Today we live an era where political and ideological opponents are called traitors and Indian agents. This is also a legend of Gen Eyub Khan
When Ayub Khan Accused Fatima Jinnah Of Being An Indian And American Agent
They call her the Mother of the Nation, sniffed Pakistans President Mohammed Ayub Khan. Then she should at least behave like a mother. What upset Ayub was that Fatima Jinnah looked so good in pants. The more she upbraided Ayub, the louder Pakistanis cheered the frail figure in her shalwar (baggy white silk trousers). By last week, with Pakistans first presidential election only a fortnight away, opposition to Ayub had reached a pitch unequaled in his six years of autocratic rule.
The Big Stick. White-haired Miss Jinnah, 71, the candidate of five ragtag and usually disunited opposition parties, was picked mainly because she was the sister and confidante of the late revered Mohammed Ali Jinnah, father of his nations independence. But Pakistans response to her razor-tongued attacks on Ayubs highhanded ways has surprised and shocked the government. Students throughout the nation staged angry protest marches against the regime, and at least one demonstrator was killed by police in Karachi. DOWN WITH THE AYUB DICTATORSHIP, cried posters in the East Pakistan city of Dacca, where students enthusiastically proclaimed Miss Fatima Jinnah Week. In Karachi, Pakistans biggest city, student unrest prompted the government to close all the schools indefinitely.
Most legal groups in Pakistan have come out for Miss Jinnah, and were denounced by Ayub as mischiefmongers. In reply, the Karachi Bar Association overwhelmingly adopted a resolution urging the party in power to get rid of the notion that wisdom, righteousness and patriotism are the monopoly of their yes men. The usually complaisant newspaper editors defied the regimes attempts to make them endorse a restrictive new press law.
To Ayubs claim that he is trying to develop basic democracy, Miss Jinnah replied: What sort of democracy is that? One mans democracy? Fifty persons democracy? As for Ayubs charge that the country would revert to chaos if he is defeated, his rival snapped: You cant have stability through compulsion, force and the big stick.
Running Scared. Actually, Ayub has been a reluctant and benevolent dictator, who has vastly improved the stability of a country that was paralyzed by squabbling politicians before he took over. Considering Pakistans backwardness and poverty, the Ayub-designed electoral system is not half bad, giving the vote to 80,000 middle-and upper-class electors. While that is a tiny percentage in a total population of 110 million, most of those millions are not only illiterate but totally ignorant of political issues. With heavy support in rural areas, where many Moslem electors particularly disapprove of a womans candidacy and where Ayubs economic reforms have helped more than in the cities, Ayub is still expected to win the election by some 60% of the vote.
Nonetheless, he is running scared, because Candidate Jinnah has managed to focus every form of discontent in the country. To brake her bandwagon, he abruptly decreed that elections would be held Jan. 2, instead of March, as originally scheduled. Explaining lamely that the situation is a little tense, the government also rescinded a law specifying that political rallies must be open to the public.
At closed meetings with groups of electors, Ayub answered practical questions sensibly enough, but kept lashing out at the opposition with growing anger. Countering Miss Jinnahs repeated charge that he had been unable to restrain the U.S. from helping Pakistans No. 1 adversary, India, he set out to portray her as pro-Indian and pro-American. Ayubs campaign, in fact, was turning increasingly anti-American.
Though U.S. aid (about $5 billion since 1951) is vital to the nations wretched economy, a leading member of Ayubs party cried: America never was our friend and never could be, because as a nation aligned with the anticolonial movements, we are at cross-purposes with America. As for Ayub, he plainly regretted ever calling elections in the first place. For after six years of insisting that Pakistanis were not ready for democracy, the campaign had shown that Mohammed Ayub Khan probably isnt either