|
Pakistan : Opposition threatens anti-Musharraf drive |
 |
Pakistan Prime Minister, Shaukat Aziz, has invited the six-party Islamic opposition alliance, Muttahida Majlis-e-Ammal [MMA], for talks to resolve its political differences with the Government after the MMA announced its plan to launch a stir against President Musharraf’s decision to renege on his promise to resign as Army Chief at the end of the year.
The MMA and the Alliance for Restoration of Democracy (ARD) plan to launch a joint agitation against the Musharraf decision. The ARD Secretary General, Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, announced on Dec. 22 a committee has been constituted to hold discussions with the religious parties’ alliance to evolve a consensus in this regard. On the other hand, the MMA leader, Qazi Hussain Ahmed, has also vowed to resist plans by the Pakistan President to stay in office ahead of the Army, thus breaking his pledge to quit the post by the end of the year. “We have been against this plan from day one and we will resist”, Hussain said on Dec. 19.
The Islamic Alliance has vowed to observe New Year’s Day as a “Black Day” across the country if President Musharraf does not quit the military post. The MMA may also call for a sit-in protest in Islamabad, Qazi Hussain Ahmed told thousands of supporters in Rawalpindi on Dec. 19.
Political temperature has been rising since the statement by Gen. Musharraf on a private television network on Dec. 18 for the first time publicly saying that he will say on as Army Chief after Dec. 31.
Musharraf pledged last year to shed his military uniform by the end of 2004 in return for support for constitutional changes, validating his rule and giving him extensive powers under a deal with an alliance of Islamist parties. Parliament last month, passed a Bill allowing Musharraf to keep the dual office of the President and Army Chief. In the interview, Musharraf who took power in a bloodless coup in 1999, also promised to tell Pakistanis within days why he had changed his mind. The military ruler previously signalled that he believed quitting as Army Chief would undermine Pakistan’s support for the US-led war on terror and his efforts to make peace with rival nuclear India. He also said that an overwhelming majority of Pakistanis want him to remain as chief of the country’s powerful military.
Zardari : rearrested and freed again
Asif Ali Zardari, husband of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, was arrested again on Dec. 21 after the cancellation of his bail in a murder case, but was freed the next day when the Sindh High Court suspended the order of an anti-terrorist court and restored his bail. He was arrested in Karachi exactly one month after he was freed after eight years of detention allegedly under a deal with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) chief, Ms Benazir Bhutto, who is living in exile in London. Zardari was arrested on Nov. 4, 1996 after the Government headed by his wife was dismissed on corruption charges.
In a statement, Ms Bhutto said Zardari’s rearrest is a sad reflection on the lack of political freedoms in the country. Zardari himself said his rearrest was a conspiracy by the establishment to ensue that he did not reach Punjab province. Thousands of PPP workers gathered outside the airport when Zardari was flown back to Karachi from Islamabad after he was released again. Police did lathi-charge and used water canons to disperse the crowds. The PPP has alleged that many of its leaders had been either prevented from going to the airport or detained.
Zardari has been maintaining a high profile since his release claiming that general election would be held next year. He predicted a thumping majority for the PPP and Ms Bhutto’s return from exile in Dubai and London. But, the Government has made it clear that the elections will not be held before the scheduled date in 2007.
Gen. Musharraf is a hard bargainer and has never conceded to his political adversaries as much as can enable them to become a threat to his own position. Zardari’s release last month showed that the two sides had accepted a formula despite Ms Bhutto’s denial, to work for stamping out religious extremism under US pressure. But, political observers say, Zardari’s rearrest and release on bail provide proof that the PPP leadership was demanding too much which could not fit into the General’s scheme of things.
|
