| June 23, 2002 | Sunday | Rabi-us-Sani 11, 1423 |
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Guarding Fortress Europe
Perils of net chatting
WITH a constitutional package reportedly ready for presidential approval, it is time the military regime realized the full implications of hacking away at the nation’s Basic Law from time to time. As Bar leaders have recently pointed out at a press conference in Lahore, constitutional amendments make no sense at a time when a general election is less than four months away. Besides, whether the nation’s much disfigured Basic Law needs further change for reasons of good governance and if so, of what kind and with what effect on the Constitution’s scheme of powers are matters that are best left for the elected government and parliament to decide and act where necessary; a transitional set-up with a limited tenure granted by the Supreme Court is hardly the body that should become involved in issues of such far-reaching importance.
In Pakistan, frequent constitutional interruptions and deviations have done enormous harm to the nation and obstructed its political and democratic evolution and refinement. Ignoring the abrogation of two constitutions — those of 1956 and 1962 — even the 1973 Constitution is no more there in its original form. General Ziaul Haq effected wholesale amendments for reasons that had nothing to do with the good of the nation. All he wanted was to keep his crippling hold on power, no matter at what cost to the country’s political and democratic system. The result was a complete dilution of the Constitution’s parliamentary character, with most powers concentrated in the president’s hands. The most obnoxious of his amendments was the 58-2b clause, which empowered him to dismiss the prime minister, and with it the national assembly, at his discretion. He used this clause to dismiss the government of Mohammad Khan Junejo, who was his hand-picked prime minister. Subsequently, this clause was wantonly used by two presidents three times to dismiss elected prime ministers. Each time, the decision was motivated by questionable political and personal reasons and had little to do with the good of the nation. The result of the frequent dismissals of governments was political instability and confusion, and little economic development between 1988 and 1999.
For its part, this government has been talking about giving constitutional status to the National Security Council ostensibly to act as the guardian of the government — and not as one of its adjuncts meant to advise it on higher security matters. The presence of a military-dominated NSC pursuing its own broad-spectrum agenda, is hardly compatible with the elective principle of government and the supremacy of civilian leadership in matters of governance which form the bedrock of the 1973 constitutional scheme of things. Besides, going by Turkey’s example, such an institution in that country has not helped strengthen and consolidate democracy; instead, Turkey has remained chronically plagued with political instability, with the generals still calling the shots in critical situations.
Having all that in view the generals now in control would do well not to press the question of constitutional amendments at this stage. The best course for them would be to wait till the transfer of power to the people’s representatives along, possibly, with a package of recommendations for them to consider. It is for the elected leadership to decide whether to adopt all or some of the amendments proposed by the generals. Perhaps, the new parliament can be expected to consider re-introducing clause 58-2b in a modified form so that the president is empowered to dismiss not the elected assembly but the prime minister on grounds of incompetence or misconduct or both. In that case, either the prime minister could seek a fresh vote of confidence from the assembly or the House could elect a new leader.
VOICES emanating from the 15-member European Union weekend summit at Seville in Spain sent mixed signals about the union’s evolving common policy on immigration and asylum. Far from reaching a final agreement on common immigration laws, the summit reverberated with the emerging sentiment representing the European far-right, which has gained substantially in recent elections in many EU member states. However, a radical call for taking punitive action against countries that do not comply with the EU’s directives of holding back economic migrants in the transit countries came from none other than the most unLabour-like government of Britain’s Tony Blair. Other EU hawks on the issue, like Germany and Spain, supported the call. France and Sweden violently disagreed with the proposal and thus settled for milder language that assured complying countries of a bigger chunk of European aid than those not complying. Just shows how close Europe has come to making its far-rightists’ dream of a Fortress Europe a reality.
In the line of fire were countries like Turkey, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Egypt, which serve as a conduit for hundreds of thousands of intending economic migrants and asylum seekers. The problem that these countries face in restricting the number of migrants is obvious: lack of resources. While their borders remain relatively porous, they cannot possibly host large numbers of intending migrants converging on their countries in the hope of slipping through the net to make it across to the European shores. The EU will have to offer more in economic aid to the countries whose citizens come knocking on its doors because they have no employment opportunities and little prospects of a decent living back home.
THE 25-year-old American woman who came all the way from the US to Karachi to be with a man she had befriended on the Internet learnt the hard way about the perils of falling in love on the net. The hapless woman showed up at the doorstep of the man only to find out that he had failed to disclose certain important information about himself. The woman found out that her cyber lover was married and a father of two children. The woman, who had created quite a scare in US diplomatic circles by ‘disappearing’ soon after reaching Karachi, has since returned heartbroken to her country. The man, meanwhile, is believed to have been deserted by his furious wife. This story illustrates perfectly the risks involved in finding love on the net.
While there have been a number of happy endings to such love affairs, there have also been as many stories of deceit, cheating and even sexual abuse. In the West, many young girls have been preyed upon by older men who befriended them by claiming to be their own age. While the anonymity of the Internet can encourage those who are shy or isolated to make friends, it also attracts unscrupulous people who exploit others by altering their age, gender, profession or marital status at will. The Internet offers innumerable opportunities for learning and research, but it also has a darker side to it. In Pakistan, a growing number of young people are discovering the pleasures of this medium and chatting to other young people across the globe. Parents and teachers, in particular, should inform the young about the risks involved in giving away personal information to total strangers during chat sessions.