In Defence of Benevolent Dictators

Jamshed Nazzar.

It is not a case of the egg came first or the chick. For any ideal to be attained it is first to occur in somebody’s mind, discussed profusely and then comes the stage when it can be implemented. It is also very seldom that the originator of the idea is the implementer too. What ever in this world is discussed is taken into account and policies formulated and reformulated and adjustments made. I believe the discussions for and against at chowk have also contributed, among other reasons and contribution from other sources, towards changing the posture of the USA and recently the Great Britain. Reference: “Till recently, Britain had been in the forefront in the international condemnation of the coup and had been leading a campaign to suspend Pakistan from the Commonwealth. Now it has expressed willingness to talk with the military rulers, according to a report in The Sunday Telegraph.

``Gen Musharraf will find us ready listeners and willing to play a constructive role as long as he gives uncompromising commitments to building a new democracy,`` Foreign Office Minister Peter Hain said in an interview with the paper. Reading Pakistani minds/ public opinion and situation did affect. I hope chowk is contributing greatly towards transformng us into good listeners also and providing us an opportunity in being patient and not only learnig to discuss and face crticism but also to learn to express our differences of opinion without the stink of expressinos that could be smelled across oceans as in the recent past.

As for the brain drain I feel that it is not a great loss since we are not that much developed to make use of them. They are mastering their skills and making more use of them. Whenever the conditions are conducive Pakistani Brain has come back to serve Pakistan the learned Pakistanis are and have been serving here in very adverse conditions. Among the thousands Dr. Qadir Khan being one. The other thing to remember is that many have been driven having been victim of nepotism etc., etc. Bahmad has summed it in very appropriate words when he says that brain drain would be a problem if Pakistan could make use of them all.

tariqlodi

INTENTS ARE NOW CLEARER

After 48 days of illegimate takeover of power in Pakistan by the armed forces, each day makes the intents of the so called fair deal military rulers, more and more obvious. Jernaile Mussrraf and his touts couldn`t find a single corruption case against Nawaz Sharif, the legal Prime Minister of Pakistan. But to get rid of him, the jernailes instructed their employee, a colonel to lodge a report (FIR) for flight 805 hijack. What are you trying to prove jernaile ji? Well, this is his style of accountability, of course inspired by Zia-ul-Haq, jernaile Musharraf is inclined towards elimination of Mr. Sharif for good. ``Hang him`` said the drunk jernaile after his routine Friday night booze. Musharraf may be feeling very secure after having sent all his family members to USA, including his only son, Bilal. But those who are unjust and unfair to their own country and people, shall be doomed anyway, no matter where they are. Jernaile Ji, you have acted against the constitution of Pakistan, who gave you that right? You are artificially popular in the intelligence agenicies books through phony gallop polls conducted by newspapers under your control, in real life you are a villian. You belong to the same lot that killed our first prime minister, RLA khan; hanged the second prime minister ZA Bhutto; got the third prime minister convicted; and are now aiming at hanging the legal prime minister, democratically authorised ruler of Pkaistan, Mian Nawaz Sharif. Our all these years, army has shown no respect for the people`s representative. The pakistan army generals somehow still beleive themselves to be superior, still living in a fools paradise, a part of ruling British army that conspired with the fuedals and treated my people like animals. But we are sure, that this time we will make the difference, and we shall see the jernailes hung by their necks. The world shall see you and your team end in hell. Insallah.

Bye bye Jernaile Ji

Rahat

Just read the following in DAWN: Quite interesting.

LONDON: Britain is ready to begin talks with Pakistan?s military government after effectively admitting the armed forces had a case for ``overthrowing the government of Nawaz Sharif, despite his overwhelming electoral mandate.``

In return, Britain wants Pakistan to cooperate in tracking down Osama bin Laden, sever political and financial links with the Taliban government in Afghanistan and sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT). Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Peter Hain, told The Sunday Telegraph: ``General Musharraf will find us ready listeners and willing to play a constructive role as long as he gives uncompromising commitments to building a new democracy``.

The newspaper said Britain, which previously led international condemnation of the October 12 coup and demanded Pakistan?s quick return to democracy, has signalled that it would not be pushing for the restoration of the Nawaz government. Hain, instead, criticised Nawaz Sharif?s government in very categorical terms. ``His was a corrupt, dreadful regime that looted the country and which, given the big mandate he had electorally, was an absolutely criminal waste,`` the British official said.

In response to OMAR1974 (#66):

Although China may not be an industrial giant, there is no doubt that it`s economic situation is improving. Thanks to an autocratic regime.

