VIOLENCE has become an unfortunate component of Pakistani politics. And
when political meetings and rallies become easy targets for
trigger-happy assailants, the need to reform the country`s political
culture assumes even more importance. A number of people were killed as
gunmen opened fire on a village public meeting on Sunday in Sindh`s
Khairpur district. The majority of victims were PPP supporters. There
are mixed views about what prompted the attack with some officials
citing the cause as enmity between two groups of the local Janwari
community. However, PPP MNA Nafisa Shah, who was to speak at the
meeting, indicated `political motives`. Given intracommunal tensions and
a charged political atmosphere, neither aspect can be ruled out.
Political tensions have been prevailing since the passage of the Sindh
People`s Local Government Bill 2012 by the provincial assembly last
week, with Sindhi nationalists and some erstwhile PPP allies in the
assembly agitating against the new law. If the meeting was attacked due
to political motives, it would set a dangerous precedent. One can only
hope that thepolice are right when they say they know the perpetrators;
in that case we expect the assailants to be apprehended soon.
To
clear the air, all political forces in Sindh need to condemn the attack
unequivocally, whatever their view of the government. Criticism of
government policies must remain within the bounds of democratic practice
either in the assembly chamber or through peaceful protests.
With
general elections on the horizon electioneering activities will begin
to gather steam in the days ahead. In this context it is not very
reassuring that a meeting of the ruling party has been attacked in its
home base. Considering the possibility of similar incidents, political
parties need to sit down and discuss a code of conduct whereby it is
agreed that electioneering will be a peaceful exercise. If the trend of
attacking political rallies and meetings catches on, an excuse can be
made to curtail political activities altogether. This would be
unacceptable.
Hence both political parties and the state need to
play their respective roles to ensure a peaceful run-up to the
elections.
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