[omajid]

I think looking at actions around elections in Pakistan through a western lens can lead to false conclusions easily. Let me try and explain through an analogy.

Suppose a US political party (A) decided it wanted to win the US elections no matter what. And it had enough clout, "campaign contributions", among the various government agencies (courts, police, FBI) to make it happen. But it just didn't have the votes to make it happen. So it used the court system to declare an entire opposite party (B) as in-eligible to run the country. If you support Republicans/Trump, think Trump is found in-eligible and the entire Republican party is too. If you support Democrats, think Biden and the entire Democrat party are banned from running in elections. That means every single member of the house that claims to be from party B is banned as running for that party. And this isn't done 2 years in advance, but mere days/weeks from the election.

That sounds entirely undemocratic, right?

Now the party B figures out that it represents the will of the people enough and it has enough votes that it could not only run but has a decent chance at winning. So, the members decide to run as Independents. How do you communicate this to the voters quickly? When Charlie goes in to vote for someone from B, how does he find out who to vote for?

Now, add another issue to the mix. Party A really wants to win (when it can't in an ideal democracy) so it makes it difficult to vote for people in districts where it knows it is unpopular. Alice, Bob and Charlie can be living in the same household but get assigned 3 different voting locations. Imagine they all live in Dallas, TX and get asked to vote in 3 different locations in Fort-Worth, Garland and Irving.

Now, the only way Charlie can still vote for the candidate that he thinks represents his views the best is to make use of websites to look up where to vote and which candidate is associated with the now-banned party B. Without internet and other sources of instant and mass communication, Charlie can't do that.

As a result of these actions, party B loses the election and party A wins.

Please note this is a very biased - but plausible - way to interpret the events around the current elections in Pakistan. But hopefully that perspective helps on why blocking the internet and controlling the means of communication is so important to certain individuals, companies, and political parties in Pakistan. And also why we can't look at the situation from the outside and fully understand the nuances at play.

[philwelch]

Sadly, it isn’t that hard to imagine these kinds of tactics being used in a western democracy. I don’t want to weigh in on the specific controversies but you’ve basically described small extrapolations from various tactics both US parties have variously been accused of trying.

[nonrandomstring]

Hmm, I tried to follow but that seemed a little elaborate. I think if someone tried to pull-off what you described (declaring a candidate disqualified within a week of an election) you'd have civil unrest or worse on your hands regardless any information flows.

[notpushkin]

Not if you can't have civil unrest. This has been happening in Russia for like every election cycle, and people do try to protest, but those protests are being quickly suppressed, each year more and more violently.

[ffgjgf1]

> you'd have civil unrest or worse on your hands regardless any information flows.

In a normal state sure. In a semi-failed state which no sane person would consider a democracy? Probably not so much..

[omajid]

Like I said, it is one plausible interpretation of events. It started almost a year ago, and it's been reaching a crescendo roughly last week. And since this is Pakistan, civil unrest is quite common anyway. Heck, there's an entire article on the start of this election cycle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022%E2%80%932023_Pakistan_pol...

Specific sources to back up my claims:

- "So it used the court system to declare an entire opposite party (B) as in-eligible to run the country" and "And this isn't done 2 years in advance, but mere days/weeks from the election"

  https://time.com/6556335/pakistan-election-imran-khan-nawaz-sharif-military-pti/:
  
  > On Monday [Jan 15, 2024], Khan’s PTI party was banned from using its iconic cricket bat logo on ballot papers, significantly hampering its chances amongst an electorate which is up to 40% illiterate. Most crucially, it effectively bans the PTI as a party and means its candidates will likely have to stand as independents, who will reportedly use a range of symbols ranging from a rollercoaster to a goat. “The election symbol is an integral component of fair elections,” Raoof Hasan, PTI’s principal spokesman and a former special assistant to Khan, tells TIME. “It’s rendering the party toothless.”

  And similarly, a previously-disqulified party leader (think Trump/Biden) was suddenly eligible to run again. https://apnews.com/article/pakistan-elections-timeline-36ed1d7bc77e78e630044d33ef624454:

  > Jan. 8, 2024 — The Supreme Court scraps a lifetime ban on politicians with criminal convictions from contesting elections, clearing the way for Nawaz Sharif to seek a fourth term in office 

- "The members decide to run as Independents. How do you communicate this to the voters quickly? When Charlie goes in to vote for someone from B, how does he find out who to vote for?"

  https://twitter.com/PTIofficial/status/1748893680084111408?lang=en:

  > Following website will provide you information about Elections 2024: https://insaf.pk/election2024
  >
  > Type in your Halqa/Constituency Number to find:
  > - Name of Imran Khan’s designated candidate
  > -  Electoral symbol name & picture
  > -  A WhatsApp channel link for the respective Halqa/Constituency, to get timely information

[nonrandomstring]

Sorry I did not realise you are describing a sequence of events that actually happened/are happening. Yes I am looking though my (UK) lens of a slightly saner election (I hope), not one where civil unrest is already the backdrop.