Raza Rabbani identifies 20 threats to democratic system

ISLAMABAD: On the International Day of Democracy, former chairman Senate Senator Mian Raza Rabbani has described 20 reasons due to which the country’s democratic system is threatened and plagued saying the democratic system, in Pakistan is in ruins and democracy tottering.

The former chairman Senate described sacrifice of the struggle of hundreds of thousands of political workers at the altar of personal ambitions, ego and compromises as the first strong threat to a democratic system. “Second threat is of two Pakistan’s, one is ‘the drowned Pakistan’ and the other is the ‘Pakistan of the elite’. This apathy towards the suffering millions is another threat to democracy,” he said. Former chairman Senate Senator Mian Raza Rabbani said the politicization of the appointment of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), is the third threat to democracy. He counted terrorism and negotiations with terrorists behind the back of Parliament, civil society and media as the fourth threat to democracy. “The President of Pakistan is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, he is also a threat to democracy,” he said while counting it as the fifth reason democracy is plagued. The prevailing trend of fascism in political parties is the sixth reason and dubbed “politics of political expediency instead of ideology,” as the 7th reason for democracy being under threat.

The Senator described the proclivity by all political forces to look towards the establishment, and asking it to intervene on their behalf to save democracy, as the eighth reason. And the ninth reason, he said is the establishment being invited by the political forces to intervene in the democratic process which is a contravention of the 1973 Constitution.

The former Chairman Senate described the tendency of the institutions, functioning under the Constitution, to trespass the doctrine of trichotomy of power, envisaged in the Constitution, 1973 as the 10th reason. “Weakening of democratic institutions,” he said is the 11th threat to country’s democratic system. He cited that decisions pertaining to or dealing with international agreements, economy and national security are taken to the exclusion of Parliament by making the Parliament redundant as the 12th reason.

He listed judicialization of the democratic process as the 13th threat while making foreign and national security policies without the involvement of the Parliament as 14th. Rabbani mentioned the curbs and fetters on the free and independent press as the 15th threat to democracy. He also described the banning of trade and student unions, and missing persons as the 16th and 17th threats.

The ruling elite has not reconciled to a federal and parliamentary Pakistan that continues to make efforts towards centralization and a presidential, quasi-presidential form of government, was factored by Rabbani as the 18th threat. The 19th threat was described as the repeated attempts to roll back the 18th Amendment, which he said will spell disaster for the federation. He explained the failure of the Pakistan’s ruling elite to realise that the Federation cannot exist without a democratic dispensation, parliamentary democracy and participatory federalism, as the 20th factor that threatens democratic order in the country.

The way forward, Senator Raza Rabbani said is a national dialogue amongst political forces to arrive at a new Charter of Democracy –II and also intra-institutional dialogue to uphold the concept of trichotomy of power as envisaged in the Constitution, 1973.