SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
pti
Casar Leads Call for Probe of Election 'Rigging' as Pakistani Lawmakers Choose New PM
"We do not want the United States taxpayer dollars to go to militaries that then use that money to incarcerate journalists or suppress free speech or suppress political parties," said Rep. Greg Casar.
Mar 03, 2024
Pakistani lawmakers on Sunday elected Shehbaz Sharif to serve a second term as the country's prime minister following elections last month that were widely decried as illegitimate, with top officials and the military
manipulating the vote and cracking down on the party of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan—the nation's most popular politician.
The election of Sharif, the younger brother of three-time Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, drew shouts of protest from Khan's allies in Parliament who supported Omar Ayub, who served as federal minister for economic affairs under Khan. Despite facing large-scale repression ahead of the February contest, candidates backed by Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won more seats than any other party—but not enough for an outright majority.
Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) party, the favored party of the nation's military, formed an alliance with the Pakistan People's Party and others, a partnership that Khan allies have derided as a "coalition of losers" and "mandate thieves."
Less than two weeks after the national elections, a top Pakistani administrative official publicly admitted to manipulating the results by converting "losers into winners, reversing margins of 70,000 votes of independent candidates for 13 national Parliament seats."
PTI-backed candidates were forced to run as independents after election authorities banned the party's well-known symbol, a cricket bat.
قومی اسمبلی ہو یا سڑکیں، #CoalitionOfLosers کو پی ٹی آئی پارلیمنٹیرینز اور پاکستان کے عوام کی جانب سے ٹف ٹائم مل رہا ہے۔ ان کا مستقبل اچھا نظر نہیں آتا۔ وہ شرمناک زندگی گزار رہے ہیں کیونکہ پاکستان میں ہر کوئی جانتا ہے کہ وہ مینڈیٹ چور ہیں!#مینڈیٹ_پر_ڈاکہ_نامنظور pic.twitter.com/xuuo1kYmxX
— PTI Layyah (@PtiofficialLyh) March 3, 2024
Days before Sharif's election as prime minister, U.S. lawmakers led by Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) expressed concerns about "pre- and post-poll rigging" and called on President Joe Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to withhold recognition of a new Pakistani government until a "thorough, transparent, and credible investigation of election interference has been conducted."
"Without taking this necessary step, you risk enabling anti-democratic behavior by Pakistani authorities and could undermine the democratic will of the Pakistani people," reads the letter, which was signed by more than 30 Democratic lawmakers.
"Pakistan is a longstanding ally of the United States, and we recognize the importance of our relationship for regional stability and counterterrorism efforts," the letter continues. "It is in the U.S. interest to ensure that democracy thrives in Pakistan and that election results reflect the interests of the Pakistani people, not the interests of the Pakistani elite and military. We look forward to working with you to show Pakistanis that the U.S. stands with them in their fight for democracy and human rights."
Last August, The Interceptobtained a secret cable indicating that the Biden administration pressured the Pakistani government to remove Khan as prime minister. Khan was ousted in a no-confidence vote shortly after two American diplomats met with Pakistan's ambassador to the U.S. in March 2022.
Khan has since been imprisoned on corruption charges that he and his supporters say are politically motivated.
In an interview with Voice of America on Friday, Casar said he has "long studied" how "the United States supported coups, supported military governments, and suppressed democracy in Latin America."
"And that ultimately hurt, not just Latin Americans, but also hurt people in the United States. It did not work. It did not work economically. It did not work for our safety," said Casar. "The same should apply with [the] United States and Pakistan. We should not simply let geopolitics or corporations or our military alliance override our core value of democracy."
Addressing suggestions that his call for an investigation of the February election might constitute "meddling" in Pakistan's internal politics, Casar said that "our interest is not whether one group or another group wins an election."
"The people of Pakistan should be able to decide their own election," said Casar. "We have very clear laws that aid is contingent on human rights being respected, free speech being respected. We do not want the United States taxpayer dollars to go to militaries that then use that money to incarcerate journalists or suppress free speech or suppress political parties."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Historic Electoral Win Provides Opportunity for US Reset in Pakistan
Rather than continue to support the discredited military establishment bent on subverting the will of the people, the Biden administration would do well to support the democratic aspirations of millions of Pakistanis.
Feb 14, 2024
As polls closed following Pakistan’s parliamentary election on February 8, major media networks began election-night coverage with prominent TV anchors and pundits discussing voter turnout and the timeline for expected results. When it came time to offer his analysis, one of Pakistan’s most popular TV hosts, Hamid Mir, launched an unexpected tirade against the entire electoral process. He refused to call the proceedings of the day an “election,” railed against the suspension of mobile services (which caused massive disruption to voters as they cast their ballots), and questioned the relevance of discussing voter turnout when the outcome of the election was predetermined.
This was a stunning moment on live television at a time when Pakistan’s military and intelligence apparatus had systematically suppressed all forms of dissent. Somebody had dared to vocalize what millions of Pakistanis in the country and in the diaspora already knew about the deeply flawed electoral process.
Mir was perhaps referring to pre-election rigging against Pakistan’s most popular political party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), led by former Prime Minister Imran Khan. However, as the night wore on, the military and intelligence establishment in collaboration with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) tried to pull off the greatest post-electoral heist in Pakistan’s recent history.
It is no longer sustainable for the U.S. government to continue its support of the Pakistani military and risk its long-term relationship with a population of 240 million, two-thirds of which is under 30.
