Zafar Hilaly

Mr Zardari has shrewdly portrayed himself as a champion of provincial rights, a stance that finds considerable resonance in Sindh. Increasingly, politics and public sentiments in Sindh are focusing on greater provincial autonomy

One has to hand it to Mr Zardari. He loses no opportunity to put his opponents on the back foot. As they swivel to hook his bouncers, they can never be sure whether they will be caught. And if the current bouncer is hit for a six, yet another will be on its way. That is how Mr Zardari bowls; he keeps hoping that the batsmen will get a top edge and lose their wicket. It is an unusual and expensive way of getting a wicket, but it works now and then.

And it seems to be working for Mr Zardari. He has politicised the judiciary. He has acquired a measure of sympathy in the media. Some anchors have broken ranks. Even some lawyers are receptive. Clearly, he is getting a better hearing. And demonstrations by his supporters in other parts of the country notwithstanding, it is in Sindh that Mr Zardari seems to be gaining most traction.

In rural Sindh, according to reports, the population saw the just resolved judicial crisis as another conspiracy against the PPP. But it was among portions of the Sindhi middle class that the anger was most palpable. It was somewhat disconcerting sitting next to a Sindhi lawyer in a talk show to see him frothing at the mouth as he castigated fellow lawyers from Punjab for supporting the chief justice and opposing the government. The fact that the Sindh member of IRSA asked his province to call him back in protest over the authority’s decision to allow Punjab to draw 6,000 cusecs of water from the Indus zone may not have been heard over the din of the confrontation with the judiciary, but it resonated in Sindh. Bold actions by timid committee men is a sign of the times and the rising temperature of the debate.

Mr Zardari has shrewdly portrayed himself as a champion of provincial rights, a stance that finds considerable resonance in Sindh. Increasingly, politics and public sentiments in Sindh are focusing on greater provincial autonomy. And on this score, right thinking Sindhis seem determined not to be denied the right to be heard. And with Mr Zardari in control of the Centre, now, they sense, is their best chance. Groups are being formed to ensure for Sindh a better deal in the constitution, a fairer share in the services, control over natural resources and a far bigger slice of the cake than that allotted to Sindh in the NFC Award. Whether it will bode well or ill for the federation will depend on how it is handled.

To those who feel that Mr Zardari has no clout anywhere outside the presidency and scoff at him for “playing the Sindh card”, one can only say that they are mistaken. Talking to a cross section of Sindhis gives a very different impression. Sindh is stirring. No longer will a battalion of Rangers suffice to keep Sindh quiescent.

The demand for greater self-rule should not come as a surprise. The 1940 Lahore Resolution envisaged Pakistan as an entity that comprised virtually, some would argue actually, independent units. And whenever attempts were made to buck this consensus by letting power accrue to the Centre rather than the provinces, trouble has resulted. Admittedly, the dispute concerning the appointment of judges had little to do with provincial rights, but because the tussle involved a Sindhi leader on the one hand, and the Punjab-dominated establishment on the other, many viewed it in the Punjab vs Sindh context.

Mr Zardari’s opponents, and they are legion, are so blinded by their hatred of his person and all that he epitomises that their judgement becomes skewed. True, Mr Zardari has done little to endear himself. Often it seems that he is running a circus from a monkey cage. Whatever good instincts he may have learnt from his wife, he seems to have, by painstaking effort, unlearnt. But it is in the manner of his staying, as much as eventually in his going, that he would have lit the spark that will either consume Pakistan or put it on the path that was envisaged by those who drafted the 1940 Lahore Resolution.

For instance, had Sheikh Mujibur Rehman been treated in a manner different from that of a common criminal much before being tried, Pakistan might have remained intact. His six points were negotiable. And so too whether he should become president or prime minister following the elections. In either post, he would have had to deal with the question of autonomy on which his party had placed such importance. And it is inconceivable that as an incumbent he would have chosen to preside over the disintegration of Pakistan. Hence, any solution arrived at would have been better than the humiliation and defeat that we had to undergo.

Similar is the case of Mr Zardari. If he is allowed to complete his term, the outlook for the federation would be rosier than if he is thwarted. If, for example, Mr Zardari were to be deposed, arrested and shunted off to jail, like some people wish, then the impact would be entirely different from that of losing a fair election. And if his party once again becomes the target of a cruel and mindless vendetta, there is little hope that things will ever be well thereafter. And if not, what is there to guarantee that as a political martyr he will not again have a great say in national matters. The frequency with which traitors and criminals emerge as heroes and saviours in Pakistan is alarming. Hence it is the manner, sensitivity and political skill with which matters are handled that will be the determining factor.

We hear ad nauseam that justice is blind; but does it also have to be deaf to the calls of the populace? At a time when the country is at war with ruthless and determined fanatics, facing by far the greatest challenge to its existence since independence, the people are least concerned which sitting High Court luminary gets to become a judge of the Supreme Court. They prefer peace, stability and good governance. The game that was played out in the media, the streets and the courts was simply not worth the candle.

The writer is a former ambassador. He can be reached at charles123it@hotmail.com