It`s a country with huge potential that *is * being tapped into by the ruling elite.

Although socialism cannot get credit for China`s imrpoving status on the world economic scene, it goes without say that democracy cannot either.

In fact, if China democratizes things will get much worse before they get better. China`s regime provides what no government in Pakistan (elected or otherwise) has provided: stability and somewhat sound policies (as sound as any policy that south-american, east-european, asian or african democracies make). Stability is the hallmark of functional democracies, granted. However, stability is not unique to democracies.

Noor`s points hold well. When we see the history of democracy in the developing world, there really is nothing much to write home about.

India is politically stable, but is otherwise much more like Pakistan than any of the prosperous nations. Turkey, both a staunchly (dare I say a fundementalist?) secular state and lately quite democratic, is more like Iran than any of the industrialized western nations she is so colsely modeled after.

Democracy in itself holds few solutions to many of Pakistan`s problems. What is important is a government with public confidence, and that maintains this confidence through it`s actions.

It`s irrelevant if this government is democratic or not.

In talking to many of the Chinese expatriates I work with here in Canada, I don`t think I`m exaggerating when I say that they are more for the current ruling elite in China than against.

Frankly, the merit-based system China currently employs is more appealing to them than the electorate system of democracy. I don`t blame them.

These expatriates are largely concerned with the ever-growing corruption problem within the regime, however what developing nation doesn`t suffer from this problem? And certainly democracy doesn`t provide a cure against corruption. To suggest this is nothing but pious clap-trap.

For the short term, pakistan should take political stability and certainty any way she can get it. The only alternative was chaos.

In response to jamshed nazar (Reply #: 70)

Dear Jamshed:

What you have pointed out may be considered conventional wisdom. Brain drain is often viewed as a major problem. I wonder if brain drain is really good or bad for Pakistan. I also wonder if the drain of wealth is much more serious than brain drain. If Pakistan is producing more brainy people than what it could absorb, brain drain may do something good to Pakistan. If we are so much concerned about the quality of brain draining out from Pakistan, we need to do something about it (of course, wisely). Although most people like to get out of the country for a better economic future, this is not true for all the expatriates. This is a topic that needs to be studied carefully.

John F. Kennedy`s famous saying is, I think, not applicable for Pakistan where the masses are already under a lot of pressure and difficulties. Perhaps it is much more applicable to the privileged classes who are rarely satisfied with what the country has given to them (as compared to the poor and significantly less-privileged masses).

Criticism is necessary for the health of a nation. Writing intellectual articles is definitely better than grumbling about the problems of the country and not doing anything. A good critical essay or article diagnoses the problem, explains the process through which the problem develops, and identifies some remedies. Although it is relatively easy to diagnose the illness of a single individual, it is far more difficult to diagnose societal malaise and to suggest the remedy if the source of the problem is essentially the army-bureaucracy-elite alliance which somehow finds unique ways of suppressing the masses and retards their material as well as spiritual development.

Sincerely, Bilal Ahmad

MUSHARRAF + BANKERS.

There seems to be a curious relationship with the banker types - particularly the hard drinking citibank characters. He seems to have been completely taken for ride by them. He appears to be unable to understand that these guys are hand in glove with the IMF and probably want to engineer a default and eventually a currency crisis. One plausible explanation is that the Bankers have painted a rosy picture to the Generals and suggested that if the bank default is resolved all will be well in paradise i.e the Generals will have lot of money to spend. This is quite unlikely. The bank default matter is not germane to the crisis. A man of Musharraf`s IQ is incapable of understanding that money launderers have the IMF agenda to follow in toto and their scams to protect would not care if country descends to mass impoverishment and economic collapse.

Any body have information about a very recent bank guarantee scam involving several million dollars and Habib Bank - New York ?

So long as the smart guys........and the few smart girls........keep leaving the country for greener pastures........and the remaining few adapting to the norms of ``military / bureaucratic / business`` corruption that we call the ``pakistani elite``, the musical chairs of pakistani politics will go on and on.

DONT ASK WHAT YOUR COUNTRY HAS DONE FOR U.......ASK FOR U HAVE DONE FOR YOUR COUNTRY...........

How many of the readers have / are working to improve the pakistani situation??? (beyond commneting / writing ``intellectual articles`` in silicon valley......about corruption in pakistan)

Doctor Sahib,
Is marz ki dawa taaleem hi hai,
Benevolent Dictators nahin.
Military Dictatorship is not a solution in itself
but remains a significant part of the problem in Pakistan.

