Enduring Power Struggle in Pakistan: New Phase-II

Return of Sharif & the Focus

The reason behind the recent upheaval in Pakistan seemed that the head of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), the former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was demanding the reinstatement of Chief Justice Iftikhar Choudhary & all other sacked judges & for that he was organizing a big long march towards Islamabad. To march towards Islamabad & reinstatement of sacked judges by Musharraf was merely an issue. Actually, Sharif wanted to give a big political blow to Zardari. Claming to be the senior most leader of Pakistan, PML leader Sharif wanted to show that there is no one in the country to compete with him now in politics of Pakistan. Now the assumptions are that after March 21, after the reinstatement of sacked judges, Sharif has got credit & power in judicial setup at the same time. Sharif has made efforts to make Zardari feel politically small before Sharif.

Former President Pervez Musharraf fired Chaudhry, 60, in 2007 on charges of nepotism after he took up cases challenging the leader's rule, sparking a wave of protests that helped force Musharraf from power in 2008. The opposition leader made it clear that any political resolution of the crisis must include the restoration of the chief justice and he has achieved that goal.  Many say Chaudhry was engaged in pro-active roles for people causes.  "This is a victory for the people of this country," said Baz Mohammad Kakar, a leader of the lawyers' movement. "Chaudhry is the first chief justice in the history of Pakistan who has proved himself to be a judge for the people, as a chief justice for the people."

Focused on removing President Gen. Musharraf from power, the Pakistan opposition leaders wholly unleashed hate campaigns against him as well as the military and sought to reinstate democratic institutions. Removal of CJP came in handy to them to pursue the goal and they did achieve in due course. The court system has often been abused by past rulers to cement their grip on power, although judges also try to defend their own privileges and use unethical means on transfers and to secure promotions & other favors. Lawyers and civil rights activists have remained committed to the cause of Chaudhry's reinstatement, believing it was a vital first step in getting an independent judiciary in Pakistan. Their movement got a boost last month when Sharif threw his full weight behind it after he and his brother, Shahbaz, were banned from elected office by the Supreme Court. Zardari then dismissed the government led by Shahbaz in the Punjab province, the wealthiest in Pakistan and a vital prize for politicians.

Nawaz Sharif, the 'commander of the faithful’ retured to Paksitan from exile in 2008 to reset Pakistan’s political agenda. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf ousted Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup in 1999 in move to pre-empt Sharif’s designs to remove him form the post or even Pakistan. The former prime minister was jailed in 2000 and on agreement with Musharraf, Sharif later went into exile. Musharraf insisted that under a secret exile agreement which let him out of jail, Nawaz Sharif had to stay away from Pakistan for ten years, while Sharif has said the agreement was for five years only. September 9, 2007 Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif arrived at the capital’s international airport only to be sent back from the airport. On 26 Nov 2007 Sharif once again finally returned to Pakistan from exile by landing at Lahore airport from Saudi Arabia vowing to end the "dictatorship" of President Pervez Musharraf. Gen Musharraf allowed Mr Sharif home ahead of general elections scheduled for 2008 Jan 8, after coming under pressure from Saudi Arabia, one of Pakistan’s key investors. A few days prior ot that Gen Musharraf flew to Saudi Arabia to meeting the country’s king. Four days later, the Sharifs announced they would be coming back to Pakistan Sharif’s return may have been fuelled by Saudi embarrassment over complicity in his exile which was compounded when Ms Bhutto was allowed back. Ms Bhutto was allowed to return to Pakistan in October 2007. Her homecoming procession was torn apart by a suicide bombing that killed about 150 people. Sharif, accompanied by his wife Kulsoom and politician brother and fellow exile Shahbaz Sharif, former Punjab CM, arrived on an aircraft provided by the Saudi monarch.

Gen Musharraf had until 2007 December 1 to swear himself in as a civilian president for another five years after a compliant Supreme Court - stripped of most of its previous judges - confirmed his victory in a poll the previous month. In October Musharraf, a key U.S. ally who seized power in a 1999 coup and pursued a battle to fight corruption and nepotism, got another five-year presidential term. The trouble started with judiciary people on the streets supported by all opposition parties, demanding the resignation of Musharraf.

With the landing of both Sharif and Benazir a new phase of political activity, rejuvenation taking shape in Pakistan and also a resultant power struggle set in with Musharraf playing the lead role. The political situation in Pakistan developed so fast that the country had reached nearing a coup, but it was the wisdom of U.S. President Obama who arranged all secret manipulations with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan Army Chief and insisted the Pakistan Govt. to go for a compromise and helped defuse the stir and that worked miraculously. Gillani has played an important role in defusing tension between the federal government and the Sharif brothers by remaining in contact with the PML-N leadership and issuing conciliatory statements. Soon after his election as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, he ordered an immediate release of the detained judges stating the government “believes in the supremacy of parliament, the rule of law and respect for the Constitution”. The PM had also assured the National Assembly of implementing the Murree Declaration, the crux of the democratic political discourse, signed between the co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif. He had also pledged to endorse the CoD.

