Dissent is patriotism, says Afrasiab Khattak

WASHINGTON: Any steps to undermine the Constitution must be stopped, says veteran politician Afrasiab Khattak.

Talking to The News here, Afrasiab Khattak said the last general elections were massively rigged which put the country off track.

Afrasiab Khattak maintained that to follow Pakistan's social contract, all political parties in the country should join hands to strengthen democratic values.

"Dissent is patriotism," Khattak said who's in the US to attend a conference organised by South Asians Against Terrorism and for Human Rights (SAATH), a grouping of pro-democracy Pakistanis co-hosted by Husain Haqqani and columnist Dr Mohammad Taqi.

“You can serve your country through dissent,” Afrasiab Khattak said, adding, "Political disagreements are not tribal feuds. Disagreements on political matters generate new ideas and such voices need to be heard and appreciated."

This would be the fourth conference organised by the group, which is being attended by a large number of prominent dissidents. Besides Khattak, Pakistan's former ambassador to Cuba, Kamran Shafi and senior journalist Rashid Rehman are also participating.

The organisers say that the conference will discuss ways of ensuring support for pluralist ideas, human rights and democracy in the South Asian region.

"We are from Pakistan but the deteriorating human rights situation as well as weakening democratic norms in neighbouring parts, especially Kashmir, also deeply concern us," Dr Taqi said.

"Democracy and human rights face a challenge across South Asia and those concerned about these values need to think about how to defend them," said former Pakistan ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani.

He said that the two day deliberative conference will produce a declaration, an action plan and a list of recommendations to resolve human rights issues in South Asia.

Earlier SAATH conferences were held in London in 2016 and 2017 and in Washington in 2018.

Last year, the conference had observed that freedom-loving Pakistanis need to join hands “to create space for intellectual and political discourse.”