EDITORIAL : THE DAWN, PAKISTAN

 

Fatah-Hamas accord

 

ONE fails to understand the rationale behind the immediate American and Israeli rejection of Wednesday`s decision by Fatah and Hamas to bury the hatchet and forge unity by democratic means. At the height of what has been billed the `Arab spring`, Fatah and Hamas have taken a step that was long overdue: they have decided to hold elections to be conducted by a government comprising independents, and unite the West Bank and Gaza under one administration. The existence of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip and the Fatah-controlled West Bank as two independent cantons has done tremendous harm to the Palestinian people`s struggle for achieving sovereignty on their soil. The split between the post-Arafat Fatah and Islamist Hamas followed the latter`s victory in the January 2006 parliamentary election. However, the elected government was never allowed to function.

Israel blocked $50m of the PA`s revenue share, with America and the European Union following suit by cutting off all non-humanitarian assistance. The aid denial made it difficult for the Hamas government to pay salaries to the PA`s bloated civilian bureaucracy. And when the Arab League, Iran and Russia decided to go to the PA`s help, western banks refused under pressure to undertake transactions. The situation worsened when violent clashes broke out between Hamas and Fatah supporters, and PA President Mahmoud Abbas, ignoring the Hamas majority, asked an independent, Salam Fayyad, to form the government, issuing a decree that the prime minister did not need to take a vote of confidence from the Palestinian legislative council. Exploiting the Hamas-Fatah split, Israel has unleashed its armed fury on the Gaza Strip from time to time, the last such attack in 2008-09 killing nearly 1,500 Palestinians, 70 per cent of them civilians.

While all previous attempts at unity failed, on Wednesday the two sides clinched a deal brokered by the new Egyptian regime. The accord provides for presidential and parliamentary elections to be held by a neutral government, thus paving the way for a united government having the mandate of the Palestinian people. That Israel and the US should immediately adopt a negative attitude towards the electoral process is indeed unfortunate. If Hamas wins an election again, as it did in 2006, the world needs to accept the Palestinian people`s verdict. Israel`s stance that the PA can have peace either with Hamas or Tel Aviv shows a desire to perpetuate and exploit Palestinian differences. Hamas has indirectly recognised Israel by accepting the two-state solution. Accepted as a legitimate player in the Arab-Israeli conflict Hamas can play a positive role in the peace process and help achieve a Palestinian state through peaceful means.

Coalition politics

 

ON Wednesday, Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain told newsmen that his PML-Q “will soon decide” on the offer to join the PPP coalition at the centre. Just how soon was indicated by his cousin Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on Thursday. The Q-League appears set to join the coalition — “not for ministries, but to forward a national agenda”. Given the flurry of front-page leads in all newspapers and their predictions, a PML-Q refusal to join the Zardari set-up now would have appeared a volte-face. But a volte-face it is in any case. The expression has lost some of its shine from overuse, but, for lack of an alternative, the Chaudhry-Bhutto rivalry has to be described as legendary. There is, however some evidence of a failed Benazir Bhutto move to win over the Chaudhries in her battles with the Sharifs. Mr Zardari`s successful wooing of the Q-League has been termed by his supporters as proof of the superiority of his tactics over those applied by Ms Bhutto. In reality, the much-anticipated union can only be a result of changed times. When Ms Bhutto made her ceasefire call to the Chaudhries of Gujrat long ago, Moonis Elahi was a young lad. He is now old enough to be tried on corruption charges. This creates its own demands.

Meanwhile, the PPP has taken its own haphazard route to growth, blessed as it is with the remarkable gift of partnering with just about anyone. As it moves forward, it leaves in its trail ever new lessons for those who are still struggling to come to terms with the coalition politics that appears set to rule Pakistan for many years to come. While the PPP strives boldly to consolidate before the crucial Senate elections next year, the Q-League finds it expedient to camouflage its need in the popular slogan for a national agenda. This slogan is not at all dissimilar to the unachievable PML-N agenda of the past. Even then, circumstances do indicate that once they are in the coalition, the PML-Q men would be less inclined to make an exit and make identification of camps on the country`s political landscape that much easier.

The bookie saga

 

THE mystery behind former wicket-keeper Zulqarnain Haider ‘abandoning’ the national cricket team in Dubai late last year and fleeing to the United Kingdom to seek political asylum took another twist the other day. At least eight alleged bookies were detained for making threatening calls to the cricketer and security officials in Punjab say that more arrests can be expected in the days to come. Why Zulqarnain Haider was targeted in this manner, if the official story is to be accepted, is not easy to identify. What is clear though is that a thorough investigation is in order to establish the facts and bring the guilty to book.

At least a start has been made with these raids on bookies and statements obtained from some of the accused that they
did indeed threaten Zulqarnain, who has now returned to Pakistan after the interior minister assured him of his security. The Pakistan Cricket Board, for its part, needs to engage in some much-needed soul-searching. It tried to sweep the wicket-keeper’s claims under the carpet by quickly describing him as ‘mentally ill’ after the most summary of probes. Last year’s ‘spot-fixing’ scandal in England showed the world, much to the shame of our nation, that dishonest cricketers were still manipulating scores, if not matches, more than 10 years after the Justice Qayyum report on corruption in Pakistan cricket. The matter could have been settled then but it wasn’t in entirety. Several cricketers with huge question marks hanging over their integrity were allowed to go on representing the country for many more years. This latest case involving Zulqarnain Haider must not be allowed to slip under the radar like others before it. The cricketer needs to explain his position to the satisfaction of the cricket board and anyone who may have been threatening him ought to be brought to justice.