamentalism (and yes, I use the word deliberately) we see in countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Algeria and so on, is a direct result of the massive amount of corruption endemic in those countries. This corruption means that the state is incapable of delivering any measure of public goods and services to its people. Why are we surprised then that the people turn to the mullahs? What else is there left for them? If the Taliban come to power, then God help us all then. Or wait, is he on their side?

I have gone through to your best worded article and this have motivated me to give you some comments on it. I appreciate your concerns and as well as respect them from my heart.

From my childhood I am used to ask a very simple question from myself that I never had an answer. I think might be the individuals like you could answer it very easily.

All historical material supports the fact that in 1947 the Islam was only theme, motivation and commitment behind the creation of our country. The whole Nation gave the confidence to our Leader only on the call of Islam and for the establishment of Islamic socity.

Then in past years some political figures made the constituation of this country that was originally created for Islamic socity and then every political party, leaders, instituations and as well as whole nation have started their efforts to save and implement this new created set of rules. Every new elected government made modification in it based on their own requirments. The people who have been involved in creation and modifications of this paper have what type of background and character, we all know very well and requires no need to be discussed.

I do not understand why we need this man-made constituation especially in the presence of Quran ? Why we are very touchy about this set of rules that have been created and made by some politions for their own intresetes and to save their own acts ? And on the other hand we never care about the rules of our GOD ? To whom we have given the commitment.

The consititution that has been created by some short sighted experts gets more importance in our daily lives than the rules of real GOD. Do not we have to think about this ? I know your first response would be the same that I always get. Because for the translation of Quran we need some experts too but the question is, Did we ever tried to implement this way of life in our named Islamic country?

I think its only because of one reason, that no doubt we claim that we are Muslims and Pakistan is made for the implementation of real Islamic socity but we never mean it. We as a Nation do not have trust on GOD and his system. And we do have confidence on these selfish leaders that only use this Nation and Country for their own intrests.

I always surprise to look towards my Pakistani brothers and sisters who only support their own ideals and try to convience everybody for their abilities but never tries to follow the real Leader of the world, my Muhammad (p.b.u.h). I will request all the readers, for the second thought before they express their views or comments on any walk of life. Pls. try to become good muslim and taht will give us a muslim socity.

GOD bless our Country and its whole Nation.

I am surprised with Mueen and Rahal`s comments. These comments seemed to be based on a ``western`` ideas of democracy with no touch of the pakistani reality.

I am extremely happy with the action taken by General Pervaiz Musharaff. I was recently in Pakistan and shocked to see the state of common people throughout the country and corruption by both Nawaz Sharif and Benazir.

Go Army GO. We love your actions.

A Canadian Pakistani

Reply to Mr Batley and, Mr. Rahal,

You are living abroad out of the country, and your names suggests that your community is different than the one for which our country came into being

If you can comprehend what I mean by the above three lines then you are the right people to have a discussion, but if it is opposite then , please follow what I intend to convey.

Nawaz Sharif got a heavy mandate in 1997 elections

on just one point, i.e., ACCOUNTABILITY and recovering loans from big defaulters. Our people are so cute, knowing the fact, that Nawaz Sharif is himself defaulter of about 40 million $, is just making mockery of the people`s choice. Nodoubt, he has taken some steps to steer the country towards a better future but nothing practical has been done. Higher officers were easily seen roaming about in search of flour, and arguing with shop keepers on minor price differences. Is this how to reward intellectuals and honest ones in the society?

You may be ignorant of this state of affairs, that is why mere the way of working of government is of much concern to you, without facing its good or bad consequences yourself. Since we have to spend our life here, we can gauge better.

Nevertheless, even Mrs Benazir made fool of us while she basked in the warmth of her ill-gotten wealth. Politicians in our country are doing nothing practically to improve the standard of life of a common man. In your country and other developed countries people are enjoying unemployment benefits if they can`t get employment

or social security benefits etc. but here a higher official is not able to make his both ends meet in his meagre salary, while miseries of common man are in abundance.

