Reconciliation among State, Parliament; society mandatory for strong democracy: Raza Rabbani      

ISLAMABAD: Senator Mian Raza Rabbani Saturday said reconciliation among the state, parliament and society was mandatory for strong and promising democracy. He made these remarks as chief guest at the book launching ceremony of “Democratic Transition and Political Change in Pakistan” authored by Prof Dr Raja Qaiser Ahmed of School of Politics and International Relations Quaid-e-Azam University here.

The ceremony was organized by National Library and Regional Rapport a local think tank.

Senator Rabbani said that Dr Qaiser had aptly discussed the historical perspective of democratic change and the thematic under currents prevailing in the contemporary period.

“When the state fails to deliver the weak and marginalized faction then vacuum and deprivation used to sneak in the system which was detrimental for democracy. There has been no collaboration between the ruling elite and the common masses which resulted into huge sit-ins and political crisis whereas the state has to change its attitude while keeping in view the growing scenario,” he mentioned.

The Peoples truth and reconciliation commission, he said should be formed to redress the grievances and do justice with the most persecuted, tyrannized and oppressed groups of the society. Speaking at the occasion, Senator Dr Musadiq Malik said that the historical discontinuity of the democratic process had created disconnect and mistrust among the institutions which was posing serious harm to democracy. “The basic issue is of the mental model where fundamental principles are left unquestioned which has created uncertainty.

"If the public believes in the power of vote and hold the elected accountable then there is no chance of any suspicion,” he mentioned. Musadiq said, “We have to promote dialogue among the masses, political elite and public institutions for supporting democracy.” However, Prof Nasir Mahmood, Dr Sajid Awan, Dr Farhan Siddiqui and Dr Abdul Qadir discussed various aspects of the book where they explained the perception and outlook of the author, modernity, Neoliberalism, democacrcy and other diverse viewpoints.

Prof Dr Raja Qaiser Ahmed said the book had focused the core issues being faced by the democratic process which also engulfed the trends and propensities shaping different modes and tenures of the political process. “Pakistani society is disintegrated at the moment where the Panama leaks incident has totally changed the political trajectory of the country which has also made impact on the subject matter of the book. There is need to end the void between the state and the society,” he said.

Bad democracies in countries were replaced by more democracies for the better good of the masses whereas it was not democracy that fits into countries rather they are improved and reclaimed by it, he said while mentioning the last note of his book.