Pakistan’s economy falls into a crisis every few years because it spends too much and does not produce enough, thus heavily reliant upon external debts. The backbreaking inflation, coupled with political instability and climate crisis have worsened the conditions for the citizens. Even if we end up avoiding default with IMF’s help and loans from friendly countries, the fundamental malaise of the economy will not be miraculously cured. Our current political and socio-economic predicament is painfully similar to the conditions that led to the 2022 mass protests in Sri Lanka, also known as Aragalaya protests. The protests, spurred by the most devastating economic crisis, led to the ouster of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government. Their economic crisis was the consequence of multiple factors: excessive loans to fund projects that did not generate desired revenue, impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the government’s insistence upon wasting the scarce foreign reserves to stabilize their currency.
Over a year since that country-wide unrest, the people of Sri Lanka have elected a leftist leader, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, as their 10th president to lead them on the path of recovery from its worst economic crisis and the resulting political upheaval. Dissanayake ran as the head of the Marxist-leaning National People's Power (NPP) and blamed the default upon the country’s corrupt political culture. His victory signals that people have called for a massive change within their governance system.
Similarly, the seemingly endless economic and political crisis in Pakistan signal a sharp appetite for radically different alternatives to the conventional power corridors in the country. The people of Pakistan, disillusioned with the current political elite, are calling for a different political culture. What could a different political culture look like for Pakistan?
Currently, several power blocs within the country, including the religious right, nationalist factions, and right-wing political parties, are actively positioning themselves as the panacea to all of Pakistan's problems as they have shamelessly done so in the past. The only missing piece in this chaotic puzzle is Pakistan’s left-wing - rather than seizing the opportunity to reinvigorate their politics, it is nowhere to be seen.
Richard Rorty’s observation about the 1990s American Left aptly describes Pakistan's leftist class: “One of the contributions of the newer left has been to enable professors, whose mild guilt about the comfort and security of their own lives once led them into extra-academic political activity.”
The core problem with Pakistan's left-wing is that it lacks a clear vision and a pathway conducive to Pakistan's conditions for a long-lasting change. Throughout history, it has aligned with parties and factions of various orientations that ostensibly acted as their ideological or political allies: be it the 'anti-imperialist' Muslim League, the so-called 'leftist' Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), or the 'progressive' Army generals, and now the 'secular' nationalists. The cost for this naivety is still being paid by the left-wing Moreover, the state has actively used its full force to dismantle left-wing politics in Pakistan, starting from the Rawalpindi Conspiracy Case (1951).
The Islamisation of the state and society after the Soviet-Afghan War (1979-89) under General Ziaul Haq significantly marginalised it. The banning of student politics was the last nail in its coffin, reducing the chances for committed and ideological cadres to emerge. Pakistan's alignment with the West during the Cold War further pushed leftist politics into an abyss. The split of communists into pro-Moscow and pro-Peking (now Beijing) factions in the 1960s majorly dented a unified leftist approach in Pakistan; the Leninists chose peaceful strategies for advancing the socialist cause, while the Maoists preached armed struggle. Inspired by Maoism, peasant movements against landlords surfaced in many areas, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and South Punjab, but were vehemently crushed by the authorities.When the Soviet Union was dissolved in 1993, the leftist politics in Pakistan effectively came to a halt. It has now been limited to a few peasant movements and the 'drawing-room mode of activism' of some left-leaning academicians.
It is a tragedy that Pakistan's leftists predominantly comprise educated upper-class individuals, university professors, and progressive political activists who are often disconnected from the ground realities of common people. They seem to engage in 'seminar-mode political activism,' where they present research papers that are seldom read afterward. In these forums, they critique capitalism as they sip their tea or coffee, likely to be sponsored by capitalist entities. Richard Rorty’s observation about the 1990s American Left aptly describes Pakistan's leftist class: “One of the contributions of the newer left has been to enable professors, whose mild guilt about the comfort and security of their own lives once led them into extra-academic political activity.” Besides their insulated activism, the left-wing intelligentsia’s reliance on heavy jargon, coupled with their 'all-knowing', holier than thou attitude further alienates them from the common people. Most of the left-wing professors write and talk in English language in a manner that befits academic journals. There are very few academicians that engage in grassroots politics in local languages. In short, their politics appear to be “of the rich, by the rich, and for the rich”.
The internal schism within Pakistan's left-wing has further exacerbated their inefficiency, to the point where it is difficult for many to recall how many left-wing political parties are currently registered in the country. The fragmentation of the Communist Party of Pakistan (CPP), the formation of the National Awami Party (NAP), the emergence and reemergence of the Mazdoor Kisan Party (MKP), and the rise of militant Maoists, among other instances, highlight the persistent cycle of unification and division among leftist factions. This ongoing crisis seems to be ceaseless. Currently, the Mazdoor Kisan Party (MKP), Awami Workers Party (AWP), and Haqooq-e-Khalq Party (HKP) are somewhat active in grassroots politics, but they have yet to achieve significant success.
The identity crisis and isolation experienced by the left-wing in Pakistan reflect the broader plight of Marxist-Leninist movements worldwide in the era of neoliberalism. The left-wing has not been able to retain its influence over peasants, industrial workers, and, more importantly, students, who are the backbone of leftist politics. With no representation in Pakistan's power corridors, the left-wing needs to unite, organise its cadres, and challenge the right-wing in both public discourse and the political sphere.