On the 78th Independence Day, Pakistanis need to indulge in some soul searching. Bangladesh, formerly East Pakistan, has recently ousted its Prime Minister after a revolution led by student unions and civil society organizations. While both Pakistan and Bangladesh are different what is worth noting is that the youth in Bangladesh more interested in politics – and those in India as was seen in the elections this year – than those in Pakistan. And if that is so, what is the reason for this disinterest of the young in politics.
In a recent column, Arifa Noor argues that “while there is perhaps an absence of strong student unions and organisations in Pakistan, it is not simply due to bans on them. The ethnic polarisation the country faces has spread to how students organise or are allowed to organise around ethnic cultural groups in many institutes.”
Noor argues that this ethnically polarized youth do mobilize but for local and community reasons, not for participation in politics. “Their moblisation has led to two of the largest, organic movements in modern Pakistan. Both the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) and the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) are youth-led. So far, both movements claim to be averse to parliamentary politics. In Balochistan, the Baloch youth is attracted to neither mainstream political parties nor nationalist ones. With the PTM, the approach is not much different; their moblisation is also limited to street agitation. Part of the reason for their aversion to mainstream politics is the role of dominant political parties in legitimising military operations in the militancy-afflicted areas. It is noteworthy that Ali Wazir and Mohsin Dawar had to leave the PTM once they decided to contest the elections.”
The reason, Noor states is “is mainly due to the manner in which elections have been conducted in the province and the results they have thrown up, which has led to a widespread perception that the legislature and governments do not exist to address the people’s issues.”
Noor warns, “if the youth, which is the present and future of the country, has no faith in the democratic forums of the country, they will only turn to agitation and eventually violence.”