Ras

This was published in TFT & Dawn letters to the editor last week. It answers the question of how to `fix` democracy so that it produces honest and accountable politicians quite well I think.

O.M

The first step towards finding the solution to Pakistan`s periodic political crises is to force the political parties that field candidates in elections, as a prerequisite by law, to hold open and transparent party elections regularly with public participation. This will allow some chance for the party workers to have a say in electing party officials and heads, which would be a step in the right direction and, hopefully break the stangle hold of the feudal politics that `leaders` like Nawaz Sharif and BB have pursued. More democracy, not less, is the answer to the dilemma General Musharraf is faced with, in revamping the system to insure political accountability. Also, in order to get a party ticket for a particular constituency I can think of nothing better as a process towards opening up the political system than holding pre-general election primaries as in the USA, in which candidates are selected by those voters who have declared themselves supporters of a particular party beforehand, and are allowed to vote in that party`s primaries to select the candidates who will run on the party ticket, as opposed to the sale of party tickets that takes place in Pakistan before elections that gives un-elected self declared leaders who have successfully maneuvered themselves into positions of influence within the party, the right to decide who does and does not get a ticket to run in the general elections. The result of this undemocratic system is that the elected legislators become personally indebted to the unelected party leader, and can be pressured to pass Amendments to the Constitution, and laws, without any parliamentary debate, and even to resign for opposing the views of the leader of the party.

Rule through ordinances, which has been a persistent feature of Pakistani Politics, even under democratically elected governments must end. Parliament must openly debate the proposed laws if Pakistan is to retain any semblance of a democratic form of government in the future. The American Primary system goes a long way towards decentralization of power, and makes certain that legislators have an independent power base with which to resist the Chief Executive`s will, and are able to vote their conscience, and thus mitigates against the unfortunate concentration of power that has been a feature of Pakistani politics for the past decade, which in fact led to the political demise of Nawaz Sharif. Greed is part and parcel of human nature, and power brings forth an insatiable lust for more, just as absolute power corrupts absolutely. But the U.S is an example of a country with a stable and democratic political system that has managed to successfully co-opt human nature. The goals of a parliamentary form of government and those of the Political System in the U.S under its Constitution are radically different. The American Political system favors legislative gridlock, precisely because it was built on the premise that power should not be concentrated lest it become absolute and autocratic, and that laws should only be passed after careful deliberation. It also favors compromise and avoids the evils of legislative extremism. The Parliamentary form of government allows for maximum efficiency, but is more susceptible to concentration of power, which infact it is designed to facilitate, and especially after the passage of the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution in Pakistan, is designed to frustrate political compromises.

The provinces need to have an independent revenue base in order to frustrate any attempt by the Federal government to impose its diktat on them in the future. Decentralization of power is essential if Pakistan is to avoid a repeat of the events of Oct 12th, 1999.

Pakistan needs a completely independent judiciary, that is not beholden to the Executive branch for appointments, promotions or emoluments. It also needs a completely independent Election Commission and a permanent and politically neutral Anti-Corruption Accountability Cell to impartially investigate all allegations of corruption and misuse of public office.

The long term solution lies of course in creating an educated society which holds politicians accountable for every paisa of public money spent, hand in hand with a free and zealously independent press. PTV, which throughout its history has acted as the brazen propaganda mouthpiece of the rulers of the day must be privatized and/or completely freed completely from direct government control.

OMAR MIRZA

I beg to differ with the following quotes from the article :

`(On Zia)Opponents were not jailed or persecuted, and the press was free and outspoken. There was no mass agitation for his removal or for the restoration of democracy. `

YOU MUST BE BLIND. Even as an 8 yr old child growing up in Karachi I remember by eyes tearing from tear gas as i passed by a demo going on in a car with my parents. And i well remember the `Islamic lashings` etc. And as for press censorship have you forgotten papers published with empty spaces ???



`The world’s largest population in China has rapidly progressed from a primitive agrarian society to a highly industrialized economy without the burden of a Western style democracy.`

Progressed yes, but not to a `highly industrialized economy,` by any means, massively mismanaged state enterprises employing vast numbers of people producing goods no one wants are in the process of being shut down since the economy is being opened up to foreign competeition. The socialist system was an utter failure. 80% plus of Chinese live in abject poverty in rural areas least you be detracted by the relative progress made in the 80s in Special Economic Zones and miss the forest for the trees.

