The suspense among the NRO beneficiaries in Pakistan
Saturday, 9 January 2010
Md. Masum Billah
The Pakistan Supreme Court has declared void all the benefits of amnesty -- cases withdrawn and acquittals made -- granted under the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO). This has thrown Pakistan into a spell of struggle of power between the judiciary and the executive, and also between the civilian government and the military establishment. Of course, President Asif Ali Zaradari was not surprised at the ruling as he was anticipating this turn of events. He was clearly reluctant to reinstate the Supreme Court judges who were sacked by President Parvez Musharraf under emergency rule in November 2007 because he knew that the NRO would be challenged at the Supreme Court and there was possibility that it would be struck down by the court led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhury. But other political parties, under the leadership of Nawaz Sharif, clamoured for reinstating Justice Chaudhury as the Chief Justice of Pakistan. Zardari government had to give in to the will of Pakistani people.
The repeal of the NRO is good in one sense. This may help strengthen the rule of law in Pakistan and keep corrupt people away from politics. But it is already a crucial time for Pakistan because of the fight against the Talibans. The Talibans, Pak military and US military and air attack have created a boggling situation in Pakistan. Now is the time to overcome the situation through united efforts i.e. all political parties should reach a consensus regarding the Taliban issue and ties with the US. In this juncture, the repeal of the NRO has sent Pakistan into a frenzy. Analysts apprehend that the country may see martial law again. But Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani rules out the possibility of it. It is also said the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has good relations with the army for the first time. The Chief of Army General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani maintains that the military will not indulge in the country's politics.
Asma Jahangir, the Chairman of Pakistan Human Rights Commission, said the Supreme Court bench, comprising 17 judges, had created a suspense among the NRO beneficiaries as well as masses as it had not given any right to appeal against the decision. The decision certainly is a milestone but what does it mean for the overall learning process of the various stakeholders in the country's power politics? And will it influence the future of Pakistan's politics?
Zardari cooperated in the NRO case and did not really try to hold back information. Though the NRO pertained to cases of financial corruption, military dictator Pervez Musharraf had also included criminal cases in the NRO amnesty. It will now be interesting to see if the Supreme Court actually takes the matter to its logical conclusion by also questioning those who pushed forward the NRO and take into task Musharraf and those of his close aides who had cobbled this questionable law together.
One cannot undermine the significance of public perception. It is important for people to have faith in the judgment system and believe that the Supreme Court decision on the NRO was in good faith to strengthen the rule of law. The decision coincides with the growing anger of the security establishment against the civilian government for becoming 'too big for its boots'.
The civil and military tension denotes a third critical attempt by the political class of Pakistan to curtail the military's power. The first attempt was made by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who inherited a relatively weak army and had ample scope to reduce its relative power. He partly tried to do it through building institutional mechanism such as the Joint Chiefs of Staff committee and the defence ministry and putting all service chiefs under the supreme command of the prime minister. However, he did not put spirit into his reforms and ended up strengthening the military. Nawaz Sharif was the second leader who found a similar opportunity. Political analysts and politicians hoped that he would make headway because he belonged to the most powerful ethnic group in Pakistan and had managed to infiltrate the higher rungs of the officer cadre. However, Sharif missed the chance because of his final rash moves while trying to sack General Musharaff as army chief. Very recently, Asif Ali Zardari also thought of undercutting the phenomenal power of the military by convincing the United States to support the civilian set-up in its tug of war with the military establishment. The army was seen in a bad light due to a decade of Musharraf's rule and people were talking about strengthening political institutions and decreasing the power of the armed forces. But president Zardari seems to have fallen victim to his lack of understanding of the military, its institutional dynamics and the importance of creating internal partnerships and institutional protective barriers to achieve this objective. For instance, he did not realise that the same civil society that protested against the military would stand up to defend the ISI and oppose provisions in the Kerry Lugar bill to defend the military.
There are many in Pakistan who wish to see the resolution of civil-military conflict. This decision of the highest court of the land on NRO may go someway to start a cleansing process of the political system. Corruption is always and everywhere part of politics, but Pakistan has carried it to a height not so often witnessed in the world. The Times of London says, "Corruption is widespread among Pakistan's political leaders but the alleged scale of Mr. Zardari's activities shocked seasoned observers. The president has been accused of accumulating assets worth $1.5 billion around the world through illegal means." Although Zardari has spent years in jail over corruption charges, he alleges the charges were politically motivated and question hang over whether he was ever actually convicted of any crime. The NRO was passed in October 2007 by then president Pervez Musharraf under pressure to hold elections and end about eight years of military rule. Zardari's People's Party went on to win elections in 2008 restoring civilian rule, but the NRO expired at the end of last month and the PPP did not have enough support to renew the ordinance in parliament. Talking to media persons for the first time following the apex court's verdict, which may force him to step down, Zaradri said he respected the judiciary and that his party, the Pakistan People's Party would also abide by the decision of the court. Now, let us see what decision he is going to take and how he honours the verdict of the highest court of the country.
