In the end it were not the lawbreakers who got punished but the law minister who resigned from position as the state bowed to religious zealots. Pakistan’s government and the state failed so miserably in the face of weeks long blockade of the capital that all leading Pakistani newspapers termed it “capitulation” to a mob-rule mindset.
“It is a surrender so abject that the mind is numb and the heart sinks. The deal negotiated between the state, both civilian and military facets of it, and the Faizabad protesters is a devastating blow to the legitimacy and moral standing of the government and all state institutions,” Dawn, a leading English language newspaper rued.
The wave of criticism follows the government’s accepting all demands of the protesters from resignation of the law minister to compensation of damage to property, and a probe into the truncated operation against the protesters.
The demonstrators from various religious parties were protesting against the government as they accused the law minister of removing a section from the politicians’ oath form about the finality of the prophet. Showing extreme and violent power, the protesters held the capital hostage.
Taking the government to task for a humiliating acceptance of demands of the protesters, the editorial notes that “something profound changed in the country yesterday and the reverberations will be felt for a long time.”
The paper demands introspection.
“Zealots had already demonstrated the power of mob violence and the strength of the politics of intolerance and hate. Now, a blueprint has been created for holding state and society hostage. Despair is not an option for a nation state, but neither can there be a pretense that a significant setback has not occurred. Is there anyone, in state or society, to help repair the damage?”
Pakistan Today, a progressive newspaper, called the government’s failure “an abject surrender” and said the government has much to answer for, particularly on the issue of resignation of the law minister.
“Those keen to mainstream terrorist and extremist groups have to realize the harm these would do to the state and society when they enter national politics,” the editorial warns. It also demands an explanation of the role of the army in brokering the deal between far right militant-minded protesters and the government.
The News noted that the abysmal state of governance has raised serious concerns.
“Everything about this sorry episode, from the way this “Dharna” sprung up to its eventual ‘resolution’ reinforces every fear we – and the rest of the world – had about the Pakistani state and its resolve in the fight against extremism. The message sent out by this debacle is that protestations by the government that all state institutions are working in harmony cannot be taken at face value.”
