DAWN Editorials - 15th August 2025

[zarnishhayat]

Troubling times LIKE previous controversial laws, troubling amendments to the Anti-Terrorism Act have been ushered through the National Assembly with questionable haste.

In approving them, the ruling coalition has completely ignored the opposition’s vocal protestations and human rights observers’ growing alarm. Civil and military forces may now detain “terror suspects” for a period of three months or more based merely on “reasonable or credible information” or “reasonable suspicion”.

If the reader finds themselves wondering what, precisely, constitutes “reasonable information” and “reasonable suspicion”, they are not alone. The language of the amendment seems to have been left vague on purpose, creating conditions in which abuse is not only possible but, given past precedent, likely inevitable.

There are plenty of reasons to fear that it will be weaponised against dissidents. For starters, this regime has consistently shown scant regard for inconveniences like constitutional safeguards for citizens against arbitrary arrest or detention, or their right to a fair trial.

The judgements recently rendered by Anti-Terrorism Courts against political workers and publicly elected leaders are still fresh in the public memory. When government representatives were arguing in parliament that the opposition’s objections to the ATA amendments were ‘unreasonable’ because they were very similar to antiterrorism laws enacted elsewhere in the world, they should have been asked: where else are political workers tried and convicted as terrorists for the crime of rioting, vandalising public property and engaging in hooliganism?

That too, based on questionable evidence and suspicious testimonies given by police personnel who claimed to have infiltrated a closed-door political meeting without being detected by a single soul. And this is just a high-profile example. In restive parts of the country, locals are regularly branded as ‘terrorists’ by the authorities and pursued relentlessly, often merely for opposing state policies.

If the country’s policing and criminal justice system has been hollowed out to the point that apprehending criminals now requires holding constitutional rights in abeyance, the ruling parties should reconsider their priorities and focus on fixing what is broken.

By exposing citizens to state excesses with vaguely worded laws, enacted seemingly in obedience to unelected quarters, they are inflicting a grave injury on parliament. As public representatives, their priority should be the public’s welfare and creating resilient systems of governance.

Instead, by ceding unprecedented power and authority to those who have, time and again, appeared willing to abuse it, they are setting the country up for greater turmoil. Even without this amendment, the authorities had been detaining citizens without sufficient reason in peripheral areas.

Every day, the headlines bear testimony that such policies do not work. It is time to rethink, not reinforce them. A state that erodes its own constitutional foundations in the name of security will soon find itself neither secure nor free.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2025

Stable but fragile MOODY’S latest decision to upgrade Pakistan’s credit rating from ‘Caa2’ to ‘Caa1’ and revise its outlook from ‘positive’ to ‘stable’ offers a welcome break for the national economy — even if the sovereign remains firmly in speculative-grade territory. The move reflects the agency’s confidence in Pakistan’s steadily rising foreign exchange reserves, strengthened fiscal position and continued reforms under the IMF programme. Yet Moody’s, one of the three top global rating agencies, has its concerns, and the upgrade comes with caveats. While acknowledging the progress made by Pakistan, it does not mince its words in underlining that the foundations of the hard-won recovery remain fragile.

Debt affordability has improved but remains one of the weakest among rated sovereigns. Governance weaknesses and political uncertainty leave the economy exposed to risks at a time when the country’s external position remains fragile. Foreign exchange reserves have grown over $14bn — equivalent to about 10 weeks of imports — but are still well below what is required to meet the high external financing needs of nearly $50bn over the next two years. Pakistan will remain dependent on timely financing from official partners, the rating agency cautions while underscoring the importance of steady progress under the IMF programme to keep unlocking financing. The upgraded local and foreign currency ceilings also come with caveats about the state’s heavy footprint in the economy, weak institutions, high political and external vulnerability risk, incomplete capital account convertibility and potential policy slippages. Like its peers, Moody’s has handed Pakistan a modest vote of confidence. The move is a welcome development but not a cause for triumph. The economy remains in junk-bond territory. It means that the government is still unlikely to get competitive rates if it issues bonds in the international markets to raise funds to shore up its reserves and strengthen its external position. The message, which echoes the concerns highlighted earlier by rating agencies Fitch and S&P in their recent upgrade decisions, is quite clear: the economy may have stabilised but it is not yet out of the woods. The challenge for the political leadership and policymakers now is to turn this fragile stability into durable economic resilience. This is not an easy task as it requires enduring political stability, and policy consistency and execution to ward off another relapse into familiar fiscal and balance-of-payments crises.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2025
Gwadar’s thirst GWADAR was supposed to be the next big thing in Pakistan, the jewel in the CPEC crown, a shimmering entrepôt on the Balochistan coast that would transform both the country and the province. But a decade after that landmark project with China was launched, the people of Gwadar still struggle for basic facilities such as regular water supply and uninterrupted power. In fact, the lack of such facilities has engendered resentment in the port city and the wider Makran region, feeding into the greater sense of alienation that affects Balochistan. Gwadar and other towns in Makran have witnessed large demonstrations calling for basic civic facilities, amongst other demands. Perhaps sensing the situation — albeit a bit late in the day — the prime minister has formed a committee to look into Gwadar’s water and power woes. The body, consisting of officials from several departments, is due to meet today, and the PM has reportedly ordered the water issue to be resolved within days.

The water problem in Gwadar is not new, as the port town is located in an arid zone, with scant rainfall. It is also true that official projects to resolve the issue have been plagued by financial irregularities — a nationwide malaise. It is hoped that these are not more empty promises, and that the civic issues of Gwadar and the rest of the Makran coast are resolved on a long-term basis. The state’s plans of transforming Gwadar into a regional shipping and logistics hub sound farcical if its people do not have water and power. This is, in fact, reflective of the overall official approach towards Balochistan: tall promises, but little on the ground. It is this neglect that has fuelled resentment in the province. Balochistan’s people need basic facilities and must be partners in their province’s development to ensure national progress. The state cannot afford to neglect Balochistan any longer.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2025