As soon as the media began reporting that PTI-backed candidates were defeating former prime minister Nawaz Sharif (favored by the military) and other leading candidates in his party, the ECP abruptly withheld and delayed the announcement of results in key constituencies. Several hours later, Pakistanis woke up to an entirely new reality. PTI candidates who had been winning by wide margins and had documentation to prove it, found themselves defeated according to the ECP. Despite “losing” dozens of seats in the process, which they are currently challenging in the courts, PTI-backed candidates still won the highest number of seats in parliament.
Put simply, PTI supporters in Pakistan staged nothing short of a civilian coup against the Pakistani military.
Rather than continue to support the discredited military establishment bent on subverting the will of the people, the Biden administration would do well to support the democratic aspirations of millions of Pakistanis.
Pre-Election Rigging
As the date for parliamentary elections approached, the PTI was stripped of its electoral symbol, and party candidates were forced to contest as independents. The party chairman and former Prime Minister Imran Khan was convicted on three separate counts and sentenced to a total of 31 years. PTI candidates and their families were targeted, harassed, and assaulted, and many were forced to campaign in hiding.
Voter suppression was rife. People did not know until very late where they would vote, and at times voters within a single family were assigned polling stations hundreds of miles apart. The day before the election, citing security concerns, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced that polls would close early, further restricting voter access.
And yet, despite massive pre-poll rigging and voter intimidation, supporters of the PTI came out in droves. Tens of millions exercised their electoral rights and delivered a stunning upset.
Rather than continue to support the military at the expense of democratic processes in Pakistan, the U.S. government would do well to understand the implications of this unprecedented moment in Pakistan’s history.
The Pakistani election demonstrated that despite long periods of direct and indirect military rule in the country, the people of Pakistan continue to have faith in the democratic process. It made clear that the Pakistani military and its intelligence agencies can no longer manipulate electoral processes and outcomes in the face of overwhelming people power. It revealed that the military’s attempts to control the narrative by muzzling the media and targeting journalists no longer work with a population that is technologically adept and social-media savvy. It showed that the military’s iron grip is slipping.
This is a critical moment in Pakistan’s history and for U.S.-Pakistan relations.
Once a venerated institution in Pakistan, the military is now viewed with contempt by millions of Pakistanis in the country and in the diaspora, who blame it for Imran Khan’s ouster. They are now increasingly aware of the insidious role the military leadership played in various chapters of Pakistan’s history: its genocidal actions in 1971 against the Bengalis of East Pakistan, its cultivation of militant groups to advance domestic and foreign policy objectives, its involvement in the enforced disappearances of Pakistani citizens, its collaboration with the CIA in the so-called War on Terror, and its repeated violations of Pakistan’s constitution.
U.S.-Pakistan Relations
It is no longer sustainable for the U.S. government to continue its support of the Pakistani military and risk its long-term relationship with a population of 240 million, two-thirds of which is under 30.
Successive U.S. administrations have relied on the Pakistani military to advance their strategic interests and actively worked to undermine “aggressively neutral” civilian leaders like Imran Khan, who tried to craft independent foreign policies.
It is why the Biden administration remained conspicuously silent in the face of brutal state repression against Imran Khan’s supporters following his ouster two years ago. This indifference continued in the run-up to the election even after widespread reports of pre-poll rigging.
Disillusioned by the administration’s lack of support, many in the Pakistani-American community turned to their elected representatives to garner bipartisan support for House Resolution 901, which called for free and fair elections in Pakistan. They managed to get more than 70 members of Congress to co-sponsor the resolution.
Since the election, and at the behest of Pakistani-American constituents, many of these representatives tweeted their alarm at the massive rigging that took place on election day. Some called on Pakistani authorities to respect the will of the people, while others called for an investigation into the election amid charges of widespread fraud.
This is a critical moment in Pakistan’s history and for U.S.-Pakistan relations. Amid growing anti-Americanism in the nuclear-armed country, the Biden administration has an opportunity to reset its relations with the people of Pakistan. As is being urged by some members of Congress, the administration should stand in solidarity with the Pakistani people and publicly refuse to recognize the results of Pakistan’s election until all irregularities are resolved. Anything short of that will imperil stability in the country as well as in the region. It will also make a mockery of Biden’s rhetoric regarding democratic principles and the rule of law.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Candidates Backed by Imran Khan's PTI Party Take Lead in Pakistan Elections
A member of the military's preferred party called the early results "probably the biggest election upset in Pakistan's political history."
Feb 09, 2024
This is a developing story... Please check back for possible updates...
Early results released Friday by Pakistani officials showed that candidates backed by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan are currently leading the country's national elections, a stunning development given measures the nation's powerful military took to suppress the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party.
Members of Khan's party, known as PTI, were forced to run as independents after the nation's Supreme Court and election authorities banned its well-known symbol, a cricket bat. The Associated Pressnoted that the party also "couldn't hold rallies or open campaign offices, and its online events were blocked."
Friday's tallies from Pakistan's election commission showed that independent candidates backed by PTI have won 62 seats thus far, more than any other party. Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League—the preferred party of the nation's military—has won 46 seats.
Results for more than 100 contested seats are still being counted.
Sen. Mushahid Hussain, a member of the Pakistan Muslim League, wrote on social media that the early results mark "probably the biggest election upset in Pakistan's political history."
While PTI supporters welcomed the early results, deep concerns remained over whether their lead would hold amid ongoing tampering allegations.
Just ahead of Thursday's long-delayed election, Pakistani authorities cut off mobile phone and internet services across the country in what human rights groups called an overt attack on the democratic process.
Gohar Ali Khan, PTI's chairman, said late Thursday that "any attempt to change the results overnight will be thwarted and not accepted at any cost by the people of Pakistan or the local and international observers and media."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular