Judges, journalists continue to fight for demo in Pak

Panaji, Nov 14: Judges, lawyers and journalists continue to be lead the movement for restoration of democracy in Pakistan where the economy is in a shambles under the current political dispensation, a strategic affairs expert from the neighbouring country said.

''The media at the micro level is stronger in voicing dissent but not the blog media, particularly the print media with a couple of publications as the owners are pro-government,'' avers Dr Farooq Hassan, a senior advocate of the Supreme Court and advisor to four former Prime Ministers of Pakistan.

Interacting with South-Asia affairs scholars and general public on ''Domestic, political and economic developments in Pakistan'' here this evening under the aegis of the International Centre, Goa, and the Goa University's political science department, Dr Hassan said the big media did not publish views against the General Musharaff's regime for obvious reasons.

With 83 per cent of the budget going for armament industry and defence spending, the economy was in a shambles even as Pakistan started importing essential commodities like atah, sugar and dal from India, he said.

''Pakistan has not done well on the economic front at all and the situation worsened after the devaluation of its currency after the 9/11 episode. Industry, like its neighbour Bangladesh, has also not done well, thus depending on imports from India on which it accorded the most favoured nation status,'' Dr Hassan remarked.

Interestingly, majority of the Pakistan's military force was from three of its provinces and the country's stability depended much more on the strength and cohesion of its federal structure even as the country had no ''constitution'' of its own under the military regime, he said.

Taking exception to equating ''Islamic fundamentalism'' with extremism by the US and other developed nations, the visiting Harvard University professor on international affairs Dr Hassan said ''Islamic resurgence'' in Pakistan had now been on rise with Islamic parties representing about 51 constituencies as against hardly two in the past.

This showed the engagement of the fundamentalist parties in electoral process with elements of democracy. Even most of the military people had Islamic background.

''The problem is not with the fundamentalism but extremism,'' he said. The concept of Islamic state became questionable and suspect after the 9/11 episode. Most of the generals were products of Islamic resurgence,'' he said.

Referring to Pakistan emerging as a democratic country, Dr Hassan said,'' the possibility is very bleak as long as Musharaff is the President even as military rule has to end on November 2007.'' The President has to be elected by the Assembly but ''I am ashamed to say that there is no constitution in Pakistan despite being a nuclear power and having the fifth largest army in the world. If civil government comes, what would happen is a question mark,'' he said.

Referring to the Indian ''peace lobby'' in Pakistan, Dr Hassan favoured widening representatives to include the crickters, journalists, cinema personalities and cultural troups as against people with communist and socialist idealogy which had not been accepted by Pakistanis, Dr Hasan added.

In this connection, he appreciated India's gesture in liberally granting VISAS to journalists and others visiting Pakistan and vice-versa for forging better relations.

UNI