Those who raise their voices are transferred; judges who uphold independence are removed; while silence is rewarded with promotion, prolonged caution eventually turns into compromise and then into obedience to power—an article by former Supreme Court judge Mansoor Ali Shah.
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 20th Sep, 2026) Former senior-most Supreme Court judge Justice (Retd) Mansoor Ali Shah has expressed deep and bitter views on the country’s current justice system, judicial compromises and the future of Pakistan’s younger generation.
In an article published in the English newspaper Dawn, he recalled that he was only 14 when martial law was imposed in the country and had become a young man by the time the general who had imposed the dictatorship died.
He wrote that his generation learned an extremely dangerous lesson: those in power never explain their actions; anyone who raises a voice for the truth is transferred, those who remain silent are promoted, and judges who insist on their autonomy and independence are removed from the way.
He warned that caution, when practised for a prolonged period, gradually turns into compromise, which ultimately takes the form of complete obedience.
As a result, nations learn to compromise before those in power.
“I have seen people with my own eyes who used to stand fearlessly and boldly at the bar of the court, but once they reached the bench, their conduct and principles changed completely.”
Mansoor Ali Shah wrote that this transformation neither happens suddenly nor is it always driven by money.
Rather, the comfort of office and authority gradually begins to exert its influence, after which every unavoidable compromise is given the attractive name of realism. Two out of every three people in Pakistan’s population are under 30 years of age.
The question is not whether Generation Z will change Pakistan, but whether Pakistan and its institutions will prepare themselves for this major change, which is bound to come because of this demographic proportion.
He stressed that Pakistan’s next generation will be shaped not by street protests but by thought, logic and serious debate, which should begin in university classrooms.
Every classroom should become a small democratic state where students do not merely memorise the curriculum but openly discuss the ethical and constitutional questions related to their fields.
The former Supreme Court judge said that democracy and national character can truly be built only by contesting elections, working with the winner even after accepting defeat, and protecting dissent.
When young people are connected with the harsh realities of the ground—such as the environments of courts, hospitals and factories—alongside ideological education, they will create a capable and aware society that can never be run by incompetent or undemocratic forces without the Constitution and the will of the people.
