Author: Inayatullah
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: May 26, 2006
Introduction: Much of the evils cited in the
case of Pakistan are also to be found in India. What distinguishes India is
the fact that it is a democracy, where elections have been held uninterrupted
since
1947 and where people rule and manage their affairs
What a contrast - India being hailed as an
emerging giant and lionised by leading TV channels with special programmes
highlighting its achievements and how it compares with another giant, China.
Pakistan, on the other hand, is increasingly looked at as a failing state
with no prestigious international media channel willing to speak for it.
When an American magazine and a think-tank,
Funds For Peace, included Pakistan in the list of ten top failed states, there
was a sharp reaction in this country officially and also in the media. How
could you place Pakistan in the category of such states as Somalia, Chad,
Congo and Afghanistan? What was found most galling was that it ranked below
even Afghanistan.
Now that Pakistan has earned the dubious distinction
of joining the ranks of "failed states", it is necessary to examine
why we are viewed as such. And if we are not that bad, why is our ranking
so low? Are some of our ill wishers at work to discredit us internationally?
There is yet another way of viewing the picture
- and a healthier one too. Why not look into the mirror? What do we see?
A country with an uncertain future. A state dominated by the military. A democracy
with all its trappings but bereft of the democrat spirit. A land where elections
are rigged and decisions imposed on the elected houses from above. Where the
civil services have been weakened and demoralised. Where there is a constitution
but its provisions are ignored or sidelined. Where national institutions have
lost their credibility. Where local administration has become dysfunctional.
Where the citizens feel insecure and law and order is at a low ebb.
I began this column with a reference to India
being hailed as an emerging giant. Much of the ills and evils as also the
deficiencies and distortions I have cited in the case of Pakistan are also
to be found in India. How is it then that its image remains good and more
or less unblemished? Despite corruption, insurgencies and massive violation
of human rights as seen in Kashmir and Gujarat.
Apart form size and the population, what distinguishes
India and helps build up its image is the overwhelmingly important fact that
it is a democracy, the largest democracy of the world. Where elections have
been held uninterrupted since independence in 1947 and where people rule and
manage their affairs. It is this simple fact which serves to obscure the scores
of defects, inadequacies and evils it suffers from.
While there may well be elements of prejudice
at work on the part of our detractors to besmirch our image and standing,
the fact remains that we have messed up our affairs and done a lot of damage
to our polity and society. We have been deficient in building up our national
identity and have not seriously addressed the vital question of nation-building.
It's instructive to heed the words of William
Milam, a former US ambassador to Pakistan, on the subject of this column penned
in one of our national newspapers: "On its face this ranking is ludicrous.
However, that does not make the message it sends any less ominous. The message
is that uncertainty inside Pakistan dominates the evaluations of those outside
Pakistan.
(From The Nation, Pakistan)
