The Tribune

ONE of the purposes of this column is to identify and try to shed light on global issues that have attracted little attention in the US media but which might be of interest to readers locally.

An example was the recent military coup in the West African state of Niger that I wrote about last week. The international media has now picked up on this subject because of the likely repercussions of the coup both in Africa itself and elsewhere in the world - not only the involvement of the Wagner mercenary group and the growing threat of Russian intervention, together with the need for counter terrorism measures against Islamic insurgents in the region, but also in light of the threat of military intervention by other African countries that still exists but now appears less likely.

Another global event during the past week – this time in Pakistan - is, I believe, worth covering today because it could precipitate a crisis on the Indian subcontinent. With over 240 million inhabitants, Pakistan is the globe’s fifth-most populous country. It also has the second largest Muslim population. So, what happens there can have a considerable effect on the rest of the world.

The event in question is the sentencing by a court in Islamabad of the nation’s former Prime Minister, Imran Khan, to a three-year jail term after he was found guilty of illegally selling state gifts he received while in office. As a result, he will be banned from politics for a period of five years which means he will be unable to participate in the national elections due in November.

Khan has denied the charges and says he will appeal. After the sentencing, he called for his supporters to “stand up for their rights” by protesting peacefully, saying ‘“this is a war for justice, for your rights, for your freedom”. He has called the charges and his trial and conviction a Kangaroo court-type process that has been politically motivated as the military establishment continues a dramatic crackdown on his political party known as the PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf).

 In his youth, the 70-year-old former prime minister was an international cricket star who led Pakistan to victory over England in the final of the Cricket World Cup of 1992. He later became a politician. He was the first PM in the country’s history to be ousted by his opponents in parliament in April, 2022 – four years into his 5-year term. This was in a vote of no confidence. He was arrested in May this year and, since then, has been facing some 200 other charges related to allegations of corruption, terrorism and inciting people to violence over deadly protests that saw his followers attacking government and military property.

On the face of it, Imran Khan seems to be on a hiding to nothing, and his political career could be over. But he and his supporters, as well as many commentators, paint a rather different picture.

They maintain that Pakistan is under “undeclared martial law”, and that what Khan calls “fascists” are leading the country into “the dark ages”. He has stated publicly his belief that the country is on the brink of a major disaster if free and fair elections are not held. For most of its existence as a nation - since it was created in 1947 at the time of India’s independence from Britain – the politically powerful military and intelligence agencies have heavily influenced the running of the country. They have been a crucial behind-the-scenes player in national politics in nuclear-armed Pakistan.

Historically, every PM has eventually fallen out with the military, and Imran Khan is the seventh former PM to be arrested over the years in a country which has a history of coups and military rule.

It is now being said that he has gone from the Army’s saviour to its nemesis. Reportedly, it backed him at first as the answer to Pakistan’s political troubles. But he has subsequently become one of its most vocal critics. He was elected in 2018 on a wave of popular support and an anti-corruption manifesto, promising to introduce clean governance and justice and to fix the economy. Gaining huge public appeal, he ushered in a new kind of populist politics in the country, painting a vision of “a new Pakistan” as he swept to power after years of playing second fiddle to the more established political parties. But, later, when he was accused of failing to deal satisfactorily with the country’s economic woes, including crippling inflation, the Army turned against him and mounted a campaign to dismantle the PTI. He and his supporters claim that this action has contributed to bringing the country to a standstill.

The former PM claims he has never advocated the use of violence and has a record of strictly peaceful protest in politics. He maintains that, if there has been any violence by his supporters, it is the actions of the military in cracking down and harassing him and his party that has provoked unrest.

From the beginning, he gained massive support amongst voters who disliked politics and politicians before he came along. He says he is well aware of the personal danger of standing up to the military establishment, having already survived an assassination attempt in November, 2022 when he was shot and wounded in an attack during a protest rally he was leading.

According to some reports, Imran Khan seems to believe that the no-confidence vote which forced him out was partly orchestrated by the military. He says his PTI party is the only one not created by dictators. He is confident he still commands considerable public support and that only free and fair elections will restore stability.

