The Democratic Piece

Pakistani opposition leader and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto submitted an exclusive opinion piece to CNN this afternoon in which she condemns the extra-constitutional steps taken by Musharaf and calls for free elections held under a “neutral caretaker government.” Bhutto has so far remained untouched even as other opposition leaders and democracy activists have been arrested in preemptive moves by President Musharaf, though she was recently the target of a bloody bomb attack as she returned from self-imposed exile. The meat of her piece:

Until recently, he [Musharaf] had made both public and private commitments to confidence building gestures that would move Pakistan forward in the transition to democracy. But at a time when he should be demonstrating to our country and the world his seriousness in allowing free, fair and transparent elections, he has declared martial law. This can only be seen as a step to entrench his dictatorship.

Also, check out this AlJazeera English clip covering Pakistani’s reactions to the suspension of the constitution and mass arrests of opposition leaders and activists:

Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo notes that the Musharraf government’s state of emergency is taking on the familiar flavor of out-right military dictatorship.

Some key graphs from the CNN story Josh links:

“There have been 400 to 500 preventative arrests in the country,” Aziz told a news conference in Islamabad.

Media and police sources say 1,500 opposition figures from Pakistan’s military, judiciary and political sectors have been detained.

In the wake of Saturday’s declaration, the government also issued new rules forbidding newspapers and broadcasters from expressing opinions prejudicial to “the ideology of Pakistan or integrity of Pakistan”.

In response to questions on the measures taken by the Pakistan government against the media, Aziz said the press would have to abide by a new “code of conduct”.

He insisted that the code was not designed to curb dissent and that “constructive criticism is welcome.”

We have yet to hear from the President and his agenda of freedom.

President Musharraf’s declaration of emergency rule leaves Pakistan’s stability in the balance. The next few days could see popular mass protests bring Musharraf’s fading rule to the brink. According to the New York Times in his address to the nation Musharraf declared the decision necessary in order to curb terrorist attacks and “preserve the democratic transition [he] initiated eight years ago.” By effectively dissolving the Supreme Court, suspending the Constitution and defying opposition leaders as well as the Bush administration, Musharraf last gasp effort to reassert his power could soon mark the end of his reign…

So there hasn’t been a lot of coverage. Reportedly, all communications lines have been cut and the television stations are off the air.

The supreme court justices apparently announced that they “reject” the state of emergency. I don’ t know what that will do when they don’t have the guns and lack access to the media.

Apparently, Bhutto has returned from Dubai and is waiting at the Karachi airport. That Sky News report also states that Chief Justice Chaundry has been removed from his post because he refused to take a new oath of office under a provisional constitutional order decreed by Musharraf. Chaundry’s replacement is another supreme court justice who is a supporter of Musharraf and lead the investigation allegations against Chaundry earlier this year.

The BBC reports that President General Musharraf will address the nation later today and that the state of emergency was imposed because of “interference of the judiciary” and mounting terrorist attacks.

CNN International is reporting that President General Pervez Musharraf has declared a state of emergency. Troops have seized the Supreme Court building and surrounded the homes of the justices. This follows Bhutto’s recent departure to visit her family in Dubai. The constitution has been suspended and the parliamentary elections are in doubt.

Pakistan’s Chief Justice made the latest move in what is becoming a test of wills between the country’s highest institutions: the Supreme Court and the Presidency/Military. The Chief Justice, who was recently reinstated following large-scale civil society unrest over his firing by Gen. Musharraf, has ordered the release of detained opposition supporters and demonstrators. 

The Dawn reports an interesting comment by Musharraf that he had “run the government in a most democratic way,” in contrast to those who had simply paid lip service to the cause. Earlier in the week, Musharraf’s lawyers had announced his intention to hold on to power in some capacity, either as president or military chief. He announced that if he was not re-elected as president, he would continue at his army post. Though in essence, this fails to address the main concern that he is standing for re-election with the full backing of his position in the armed forces, which would undermine the legitimacy of any re-election. The Supreme Court is set to rule on this matter as well.  

The BBC reports that Benazir Bhutto expects to have the people of Pakistan “rally around” her upon her return from self-imposed exile, and if the welcome reception for Nawaz Sharif is anything to go by, that may be a safe assumption. But aside from vocal crowds and sporadic violence that greeted the event, Sharif’s return quickly turned anti-climactic. Sharif was offered two options: return to exile, or face arrest on the charges of corruption that were leveled against him at the time of the coup d’etat that removed him from power and established the rule of army chief Pervez Musharraf. Sharif opted for the former and was quickly shipped off to Saudi Arabia, thus defusing any political threat he posed to Musharraf. The question that remains to be answered is if the rallying Pakistani people can save Bhutto from the fate of her former nemesis. More importantly, where does this leave the state of the beleaguered Pakistani people and democratic rights in the nation?

