Pakistan Fair and Free Elections USAGM
Metadata
- Pakistan Fair and Free Elections USAGM
- February 8, 2024
- Pakistan faces significant economic and security challenges, with the outcome of Thursday’s elections pivotal in determining its future trajectory. Concerns regarding the fairness of the polls loom large, however, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the results. VOA’s Saba Shah Khan has more.
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TV Pakistan Fair and Free Elections – Khan/Dar HEADLINE: Pakistan's Electoral Dilemma: Striving for Fairness Amid Growing Concerns TEASER: PUBLISHED: 02/08/2024 at 3:10 am BYLINE: Saba Shah Khan, Sidra Dar CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Washington, D.C. VIDEOGRAPHER: Saba Shah Khan, Khalil Ahmed VIDEO EDITOR: SCRIPT EDITORS: Reifenrath, Sharon Shahid, Mia Bush VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original | Urdu Service PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __ TRT: VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: EDITOR NOTES: )) ((INTRO)) [[Pakistan faces significant economic and security challenges, with the outcome of Thursday’s elections pivotal in determining its future trajectory. Concerns regarding the fairness of the polls loom large, however, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the results. VOA’s Saba Shah Khan has more.]] ((NARRATOR)) A major concern in recent months has been whether Thursday's elections in Pakistan will be free and fair. ((University Student)) ((4th Male in Urdu)) “Whoever performs well gets removed, and others get after them.” ((NARRATOR)) This topic has dominated discussions among not only the public but also the political candidates, who are eager for a level playing field. [[radio: Pakistan People's Party prime ministerial candidate Bilawal Bhutto Zardari says, “We want free and fair elections as much as possible. We want to be provided a level playing field.”]] ((Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistan People’s Party)) ((Male in Urdu)) “We want free and fair elections as much as possible. We want to be provided a level playing field.” [[radio: Sardar Akhtar Mengal of the Balochistan National Party, and a candidate for a newly created constituency for the National Assembly of Pakistan, says “Perhaps we pacify ourselves by thinking that if the last election wasn’t fair, this one might be, and we have been wasting our lives with this false hope.”]] ((Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Baluchistan National Party)) ((Male in Urdu)) “Perhaps we pacify ourselves by thinking that if the last election wasn’t fair, this one might be, and we have been wasting our lives with this false hope.” ((NARRATOR)) Claims of military involvement have ignited skepticism about the fairness of the electoral process. [[radio: Siraj Ul Haq, the leader of the religious political party Jamaat-e-Islami, says if the military establishment has learned a lesson from the last election, where they played a role in picking a candidate and how it raised questions against them, they should be impartial this election.]] ((Siraj Ul Haq, Jamaat-E-Islami Party Leader)) ((Male in Urdu)) “If they [military establishment] have learned a lesson from the last elections where they played a role in picking a candidate and how it raised questions against them, then they should be impartial this election.” ((NARRATOR)) Supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan raise doubts about the legitimacy of the election, given his disqualification as a candidate and a rash of prison sentences in what they claim to be politically motivated cases. This doubt has also found its way to the U.S. Congress. [[radio: Democratic Representative Brad Sherman]] ((Rep. Brad Sherman, Democrat)) ((Male in English)) “I'm certainly not a Pakistani constitutional lawyer, but when you see a leading candidate unable to campaign, a leading party unable to run its candidates as a party, that's not what you see in in the most democratic countries in the world.” ((NARRATOR)) Representative Brad Sherman added that the United States isn’t on any one candidate’s side. Rather, it's on the side of free elections. ((Rep. Brad Sherman)) ((Male in English)) “I think a lot of Pakistanis think America is rooting for this candidate or rooting for that candidate, or this candidate said this about America or that candidate. What America is loyal to is the democratic process.” ((NARRATOR)) Fears of low turnout due to disenchantment and security issues persist, along with reports of violence. [[radio: Livia Saccardi, Interim Deputy Director of the human rights group Amnesty International via skype]] ((Livia Saccardi, Amnesty International Interim Deputy Director)) ((Female in English)) “Amnesty International is concerned about the pre-election violence, selective bans on protests and gatherings, harassment, arbitrary arrests and detention of party workers and candidates, media restrictions, Internet and social media disruption and trials of political opponents with little due process.” ((NARRATOR)) Pakistan's caretaker government have repeatedly denied targeting Imran Khan's party leaders and activists, stating arrests are only for corruption and criminal cases. ((NARRATOR)) Experts say increasing disengagement from the electoral process driven by distrust in its fairness could harm the country's political landscape. [[radio: Mazhar Abbas, a journalist and analyst, says in recent years, people's faith in the system has eroded, especially among youth, who make up 60 percent of the population, Even if 40 percent of them disengaged from the electoral system, it would severely harm democracy. That's what Pakistan is failing to understand.]] ((Mazhar Abbas, Pakistani Journalist and Analyst)) ((Male in Urdu)) “In recent years, the situation has eroded people's faith in the system, particularly among the youth, who make up around 60% of the population. If even 40% of them disengage from the electoral system, it would severely harm democracy, That’s what we are failing to understand.” ((NARRATOR)) As Pakistanis cast their ballots Thursday, the country finds itself at a critical juncture, grappling with internal strife and external pressures. ((For Saba Shah Khan and Sidra Dar – Bezhan Hamdard – VOANEWS))
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- Network VOA
- Location (dateline) Washington, D.C.
- Embargo Date February 8, 2024 03:50 EST
- Byline Saba Shah Khan, Sidra Dar
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English