It is a universally accepted norm in international affairs that countries must not interfere in the internal political affairs of other countries. It is precisely for this reason that sovereign countries have placed strict curbs on foreign funding of political parties. Unfortunately, these restrictions do not always deter malpractice.
For instance, the ECP has unanimously ruled that former PM Imran Khan’s party received prohibited funding from abroad. Such behaviour endangers our independence as there is a great risk of our top leadership becoming beholden to foreign stakeholders rather than the people. The fact that Imran was able to rule the country for almost four years despite this illegal behaviour calls for stronger measures against foreign funding.
Ali Malik Tariq
Lahore