Commenting on the power-sharing discussions between Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the government, Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani had stated that the proceedings were a “dialogue, not a deal.” Euphemisms aside, with these discussions, Bhutto had attempted to create some deal of certainty for her political aspirations. The main point on the PPP’s agenda was ensuring that Bhutto is allowed to contest in the coming elections (currently impossible under the two-term restriction), while pressing Musharraf to abandon his military position while seeking re-election. However, talks broke down between the two parties recently. The Pakistani government has agreed to allow Bhutto back into the country, but insisted that she would have to face charges of corruption in a court of law. Bhutto dismisses the charges and is confident that her political fate remains secure despite these allegations. How things play out upon her return is open to any amount of speculation.

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So it appears that the Musharraf government is backing away from the rumor reported by multiple news outlets that he was considering implementing a state of emergency. The official Pakistani government line is that a state of emergency was one of many options presented to President General  Perez Musharraf, but that he did not think that it was necessary. Besides, the government spokesperson argued, Musharraf is committed to holding free and fair elections.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice apparently placed a 17-minute phone call to Musharraf after hearing the rumors about a pending state of emergency. Hopefully her actions had a positive impact on Musharraf’s calculations and helped him realize that the decision would have negative consequences for Musharraf’s future.

I agree with this analysis that these theatrics seem to be trail balloon of sorts to gauge international and domestic reactions to a potential political crackdown. The renunciations of the rumors took way to long, and they were half-hearted when given.

Musharraf still plans to seek reelection from the sitting parliament and local councils between September 15 and October 15. The pending confrontations over whether new parliamentary elections are necessary before they elect a new president and whether Musharraf can stand for his third term while still head of the army still loom over Pakistani politics. The Pakistani courts are expected to hear arguments today about whether former prime minister Nawaz Sharif can return to Pakistan to compete in the next elections, and the decision could continue to rock Musharraf’s grip on power.

Reports this morning indicate that President General Perez Musharraf is considering implementing a state of emergency. The Pakistani Minister for State Information announced that the move was being considered by the government in response to “external and internal threats” to Pakistan’s stability. Specifically, the minister mentioned the most recent unrest in the northwestern border areas and comments last week by US presidential candidate Barak Obama.

The state of emergency would provide Musharraf with a broad set of additional powers, including the ability to limit political activity, rallies, and information. However, implementing the state of emergency would set up what would seem to be a final showdown between the military backed government and pro-democracy moderates who would seek to challenge Musharraf’s decree in the courts.

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In testimony given today before the House Subcommittee on International Organizations, Human Rights, and Oversight, Freedom House Executive Director, Jennifer Windsor, criticized the United States’ track record of promoting democracy and human rights in its bilateral relations with other states, citing Azerbaijan, Cuba, and Egypt as examples.  From a Freedom House press release:

“The U.S. should never retreat from its role as a defender of human rights, one whose support struggling democratic activists around the globe have looked to for decades,” said Ms. Windsor. “While adherence to democratic principles and respect for human rights cannot always be the sole foreign policy consideration for the U.S. in its bilateral relations, they can and should always be a key element of U.S. relations with all countries. The U.S. should demonstrate a preference for democracy whenever it can.”

Windsor’s comments come in light of remarks President Bush made this week in support of his good friend, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, calling him a partner in the promotion of democracy.  Pervez, a military general who took power in 1999 as a result of a coup, has been a consistent recipient of praise and support from President Bush for his cooperation with America’s global war on terror.  Unfortunately for America’s credibility abroad, he has also been a consistent autocrat, who has made no serious attempt to bring about a return of democratic government in his country.

Windsor’s comments bring this serious disjuncture between rhetoric and policy into clear focus, as she points out a continuous lack of commitment to promoting democracy and human rights that is manifested in our foreign policy stances on Azerbaijan, Cuba, and Egypt - three countries in which security, economic, or ideological interests have caused us to look the other way. 

 In words reminiscent of President Bush describing America’s commitment to freedom in his second inaugural address, Jennifor Windsor extolls policymakers to renew their commitment to that noble ideal, which has been cheapened by America’s recent inconsistencies in applying it:

“In our dealings with foreign governments and their citizens, we should never allow our core values of human rights and democracy to fall off the table. Instead of ignoring this commitment because it appears to be too difficult, we should renew our efforts and consider new and innovative ways to help those who need it most.”