Mr. Amitesh Ganguli
Political Analyst
On 16th April, Pakistan blocked access to all social media, after days of anti-French protests across the country. Over the last few days, Pakistan has been on edge. The country has been in the grip of mass civil unrest over the Pakistani government’s decision to ban the far-right Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), a contentious, extremist religious organisation known for raw street power, rigid interpretations of the Sharia Law, and history of sit-ins and protests. The bone of contention this time around has been the publication of ‘pictures of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)’ by a few French publications.
The TLP was formed on 1st August 2015 by Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi and is currently in an eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation with the ruling dispensation over the stricter implementation of Pakistan’s rigid, archaic, inhumane blasphemy laws.
It should surprise no one that historically, the TLP was pushed into mainstream politics by the country’s army brass as one of its political engineering tools. The Army has always preferred having an active far-right component in politics as a way of consolidating power and ‘keeping the cauldron simmering.’ For instance, in 2017, TLP goons brought the Pakistani city Faizabad to a 21-day standstill, with the ISI’s backing to destabilize the ruling PML-N govt. When the Army was called upon for assistance, General Bajwa quietly refused. Unbeknownst to the Army or the Deep State, the TLP has grown in the ensuing years, with or without the establishment’s active support.
In this regard, the Asia Bibi episode of 2018 indicated that far-right fringe movements, especially the likes of TLP, tend to gather a momentum of their own. To briefly recollect, in 2010, Asiya Noreen, commonly known as Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman, was accused and convicted of blasphemy under Pakistan’s rigid Blasphemy laws. However, in October 2018, the supreme court of Pakistan acquitted Noreen, citing “material contradictions and inconsistent witness statements.” But in November 2018, the govt of Pakistan signed an agreement with the TLP, barring Noreen from leaving the country. Had it not been for the active intervention of Italy, Canada, and other Western governments, Noreen would have been the first women to be executed for blasphemy under the current law.
The same TLP – which the Pakistani government appeased in 2018 over Asia Bibi – has been banned today. Experts suggest that Army and the Deep State’s plan to support and nurture the TLP has grievously backfired, given that this Frankenstein of their creation has now turned on them. Some commentators have suggested that the growth of the TLP and its conspicuous virulence is symbolic of the State and the Deep State being at an internal war with each other. This internal war has the potential of snowballing into something serious, manifesting as stray incidents of violence and destruction. The critical point to note will be that local Pakistanis and the Pakistani police, of whom four were killed and estimated 600 injured during the recent protests, won’t be the only collateral involved.
The growth of TLP and the State’s inability to stem it does not bode well, especially for non-Muslims residing in Pakistan. These developments, such as the current civil unrest, will also have far-reaching security implications, especially for those the TLP and the far-right sees as antithetical to its rigid, orthodox doctrine of Islam – this included, but is not limited to, Westerners, women and anyone who the TLP sees as ‘the other’. Stray attacks, kidnappings, and violent crimes cannot be ruled out.
The French ambassador’s email, on 15th April, advising French citizens to leave the country should be seen in this light. Further, other countries such as the US, Canada, and UK have issued travel advisories to their citizens, citing reasons such as “kidnapping”, “terrorism”, and “street crimes” for refraining from travelling to Pakistan.
The UK official govt website explicitly mentions, “protests can occur with little warning…they can turn violent quickly”. The Canadian official website further ominously mentions of a “threat of terrorism, civil unrest, sectarian violence and kidnapping”.
As the situation is becoming grimmer day by day, it would be prudent for diplomats, Western aid workers and journalists residing and working in Pakistan to adopt a more cautionary approach in their day-to-day dealings. Given the rise of groups such a s TLP and the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, caution circumspection and adherence to laid down guidelines by respective governments is the only way to avert unfortunate incidents such as Piotr Stanczak kidnapping and beheading of 2008 and John Solecki kidnapping of 2009.
In this regard, it would serve everyone well, if history were never to repeat itself.
