EDITORIAL: Even when the Pakistani diaspora in the United Kingdom is sharply divided over politics in its native homeland there are also some remarkable developments that sustain hope that everything is not lost.
One such ray of hope was beamed yesterday from overseas where 37-year-old Pakistani-origin Humza Yousaf was sworn in as Scotland’s First Minister.
Humza, who is the first Muslim to lead a democratic western Europe nation, may even earn the honour of being the founder of an independent Scotland.
He emerged victorious with 52 percent of Scottish National Party (SNP) members’ preferentially-ranked votes, following a divisive 3-way leadership battle triggered by Nicola Sturgeon’s surprise resignation announcement last month.
Coincidently, his ascension to the top post comes only a few months after Gujranwala-origin Rishi Sunak, 42, became the youngest UK prime minister in modern history. “My victory”, Humza said, sends “a clear message that your colour of skin, your faith, is not a barrier to leading the country we all call home”. His father is originally from Pakistani Punjab and emigrated to Scotland with his family in the 1960s, while his mother was born into a South Asian family in Kenya.
In the SNP he rose from the ranks, quite often being victim of racism that at times was so intense that his daughter was refused admission in a white-only primary school. Talking to a Pakistani journalist, he said, “From Punjab to parliament, this is journey over generations that reminds us that we should celebrate migrants who contribute so much to our country”.
Rightly then, people from ethnic minority background celebrated Humza Yousaf’s success as a historic and landmark moment. He will now be a guest at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla as King and Queen of the UK and other Commonwealth realms, sending a message to the world about how much public life in Britain has changed for the better.
As First Minister, Humza Yousaf would like to concentrate his focus on protecting Scots from Britain’s cost-of-living crisis and reforming public services, irrespective of Scots’ political allegiance. And as for his and his party predecessors’ struggle for independence a tough challenge is cut out for him. As for the independence now 45 percent Scots favour Scotland leaving the United Kingdom – after 55 percent of Scots rejected such a move in 2014.
But his party is confident to win even when opposition to their mission stems from the 10 Downing Street. It is, however, important to note that the UK Supreme Court has already ruled that the Scottish government cannot hold a referendum for independence without the UK government’s approval. Humza Yousaf is aware of all this and is not hooked to the idea of prompt referendum.
He has distanced himself from his predecessor Sturgeon’s plan to use next election as a de facto referendum, saying he would instead seek to build a “consistent majority” in favour of independence and it “isn’t good enough to have polls that put support for independence at 50 percent or 51 percent”. According to him, “I will do things my own way”. Be that as it may, our congratulations to Humza.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.