In 2007, the so-called ‘Lawyers’ Movement’ in Pakistan mobilised immense pressure against then military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf to reinstate Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, whom Musharraf had arbitrarily dismissed. Backed by opposition parties, these protests catalysed a somewhat ‘fair’ 2008 general election, which brought the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) to power, closely followed by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

Leveraging their combined parliamentary majority, the two major parties threatened impeachment unless Musharraf relinquished power and retired. He complied, signalling a victory for the protest movement. However, this success was short-lived. What followed was the reinstatement of a judge who began to practice overt judicial populism and hound the fragile PPP ruling coalition, alongside a military establishment led by Gen Pervez Kayani.

In fact, some political commentators have suggested that Kayani had quietly allowed the Lawyers’ Movement to mushroom as a way to force Musharraf to hand over the post of army chief to him. The PPP coalition faced severe judicial populism from Chaudhry, constant bullying from Kayani’s military establishment, unprecedented terror attacks from Islamist militants and an opposition that jumped on these bandwagons. It was a chaotic period.

This episode illustrates a classic example of how ‘horizontal movements’ are capable of removing a powerful political figure and even a government, yet almost always fail to produce structural change. Musharraf’s fall actually worsened matters because the problematic political and economic structures not only remained intact but deepened.

Decentralised movements can mobilise millions without a central command, but their greatest strength can also become their greatest weakness. Once the common enemy disappears, what holds the movement together?

Decentralised movements can mobilise millions without a central command, but their greatest strength can also become their greatest weakness. Once the common enemy disappears, what holds the movement together?

Horizontal movements are decentralised forms of social and........

© Dawn (Magazines)