What next for Insafians?

 

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) seems to have been all but dismantled. Its leader is behind bars, the vast majority of its members have hit the eject button, and a certain silence fills the night sky. Big Brother is, of course, watching.

What’s next for supporters?

One of the critical errors of Khan’s support base was outsourcing all thought to him.

This is a situation where participants in a particular movement have little to no understanding of the complex socioeconomic and political landscape that confronts them, but are adamant on pushing for ‘change’ regardless.

A particular frustration animates this desire — one fuelled by shame and frustration having to do with basic material concerns. The price of food. Access to education. A decent livelihood. Quality healthcare. A roof over one’s head.

All these items are, in the final analysis, contingent upon governance arrangements — which are in turn the product of institutions, democratic processes and the extent to which (well thought-out) laws are upheld.

Rather than acknowledging the multidimensional nature of the problem, the Kaptaan doubled down on an overly simplified, borderline naïve agenda: eliminating corruption.

This rallying cry had an element of truth to it: embezzlements (and elite capture) are genuine pathologies that cripple Pakistan’s polity, except that they are the effect, rather than the cause, of extractive administrative apparatuses carrying forward from colonial times.

This basic level misunderstanding meant that the entire project was focused around correcting people rather than structures of power.

Followers, having placed all their faith in the supreme leader’s ability to overcome any and all challenges through sheer willpower, never paused to reflect on this.

They simply called out to the heavens and hoped for the best. It was a losing battle from the get-go.

Following the formation of their government, PTI cadres failed to bring about any of the progress they had promised.

A new narrative emerged around this period: that of ‘pragmatism’. It emphasised that while conditions may not be improving, this is in fact part of the course.

One must ‘work within the system’, went the reasoning, being mindful of the fact that there are certain forces that ultimately control all decision making: and crossing them would mean certain annihilation.

Except that it has always been the same forces at the helm. And certain annihilation eventually came to pass anyway.

For what? Disgruntled supporters of the PTI have two choices.

Either they can continue to toss their fists into the air, cursing Pakistan’s overlords, or they can begin to sober up and come to the important realisation that political struggle is not — and can never be — the story of a messianic figure leading a ‘lost’ people out of their misery.

All successful movements for change in history have been turbulent, aggressive and highly participatory.

‘Red lines’ cannot be established in reference to a specific personality, but to forward-looking values, principles and codes of conduct that the larger movement represents.

These cannot be compromised upon — regardless of any short-term benefits that may accrue as a result. If there is one lesson the PTI support base must take away from recent events, it is this.

There is currently only one force that operates under the aforementioned maxim in Pakistan: the network of grassroots progressive collectives.

These include but are not limited to parties/ movements such as the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement, Haqooq e Khalq Party, Labour Qaumi Movement, Awami Workers Party, and Mazdoor Kisan Party; as well as civil society initiatives like the Aurat March, Environmental March, Students’ Solidarity March, and Minority Rights March.

All these organisations have one overarching agenda: concern for the downtrodden and an unrelenting drive for genuine, revolutionary departure from the status quo.

Activists from this domain have spent decades fighting valiantly against the very source of Imran Khan’s plight today: not for a seat, but for justice.

This may be the best time for Insafians to sincerely engage with their work.

 

The writer is a Research Fellow at the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics. He tweets @AbbasMoosvi