Author: Comrade Rohan Baloch
The harsh behaviour meted out by spouse of an Army Colonel with Police officials in Pakistan stirred up a heated reaction on social media. The anger against usurper military has been building up since 1947 but palpably the masses seem to have realized that the so called independence from British imperialism was only a delusion and farce unless or until they get freedom from remnants of British Indian Army which has held 220 million population its hostage by brutally seizing political and economic power for last 73 years. The strong reaction of people may not immediately bring about any social revolution against military but it could certainly be the beginning and first rays of a new era in the land hunted firstly by vicious ghost of British imperialism and subsequently its remanent military usurpers. The dawn, for which millions of toiling masses have been waiting for centuries, is going to emerge and the darkest days of dominance, exploitation and atrocities committed by colonial brute force within Pakistan and without is about to end.
The most unfortunate mistake committed by founders of Pakistan was not to disband Imperial British Army and establish a fully new organization. Thus, for that mistake the people of this region have been paying huge price because due to military seizure of power, the country has experienced four martial laws, dismemberment of country into two parts, lack of social, economic, industrial and infrastructure development. Additionally, almost all small nationalities have opted for separatist movements due to excessive repression and genocide they have been facing at the hands of military mindset.The damage and devastation caused by Army rule in Pakistan is huge in terms of human irony faced by masses of country and its neighbours. Pakistan could have been evolved as a giant democracy on the map of world but military did not allow people to develop their own political parties and leadership rather military kept on imposing its proteges on public. The military rigged every election, violated rule of law and captured all lucrative businesses and corporations. Presently almost all big businesses are run by Pakistan Army. Therefore, it has become a dominant social class rather than a mere State institution.
Every State institution or organ such as main popular political parties, religious armed groups, drug mafias, death squads, judiciary, bureaucracy, media and parliament are under the yoke of Army Junta. The people of Pakistan have been denied all democratic and basic human rights. In Pakistan neither there is right to expression nor right to Association nor right to equal treatment of law. Anyone in Pakistan that raises voice against military’s arbitrary exercise of government power, he or she is blamed to be a traitor and declared to be killed. Thousands of political leaders, activists, journalists, lawyers, intellectuals, writers have been killed in this way.
Army has not only seized political power but has sponsored terrorist outfits that have been used to kill their own citizens and to carry out terrorist activities abroad. The international image of Pakistan has badly been tarnished because trail of every terrorist activity is found to have gone from Pakistan. Almost every country has placed ban upon their citizens to travel Pakistan. Thereby, Pakistan is considered the most dangerous country on earth. It has been turned into a nursery of terrorism evident from the fact that Osama Bin Laden and Mulla Umar were also captured and killed on the soil of Pakistan.
The security forces and intelligence agencies have picked up thousands of people from Balochistan, KPK, Sindh, Karachi, Kashmir and Waziristan. Serious human rights violation have been taking place in these areas. Thousands of people have been brutally murdered in torture cells, bomb blasts, target killings and terrorist incidents. The military clique has converted Pakistan into a human slaughter house. Rule of law is nothing but a joke in the country. The poor have no protection of life, dignity, livelihood and property. Millions of people are at the mercy of goons. The civil institutions have deliberately been destroyed.The biggest hurdle in the way of accountability is Pakistan’s military because it does not want to have any robust system of accountability in the country as military Generals are involved in billions of dollars corruption scams. Therefore, they resist any law against corruption in Pakistan. The ideas of social Justice, democracy, independence of judiciary, constitution, civil society, free media and the claim to be the bastion of Islam are just eyewash, lies and farce.
Religious extremism is on rise. Since first Afghan war, the Military and its intelligence outfits established several seminarians in all across Pakistan. In these seminaries, in the guise of religious education only terrorist are produced. Due to State-sponsored religious extremism, the religious minorities have been denied all their rights. Even Hindu and Christian girls are kidnapped and forcefully converted into Islam and then married without consent. Ethnic minorities like Baloch, Pashtoon, Sindhi, Seraiki and Mohajirs have been brought to an extreme point where they have no option than to fight till death. From every corner of country, separatist movements have been cropping up. In order to quell these movements, military remains in war throughout the year with non other than its own people and citizens of State whose protection is in real terms happens to be noble responsibility of country’s army.
Erroneously dealing the issues of federation and mis-handling the governance and public policies, Pakistan has entered into an undeclared civil war where military is engaged in full fledged war with its own people in Balochistan and Khyber Pukhtunkha. Sooner or later, this civil war will expand in other parts of country as military is bent upon denying free media, access to justice, constitutionally guaranteed fundamental rights to the citizens. On the other hand, politically puppet regimes have been imposed on people of Pakistan. These puppets have destroyed economy and trampled the rights of people and brought country to the brink of bankruptcy. People are dying from hunger, unemployment, diseases, terrorism and committing suicides. Violence against children and women are alarmingly increasing in Pakistan. Inflation cannot be controlled. People of Pakistan even do not have access to pure drinking water besides other amenities of life. Rich are becoming richer and poor are poorer.
Adolf Hitler and Mussolini might have not inflicted that much harm and injury to their respective nations as Pakistan’s colonial military Junta has done with Pakistan, which was made in the name of Islam, democracy and justice. But few uniformed and un-uniformed paid servants of state have hijacked the whole country and made people their serfs and destroyed the very foundation of State which otherwise had come into being to be a welfare, secular, just, democratic and true federal Republic.
In the wake of Colonel’s wife’s abusive video, which went viral on social media, and the subsequent bold, courageous and audacious reaction on the part of public on social media, has manifested the barometer of anger of public against military elite for what it has done with country and masses since 1947 till present times. However, the true battle of freedom from the yoke of military’s servitude will not be fought and win on social media, it must be fought on ground to acquire true freedom from repression, hunger, death, disease and tyranny. As great German philosopher Karl Marx said that “the workers have nothing to lose but their chains and they have a world to win”.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Balochistan Post or any of its editors.