Action of General Mosharraf may be good or bad, time is the best judge to decide, but he should also learn from past mistakes and take immediate practical steps to improve the lot of common man by bringing down inflation and prices of common utility items to its lowest.

I hope people who simply like a particular system

should better change their outlook, there is no Islamic country where there is democracy but they are developing except Iran ofcourse.

Dear Batlay and Saeed,Your article is more disgusting and abominable than ruhdie`s satanic verses. you are nothing but two western oriented despicable brown nose pseudo intellectuals who are helping the corrupt politicians like bhutoos and sharifs to rob and plunder pakistan in the name of democracy. when a house is on fire no one cares about the means employed to put down the fire. a successful revolution is its own validation. the army will soon eradicate the country from corrupt politicians like the bhuttos and nawaz sharif and shabaz sharif and and only after that we will elect leaders of our choice who will lead the country with dignity and honor. tell me the truth, are you on sharif`s family payroll or guess what, this web site is financed by anti-pakistan groups who are bent upon its destruction. you should be asahamed of those democratic rulers who are the doormats of the west and the USA... begging for loans and aids. shame on you batlay and rahal. no honorable leader can do those things that these bhutoos and sharifs have done in the name of democracy. once again, shame on you, rahal and batlay.

Mueen and Rahal:

I don`t have much more to add to the other messages on this board. I would like to say that I was disappointed by your apparent naiveness regarding the issue. As a US-based Pakistani, I am disapointed at how hopelessly out of touch you make us seem with reality on the ground in Pakistan.

Re: Ibne Sina #6 & Junaid Alam #8

I am suprised that you do not realise the magnitude of what General Musharaff has done. He has undone the precedence(of democracy) that was just taking root.

For all your clamour about how bad democracy was undere Nawaz Sharief, u need to realise that these things are expected. Only after a couple of falls does a child learn to walk steadily.

I can understand your frustations. Coming from India, I know that uneducated, illiterate people cannot understand the imporatance of their vote. But looking at the recent elections in India, my resolve in democracy has been strengthened. Sure it took 52 years before we got it right, but at least we did. In this election each and every unpopular government, was removed by the people.

The reason why I draw parallels between India and Pakistan is because we both have the burden of uneducated masses. However if we think that those people are dumb, then it is we who are naive. Had Pakistan been a democratic country since independence, by now the people of Pakistan would have learnt the importance of themselves.

And if you still think taking short cuts works, please be so kind as to inform the readers, what the next steps of the army should be. And also provide an examples in previous times, where suspension of democracy has proved to be a blessing for the country.

xyz

RE: Iris

`` Rishi, reply #13

-- Looks like every pakitani chowkee has a vested interest in the latest affairs of their country...``

Duhhhhhhh!!!

``

-- Either i need to write better or You need to read better. Vested interest here means that one has a personal axe to grind - like being pro army or pro nawaz without bothering about the well being of the nation in itself

Now go back and read my reply again.....

Otherwise i do agree that the situation is not clear as yet and the Army has indeed announced that they would restore the nation to a democratic setup soon. However pardon my disbelief at ordinary people treating their army as only next to god. Coming from an inherently democratic country and living in another such, i need to be excused to disbelieve that sane, thinking people would eulogize one self-serving outfit over another....

Rishi

RE: Iris

`` Rishi, reply #13

-- Looks like every pakitani chowkee has a vested interest in the latest affairs of their country...``

Duhhhhhhh!!!

``

-- Either i need to write better or You need to read better. Vested interest here means that one has a personal axe to grind - like being pro army or pro nawaz without bothering about the well being of the nation in itself

Now go back and read my reply again.....

Otherwise i do agree that the situation is not clear as yet and the Army has indeed announced that they would restore the nation to a democratic setup soon. However pardon my disbelief at ordinary people treating their army as only next to god. Coming from an inherently democratic country and living in another such, i need to be excused to disbelieve that sane, thinking people would eulogize one self-serving outfit over another....

Rishi