By SHAHERYAR MIRZA
Observer Staff
Nov. 8, 2007

Five days after emergency rule was imposed in Pakistan, lawyers continue with
daily protests against President Musharraf
Photo By Reuters

Five days after Pakistan’s Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency, the country remains unstable.

The Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Choudry has been fired and remains under house arrest.

Members of the judiciary and supporters of Choudry have been leading protests in Lahore, the Punjabi city long known as the cultural and intellectual hub of Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto has threatened Musharraf with a rally march from Lahore to Islamabad unless he revokes the state of emergency and reinstates the judges.

The White House has grown impatient with the situation in Pakistan and the administration has warned President Musharraf that U.S. patience is “not never-ending.”

President Bush called Musharraf from Mount Vernon and bluntly told him that he must hold elections as scheduled and resign as army chief. “You can’t be the president and head of the military at the same time,” said Bush. This recent statement by Bush highlights a shift in attitudes towards the legality of Musharraf’s rule in Pakistan and shares the same views as many members of Pakistan’s judiciary and public alike.

At a Capitol Hill hearing yesterday Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte came under criticism from members of the House for casting Musharraf as an “indispensable ally,” and as responsible for making Pakistan a more moderate and prosperous nation.

Negroponte defended Musharraf’s actions against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda since September 11. He conceded that Musharraf needs to end the state of emergency as soon as possible and restore the constitution.

According to the text provided by the Pakistani government outlining the reasons behind the emergency rule, the first and foremost reason was to combat the recent wave of terrorist acts across the nation.

Members of Congress expressed skepticism as to Musharaff’s dedication to fighting extremism by pointing out that after emergency rule Musharraf is concentrating on fighting moderates within civil society and lawyers, rather than Al-Qaeda or the Taliban.

Representative Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., accused Musharraf of politically manipulating the Pakistani political system and the United States since September 11.

Many representatives, Republicans and Democrats alike, condemned Musharraf’s actions.

They were drawing parallels between the situation in Pakistan and in Iran prior to the Islamic Revolution of 1979. They made it clear that it is a worrying sign, and all the more worrying because Pakistan is a nuclear state.

Answering Negroponte’s claim that Musharraf is indispensable, Representative Ed Royce, R-Calif., said, “The one thing that’s indispensable in Pakistan is the rule of law. The rule of law has been frankly, overturned.”

President Musharraf has assured his critics that a decision about the elections, originally scheduled for January (planned date before state of emergency is imposed) will be made by November 15th.

Pervez Musharraf vows to hold elections by February,2008
Photo by Reuters

Speaking in his first interaction with parliamentarians since the imposition of emergency, Musharraf said he wants to end the state of emergency as soon as possible and hold elections, but not before the court case which determines his eligibility in being able to contest the election.

The court case may take anywhere from two to six months. At the same time President Musharraf has told the the U.S. administration that elections will be held by February 15th.

The U.S. has backed Benazir Bhutto’s call to protest saying that people should be allowed to freely express themselves.

After shutting down private domestic and international broadcast media outlets, Musharraf has pledged to allow BBC and CNN to air once again. The media blackout has affected all independently owned Pakistani television and radio stations, and print publications have been advised not to write anything overtly critical of the government, so as not to escalate the situation in the country.

Both Great Britain and the United Nations have recently asked Musharraf to return to normalcy from emergency rule, and the Pakistani ambassador to the UN, Munir Akram has replied by stating that it is an internal matter and not one for foreigners to be meddling in.

Everyday life for Pakistanis hasn’t changed dramatically but instead of the private Pakistani news channels being viewed at home, foreign entertainment channels have replaced them.

“My everyday routine hasn’t changed, the most that’s changed until this point is that I have a half-day tomorrow (Friday) because of Bhutto’s protest,” said Ali Raza, a Senior Public Information Officer for UN Habitat, adding that he would like to see Musharraf stay on in power. “I read what’s going on in the newspapers everyday, but I don’t see any of it; it seems a lot more serious in the newspapers then what I am seeing myself.”

The Pakistani public has not given a public display of support for Musharraf, or protests against his emergency rule since the rule came into effect. “People are making much ado about nothing,” said Ali Saigol, Director of Saigol City.

Saigol said he sees Musharraf scheduling the re-elections in the upcoming months, staying in power in one way or another for the next four to five years and then retiring. “I don’t see Benazir coming into power, but a ruling coalition with a leader who is politically correct, and diplomatic like Manmohan Singh (of India).”

Unlike the public, up until now, lawyers in Pakistan are striving to show their determination until Musharraf steps down and there have been no indications that the protests will come to an end.

Benazir has become more pro-active in the last two days calling for Musharraf to reinstate judges and threatening Musharraf with rallies.

The anti-Musharraf militants in the North, specifically Swat, have taken four towns in the last week, which raises serious concerns about the military’s willingness and abilities to fight the militants.

The media blackout continues although print publications have been ignoring the advice given by the government on critical coverage of the government, and internet sites have not been affected.

Those who are directly affected by the emergency rule have remained defiant, while the masses of the country have remained relatively silent.

Leaders around the world continue to press Musharraf to return normalcy to the country, retire his military uniform and schedule elections.

The coming weeks in Pakistan are crucial to the country.

Those eager to transition to a democratic state, and who have been affected by the emergency rule, remain defiant five days after the state of emergency.