Ides of December

It becomes hard to look at the larger picture when, wobbling in a surge of momentous events, you get breathless with emotions. Some issues get overblown and others, possibly more influential in a historical context, are left in the wings. And a question that lurks in the shadows is: are we sliding into a state of massive disorder?

We did expect some developments during this December. There was something ominous about Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s march on Islamabad. But what we have is a whirlwind. Perhaps we deserve it, considering what we had sown in the past. It seems weird that all this is happening in December. After all, this month is the repository of some unbearably dark moments in this country’s existence.

Sadly, something planted this December will affect our foreign policy and our image in the world, particularly in the Muslim world. My reference, obviously, is that very bad decision of Prime Minister Imran Khan to step out of the Kuala Lumpur summit at about the last minute. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has openly said that Pakistan had decided to stay away because of Saudi Arabia’s threats of economic sanctions.

This important development has somehow not received the attention it warrants because of the more sensational headlines that have dominated all our conversations. In fact, there is trouble brewing on every front. Most worrying, however, is the tension that is building up between two major institutions.

Outgoing Chief Justice Asif Saeed Khosa said on Friday that a malicious campaign has been initiated against him and the judiciary. At the end of his farewell speech, he also recited a defiant poem by Fehmida Riaz.

The special court verdict in the treason case of former military ruler, retired Gen Pervez Musharraf has made history. A former army chief has been awarded death sentence in absentia for suspending the constitution.

While the verdict itself, announced in a short order on Tuesday, was promptly criticised by the military spokesman, the detailed judgment released on Thursday has raised a storm. The focus is on one small paragraph that projects the vile spirit of barbarism and it is penned by Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court Waqar Ahmed Seth, who headed the special court.

I would not repeat those grisly words that have subverted the substance of the majority judgment of a bench of three judges. There was an immediate and angry response from the army and the government. A reference against Justice Seth is to be filed in the Supreme Judicial Council and the verdict is to be challenged in the Supreme Court.

Already, the issue of the extension of the chief of army staff (COAS) had drawn a line between institutions. It needs to be resolved within a six-month period. There is still some confusion about the parameters of the legislation that would set the terms and conditions of the office of the COAS.

As I said, there is a rush of events at this time, compelling us to constantly struggle to assess our thoughts and feelings. One is not able to fully grasp a situation before it suddenly changes into something very different.

It should be possible to identify certain strands that are woven into this tapestry of chaos. We are familiar with the intimations of dark ages in our thinking and behaviour. One major spectacle we witnessed this month was the attack of lawyers on a cardiac hospital in Lahore, though it has now receded in the background.

For the moment, there is outrage over the grisly image projected in paragraph 66 of the detailed Musharraf verdict. It is scary, but violence is ingrained in our daily lives. This government is rightly furious about the specific rider in the verdict. But there was no response when one its federal ministers had said, also in a formal statement made in the National Assembly, that five thousand people should be dragged on the streets and then hanged to suppress corruption in the country.

Invoking Article 6 against suspension of the constitution by a usurper has been talked about a lot. The irony now is that, while his government is defending Musharraf, there are numerous video clips of Imran Khan in which he had forcefully demanded Musharraf’s trial and conviction.

These reversals, classified as U-turns, have become a joke. But this is different. It shows that Imran has abdicated the high moral ground that was the basic justification for his leadership and the support he had gathered. In addition to these betrayals, we have to also contend with incompetence and poor judgment.

At this point, look at his decision to not attend the summit called by Mahathir Mohamed of Malaysia. The paradox here is that he apparently was a part of the plan. If you remember, Imran had become very friendly with Erdogan and Mahathir during his New York visit in September to attend the UNGA session.

So much so that the three of them had decided to launch their own English language television channel of BBC style to counter Islamophobia. Imagine how that channel, if it had been established, would have covered Pakistan’s absence from the summit. Likewise, it would be interesting to analyse the strategic consequences of submitting to the dictates of Gulf monarchies.

It would be a distraction, but think of that glorious Islamic Conference that Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had put together. In fact, there are many reasons to remember Bhutto this month. He was an elected prime minister and he was overthrown and later executed by a military dictator in what is certified as a judicial murder. Gen Ziaul Haq was able to get away with it. He had also staged not just public floggings but also public hangings.

The writer is a senior journalist.

Email: ghazi_salahuddin@hotmail.com