In a recent interview with the BBC, he claimed that the military were petrified of elections because they did not like his public popularity and wanted to squeeze him out of politics for good. However, most commentators now suggest that the reaction of his supporters to his prison sentence looks to be very different from when he was arrested in May. So far, it has been much more muted; and many believe his optimism about the strength of his support base may be misplaced.

Be that as it may, these latest events are disturbing. Continuing instability in such a huge Muslim country, which also has nuclear weapons, has already caused wide concern. The actions of Imran Khan’s supporters will determine whether or not a political crisis develops. It is hard to disagree with him that only free and fair elections can bring back political and economic stability to Pakistan in the longer term. But, given the military’s traditional involvement, there can be no certainty about that.

WINDRUSH: PORTRAITS OF A GENERATION

Since my wife and I were preoccupied with personal matters while on a visit to England in June and July, I regret to have missed press reports about the celebration of National Windrush Day at the end of June. This was the 75th anniversary of the historic arrival in Britain on June 22, 1948, of the ship the Empire Windrush at Tilbury Docks in London carrying some 500 people from Jamaica to settle in the country and to contribute to reducing local labour shortages. They were the first among thousands invited by Britain to migrate and take on jobs to help rebuild the country in the long aftermath of the Second World War.

To mark this significant anniversary, King Charles had earlier commissioned a series of ten portraits by black artists of members of what became known as the Windrush generation. The artwork is on public display for the first time at the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King’s official residence in Edinburgh, and later, in October, will be at the National Portrait Gallery in London.

In such positive and encouraging circumstances, it might be inappropriate to dwell on a previous controversy about the Windrush generation and their descendants. But what became a scandal in relation to immigration is part of the Windrush story and it has a happy ending. So it might be worth airing the issue briefly, not least to forestall any residual misunderstanding.

The British Nationality Act of 1948 gave citizenship of the “United Kingdom and Colonies” to all British subjects connected to the UK or a British Colony, and Jamaica had been a British Colony for the last 300 years. However, the children of the Jamaicans who travelled to Britain on the Windrush were on their parents’ passports and did not have separate documentation. Much later, changes to UK immigration law led to difficulties over their immigration status as adults, with some people facing deportation despite having the right to live in the UK.

Some five years ago, the issue of alleged poor and unfair treatment of those concerned by the British government came to a head. An independent Review criticized the Home Office which undertook to put right wrongs and injustices suffered by the Windrush generation and their descendants. The government agreed to pay compensation under a scheme which was set up in 2019. At the time, Prince Charles paid tribute to them in a much-publicised video message, saying that “the nation owed a debt of gratitude” to the Windrush generation for accepting an invitation to come to Britain and for making an immeasurable contribution to so many aspects of public life.

How heartening it is now to learn not only about the King’s commissioning of the ten portraits but also about the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the Windrush in London – and, in particular, to read the warm message from Prince William in June who said that the voyagers and their descendants had helped to rebuild the country and had added to its culture.

THE “SILLY SEASON” ACROSS THE POND

In Britain, what is known as the silly season is a period during the summer months when frivolous or unimportant stories appear in the mass media because of a lack of so-called serious news to report. This typically takes place during August when Parliament is in recess, schools are closed for the summer holidays and many people are on vacation.

On the mainland of Europe, a similar situation has been almost institutionalized for years, with the closing down of just about everything in cities and elsewhere – except, of course, in holiday destinations - during August. Governments and people are on their annual vacation and, mostly, they do not return home until the first week of September.

Amidst all this, however, newspapers still have to fill the space normally devoted to political and economic news. So there is a mischievous temptation to float stories on any subject, irrespective of their accuracy or authenticity, but which are sufficiently plausible to make readers wonder whether they might just be true.

The scope for such stories is endless and some writers delight in deliberately misleading people in a subtle fashion designed to intrigue those who may become curious about what they read. This is seen as a harmless and well-meaning activity that reflects well the traditional British sense of humour – and I, for one, will be on the lookout for such examples in the UK press during the rest of August!