There were no newspapers across the country for two days on account of Eid-ul-Fitr and as far as some of us are concerned it made almost no difference. The habit of having a newspaper in hand, and a couple of other dailies waiting to be read or scanned, received a setback. Strange and also desirable, indeed, is this habitual urge to see a newspaper as the day unfolds its routine.
Let me recollect here for younger readers that there was a time when Eid-ul-Fitr brought two holidays instead of the current practice of three holidays. And newspapers were off for a day and which did make a difference to our lives. Both for the habit and the news - even though people were not as addicted to or driven by the news. Also, perhaps, we live in far more eventful times, where days and nights are more hectic and hazardous, to say the least.
Why weren't the newspapers missed, in a context where the print media is playing a vital role in the country's volatile political environment? The answer is simple, even obvious. Television channels and the private ones to be precise, brought us the news, all day and night. Whether it was the theme of Benazir Bhutto's return on 18th October (tomorrow) or the news of Eid prayers and celebrations, or the drowning of 18 people at the Gadani beach, the private TV channels had it all. People got the news and the mood behind the news.
An obvious question now: what was Eid-ul-Fitr 2007 like? It came in the backdrop of a Ramazan that was exceedingly political, and which also brought the presidential polls whose results are yet to be notified, and that depends upon the verdict of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. There is so much of Pakistan's future that will be decided by the country's judiciary in the weeks ahead.
And the weeks ahead or even the days ahead will be decisive, and dramatic. I have in mind the news reports of the arrival of the former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto when I say this. Apparently there is a war of misinformation that is going on with regard to her return. Reports attributed to top government officials, including the President, the Prime Minister and some federal ministers as well, have been advising the former prime minister to delay her return. There have been insinuations that her return could mean trouble ahead. It has made citizens wonder about how long will this climate of uncertainty be extended. How much longer do Pakistanis have to endure this season of doubt, anxiety?
To all these governmental suggestions and carefully worded statements, the Pakistan People's Party spokespersons (including Sherry Rehman, the party's information secretary) have responded with crystal clear appropriately worded affirmations and reaffirmations that Benazir Bhutto's return date and time are firm and unchanged. That she will return, as promised.
And hundreds of posters, banners, billboards that are dotted all over the city not only add colour and a festive look to the Sindh capital but they are also underlining the assurance that she is arriving as scheduled - the 18th of October 2007. That is, tomorrow afternoon, around 1 pm at the Jinnah International Airport from Dubai. In addition to the billboards there is writing on the wall - conveyed by the definite idealistic, utopian wall chalking that is reflective of the desire and the impatience of the PPP supporters and workers. Is this also indicative of the change that is in the air? Of the political under-currents, and the electoral process that has begun, though somewhat mildly?
The wall chalking surfaced in the city when the 18th October date was announced. Some of the owners of the walls began erasing or discolouring the wall chalking - only to be countered effectively by the PPP who rewrote the script again. An integral, eloquent aspect of the PPP writing on the wall, as well as the billboards, is that there are large, familiar coloured photographs of Benazir Bhutto's father the late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto also on display. Some of them carry his statements also. In many cases there are photographs of various PPP leaders (of various tiers) with Benazir Bhutto.
I am inclined to agree with the opinion that there has never been anything quite like this "phenomenon" of billboards, posters, banners, and wall chalking in Karachi in the past. I remember the 1970 elections, as well as the elections held after that. Never has there been so much of planned projection of a single political leader as in the case of Benazir Bhutto's return. Not even for her father, was there this much of campaigning and communication, remarked a senior journalist on Tuesday evening. But then Benazir's return is different. It is after eight years of exile.
On the day after Eid (Monday) there came the news that the Sindh Chief Minister, Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, and also the Punjab Chief Minister, Pervez Elahi, had directed the authorities concerned to remove all those banners, posters and billboards that were on government property. Prompt came the PPP defiance saying that any attempt to remove the party's material will meet with "Muzahimat" (resistance).
All this news travelled around on Eid without newspapers. There reports that processions are zeroing in from all over the country reaching Karachi today - for tomorrow's return of the former prime minister. On the political front this is big news, which contains within itself bigger questions and possibly conflicts also that Pakistani society will have to grapple with, and show the maturity and sanity that are required. Not the slightest doubt in my mind that Pakistan is confronted with a grim, grave prospect. It's been that kind of a political Eid-ul-Fitr this time. The fact that there were three Eid-ul-Fitrs in the NWFP has been sidelined somewhat!!
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