OMAR MIRZA

Ref Gymnosophist # 64

Gymnosophist:

I think you completely misunderstood the point; the Kuwait example amply illustrates that sometimes benevolent dictators can make the correct decisions whereas democratically elected representatives may not; this happened in Kuwait last week. The widely held prejudice amongst their paliament members against allowing women to vote is an obstrustion to the liberal attitude of the Emir. Of course women should vote!

Also, balance and a little sense of humour always helps; my only objection to going to Afghanistan would be that the people like some of the correspondents here may not be able to easily discriminate between the passionately serious and the tongue in cheek!

Noor Ahmed

I recently read that the, ``Storming of the Supreme Court`` case against Nawaz Sharif has been filed again. I believe Cowasjee has sent the evidence to the Supreme Court again, as well. Last time this case was heard, even though there were videos showing NS`s goons attacking the Supreme Court of Pakistan, no decision could be taken. The reason being that people were too scared to appear as witnesses. I wonder if Nawaz Sharif`s men will have the courage to storm the Supreme Court this time, when the case is being heard against him. If not, then I feel NS will probably be convicted in this case.

Also, does anyone whether Najam Sethi has taken any legal action against Nawaz Sharif and Saif for kidnapping him from his house in the middle of the night. This should be an open and shut case. Najam Sethi also has a great amount of support from international human rights organizations, as well as the international media, on this issue. He just received another award. I think he, along with his wife, should take Nawaz and Saif to court on this, since Najam Sethi will carry a lot more credibility internationally than generals.

Considering the long list of crimes that NS and Co. have committed, i.e. massive tax evation (paid no tax last year, even though they are the wealthiest family in the country), biggest loan defaulters (i.e. sophisticate thiefs) of Pakistan, the two incidents described above, etc. I am surprised the military is pushing the, ``hijacking`` case so much. There are plenty of other areas to get the Sharif dynasty.

The black box of the aircraft, as well as the ATC radio recordings should make it quite clear, who did what regarding the aircraft incidence, and how much fuel was left, etc. I read in a Pakistani newspaper that NS`s guys had ordered the runway to be blocked by parking trucks on it. If they did this then, they will probably be convicted, because this is a crime according to ICAO (International Civil Aviation Authority). Let`s see what happens. The pilots` statements will carry a lot of weight here, as well; once the doors of the planes are shut, the captain has ultimate authority, regardless of who is in the plane.

Bahmad #54.

Thank you for appreciation. I would not expect any thing different from Omar Asghar he being a product of selection himself. To my mind democracy alas has never been given a chance in Pakistan. Mere holding of elections and announcing pretabulated results is not democracy.

Unfortunately the dishonest press/media has contributed towards disinformation among the people to the extent that when they blame democracy for session of East Pakistan they forget that it was the denial of the process of democracy which alineated east Pakistanis. Had the democracy been allowed to take its course the history and geography of Pakistan may not have been what it is today.

If the people of Pakistan can not be trusted with the task of governing themselves then one may rightly ask WHY PAKISTAN? What was wrong with the British rule. Older people who have seen the British rule era do comment that the Gora Angraise was better than the kala. I being a student of science and nature know that laws of nature can not be defied and one shudders when one sees an attempt to break the law, “ A phenomenon lives as long as the cause does.” If we forget the cause of our existence do we have a right to survive?

The masses may not be able to boast of being Harvard, Oxford or Cambridge termites they know what is good for them. They can make an intelligent choice. An intelligent enough a choice for their betterment, not necessarily conforming to the liking of slaves. Just to cite an example from the past elections: prominent party leadership was given time on the Pakistan Television. The parties that got prominence on television: Muslim league, Peoples Party, Tehrik e Insaf and Jamaat e Islami. Is this the true representation of electoral results?

Dare any body question the number of seats obtained by Jamaat and Tehrik?

A breakup of the electoral results should indicate where the error lies.

WE SHALL INSTALL DEMOCRACY OUR STYLE PEOPLE MAY GO TO HELL

( hell they did get)

It is not a case of not knowing or wanting to understand, people just don’t want to accept because they have already accepted the 2nd rate citizenship of borrowed paradises for themselves Such people have valid visas from their masters and return unto they will. They have not wasted a moment in repenting over losing East Pakistan-they never looked back and tried to make amends for the future-That was not a mistake-a deliberate policy. They were scared of democracy! AND THEY STILL ARE. And if this scare of democracy is projected in future what we are left with? Rule out subjecting the masses for ever! If lessons from the past have not been learnt.

Regards.

Tariqlodi.