While the possibly for a coalition government by Musharraf-Benazir was on the cards, Murder of Benazir Bhutto widened the political fortunes of the opposition on national scale and weakened the Musharraf’s position, forecast the eventual exit of Musharraf if he still went ahead with the democratic experiments in Pakistan and he chose the popular verdict to mould his future course.

Departure of Musharraf brought to open the infightings between the PPP-PMLN coalition partners and revisited the earlier dividing line. Former General kept himself away from politics till date.  Musharraf's successor, president Zardari, pledged to reinstate Chaudhry within 30 days of his party forming a government, but reneged on the promise, apparently fearing the justice might examine a deal that he and his wife, slain politician Benazir Bhutto, struck with Musharraf to grant the pair immunity from prosecution over alleged corruption cases. Sharif accused Zardari of being behind the Supreme Court ruling last month that disqualified put Sharif and his brother from elected office over convictions dating back to Musharraf's rule. The stand-off has threatened to further destabilise the nuclear-armed state, which is on the front line of the fight against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.  

Sharif probably thought revival of democracy is Pakistan was incomplete since he was not suitably rewarded and a junior in politics Zardari grabbed the major booty of fight for democracy, or rather the anti-Musharraf struggle. Supreme Court decision last month that banned Sharif and his brother Shahbaz from elected office offered opportunities for both the ruling and opposition parties to arrive at a settlement.  An infuriated Sharif was looking for opportunities to fix Zardari and when the president dismissed there Punjab PMLN government on the advice of Courts, the day came to his rescue. President Zardari's decision to put their stronghold in Punjab province under direct rule from Islamabad was fought vigorously and successfully with the extra mileage from the involvement of lawyers and Judges’ cases.

It was a sea of humanity as tens of thousands of supporters of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif thronged in the streets of Lahore as he left his residence in a dark green armored Land Cruiser, despite a government ban on public gathering and a massive deployment of law-enforcement personnel. A commentator said: It looks as though the entire Lahore city is gathered here. Young, elders, women, and children - everyone is here” Some of the protesters defied police barricades to gather near the city's main courts complex and pelt riot police with rocks. One mob smashed the windows of buses parked along the route of Sharif's convoy, while another broke into the main Post Office building, trashing furniture and then clambering onto the roof to hurl rocks at police below. Police responded with tear gas, and beat several protesters with batons. Associated Press reporters saw several injured officers being helped away.  Many were black-suited lawyers, but most appeared to be supporters of Sharif, equipped with party flags and chanting "Go Zardari go!" For days, the government sought to squelch the protest movement. Authorities have put the army on alert and temporarily detained hundreds of activists nationwide to prevent them traveling to Lahore or Islamabad.   

Several days of rallies around Pakistan were to culminate in a "long march" on Islamabad and a sit-in to press the demand for the reinstatement of the judges, but to the luck of Pakistan, all ended in a compromise agreement. The Sharifs and 16 other protest leaders were initially ordered under house arrest. Before dawn, hundreds of police surrounded Sharif's residence in Lahore, carrying an order for his house arrest. Sharif denounced the order as illegal and later left the house in a convoy of vehicles as police stood by. Later, he said authorities reached an "understanding" with Sharif and the matter got settled and “long march” was shortcut and ended. 

Certainly, PML-Nawaz (PML-N) chief can now claim to have own one major battle in Pakistan. Consequently, Nawaz Sharif, the man who led the latest storm and got the CJP back in apex court, welcomed what he called an historic achievement on 16 March that had been due to descend on the capital and promptly called off the Long March of opposition politicians and lawyers. "It is a historic day, a great day which will change the country's destiny," said a beaming Nawaz Sharif in the central city of Gujranwala, were he was showered with rose petals and mobbed by a sea of jubilant supporters.

The biggest loser, then, accoridng to global media and neo-democrats of Paksitan, is the PPP chief and president, Asif Zardari, who was considered by the opposition as the biggest impediment in the restoration of justice. Zardari whom many called, not very long ago, as the protector of democracy have now reversed their opinion now so soon to call him destroyer of that very concept. Now democracy now is associated with Sharif and Chaudhry. The moot question is will Nawaz stop his attempts to out-seat Zardari and take over the presidency and the race for that top slot chair wound not come to an end now. Sharif has projected an image of strength and stands to gain from leading a successful movement against the president, whom he targeted as an enemy of democracy and who has been the focus of popular anger. For him, Zardari's broken promise and his government's repression of the protesters will likely leave him in a politically weakened position.  

( To continue...)

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Yours Sincerely,

DR. ABDUL RUFF Colachal

Columnist & Independent Researcher in World Affairs, The only Indian to have gone through entire India
South Asia.