Page 6 - Pakistan Link - April 21, 2023

P6 - PAKISTAN LINK - APRIL 21, 2023 OPINION
n By Javed Jabbar 58(2)(b) on the president, enabling the to be transferred to the high court of
Karachi, Pakistan A Malleable Charter dismissal of the PM and dissolution of another province. A total of 17 chang-
the legislatures at the president’s dis- es were made under the misleading
hile it is appreciable that cretion. It took 12 years for the 13th singularity of the term ‘First Amend-
a solid monument is to Amendment in 1997 to delete this pro- ment’. Later, in 1976 and May 1977,
W be soon erected in Islam- vision. During military regimes, the the Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amend-
abad to symbolize the profundity of superior courts were able to entertain ments, consisting of several alterations,
the Constitution, the writs and petitions, and adjudicate on adversely impacted the judiciary. An
record shows that the civil legal matters. abortively attempted amendment in
1973 charter remains A sign of semantic confusion even 1997 aimed to make the PM ‘ameerul
quite malleable. Ac- in 2023 was evident when, on March momineen’, accountable only to a cap-
cording to the Oxford 29, 2023, during an interview on a TV tive legislative two-thirds majority.
Dictionary, malleabil- channel, the present head of state, and The Constitution’s pliability to
ity is the capacity of “... the interviewer, referred to the multiple change — while surviving — is aptly
a material to be hammered or pressed ‘abrogations’ of the Constitution, while evident in the numbers. By one count,
permanently out of shape without both also acknowledged its durability! there have been only ‘26’ amendments
breaking or cracking”. In this context, ‘Abrogation’ means ‘repeal’ or to ‘do in 50 years, i.e., only about two per
is malleability a virtue or a flaw? Per- away with (permanently)’. It should be year! In actual fact, changes, for bet-
haps no definitive answers are possible. remembered that the 1973 Constitu- ter and worse, number hundreds of
All constitutions are subject to an indirectly elected Senate to initi- sive use of prime ministerial power tion was never ‘abrogated’ de jure. It re- alterations, each such change being an
amendment in response to changed ate Constitution amendment bills and for five years. The PM’s dominance mained partly in place during both the ‘amendment’.
conditions and experience. The excep- debate money bills (under Gen Ziaul was suspended under martial law on- military regimes of 1977-1985/1988 In 1985, for example, the Eighth
tional malleability of the 1973 Con- Haq). ward of July 5, 1977 — when the chief and 1999-2002/2008. Which is why Amendment actually introduced
stitution is its remarkable capacity Like a pendulum that swings martial law administrator became the petitions challenging military inter- changes in about 65 articles through
for major changes — by both elected from one extreme to the other, so too supreme executive authority. This was vention were heard and judged in the modifications, omissions, deletions,
legislatures and unelected military re- did the original 1973 version undergo reinforced after president Fazal Elahi Supreme Court. additions and links to other articles.
gimes, the latter being notably aided a 180-degree shift, with such shifts last- Chaudhry’s exit in September 1978 Recent and ongoing comments Where the intention to introduce pur-
by judicial sanction, e.g., the doctrine ing years, not seconds. Starting with when the CMLA became president about the democratic dimension of the poseful references to the Constitution
of necessity. But even elected legisla- a head of state who was a ceremonial while remaining COAS/CMLA. Constitution ignore hard, inconvenient in the education curriculum is laud-
tures have retained some progressive decoration without a single discretion- When Junejo became PM on truths. Its original version was distorted able, such texts should also inform stu-
amendments made by military rulers, ary power — except for the authority March 24, 1985, the president’s pow- by civilian, not military action, in less dents about its charming malleability
e.g., increased seats for women, res- to grant mercy petitions — the prime ers were only partly eroded. Even with than a year. The First Amendment of under both civilian and military rulers.
toration of the voting age to 18 years minister’s imbalanced, all-powerful the end of martial law on Dec 30, 1985, May 1974, ostensibly redefining the ter- (The writer is a former senator and
instead of 21, and of joint electorates, position was in full play till July 4, the pendulum stayed on the president’s ritorial composition of the state post- federal minister and author of, among
the expanded size of legislatures (un- 1977. Indeed, one of the basic reasons side because the Eighth Amendment 1971 was also used to, among other other books, Pakistan — unique ori-
der Gen Musharraf), the authority of for the 1977 upheaval was the exces- earlier in 1985 had bestowed Article things, allow judges from one province gins; unique destiny? Dawn)

