Today Pakistan is in the grip of extreme political and social suffocation, which can only be understood as a silent martial law. Journalists are abducted, powerful television channels are censored, political parties are crushed and activists are hounded. The silencing of dissent intensified with the rise of Imran Khan, itself one of the most manufactured mandates in recent history. Since he assumed power, the process of authoritarianism has only accelerated, with more curbs on the media, a clampdown on academia reminiscent of the Zia era, and a pervasive climate of fear and paranoia across the country.
This cruel status quo is widely dubbed a "hybrid regime". The rules are consistent with a number of similar formations from our beleaguered past. A weak prime minister was brought to power with support of the entrenched military establishment. The PM has the capacity to attack civilian political opponents but is not permitted to utter a word on the corruption or misuse of power by the commanding Generals. An example is the recent case involving General Asim Bajwa, who secretly ran an empire of Papa John's restaurants across the US. Despite the uproar by opposition parties, the matter was swiftly buried and the General was retained as the head of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor, a $67 billion project involving multiple investments. Any mortal charged with massive fraud would have been deemed unworthy of leading such a project, but the "sanctity" of the military means that the generals are granted endless concessions.