Minorities' representation in Parliament

President Zardari signed the amended Senate election rules at a special ceremony on Thursday. Under the new rules that form part of the 18th Constitutional Amendment, four seats - one for each province - have been reserved in the Senate for members of the minority communities.
Like in the case of 10 seats reserved for minorities and 60 for women in the lower house of Parliament, each provincial assembly is to elect a minority representative to a seat in the upper house starting from the March 2012 Senate elections. The new election rules may be well-intentioned, but they are not exactly in consonance with democratic norms.
It may be recalled that the system of separate electorates for Muslims and non-Muslims was first introduced in this country by General Ziaul Haq's military regime back in the 1980s on the demand of right wing religious parties. That meant non-Muslims could neither contest elections from general seats nor could they vote for Muslim candidates.
Blatantly discriminatory, the system made a mockery of democratic principles and values. It amounted to an open declaration that non- Muslims were not equal citizens of this state. Yet like so many other distortions the Zia regime made in the Constitution and the statute book in the name of Islamisation, separate electorates remained in place even after the restoration of democracy. It took the human rights campaigners nearly two decades to have the joint electorate system restored in 2002. But the reserved seats have stayed.
The proponents of the reserved seats for minorities argue that this gives them extra weight as they have the right to participate in general seats election as also assured representation in the assemblies. What the argument tends to ignore is the fact that the step still underscores separateness, perpetuating divisiveness and discrimination in another form. After all, there is a reason why established democracies do not follow this practice, although some countries reserve preferential treatment for women and specified minority groups in the provision of jobs.
Needless to say, all Pakistanis, non-Muslims and Muslims, confront similar issues and concerns as members of this society. Hence they worry alike about matters of bread and butter, law and order, democratic rights and freedoms. There is no point therefore for them to have separate seats in the assemblies. Some among different minority communities might covet these seats in pursuit of personal aggrandisement, but most do not. Hopefully, in due course the election rules will be amended with a view to creating a more equal relationship among all citizens of this state.