SPECIAL REPORT: PARLIAMENTARY DEMOCRACY DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC
REFLECTING ON TWO YEARS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC AND THE PARLIAMENTARY RESPONSE: A CASE OF NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF PAKISTAN Parliaments in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic The facade of COVID-19 has presented everyone with the unprecedented challenges not only in terms of economic, social and health challenges but also for smooth functioning of democratic institutions all around the world. As the COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected activities across the globe, Parliaments all over the world have also been adapting and implementing emergency health measures while carrying on with their core functions i.e., legislation, oversight, and representation. How Parliaments effectively carry out legislation, debate and question the actions of government during the pandemic is of paramount importance. Parliaments are subject to the same level of pandemic restrictions as any other organisation or institution. Yet, the role of Parliament in times of crisis becomes more crucial from passing Emergency Bills to allocating resources and scrutinising government actions. Across the world, three different practices were adopted by Parliaments to continue their business amidst the pandemic: i) Parliaments continue to meet physically with restrictions. ii) Parliaments meet virtually using video conferencing tools like Zoom, Cisco, Web meetings and Google hangouts etc. iii) Parliaments did not meet at all or went into recess. Cases where Parliaments continue to meet with restrictions may include fewer sittings of plenary sessions and Committees, as well as social distancing and attendance from only the essential parliamentary staff. Secondly, some Parliaments continue to meet virtually and the technical infrastructure for remote meetings is widely used. But this is backed by several issues including the costs for technical training, security, technical errors, and authenticity etc. Some Parliaments such as the UK Parliament have taken an early recess after voting through various emergency measures. Whereas New Zealand have
changed their modus operandi by allowing only Special Committees at work rather than the whole House. An absence of technical capacity or political will may also prevent Parliament from sitting. As extraordinary situation calls for extraordinary measures, some Parliaments have even made modifications in their rules for remote working or adopting quorum rules. Thus, the COVID-19 pandemic as a global emergency has worked as a wake-up call for Parliaments, as well as for Parliamentarians, to be more resilient in their retort to the crises to adapt to the ever-changing circumstances. Parliamentary response to the pandemic and the case of Pakistan Where COVID-19 has severely disrupted economies in the world, it has equally given means for countries to respond to the challenges and threats posed by the pandemic. Pakistan is no exception. But despite the horrors of pandemic, Pakistan was ranked No. 1 on the global normalcy index by The Economist in 2021 as the country lifted most of its COVID19 bans while effectively curbing the spread of the pandemic.1 2020 would always be tagged as the year of COVID-19 for disrupting people’s lives and spreading uncertainty and vulnerability. During these daunting times, the Parliament of Pakistan, being the supreme democratic institute, remained undeterred and continued to be functional by taking up all important socio-economic issues of the public through its Standing Committees, House debates, Questions, Resolutions etc. Keeping in view the COVID-19 pandemic situation in the country, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan after deep consultations with Parliamentary Leaders in the National Assembly formulated a joint approach to tackle the pandemic. For that matter, various initiatives were taken up that included i) Constitution of a Parliamentary Committee on Coronavirus. The Committee supervised significant policy initiatives to deliver relief
Ms Bisma Rahman Zafar is Assistant Director (Research) at the National Assembly of Pakistan. Over the years, she has carried out legislative research on a wide range of subjects as well as speech writing for high profile political figures. In addition to assisting legislators in fulfilling their parliamentary functions, she actively contributes her research services to MPs for various multilateral platforms like Parliamentary Association of Economic Cooperation Organization (PAECO), UN Women, World Bank Group, Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). With special thanks for the coordination of this article to Danish Ali Bhutto, Youth Representative for the CPA Asia Region on the Editorial Advisory Board for The Parliamentarian.
38 | The Parliamentarian | 2022: Issue One | 100 years of publishing
