Disturbances in Pakistan

3 Comments

1. 

   idredit on March 15, 2009 at 2:02 pm

   thare she goes — getting ready to blow.

   and we’re being given the deaf ears –

   The breakdown of negotiations came after Mrs Clinton telephoned Mr Sharif and Asif Ali Zardari, the President, yesterday in the United States’ boldest effort yet to mediate in the crisis.

   Richard Holbrooke, the US special envoy to India and Pakistan, had also spoken to both men last week, as had David Miliband, the British Foreign Secretary, and the U.S. and British ambassadors.

   meanwhile

   ignore the Durand Line; on the other side of this Af-Pak coin, it’s  

   A surge towards disaster

   2011, it’s looking like much sooner…as Musharraf’s best ideas were ignored.

   Obama the handsome is following in the footsteps of Alexander the Great.

   • 

     BooMan on March 16, 2009 at 10:40 am

     Latest:

     March 16 (Reuters) – Pakistan’s government agreed on Monday to reinstate Iftikhar Chaudhry as chief justice in a surprise move to defuse a crisis and end agitation by lawyers and activists.

     The decision is seen as a climb-down by President Asif Ali Zardari, who had long resisted reinstating the judge, fearing Chaudhry could undermine his position, and a victory for his main rival, opposition leader and former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

     Tension will linger between Zardari and Sharif whose parties, the countries’ two biggest, have long been rivals. Analysts say there is no trust between the men and both are hard-nosed political battlers.

     • 

       idredit on March 16, 2009 at 2:34 pm

       No comfort here — the U.S. has not fared well.  The outcome is seen as a turn to the right:

       “
       The immediate political crisis in Pakistan has been defused, but the pot is still boiling and Zardari’s government remains under threat.”……..”The victorious right-wing parties are now circling…..”  Zardari’s ability to govern is now in question, as is the US’s ability to mold the country to suit its needs in the “war on terror”. The annual Taliban offensive in Afghanistan, of which Pakistan is an integral factor, is only weeks away.”

       Pakistan takes a right turn

       Gilani’s surprise announcement followed intense negotiations over the past few days in which the lawyers and opposition political parties had flatly refused to make any compromises with the government.

       [.]

       It appears that Gilani had little choice. Local administrations and police had completely defied the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) government and allowed thousands of marchers to proceed to Islamabad. Significantly, the United States had looked towards the army to intervene, but it was in no position to do so, raising a serious question mark over the US’s ability to influence decisions in Pakistan, its chief ally in the regional war theater.

       [.]

       Apart from the issue of the reinstated judiciary, Monday’s decision changes the political dynamic in Pakistan.

       The right-wing parties – Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the Jamaat-i-Islami and Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, which were planned by Washington to distance themselves from the post-February 2008 political setup, have now established themselves as a decisive force.

       [.]This is not necessarily the end of such protest marches or unrest. Once Chaudhry is sworn in on March 21, when current chief justice Abdul Hameed Dogar retires, he is expected to carry on where he left off by challenging the very issues which contributed to his dismissal in the first place.

       Key among these is the credibility of the National Reconciliation Ordinance – a presidential pardon – which Musharraf issued over the corruption cases against now-President Asif Ali Zardari and other PPP leaders, which enabled them to participate in elections and then form a government early last year.

       There is also the issue of the many dozens of missing people, that is, people detained for alleged “war on terror” crimes without trail. Prior to his dismissal, Chaudhry had had run-ins with the military establishment over this.

       [.] Everybody had expected that the American mediation would break the ice, but opposition leaders on Sunday rejected their proposal and their supporters continued to gather in vast numbers in Lahore. They said they would accept nothing less than the restoration of judiciary and the sacking of all the judges appointed and promoted by Musharraf and Zardari following this.