n By Riaz Haq Pakistan is the Second Biggest Source bean nations.
California Many Caribbean nations have es-

hen US Ambassador of Foreign Doctors in US and UK tablished medical schools to especially
cater to the demand from the United
Richard Holbrooke suf- States. In 2007, Pakistan, too, set up
W fered a massive heart Dow International Medical College as
attack in 2010, the doctors who re- presence of South Asian doctors in part of Dow University of Health Sci-
sponded to this emer- the United States. ence (DUHS).
gency were both for- More recently, Dr Mansoor Mo- Indians and Pakistanis also make
eign: one from India hiuddin, a 1989 graduate of Karachi's up the top two nationalities among
and the other from Dow Medical College, made global 66,211 foreign doctors in the United
Pakistan. Dr Farzad headlines when he implanted a pig Kingdom. There are 18,953 doctors
Najam, a graduate of heart in a patient at University of from India, 8,026 from Pakistan, 4.880
King Edward Medi- Maryland School of Medicine. Con- from Nigeria and 4,471 from Egypt in
cal College in Lahore, was the chief sidered one of the world’s foremost the UK.
The list of 25,400 foreign doctors
in Canada is topped by South Africans
(2,604) followed by Indians (2,127),
Irish (1,942), British (1,923), Ameri-
cans (1,263) and Pakistanis (1,087).
Top Countries of origin of foreign doctors in the US -Source OECD There are 25,607 Pakistani
medical school graduates currently
notransplantation Program with Dr Philippines and Dominica and 4% working in all the OECD member
Griffith. Dr Mohiuddin serves as the from Mexico. countries which are considered rich
program’s Scientific/Program Direc- Many of these "foreign doctors" industrialized nations. These Paki-
tor and Dr Griffith as its Clinical Di- are US citizens, born and raised in the stani doctors account for 10.6% of
rector. United States, who travel abroad to 242,000 Pakistan-trained doctors
The pervasive presence of South study at foreign medical schools. Their practicing now. 74,455 Indian doc-
Asian doctors in the United States is reasons vary from ease of admissions tors working in OECD nations make
confirmed by OECD (Organization up 7.3% of about 1,020,000 of all In-
for Cooperation and Development) dia-trained doctors in practice.
statistics on foreign doctors in OECD In spite of losing 10.6% of its
member nations. While India has re- doctors to "brain drain" than India's
mained the top source of foreign doc- 7.3%, Pakistan still has more doctors
tors since 2013, Pakistan has moved per capita (1.1 per 1,000 population)
up from third to second spot during than India (0.7 doctors per 1,000
this period. As of 2016, there were population), according to the World
45,830 Indian doctors and 12,454 Bank. Pakistani medical colleges ad-
Pakistani doctors among 215,630 for- mit 16,000 students a year compared
eign doctors in the United States. In- to 92,000 in India.
dia (45,830) and Pakistan (12,454) are As the populations age and de-
followed by Grenada (10,789), Philip- mand for medical services grows in
Doctor brain drain - Source Statista pines (10,217), Dominica (9,974), the West, more and more of it is being
Mexico (9,923), Canada (7,765), met by recruiting health care workers,
heart surgeon at George Washington experts on transplanting animal or- Dominican Republic (6,269), Chi- including doctors and nurses, from the
University Hospital at that time. Dr gans, known as xenotransplantation, na (5,772), UAE (4,635) and Egypt Pie chart of origins of foreign medi- developing world.
Monica Mukherjee, a junior cardi- Muhammad M. Mohiuddin, MD, (4,379). cal graduates in US -Source OECD (Riaz Haq is a Silicon Valley-
ologist at the hospital, assisted Dr Professor of Surgery at UMSOM, In percentage terms, 21% of for- based Pakistani-American analyst
Najam in the operating theater. This joined the UMSOM faculty five years eign doctors come from India, 6% to lower costs. This is particularly true and writer. He blogs at www.ria-
episode illustrates the high-profile ago and established the Cardiac Xe- from Pakistan, 5% each from Grenada, of the medical schools in the Carib- zhaq.com)

www.Pakistanlink.com