Rizwan Ghani
AS chief justice of Pakistan, Justice Qazi Faez Isa has saved democracy in his landmark Party Symbol judgment ruling that there should be democracy in both country and political parties. The judgment thwarted populist sleaze strategy of replacing democracy with dictatorship in the country with one party rule for next hundred years after usurping democratic rights of party workers including women empowerment. The judgment protects democracy against “dictatorship on the national and local level”.
Under the Constitution, Pakistan has parliamentary democracy and the judiciary is under oath for staying independent to preserve balance of power by upholding democratic system of check and balance in legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government through various mechanisms including judicial review and legislative oversight so that no single branch becomes too powerful. It is the job of justices to preserve the balance or resign if they hold democracy hostage.
Justice Isa was vindicated when the Supreme Court ruled presidential reference against him as tainted with mala fide in law. He is the target of the January 6 like coup, which Pakistan needs to defeat. Western democracies are facing slow insurrection or coup with help of populist sleaze strategy in which wannabe dictators are using 3C plan to target chiefs of judiciary, military and country to replace democracy with dictatorship with loyalty to self instead of constitution with a blueprint of Project 2025.
History is clear on Justice Mansoor’s reference to Sir Thomas More in The Treason of Sir Thomas More (National Archives Blog, UK Government 7 Mar 2023). Moor refused to accept parliament’s legislation thwarting separation of state and church that would have cost the UK its modern democracy. It explains why the church canonized more in 1935 and Pope John Paul II recognized him as the patron saint of statesmen and politicians in 2000 and the state hung him.
Like King’s Men in Pakistan, More’s fate was self-inflicted also. After failing to secure papal approval to annul Henry’s marriage to Katherine, the Parliament passed two Acts: The 1534 Act of Supremacy that declared Henry and his lawful heirs as the head of the Church in England and 1352 Treason Act. More was asked four times to swear the oath to King but each time he refused. Despite writing ‘Utopia’, more had to resign for abusing his powers by punishing heretics for their religious beliefs.
On the international front, Pakistan Foreign office has rejected US Congressmen’s letter seeking Biden’s intervention for release of May 9 beneficiary. State department has left the matter as an internal affair. Biden has already rejected pleas to pardon Trump for Jan 6. Under what is good for the goose is good for the gander, the West must stand with democracy not wannabe dictators of May 9 and Jan 6 attacking democracy and its democratic institutions.
Under Biden’s plan, Harris is fighting the 2024 Election to save America’s democracy. Harris 24 October tweets show Trump is seeking unchecked power with military loyal to him not [our] Constitution. Trump’s next coup has already begun (The Atlantic). King’s Men are saving Trump after Jan 6 (MSNBC). There was firing outside Justice Sotomayor’s house following her dissenting note of president ‘King above the law’. That is against our Constitution and system of government (the Guardian).
Imran’s State of Madinah exposes wannabe dictator running with democracy and hunting with right wing religious parties just like Trump and his Christian Nationalists in America. Trump is contesting elections with promise of dictatorship at the cost of democracy with King’s Men (‘All the king’s men’: SC ‘openly colluding’ with Trump on immunity, MSNBC). In fact, both are using religion to return to power with dismal records (Pakistan’s Transparency ranking worse off under PTI, Dawn).
Democracy is facing political coups globally. May 9 is copycat of Jan 6 in America, Jan 8 in Brazil and September 10 in the UK. The Supreme Court ruled that Johnson’s suspension of UK parliament was unlawful but gave clean chit to the PM at the cost of democracy (the Guardian, 24 Sept 2019). The PTI government also scrapped Local Governments in Pakistan. Only, Brazil’s Supreme Court banned Bolsonaro for Jan 8 attacks (BBC, 30 Jun 2023).
To save democracy, the judiciary has to become independent. To cut outside influence, America is proceeding with the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act of 2023 requiring the Supreme Court to self adopt a code of conduct for justices including the circumstances under which a Justice or judge must be disqualified (S.359 5 Sept 2023). Senator Whitehouse said that Supreme Court Justices and their decisions should not be influenced by billionaires and political insiders.
Justice Isa Party Symbol ruling can go a long way in holding elections in political parties, ending dynastic politics and stopping abuse of party workers by empowering them to become Fatima Jinnah, Bhutto and Benazir than discarded after alleged sexual abuse. He also ensured general elections were held on 8 Feb 2024 (God willing, elections will be held on Feb 8,’ CJP, Dawn). Ex-CJP Isa becomes first Pakistani to become bencher at UK’s Middle Temple.