Ref noor.ahmed #: 56

You say (Did anyone read the recent news from Kuwait; the Emir has passed a decree that women should be allowed the right to vote, whereas the majority of elected members of the Parliament are vehemently opposing this saying ``this is not what the Kuwaiti people want ! ``

So much for benevelovent dictators vs misguided democrats; just to illustrate that the tired old western cliches are not always infallible! Anyone also remember the U.S. backed toppling of the elected fundamentalist government in Algeria in favour of a moderate military government ? Democracy is fine if it suits us!)

Why blame the process -- democracy -- for the shortcomings of the elected representatives? After all, it took till the 1920s before women were allowed to vote in the US or most of the Western democracies; the poll taxes and property taxes ensured that the poor could not vote; Margaret Thatcher is famous for re-introducing a poll tax in the UK in the 1980s to ensure that Labor would not get control of the City of London. One could look at all these contradictions and blame democracy or blame the politicians involved. To condemn democracy for the misdeeds of the few is stupid.

Why is it that people of South Korea have fought for the right to elect their own leaders? Why was Marcos overthrown in the Philippines? One is a Tiger economy and the other is dirt poor. How about the illiterate farmers of South and Central America? Are they not asking for the right to elect their rulers?

Why do you not look at the Indian Constitution which guaranteed all persons the right to vote regardless of education or economic status from Day One and take heart from that? Of course, I forget: there is nothing to be learnt from there. All wisdom must come from Arabia, divinely revealed.

Tell me you restrict your medical practice to members of your own sex. That your wife and daughters are in purdah. That would explain your attitudes.

When do you plan to move to Afghanistan?

PM writes as an example of benevolent dictators: ``every once in a while been an Attaturk or a Tito.`` Ataturk`s main achievement, was to accept the reality that the Ottoman Empire but Turkey remains to this day, 80 years after his death, a part of the third world with Turks knocking like poor neighbors at German and other doors for odd-jobs. No disrespect to the Turks (who are a fine people, and close to every Pakistanis heart) or Ataturk (who put the mullahs in their place), but let us also not close our eyes to facts. Tito`s main achievement was to keep the fiction of Yugoslavia together until it exploded. So: while I can understand your frustration with elected leaders like BB and NS, dont make the mistake of tossing the baby out with the bathwater.

Noor,

I commend you for having the courage to express an opinion that you proabably knew wuld be treated with much disdain. The truth of the matter is that democracy is the holy cow of those that blindly worship concepts, and in casting yur vote (!) for a benevolent dictatorsip, you stepped on holy ground. Woe be unto you!

While I personally feel your appraisal of Gen, Zia

was grossly (even criminally) generous to the man,

I agree with what I understand to be your main argument: the Pakistan electorate has proven to be

incapable of governing themselves (or indeed, with

a 17% voter turnout, uninterested in doing so) and

needs period of a benevolent dictatorsip to steer

them out of the absolute mess created by a

premature democracy-- and to a state where the

processes democracy might at some later time be

carried out with more meaning.

Is this scenario overly optimistic? Maybe. But it

is any more optimistic than hoping for change

`from within` the goverments of the likes of BB &

NS, the only two choices the oh-so-democracy-ready

populace of Pakistan seem to see before them?

While we may certainly learn from history, there

is no ned to be enslaved by it. Besides, there

have been Idi Amins and Pinochets, but then there

have every once in a while been an Attaturk or a

Tito.

There seems to be this cheerful optimism among

many of your detractors that, given more time, the

problems of democracy in Pakistan would just iron

themselves out. Anyone having lived in Pakistan

for the past eleven years would know the sheer

inanness of that expectation. In defence, they

will say that `democracy hasn`t // *really// * been

given a chance`-- as if the booting out of office

of one government after a completed term would

have somehow made the subsequent (rival)

government more accountable (espcially now that

// *it`s// * completion of tenure would be

gauranteed! People seem to forget the extremely

short memory that the Pakistani voter has shown to

have.

Ironically, it is these same folks who would be

the first to call you (or me) dogmatists or

idealists for making a case for transitional

sustained dictatorship. And how long should we

have to endure such a regime? Well, we endured

democracy for 11 years and got practically

nowhere. (And let`s not forget an earlier

flirtation with the ballot that LED TO unneceassry

bullets and subsequent secession.)

mcgupta has outlined on possible stragety for the

regime to make for meaningful transfer of power.

They certainly sound workable. However, until the

basic mentality of the Paksitani people is

educated to at least the point where will will not

be faced with the embarrassing question ``WHAT were

the people doing while their elected leaders raped

them?``, we will probably in for more of the same.

As many have already pointed out here and

elsewhere, the average Pakistani voter is

influenced by considerations much more immediate,

and more irrational, t