Time to release political prisoners

US lawmakers urge Pakistan to shift from repression to dialogue and reconciliation.

The call from Washington should be read as the writing on the wall. Reports that more than 60 members of the US House of Representatives have written to President Joe Biden, expressing their reservations over human rights excesses and detention of political opponents, cannot be ignored. The fact is that Pakistan has a political problem to address, but unfortunately it is being tackled through use of force and intimidation. Likewise, the crossing of swords between the organs of the state, mala fide legislations like the 26th constitutional amendment, and one-sided executive decisions intended to push the opposition to the wall are worrisome propositions. The lid, as far as the US legislators are concerned, is blown apart as hundreds of political prisoners, including former prime minister Imran Khan, are denied a fair trial.

Bushra Bibi's release, nonetheless, after a long and traumatised judicial mistrial has finally rekindled hope for that other political prisoners will also be set free. The fact that the former First Lady was not held back in any other fictitious case and allowed to walk free hints at a change of heart, and is a welcome development. The thaw, in its infancy, is in need of being nurtured into formal reconciliation among estranged characters, in order to do away with the pestering political instability.

That the wife of a former prime minister endured prison for nine months and stood fast is a new chapter in resilience. Her conviction, then acquittal and subsequent judicial detention confirm political vendetta. She, a novice in politics, held her nerves and stood firm behind her incarcerated husband is a worth-appreciating lesson in ethics. The Iddat case in which she was sentenced and the media glare with which moral values were flaunted will always be remembered as a disgusting episode in our chequered ego-centric politics. Now is the time to weave a cobweb of rapprochement so that the economic downslide, parochialism and the toxic otherness that have crept in our society is addressed in a holistic and leadership manner.