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February 16, 2003
REVIEWS: Not a culture of tolerance
Prof Qureshi has made a timely attempt to describe the political culture of Pakistan. The book may not have been written on the exact macro/micro patterns of one by Almond and Verba (The civic culture), nonetheless, it highlights the major characteristics of the political culture of our nation-state.
Political culture refers to the citizens’ attitudes to politics, political values, ideologies, national character and cultural norms which determine the structure/function of the government in a country. It implies patterns of individual attitudes and orientations. The political culture varies from state to state and society to society and is subject to change. As a society moves from traditionalism to modernism, the political culture changes too. A revolution can change political culture.
A number of factors motivate a society such as education/literacy, mass media, religious fervour, nationalism, leadership, and national crisis such as a revolution, counter-revolution, and war. Political culture is maintained and changed through the process of political socialization where new values replace old ones, and old trends are followed by new ones. It is a rapid change in political culture which brings instability in society.
The book is divided into four parts which focus on the features, retrospection, structural causes and resolution of the problem. Pakistan has failed to develop a political culture under which an established democracy or a stable representative system can operate. The formative years (1947-54) of our political history were marred by the instability which ultimately led to the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly and its consequences. This was reflected immediately in the developments within the country especially in the way that the 1956 Constitution was framed and democracy established. The system tottered due to political instability and poor leadership which have been the root cause of Pakistan’s ills. The country has had to pay a heavy price for this and has failed to develop a healthy political culture. The early demise of the Quaid-i-Azam, the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, the selfishness and ineptitude of the Muslim League leadership, and the appointment of Ghulam Mohammad, a man with a negative frame of mind, placed the country in immense political difficulties.
Pakistan has been run largely by the military with the army penetrating into politics at all levels soon after Ayub Khan and Iskander Mirza were inducted into the civilian cabinet of Ghulam Mohammad. The army after three coups and 27 years of direct rule today, is a class which can control politics directly or indirectly. The army has intervened in politics at three levels. It has influenced the civil authorities by persuasive tactics, blackmail and by displacing a civilian government on the plea of acting for the higher interest of the country.
The army’s role in politics could be appreciated as that of a moderator. Today it is a privileged class and its top brass controls important institutions, even after retirement. The failure of elected governments to serve the interests of the people whose representatives they are supposed to be is the enigma of Pakistan’s politics. The major factors responsible for the crisis of representation which has led to the crisis of governance are the feudal character of the Pakistani society, the entrenched role of the bureaucracy and the absence of a strong party system.
A democracy can be established over a period of time by elections and political turnovers which has not been the case in Pakistan. The democratic phase allowed in 1988 failed to produce a strong and established democracy. As changes began to take place the civilian government was displaced by a military junta.
The third chapter focuses on the political history of Pakistan from 1970 to 1999 in detail. Z.A. Bhutto emerged as a popular leader in the wake of the disastrous disintegration of the country. He could have remained longer in office but internal and external forces worked against him. Besides Bhutto contributed to his downfall by not tolerating any opposition and behaving like an autocratic ruler. In the closing days of his rule he played a strong innings on a weak pitch. The American factor played a key role in unseating him and Henry Kissinger’s warning that he would make an example of him.
Benazir stepped into office with the support of the common man. But she failed to consolidate the Peoples Party’s hold and her two terms as prime minister were marked by many political blunders.
Nawaz Sharif was not rooted in the masses. He was a protege of the establishment, particularly of Gen Gillani who was the governor of Punjab. Nawaz Sharif soon emerged as the party leader of the Muslim League — a political party which can be changed with a drop of the hat. He too was displaced and the whole system gave way — a political cruelty of the highest order.
To the author, the establishment of a political culture in Pakistan calls for the promotion of education at the primary and middle level with a massive literacy programme. The seeds of democracy can be sowed and the political culture groomed once the electoral process is launched and allowed to operate with tolerance and within the framework of checks and balances and accountability. The concept of democracy was embedded in the Pakistan movement given the belief of the Muslim League leaders that its form of government would be of a representative character with all enjoying religious, political and economic freedom.
Political Culture in Pakistan.
By Prof Muhammad Siddique Qureshi
Dost Publication, 8-A Khayaban-i-Suhrawardy, Islamabad
ISBN 969-496-207-2
469pp. Rs375
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