LAHORE, Dec 15: Speakers at a Justice and Peace Commission workshop on democracy and human rights on Sunday did not see much hope for democracy in a country which was directly or indirectly ruled by the army and where state institutions were used in the interest of a privileged few rather than the people at large.

Prof Dr Mehdi Hassan said the fact that eight elections had been held in the country in the last 15 years did not mean that democracy was being practised in letter and spirit. The people have been totally ignored by rulers. The future of democracy in the country is dark since no party has the capability or the political will to bring about a radical change in the status quo.

He alleged that none of the 158 registered political parties in the country had set a criterion for membership. This leads to anti-political practices like floor-crossing. He said every party had opportunists surrounding its leaders and striving for power only.

He alleged that the political affiliation of a politician could be moulded either by an offer of a ministry or the threat of a NAB reference.

Pointing to causes of failure of democracy in Pakistan, he said policies were made for a patronized class only.

He was of the view that economic, social and diplomatic problems could not be solved through closed-door administrative decisions and must be resolved in consultation with the people.

Prof Mehdi warned that as along as armed forces were ruling either directly or indirectly, democracy could not be expected to take roots in the country.

He said that apart from playing a pivotal role in ruling the country since 1954, the armed forces had been consuming a substantial part of the annual budget in the name of defence against a ‘threatening neighbour’. Army was the wrong instrument to be used for ideological defence of the country, which could only be strengthened by the people while living in a truly democratic setup, he added.

He urged that Pakistan should normalize its diplomatic relations with India. Had the countries been surviving only on a strong defence, the former USSR would not have fragmented, he observed.

Prof Mehdi also accused the army of fundamentalist proclivities, saying that all religious parties were a creation of armed forces under the “pseudo-Islamic” stance of Gen Ziaul Haq. The degrees awarded by religious institutions were declared equivalent to graduation by the former military regime just to let the religious leaders contest elections, he added.

He said that while looking towards judiciary and bureaucracy for rescue would be futile, members of the political parties should collectively pressurise their leaders into adopting pro-people policies for promotion of democracy.

HRCP director I. A. Rehman alleged that the autocracy had taken the country hostage against national interests. He claimed that some 130 laws had been passed by the former military regime this year, 50 of them after Oct 10. He said the rule of law was damaged by such acts. A law is justified only if it applies to all and is rational and based on legitimate use of public authority. All this is amiss in Pakistan, which has led to a democratic crisis.

He alleged that judiciary had been protecting the actions of military regimes rather than fulfilling its most important duty of protecting people’s rights. He said the judiciary was still working under the PCO, which had become ineffective following the constitution of a political setup in the country.

He observed that a bureaucrat or a politician who became part of the government setup using corrupt means could not be expected to act for the good of the public. He said the actions of government functionaries should be placed under check, political rights of the people be defended and personal friction among employees be reduced to promote an amicable working relationship in all institutions of the country.

Supreme Court Bar Association president Hamid Khan said intelligence agencies had been conspiring jointly against the democracy right from the beginning. The establishment had tempered with the elections results of some 30 to 50 seats in the Punjab alone to secure a lead for the PML-Q, he alleged.

He further alleged that the NAB had been used to sabotage democracy and create a king’s party through a discriminatory accountability of corrupt politicians. He said “NAB-affected” politicians had been included in the National Alliance and allotted ministries.

According to him, even the constitution had been restored in such a way that it would benefit the king’s party. The verdict of Supreme Court on LFO and judicial appointments was a big disappointment as far as independence of judiciary was concerned, he added.

Former Punjab law minister Afzal Haider said the government decision to restore joint electorates had strengthened democracy by making it possible for the minorities to participate in mainstream politics.

Justice and Peace Commission executive secretary Aftab Alexander Mughal said the minorities in Pakistan had always been working to strengthen the country and would extend cooperation in this regard in future as well.