Rabia Shuja holds an LLM in International Human Rights Law from Griffith College, Dublin and is Chief Correspondent for JURIST in Pakistan. She reports from Islamabad.
On Wednesday, Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party announced that it was calling off its protest in light of what it described as the government’s plan to turn the capital into a ‘slaughterhouse for unarmed citizens’. The decision comes after security forces launched a massive operation Tuesday night, forcing protestors to evacuate D-Chowk, a large public square in Islamabad.
This past weekend thousands of PTI supporters from across Pakistan marched towards the nation’s capital, answering former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s call for a sit-in protest. Protestors demanded the immediate release of Imran Khan, who has been jailed on various corruption charges since August of last year. They also demanded revocation of the recent 26th amendment of the Constitution, which has controversially weakened the independence of the judiciary.
Protestors also challenged the incumbent government’s legitimacy, claiming the general elections that took place earlier this year were rigged, and therefore the coalition government must resign. PTI leaders have referred to the current government as ‘mandate thieves’, with its president in Sindh, Haleem Adil Sheikh, claiming that the party will reclaim the ‘stolen mandate.’
The coalition government led by Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif showed no intention of giving into the oppositions’ demands and took drastic measures to thwart PTI’s protest . This past Thursday the Islamabad High Court ruled that the sit-in was unlawful and urged the Federal Government to take necessary measures to maintain law and order in the capital. On Friday, the Motorway Police announced the closure of all major motorways, including the Lahore and Peshawar motorway leading to Islamabad. Shipping containers were also employed within Islamabad to block all major roads and streets, with police and paramilitary personnel on patrol.
In line with the country’s history of digital blackouts in times of political turmoil, internet disruptions were also reported across Pakistan. Internet watchdog NetBlocks posted an update stating: ‘WhatsApp backends have been restricted in Pakistan corroborating reports of media sharing issues; the measure comes as authorities tighten security ahead of protests planned by opposition party PTI calling for the release of former PM Imran Khan’
Despite every preventative measure taken by the government to stop marchers from entering Islamabad, on Tuesday protestors broke through a ring of shipping containers and stormed the city, managing to reach D-Chowk which lies in Islamabad’s heavily fortified Red Zone. This resulted in violent clashes with security forces who used stun grenades, rubber bullets and tear gas in an attempt to disperse the crowd. The clashes led to injuries on both sides, and claimed the lives of six people, including two PTI protestors and four paramilitary personnel. In response to the death of security personnel, the Interior Ministry announced the deployment of military forces along with ‘shoot at sight’ orders under Article 245 of the Constitution. Article 245 grants a civilian government the power to call in the army to aid it in enforcing law and order domestically. It states: “The Armed Forces shall, under the directions of the Federal Government defend Pakistan against external aggression or threat of war, and, subject to law, act in aid of civil power when called upon to do so.” Furthermore Article 245(2) states: ‘The validity of any direction issued by the Federal Government under clause (1) shall not be called in question in any court.’
The government’s decision to invoke Article 245 has been strongly condemned by political activists and international human rights organisations. Ammar Ali Jan, a member of Pakistan’s Haqooq-e-Khalq Party (HKP) stated that the scale of repression showed that the military and the government had accepted political defeat. He claimed that the world at large has moved on from military dictatorships but ‘Pakistan is still stuck in the 1960s’. He went on to say that ‘ You can’t build stability on the corpses of your fellow citizens who demand nothing but respect for their stolen mandate. Those contemplating violence on protestors will permanently tear apart the country. Send the military back to the barracks & negotiate with political leaders.’
Amnesty International’s South Asia office also released a statement condemning the use of force used against protestors, urging authorities to exercise maximum restraint and aim to de-escalate the violence. The organisation also implored the government to immediately rescind the ‘shoot-on-sight’ orders, which granted the military excessive power.
After hours of confrontation, security forces launched a midnight operation on Tuesday, effectively dispersing thousands of PTI protestors. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has confirmed that the Red Zone has been cleared. The area still remains under extensive security, with the military controlling D-Chowk.
Although the government may have successfully obstructed PTI’s protest, it has only further damaged its image in the eyes of the public by its flagrant abuse of power. The severe restriction on assembly, internet blockades, the deployment of the military under Article 245 with direct orders to ‘shoot-on-sight’, the use of live ammunition, tear gas shelling, as well as indiscriminate mass arrests illustrates the government’s blatant disregard for peaceful political dissent. The coalition government refuses to learn from its past and continues to heavily rely on the military to govern the country and stifle political dissent. However as history has repeatedly shown, such tactics have no long-term viability. The government’s actions have only succeeded in further undermining its own legitimacy.
