We were part of the initial convoy of more than 200 cars that set out from Model town, Lahore..After the initial speech by NS, the crowd was just powered up and these were not the typical hooligan workers that one associated with PML (n) in the past. I saw ppl with families and regular folks as well..The police just backed away..I think this awareness amongst ppl has been created by the media. Of course, most of the credit goes to the lawyers for this...We were en route to Gujranwala, ahead of the NS convoy when we got the word that after Kiayni's meeting with Z and Gillaini aka Forest Gump - something might be afoot..
I think its a sign of times a good one too when NS back tracked from the march once he was satisfied of the deal.He did not boast about his victory..I still have my doubts about him and his brother, but he has shown some wisdom and tolerance here..
We saw the final card being played by the desperate elements of pro-Zardari in PPP when they started palyign the Sindh card..MQM was eagerly waiting to jump on this bandwagon of ethnic conflict..I was there and i saw no one shouting against Sindh or Sindhis, but there were plenty of abuses hurled towards Zardari - something which i know for a fact is a daily routine in Larkana...It just goes to show that how much these so called leaders are willing to risk in order to cling on to power..
I just hope that we can move as a nation and mobilize the masses against the threat of Talibanisation the way we did in this lawyer movement..There are dangerous signs that these fascists are spreading their tentacles in the heartland of Punjab. More on that later...
In the end , it was a victory for Pakistan..We have had a lot to fret and worry about...After t he debacle in Swat this is one sweet victory and time is right for the nation of Pakistan to rebound!
10 comments:
wow... cool :-)
You were in Model Town, Lahore? But I thought you were with the PML-Q?
khair...dair aye, durust aye ;-)
Congratulations, and well done! You must write more about the whole march then, if you accompanied it for a full day...
You are rightly about a thread in the Punjab - let's expand that discussion. The three severe threats facing Pak, (a) of American aggression on the Western frontier, (b) of extremism in the Punjab (and elsewhere) and (c) of Baloch separatism, can only be adequately dealt with, in the long-run, by the PML-N...given its history and origins, its links both internal and external and its sterling conduct over the past 12 months. Not saying that's necessarily a good thing, but those are the facts. Many of us may not like it, but that's how it is.
Given that, it would be shocking if your party and the ZPP, as reported in today's papers, agree to usurp the government in Punjab and form a 'dakoo' administration. Not something which any Pakistani patriot should support.
Dear Luscious:
If I had to choose between Zardaari and NS, I would go with Zardaari. NS ranks even higher on the fascism index and remember he was about to establis an Islamic regime, abrogate the constitution and declare himself Amir-ul-momineen for life when he was brought down by Musharraf. Under him, the Talebaan will find an even more hospitable climate to spread their poison. A leopard never changes its spots. Our best bet is a military take over. I have been saying that even when Musharraf was in power. Pakistan needs to be run by enlightened dictatorship for the next 30 years -- just like South Korea was in the 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. There is not a single decent politician in sight (other than Imran Khan) so lets not waste our time with democracy.
I remain skeptical about Pakistan's political stability even now that the Judge's issue is resolved. Zardari remains most vulnerable. It will be interesting to see how the reinstated Chief Justice tackles the issue of the pardon granted by Musharrad to Zardari, amongst others. It will also be intereting to see how the wily Zardari escapes the clear writing on the wall -- he being sacked as President.
@Shehryar - Thank you for your comments. I think our problem remains the scourge of religious extremism. That is the number one issue face us.
@mustafa - You are completely wrong. Pakistani ppl deserve a representative government in Pakistan. Pakistan is not south Korea or some Arab country..The country is too divers and the population politically conscious and this is why being or other forms of military dictatorships have made things worse.. NS has changed a bit in exile , i do not trust him but right now anything is better than Zardari.. having said that ti don't want Zardari govt. to collapse..Let the system work and it will sort itself out over the course of time. This is how democracies have survived- through trial and error!
Hmm.. I would go with Mustafa about the stopping NS point.. and with you on the democracy point..
Anyway.. wish you luck for your party..
Karmasura
@ Luscious
How can we have democracy at the country level when there are dictatorships at the party level? Benazir was chairperson for life. She dies, her husband forges a letter as a will (as if the PPP was Benazir's personal property) and inherits the throne. PML(N) is no different with the name itself confirming that the party is nothing else but a vehicle for ensuring the political fortunes of the Sharif brothers. These clowns will not allow anyone else to join "their" party and slowly through hard work and leadershipreach the top. This is not the way India practices democracy or UK or Canada. So, I laugh and roll my eyebrows when someone naively suggests that we have or could have democracy under the current system in Pakistan.
Oops ... roll my eyes ... not my eyebrows. Tooo much vodka last night !!
@Mustafa - Let the system work. It is full of holes and broken, yet it is the only system that can work in Pakistan. There is rampant corruption in India, yet the system works there because it has been allowed to function!
@Kamasura - Good to see you back on the blog :)
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