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Some torment on a strike ONE writes this column on an uneasy Friday evening, as April unfolds, on the eve of a countrywide strike call with that de ja vu feeling. Indeed this is not the first time that Karachi sits in deep anxiety on the eve of a hartal (strike) date, with the citizen both tormented with the thought of what could happen, and simultaneously reconciled to staying at home. Another day to be spent, in some kind of contemplation, as to what kind of days lie ahead. What season? For recent strike calls that seem to have created a climate that one is familiar with. There is a very interesting advertisement that has appeared in several newspapers, which heralds the claim “with spring in the air... “. The rest of the full page colour advertisement trumpets from the Ministry of Health, the opt repeated mother and child theme. The “spring time” advertisement comes from Islamabad, the beautiful, as says a billboard near the Islamabad airport. Keep in mind that the relation between Islamabad and the rest of the country is one that is often the subject of concern and controversy. Even today media and society are focusing on what should be the relationship between the Centre and the provinces — and how it needs to be worked out. In a kind of symbolism(?) comes this unreal advertisement, sitting pretty. And it comes on the 1st of April, which is April Fools Day, a colleague pointed out. Now quite seriously, is there spring in the air? In Islamabad, yes. But is that the mood in the country? In Balochistan? NWFP? Sindh? Punjab? Where? Blue area? Perhaps! It is this kind of mass communication that emanates from Islamabad that causes a fragmentation of that process, observed a person who focused on what he described as “a season of strikes, it seems.” It is very pertinent to mention here that the same full page health ministry advertisement does not mention spring in Urdu dailies! Why full page ads in this cost conscious age is something that remains inexplicable. There was the Ponam strike that came on Thursday, there was the strike of the oil tankers that began on Wednesday, and there was the transporters strike in the city scheduled for April 6th. There is a restlessness about the way in which prices are rising, we observed and concluded, rightly or otherwise, that the fact that fuel prices were unchanged on March 31st is because of the political pressure that was being exerted by various political platforms. And of course the private TV channels. For all the anti-strike statements and contentions that were aired by Pakistan Television on March 31 in detail and with brevity by the others, the common man was worried on Friday morning. He sounded unsure of what kind of Saturday would unfold, and the redeeming feature of the day was the thought that the India-Pakistan one day fixture was scheduled to be played. From the looks of it, cricket is likely to be a very solid proposition for the day perhaps even the weekend. In the midst of strongly worded statements from the government and the MMA and other opposition leaders, we have read an MMA statement wherein its spokesmen has claimed that the “government was planning to announce a public holiday on Saturday, April 2 for the one-day match between India and Pakistan to give the impression that the people remained at home to watch cricket.” What? Let me tell you that this cricket holiday on the strike day was being toyed around since the beginning of the week, and even serious people were insisting that this is what would happen. It has not come until Friday evening!! But the MMA spokesman said in a statement on Friday morning (PPI story) that “if government announces public holiday on Saturday, it will give no face saving to the government, and if it is untrue than a complete shutter down strike will be observed, which will be another blow to the government.” The MMA spokesman further said that the cricket holiday would have been an attempt to “dilute the strike.” Quite clearly the government, federal and provincial, has chosen to take the strike call head on, and warned that those who violate the law would be booked under Anti-Terrorist Act. The Federal Interior Minister Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao said in Islamabad on Thursday that “cases will be registered under anti-terrorist act against those who try to block roads, and force the shopkeepers to close their businesses”. These sort of tough official stands and pronouncements are in plenty in Friday papers, and Sindh Home Minister announced that Section 144 has been imposed throughout the province for seven days, due to the MMA strike call. Therefore, there is a ban on assembly of five or more people display of weapons, holding public meetings, and taking out rallies in Sindh, he said. He spoke in detail on the strike call and warned that “this must not be taken as a joke or a political statement”. In addition to the press statement format, there have also been issued print media advertisements by the Sindh government and the MMA. One wonders whether other provincial governments have issued such advertisements, for and against the strike. The Sindh government advertisement with a black and white photograph of Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim has its headline reading: “Pakistan Par Raham Karo” (Have mercy on Pakistan, what that means?) There is a dramatic urgency in the text which says many things including the contention that the strike is a conspiracy against progress, and the economic development in the country. It spells out the disadvantages and pitfalls of a strike, and appeals to the public to be careful of those who are out to destroy and sabotage the peace and tranquillity of society. Then, smaller, but equally noticeable print media advertisements have been released by the MMA, and one of them carries the name of Qazi Hussain Ahmed saying that there will be a “wheel jam, shutter down, hartal” on April 2 for “Awami bedari, quomi ghairat and deenee jamiat.” The MMA advertisement also detailed the increase in prices that have taken place in the tenure of the present government, in respect of flour, milk, sugar, petrol, telephone, gas and electricity. Many questions come to the mind as Friday moves into history. All day there has been speculation of how the day would be, and how risky it could be to stay out late in the evening. The eve of a strike is a troubling proposition. It makes the citizens wonder what the next day will bring. It is an evening to try and rush home. Karachi has a history of strikes and political movements in the last four decades, stretching back to the late sixties. It is both instructive and enlightening to try and comprehend how gradually and visibly strike calls are given and carried out. Perhaps a certain maturing of public and political opinion has taken place, and awareness and expectations in the light of street protest and power have undergone a change. Somewhere in this metamorphosis there is a defining role that has been and is being played by the electronic media and a cynicism and disillusionment too. Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)