The writer is the Senior Manager: BRAC Education Programme, PACE. He can be reached at E-mail:
mmbillah2000@yahoo.com
The Pakistan Supreme Court has declared void all the benefits of amnesty -- cases withdrawn and acquittals made -- granted under the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO). This has thrown Pakistan into a spell of struggle of power between the judiciary and the executive, and also between the civilian government and the military establishment. Of course, President Asif Ali Zaradari was not surprised at the ruling as he was anticipating this turn of events. He was clearly reluctant to reinstate the Supreme Court judges who were sacked by President Parvez Musharraf under emergency rule in November 2007 because he knew that the NRO would be challenged at the Supreme Court and there was possibility that it would be struck down by the court led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhury. But other political parties, under the leadership of Nawaz Sharif, clamoured for reinstating Justice Chaudhury as the Chief Justice of Pakistan. Zardari government had to give in to the will of Pakistani people.
The repeal of the NRO is good in one sense. This may help strengthen the rule of law in Pakistan and keep corrupt people away from politics. But it is already a crucial time for Pakistan because of the fight against the Talibans. The Talibans, Pak military and US military and air attack have created a boggling situation in Pakistan. Now is the time to overcome the situation through united efforts i.e. all political parties should reach a consensus regarding the Taliban issue and ties with the US. In this juncture, the repeal of the NRO has sent Pakistan into a frenzy. Analysts apprehend that the country may see martial law again. But Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani rules out the possibility of it. It is also said the ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) has good relations with the army for the first time. The Chief of Army General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani maintains that the military will not indulge in the country's politics.
Asma Jahangir, the Chairman of Pakistan Human Rights Commission, said the Supreme Court bench, comprising 17 judges, had created a suspense among the NRO beneficiaries as well as masses as it had not given any right to appeal against the decision. The decision certainly is a milestone but what does it mean for the overall learning process of the various stakeholders in the country's power politics? And will it influence the future of Pakistan's politics?
Zardari cooperated in the NRO case and did not really try to hold back information. Though the NRO pertained to cases of financial corruption, military dictator Pervez Musharraf had also included criminal cases in the NRO amnesty. It will now be interesting to see if the Supreme Court actually takes the matter to its logical conclusion by also questioning those who pushed forward the NRO and take into task Musharraf and those of his close aides who had cobbled this questionable law together.
One cannot undermine the significance of public perception. It is important for people to have faith in the judgment system and believe that the Supreme Court decision on the NRO was in good faith to strengthen the rule of law. The decision coincides with the growing anger of the security establishment against the civilian government for becoming 'too big for its boots'.
The civil and military tension denotes a third critical attempt by the political class of Pakistan to curtail the military's power. The first attempt was made by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who inherited a relatively weak army and had ample scope to reduce its relative power. He partly tried to do it through building institutional mechanism such as the Joint Chiefs of Staff committee and the defence ministry and putting all service chiefs under the supreme command of the prime minister. However, he did not put spirit into his reforms and ended up strengthening the military. Nawaz Sharif was the second leader who found a similar opportunity. Political analysts and politicians hoped that he would make headway because he belonged to the most powerful ethnic group in Pakistan and had managed to infiltrate the higher rungs of the officer cadre. However, Sharif missed the chance because of his final rash moves while trying to sack General Musharaff as army chief. Very recently, Asif Ali Zardari also thought of undercutting the phenomenal power of the military by convincing the United States to support the civilian set-up in its tug of war with the military establishment. The army was seen in a bad light due to a decade of Musharraf's rule and people were talking about strengthening political institutions and decreasing the power of the armed forces. But president Zardari seems to have fallen victim to his lack of understanding of the military, its institutional dynamics and the importance of creating internal partnerships and institutional protective barriers to achieve this objective. For instance, he did not realise that the same civil society that protested against the military would stand up to defend the ISI and oppose provisions in the Kerry Lugar bill to defend the military.
There are many in Pakistan who wish to see the resolution of civil-military conflict. This decision of the highest court of the land on NRO may go someway to start a cleansing process of the political system. Corruption is always and everywhere part of politics, but Pakistan has carried it to a height not so often witnessed in the world. The Times of London says, "Corruption is widespread among Pakistan's political leaders but the alleged scale of Mr. Zardari's activities shocked seasoned observers. The president has been accused of accumulating assets worth $1.5 billion around the world through illegal means." Although Zardari has spent years in jail over corruption charges, he alleges the charges were politically motivated and question hang over whether he was ever actually convicted of any crime. The NRO was passed in October 2007 by then president Pervez Musharraf under pressure to hold elections and end about eight years of military rule. Zardari's People's Party went on to win elections in 2008 restoring civilian rule, but the NRO expired at the end of last month and the PPP did not have enough support to renew the ordinance in parliament. Talking to media persons for the first time following the apex court's verdict, which may force him to step down, Zaradri said he respected the judiciary and that his party, the Pakistan People's Party would also abide by the decision of the court. Now, let us see what decision he is going to take and how he honours the verdict of the highest court of the country.
The writer is the Senior Manager: BRAC Education Programme, PACE. He can be reached at E-mail:
mmbillah2000@yahoo.com