Editorial
The general's new man in Pakistan
Musharraf is the problem, not the solution
General Pervez Musharraf has chosen a new prime minister for himself. In real terms, though, the appointment of Mohammadmian Soomro as the head of what Pakistan's military leader calls a caretaker administration does not make much of a difference. Neither does the fact that Musharraf flatters himself by telling Pakistanis and the outside world that the appointment is history in the making. And he makes matters even more laughable by suggesting that being a military man he has introduced the essence of democracy in Pakistan.
If anything, General Musharraf's actions over the past few weeks are clear evidence of how systematically he has gone about undermining democracy. His intentions, whatever their merits in the beginning, seem geared now towards saving his skin. One does not need to be a keen observer of history to know that when Musharraf imposed a state of emergency, sacked judges of the Supreme Court and placed opposition politicians under arrest, he was intent on preserving his own position despite all the legal and ethical reasons that questioned his authority. He has been placing, and then freeing, Benazir Bhutto under house arrest. His regime has just taken Imran Khan into custody. And, of course, the sordid manner of Nawaz Sharif's deportation to Saudi Arabia remains a scandal for his junta. As if all these acts were not enough, he has singularly failed to contain religious militancy and extremism in Pakistan. His policies have created conditions where Al-Qaida and Taliban elements have now fanned out across Pakistan, thus further destabilising a state that has historically teetered on the brink of chaos.
Pakistan needs to be saved from General Musharraf. Those western powers which still view the dictator as a guarantee against terrorism must go for a rethink. The options are clear before them: they can see Pakistan graduate to democracy and thereby handle extremism better or they can continue with Musharraf and watch the mess getting increasingly deeper. A man without a public support base (and Musharraf is that man) should simply be pressured to quit. It is the moral responsibility of Pakistan's well-wishers to support the campaign against Musharraf. The general is part of Pakistan's problem; he is no solution. He ought to leave on his own or wait for a serious popular upheaval to send him packing.
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