February 2: In a National Workshop over the Quality of Democracy in Pakistan in 2011 organised by PILDAT participants said that despite all challenges democracy in the country has moved ahead.

Mr. Illahi Buksh Soomro, Former Speaker, National Assembly praised PILDAT for the work.

Dr. Ijaz Shafi Gilani, Chairman Gallup Pakistan, said the quality of this framework is that it has 75 questions or benchmarks for democracy. These include Elections, Human rights, Media and Citizenship. This report reminds us that democracy is about Elections and more. As far as these bench marks are concerned not everything is in black and white but some are in grey. Some parameters have improved during this year while some have deteriorated. As far as analysis are concerned marks can be awarded but as a process I think marks are a little confusing. I believe democracy has moved ahead in the past four years. Although the PPPP should be credited for the improvement in democracy they have not done so willingly. During the past four years the poor-governance of the Government has led to citizens being disenchanted and the fear/authority of the State has also decreased. As long as there is fear of State in the citizens democracy cannot flourish because democracy is a process of engagement between State and Citizens. The fear of President has been removed by the 18th Amendment, rule of law has been established the Supreme Court�s actions and Government has been pressurised by the people through the media. These are the causes of improvement in the quality of democracy.

Mr. Shahid Hamid, Former Governor Punjab, said that this is an assessment of Democracy and not the Federal and Provincial Governments. However, the Federal and Provincial Governments are a part of the Assessment. It is important to note that no one has supported any unconstitutional measures especially political parties which is a sign of improvement. The 18th Amendment restored the Constitution to its original form and initiated the process of devolution. Secondly, no Elected Local Governments have been established as yet which is a negative. Thirdly, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu Kashmir are not fully represented in important bodies such as Council of Common Interests. Fourthly, the intolerance has increased as shown by murders of former Governor Punjab and former Federal Minister for Minorities. Moreover, as far as rule of Law is concerned there is very little improvement in the performance of lower judiciary and implementation of National Judicial Policy. The accountability mechanism remains in a limbo with Parliament being unable to pass an accountability law. The previous NAB can also be revived in this law. Governance has remained poor and greatest issues are of law and order in Balochistan & Economic and Social rights. However, it is unfair to single out federal Government since many responsibilities are now with the Provinces.

Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Moinuddin Haider, Former Federal Minister for Interior Former Governor Sindh, said that it is important to note that no one is willing to derail the system. As far as the issue of good governance the nature of relationship between the government and those being governed should be analyzed. Among the things missing in our democracy is the Local Governments which are important because �all politics is local�. There is a need to encourage a democratic culture so that an appetite for democracy is created. Finally, the Elections and their transparency are primary in any democracy. It should be celebrated that the Election Commission of Pakistan has introduced many reforms. The Chief Election Commissioner should be appointed through a consensus between Government and Opposition because it will have significant affects on democracy. All political parties are freely communicating with voters, PTI being an example. However, the role of money in Elections is primary and needs improvement. Some significant issues with democracy are inflation which has sky rocketed, public departments are defaulting, circular debt has increased, law and order in FATA , absence of an Accountability law and budgetary process has seen little improvement. Despite all of this the quality of democracy has improved.

Mr. Javed Jabbar, Former Minister for Information, said that as far as Civil Society and Popular Participation are concerned I think there is some improvement. Unfortunately development NGOs are still dependent on overseas funding but Welfare NGOs are locally funded and have improved their work. Firstly, we have come to the conclusion that there is an atmosphere of participation and engagement because of the vibrant and pluralist news media. However, there is also some bias in reporting by the media. I think despite serious issues the media has not adequately represented the positive things with the country. The system of the media is a monolithic and proprietorship based. The media remains bound by its commercial interests. There is no non-commercial or community based media which has negatively impacted democracy. It is also unfortunate that our country is one of the most dangerous for the journalists. There is no Code of Conduct that is being implemented in the Broadcast media therefore a Broadcasting Media Council is needed. Although, the right to protest remains intact but the increase in violent protests is very disturbing and shows deterioration in the culture of respect. It is unfortunate that the subject of Environment has been devolved which is global issue. Pakistan is one of the top countries which will be affected by global warming therefore Environment is important.

Mr. Javed Hafeez, Former Ambassador, said that the influence of foreign forces on our country has been both positive and negative. One of these influences is the influence of the US and according to many surveys the people of the US have a negative opinion of Pakistan and vice versa. Foreign policy has failed to promote peace and security of Pakistan in the world. There is some clarity in foreign policy now such as review of policy towards US by the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Shamsi base was vacated. Pakistan was elected to the UN Security Council for the seventh time. With regards to contribution to UN troops Pakistan is ranked second. These are positive developments. According to the Group the Foreign influence over the country has increased.

Mrs. Fouzia Ejaz Khan, MNA from MQM, said there is room for improvement in the performance of the Parliament. There is a need to promote the culture of democracy.

Mrs. Nisar Tanveer, MNA from Punjab, PML-N, said that the role of women is very important in any democracy. There is a need to empower women in the country. The performance of women Parliamentarians is far better compared to their male counterparts.

Ms. Samina Mushtaq Pagganwala, MNA from PPPP, Punjab said that there is need for citizens to move forward and use democracy to bring about change. Civil Society is not just NGOs but a larger section of the population.

Mrs. Imrana Saeed Jamil, MNA from MQM, said that there is a need to understand that change will not take place overnight and it is a gradual process. One of the failures of democracy is that politics is still hereditary.

