State failing its people

“The State shall promote with special care, the economic interests of backward classes. The State shall secure the well-being of the people by raising their standard of living and preventing the concentration of wealth and the means of production and distribution in the hands of a few. The State shall also provide for all citizens facilities for work and adequate livelihood.”

These are the Principles of Policy in Articles 37 and 38 of our Constitution. There’s more: Article 3 asks the State to ensure elimination of all forms of exploitation. These principles define the kind of state Pakistan is meant to be: A welfare state.

The removal of ‘encroachments’ from around the Empress Market in Karachi is a stark manifestation of the State’s failure to discharge its duty to its people. This so-called anti-encroachment debacle is only the latest in a long chain of failures of the State to protect those who need its protection the most. The long arm of the law keeps swooping in to crush the hopes of people who have little — or nothing.

Not only has the State failed to secure the wellbeing of its citizens, it has actually acted belligerently to destroy facilities for work and livelihood increasing and perpetuating the exploitation of the downtrodden. Condoning the State’s abdication of its duties ensures that instances like the Empress Market will continue to happen.

While protecting heritage sites may seem a noble cause, heritage is not limited to preservation or restoration of buildings; it is about how life is structured around such buildings. Uprooting the very people who constituted life around the market can hardly be called protecting heritage. It shows how far we have transgressed from the principles we set out to live by in 1973.

Proponents of the anti-encroachment drive argue that the affected people were illegal occupants. The fallacy of this argument ignores that those people were there for years with the implied consent of the State which didn’t provide any ‘legal’ alternatives.

The so-called ‘encroachments’ manifest the failure of the State to raise the standard of living of its marginalised communities. The people have been betrayed by the State which has broken its social contract with them ie the Constitution. The sanctity of the promises made 45 years ago needs to be restored and the State must account for its failure to meet them. The Constitution empowers citizens to approach the superior courts for protection against the excesses of the State. But how do citizens go to court when the demolitions themselves are claimed to be taking place under the cover of Supreme Court orders?

The State’s abdication of its duties has made Pakistan a country where the interests of the marginalised have become secondary. Our definition of ‘development’ is restricted to infrastructure projects, while our legislation and policies aim to benefit a class of people that exploits the have-nots. The State is now an active party to this economic exploitation of its subjects. The Principles of Policy in the Constitution have long been replaced by instruments of convenience to aid the elite at the cost of the marginalised.

The solution does not lie in calling for cosmetic restitution for those affected. They must be compensated, their livelihoods restored and dignity reestablished. More importantly, we need to understand that unless we recapture the soul of the Constitution instances like the Empress Market will continue to happen. Treating the symptoms is not enough; it is the cause that needs to be addressed. Protesting or petitioning the courts might allay the sensibilities of the conscientious citizen or achieve limited results, but unless the Principles of Policy are implemented no permanent solution can emerge. The way forward is genuine politics for restoring the essence of the 1973 Constitution ie an exploitation-free society where the rights of the marginalised are paramount, economic distortions are eliminated, equality for all is established and where the right to a life of dignity is guaranteed not just in the judgments of the Supreme Court, but in reality.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 29^th, 2018.

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