Pakistan Update

If you've been keeping up with our blog posts or international news then you are aware of Washington's silence when President Musharraf (Pakistan) imprisoned nearly 2,000 supporters of previous Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, when he returned to Pakistan and was promptly redeported. Fortunately, the U.S. broke its silence today, when it denounced recent detentions of several major Pakistani political party leaders, in light of the upcoming presidential elections. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry responded curtly with a request that the U.S. stay out of its internal affairs. Washington considers Pakistan a key ally in the "war on terror" and generally refrains from criticizing Musharraf. The change in Washington's stance towards the general may stem from the controversial upcoming election. With Musharraf's low popularity rate it will be interesting to see if Washington's statement will warm Pakistanis' views of the U.S., or have the opposite affect of strengthening anti-U.S. sentiment, being seen as another example of U.S. meddling. Musharraf announced today that if not reelected he would not resign from his position as Chief of Army Staff. The Supreme Court will make the final decision on whether he will be able to remain in his military position if not elected. There are surely some concerns among Pakistanis on whether Musharraf would stage a coup if he stayed in his position as Chief of Army Staff but not as president. He clearly has loyalty in the military, however, the Supreme Court and growing discontent among his people may force him to step down in all positions.