INSIGHT: Hore Choopo! —Ejaz Haider

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INSIGHT: Hore Choopo! —Ejaz Haider

The worrying part of PPP’s masochism is that it is hurting the party’s interest. Even those who are not the party voters, if they are politically savvy, would agree that it must retain its position as the largest party which has its presence in all the federating units.

Whatever else may be said about the controversy surrounding the Kerry-Lugar Bill and much is being said and written, one thing should be obvious: the Pakistan People’s Party has shown a tendency for masochism which is both laughable and worrying.

I am reminded of the joke about this hunter going out to hunt down this grizzly. He reaches deep into the jungle, spots the grizzly and fires a shot. Boom! The grizzly seems to vanish into thin air just as he fires. As the hunter looks around, there’s a tap on his shoulder. He turns around and sees the grizzly, who tells him: “You can either get killed or drop your pants.” The hunter drops his pants.

Once the grizzly is done, he tells him to buzz off and stay clear of him. The hunter returns home, seething with anger, buys a bigger rifle, and returns to the jungle the next day. Sure enough, the grizzly’s there. He fires his shot. The grizzly disappears again and as if on cue, he feels the tap on his shoulder. The hunter drops his pants!

On his way back he buys a bazooka and returns to the jungle the third time. The grizzly is relaxing. The hunter fires the bazooka; there is a loud explosion and much smoke and dust. Certain that he’s got the grizzly this time, he walks on, when he feels the inevitable tap on his shoulder. The grizzly is standing there, smiling. Even as the hunter is loosening his belt to drop his pants, the grizzly says: “Are you sure you are into this only for hunting!”

I can’t but ask a similar question. Guys! Are you into this just for the politics?

The PPP has proved, once again, that it will do the right thing only after it has lost the initiative and been berated and battered.

In April this year I wrote an article on the Berman Bill analysing its conditionalities and arguing that if and when the reconciled legislation was finalised, it would be unacceptable on several counts. All through the process, the Senate and House Bills were there for anyone to see, read and analyse (for a detailed analysis, see Najmuddin Shaikh’s article on A6). It amazes me that the government just sat there, making no effort to initiate a debate on the Bill and approach the US on the basis of Pakistan’s sensitivities to influence the legislation.

It is not good enough to say that all stakeholders including the army had seen the draft and were consulted by the American officials. In politics, quite often, some stakeholders will sit quietly and wait for the right opportunity to strike. And strike they have. It was the government’s responsibility to force them into taking a position while the process was going on.

Such a course of action would have entailed initiating a debate on the Bill (the two reconciled drafts). The debate would have resulted in two things: all stakeholders would have been clear about what the Bill contains; and they would have had to arrive at a consensus from the Pakistani side. The government could then have gone to the Americans and placed the Pakistani view before the US administration and the legislatures.

Playing it thus would have allowed the government to retain the initiative. Now, it has had to submit to the furore and place the issue before Parliament after the proverbial has hit the fan. It did the same on the judges issue, conceding to a combination of political and popular pressure and restoring the judges. If it had taken the initiative on the issue, the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) would not have acquired its present sheen.

But while we are at this, there is some irony in what has happened. The army’s press release seems to have released the “democratic” forces into asking for a democratic debate on the issue. Let’s not forget that just days before the ISPR statement following the corps commanders’ conference, the Punjab chief minister had met the army chief. The army statement talked about the will of the people and the need for the government to get a consensus on the issue. Very smart, indeed.

The PMLN, which never tires of talking about tilting the balance of relations in favour of the civilians, chose, when the opportunity arose, to use the army’s support to hit at the PPP. This is ironic enough but there’s more. The US legislation talks about strengthening democracy, etcetera. The issue is now in Parliament and that is a democratic process. It is very likely to end up in a rejection of the Bill. Punjabi has a phrase for such irony: hore choopo!

The worrying part of PPP’s masochism is that it is hurting the party’s interest. Even those who are not the party voters, if they are politically savvy, would agree that it must retain its position as the largest party which has its presence in all the federating units. Its presence is important, indeed crucial, for Pakistan’s march towards a functioning democracy. Corollary: both for its own as well as Pakistan’s sake, it should stop shooting itself in the foot and putting that injured foot in its mouth.

Ejaz Haider is op-ed editor of Daily Times, consulting editor of The Friday Times and host of Samaa TV’s programme “Siyasiyat”. He can be reached at sapper@dailytimes.com.pk