KARACHI, 20 April — Soon after it had unfolded a grand plan for economic revival of Karachi, the military-led government of Chief Executive Gen. Pervez Musharraf has been embarrassed by violent disorder in the commercial heart of the country. Wednesday’s strike in the province of Sindh, called by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and an alliance of Sindhi nationalists has brought intimations of the massive agitation of the late eighties and early nineties when MQM, with its militant activists in urban Sindh, was calling the shots. This time, it is teamed up with a group of nationalists and the strike was the consequence of a protest against water shortage in Sindh. A largely successful strike was almost ensured when more than 30 motor vehicles were set on fire in Karachi on Tuesday evening.
An important implication of the show of force by the political opponents of the present government is that it has come at a time when Gen. Musharraf is seen to be more confident of his position and when bold new initiatives are on the cards. After giving himself an extension as the chief of the army staff, Gen. Musharraf has apparently set his sights on a somewhat distant future — beyond the time-frame of October 2002 given by the Supreme Court. It seems certain that he will become president, following in the footsteps of previous military rulers.
On Saturday, Gen. Musharraf was the chief guest at a glittering show held on the sprawling lawns of the Governor’s House in Karachi where the Program for Economic Revival of Karachi — PERK — was launched in the presence of the city’s elite. It was obviously meant to generate optimism and to demonstrate the resolve to improve quality of life in a forever problematic Karachi. This program has been designed by a task force in which the private sector has a leading role. On that dazzling occasion, Gen. Musharraf also hinted that Karachi’s industrialists would no longer be bothered by the accountability drive and by tax officials if they came forward to invest and make legitimate profits.
A number of other moves were also made to suggest that the government was seriously devoting its attention to improving the law and order situation, mainly in Karachi, to help revive the economy. On Sunday, Interior Minister Moinuddin Haider addressed a news conference in the city to announce plans for arms control and for police reforms.
The role of the police is generally cited as a barrier to peace. Earlier in the week, a widely projected four-day seminar was held in Karachi on the subject of police and human rights to underline the concept of community policing and to improve the image of the police as a friend and protector of the people.
But, ironically, the human rights seminar was also attended by the media coverage of police excesses in dealing with the protest launched by MQM and the Jeay Sindh Qaumi Movement. This protest was to begin with token hunger strikes at the Karachi Press Club from April 10. But the police did not allow the hunger strike to take place and leaders and activists of the alliance were arrested before they could stage their protest. On Monday, they took out a procession which was baton-charged and tear-gassed in the commercial district and not allowed to proceed to the Governor’s House. Police excesses on this occasion were shown on international television broadcasts. It was as a protest against this police action that Wednesdays strike was called.
At a different and national level, the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD), the Pakistan People’s Party of Benazir Bhutto being its main component, is also agitating for early restoration of democracy. The first ARD demonstration was scheduled on March 23, the Pakistan Day, in Lahore, and it was also suppressed with massive police force, which blocked all roads leading to the venue of a public meeting which could not be held. Now, ARD has announced a public meeting in Karachi on May 1 and the authorities, of course, have not given permission for the rally. It will be interesting to see if the apparent dent in the authority of the government, as evident in the resurgence of disorder in Karachi, will raise the morale of the ARD leaders and if they will be able to put up a defiant show on May 1.
Essentially, the real issue is whether open political activity is possible in Pakistan at this crucial stage in the evolution of the new order that the government is planning in the shape of local government, which will be launched on Aug. 14 this year. Critics complain that while religious organizations, including supposedly extremist outfits, are free to hold their rallies, political parties are not allowed to hold their meetings. Observers are also anxious to know if the present discontent in Sindh would undermine the confidence and sense of direction of Gen. Musharraf’s government.
