The MQM Boycott
The announcement by the MQM(A) that they will boycott the forthcoming elections has come as a great shock to the people of urban Sindh in particular and to the masses of Pakistan in general. The party is representative of Karachi and Hyderabad in the real sense and their absence from the electoral hustings would deprive these cities of a genuine voice in the National and Provincial Assemblies.
On the evening of September 28, it seemed that matters had been settled amicably at the highest level between the Army and the MQM hierarchy. Barely 48 hours later, the whole agreement was in shambles, what had gone wrong during this short interim period? From all accounts it seems that a small incident has been blown out of proportion subordinating the public interest to personal egos. Stating of the incident that seems to have triggered off the fresh squabble is not important, but it has brought back into focus all the suspicions in a rush and fostered misunderstanding between a primary national institution and a small but potent political force with a legitimate role to play on the national scene.
The Pakistan Army has set out on a course peculiar to third world armies, supporting the democratic process in supersession to the normal proclivity for running government affairs themselves. MQ would have gone nowhere with his reforms if the Armed Forces did not support him fully. The process leading upto the actual elections is so fair that all pointers are that this would be much more free than any other in this sub-continent in its entire history. The absence of MQM from its area of major strength will mean that candidates having no real electoral support will go to the Assemblies, this would turn elections in this area into an absolute farce. This would certainly affect the credibility of the Armed Forces as regards providing an even playing field and undercut the excellent manner it has conducted itself since the beginning of this year. The Army must do immediate and critical self-examination to see that it is not being fed by misinformation by vested interests designed to subvert the Army’s penchant for fair play. How many times has personal ambition been subordinated to the national interest in Pakistan?
The MQM must take into account the fact that staying out of the democratic process creates negative dynamics, the PPP learnt this lesson when it opted out of the partyless elections of 1985. Whatever the misunderstanding and whatever their misapprehensions, they must make the utmost effort to settle the issue before October 6 and take their rightful place under the Pakistani sun. They represent a crucial swing vote in Pakistan politics, one that acts as an accountability factor. By opting out they are only playing into the hands of those who were exposed by the last Bye-elections and now want to justify their proposition that MQM (Haqeeqi) were the rightful representatives of the Mohajir community. The MQM(A) must overcome machinations of such narrow vested interests and rise to a higher plane not only for their sakes but in the supreme national interest. They must not make such demands that can never be acceptable in the prevailing circumstances. One hopes that the military hierarchy will respond in kind and get out of this “no win” situation.
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.
Comments
No comments yet.
Leave a comment