Ms. Asiya Nasir, MNA from Balochistan, JUI-F, said that although governance and accountability are two very important pillars of democracy. It should be lauded that the leader of the Opposition was appointed as the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee. Despite its good performance all directives of the Committee were not fully implemented. If Public Accounts Committee is allowed to work independently there is no need for institutions like National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

Mr. Riaz Fatyana, (NA-94, T.T. Singh-III) MNA from PML, Chairman National Assembly Standing Committee on Human rights, said that there are no values in the society as a whole. Despite interference of USA there is also some interference by the Saudi Arabia. There is a correlation between democracy and economy. According to a study 85% economy exists in countries with democracy and 8% exists in countries without democracy. One of the greatest advantages of democracy is that it connects people together. Secondly, Human Rights flourish only in a democracy. One of the biggest hurdles to democratic development is weak political parties with no sources of public funding. There is no democracy within a party and a kitchen cabinet takes decisions. The Political Parties Act 2002 should be amended so that intra-party elections should take place at all levels overseen by the Election Commission of Pakistan. There is an absence of new leadership in the country which is due to absence of elections in student unions and local governments. In the world Parliaments are supreme but in our country Parliament is behind other institutions.

Senator Abdul Haseeb Khan, from MQM, said that there is an absence of accountability and justice in our system which impacts democracy negatively.

Saira Afzal Tarar, (NA-102, Hafizabad-I, Punjab) MNA from PML-N, said that one of the threats to democracy is prevalent intolerance in the society reflected by murder of the former Governor Punjab Salman Taseer and former Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti. One of the issues is of climate but there is a lack of planning in the country. Women enfranchisement is far from achieved and discrimination against women is a reality in the country.

Ms. Attiya Inayatullah, MNA from PML, Punjab, appreciated the Assessment exercise of PILDAT and said that democracy has moved forward in the previous years and it is reflected in the Assessment report. Main fault lines are the Local Government and absence of community based media. One of the best things that has happened in democracy is women empowerment and rights for minorities. The Election Commission of Pakistan is taking steps to ensure action against attempts to stop women from voting. The bill for National Commission on Status of Women has been passed by the National Assembly. PILDAT has to move ahead and work towards maintain balance between National Security and Parliamentary Scrutiny. It is important that political wing of the Security Agencies should be closed. As far as Integrity in Public Life is concerned I think corruption exists at all levels of the country. One should have a look at the accountability and integrity of the Civil Servants. A bill has been prepared for civil servants to declare their assets as well. A Parliament is as strong as interaction with the Government and Cabinet. As far as devolution is concerned it has been rushed and is a disaster. The 18th Amendment was passed there is no �change management plan�. The Executive has done very little homework on the 18th Amendment and there are serious issues of implementation. PILDAT as a valuable think tank should endorse and provide input to Parliament over the issue of devolution.

Ms. Maria Sultan, Director, South Asia Strategic Stability Institute, said that it is important to define democracy. Is democracy in Pakistan only limited to Elections or is it something beyond that. Democracy is alive as far as Elections are concerned but there issues of governments in power and their performance. The media has done effective accountability and transparency but public officials flout the system. At this moment the democracy is faced systemic failures which require structural efforts for improvement. The issue is of defining democracy from an intrinsic perspective which will help us understanding democracy in the country.

Mr. Aftab Shaban Mirani, (NA-202, Shikarpur-I,) MNA from PPPP, Punjab said that there is a need to understand that democracy is a process. The level intolerance in the country is on an all time high. Pakistan population was 35 million in 1947 now it is 18 million. As long as we do not control the population there will be no progress. The best thing this Government has done is to ensure that next elections will take place on the basis of computerised Electoral Rolls.

Mr. Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, Executive Director, welcoming everyone said that the narrative around Democracy is generally very emotional in the country. PILDAT initiated an empirical assessment of the State of Democracy in 2003. Since 2008 we have started a quantitative assessment on a framework prepared by the International IDEA. The purpose of the exercise is to give a rational assessment of democracy. For this purpose PILDAT formed a Democracy Assessment Group with twenty-five members who award marks to Democracy. We have arranged this workshop today because we want input from a wide cross-section of society. The framework contains 75 questions which are awarded marks. The Overall Score in year 2011 is 49% - an improvement compared to 49% in 2010. This Assessment is neutral and represents the view of citizens or society. The Group believes that despite all challenges and shortcomings Democracy in the country has improved.

Members of the Democracy Assessment Group who joined the Press Conference include Mr. Omar Khan Afridi, Former Federal Caretaker Minister; Mr. Cyril Almieda, Assistant Editor, Dawn; Dr. Ijaz Shafi Gilani, Chairman Gallup Pakistan; Mr. Javed Hafeez, Former Ambassador; Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Moinuddin Haider, Former Federal Minister for Interior Former Governor Sindh; Mr. Shahid Hamid, Former Governor Punjab; Dr. Parvez Hassan, Senior Advocate Supreme Court; Mr. Javed Jabbar, Former Minister for Information; Mr. Ghazi Salahuddin, Senior Journalist; Mr. Illahi Buksh Soomro, Former Speaker, National Assembly of Pakistan; Dr. Hasan-Askari Rizvi, Defence Analyst; Mr. Ahmed Bilal Mehboob, Executive Director and Ms. Aasiya Riaz, Joint Director of PILDAT.