Rumours of Musharraf's arrest.

There are rumours that Musharraf has been escorted and arrested by Ministry of Defence (MOD) there is no way to confirm this since the Media channels have been shut down by Musharraf...

The More things change the more they remain the same.

Once again the circle of life has come back 360 degrees to the point of Marshall Law/State of Emergency. It used to be every 20 or so years 1958, 1978, 1998 but this time it has come around rather quick for the comfort of the politicians in 2007, even though it ever went away since 1998.

Musharraf is expected to Address the nation tonight even though, no official reason has been given so far. The Western media (CNN later reported that Marshall Law has declared) is again quick to give it a terrorrism related spin which they later took off their sites and and now is speculating about the Concerns of 'Lawlessness and and political instability' but we know fully well that it's an old trick out of one of his infamous hats to extend his own Rule. The Chief justice has aparently been arrested and the media suspended.

Ah.... what else is new... seems like Pakistan has a way of digging themselves a hole time and again. It;s throughly depressing to see this happen specially with a figure head who has time and again denied such intentions.This jsut goes to show how easy it is to use the military muscle and use it to your advantage when a military ruler is in power... A democratic government would have had to go through major hurdles to impose anything like this. All a dictator has to do is ask his troops to move in and take control of everything.

Then again it's not all that depressing knowing Pakistan's history.. knowing fully well that more the things change, more they remain the same. Pakistan has seen this far too often and the life has still continued. People here have found a way to disconnect themselves from the political drama and carry on with their normal lives... Sure, every slightest political move is discussed in details on every corner of every street, cafe, barber's, taxis, work and any other imaginable place where 2 people can congrigate ( as it's bound to happen tonight as Kamal Haider, the reporter for Al-Jazeera describes it a s a 'black day')but... It seems that people are unflatered by all these going ons... after all who would want to raise a voice infront of a man with a gun????

Beyond the Attacks

Riddle is certianly the right word to define Pakistan's political circumstances - as suggested by Jayshree Bajoria in her article in Council on Foreign relations website. Pakistan has the most diverse group of situations all jumbled into absolute caos. It's hard to believe that the country is still able to function with all these shortcomings and with the presence of many potentially dangerous elements that could spin the situation out of control at any given moment.

The existance of anti west, stubborn groups that are willing to go violent is hard enough for western powers to swollow. Add to it, the existance of neuclear capability of any sort alongwith corrupt admisitration, makes any western leader shiver in their dreams.

And if that's not enough, there's political instability in shape of corrupt political parties who have all had some share of power at least once and will do anything to get it back - hostile neighbours (not just India) that would take any oppertunity to undermine whatever stability pakistan does have - Military dictatorship, that west seems to have come into terms with but thinks it's not bearing fruits any more - and the world renowned secret services that are out of control.

More recently an independent private digital media and rejuvinated judiciary and Courts0 have also entered the mix to make it even more complicated and out of control.

Even though most western newspapers and magazines focus on the War on Terror and any violent attempt is attributed to the Islamists, Taliban or Al-Qaeda (NewsWeek)- like Attacks on Benazir Bhutto (BBC News) that clearly have footprints of internal power struggle than Al-Qaeda. Benazir also endorsed this in her letter to President naming people that are either part of the government, had a hand in setting up corruption cases against her, or the ex-ISI cheif who she's had a personal vandetta with for a while. Even though the war on terror has a very little direct impact internally yet it does have indirect implications. In the war on terror general public opinion inclines more towards anti western sentiment for supposedly dragging pakistan into this war by indirect threats than the sympathy towards western need to engage in this war.

Aftermath of Benazir Attacks

'US contingency plan for Pak needed' (Times of India)
The US government should prepare a 'contingency plan' for Pakistan in case Pervez Musharraf regime falls because of presence of nuclear weapons, a top opposition lawmaker has said...

Pakistani politics gets dirty after Bhutto attack (Reuters)
KARACHI (Reuters) - Bad blood between Benazir Bhutto and President Pervez Musharraf's allies in Pakistan bubbled to the surface on Tuesday, after an attack on the opposition leader that killed 139 people four days earlier.

Female suicide squad threatens to attack Bhutto (Times of India)
Farooq Naik, a senior lawyer, said that the chairperson of the Pakistan People's Party had received a letter purportedly written by the leader of a female suicide squad...

Pakistan considers procession ban (Al-Jazeera)
Plan comes as a minister rejects Bhutto's demand for foreign help in attack probe...

Benazir mulls ''virtual'' rallies (The News Pakistan)
WASHINGTON: Former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto said Tuesday she is considering "virtual" mass rallies and campaigning via phone to avoid mass viol...

ISI & Terrorism as per CFR-US

Below is the viewpoint of the Council of Foreign Relations about Pakistan's ISI. It is very relevent within the sphere of - Pakistani politics - especially after the twin blasts in the Benazir Bhutto's homecoming procession - the global(Bush's) war on terrorism - and India and Afghanistan's claims of ISI's involvement.

ISI's Background and the viewpoint of The Council Of Foreign Relations-US

Pakistan’s intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), has long faced accusations of meddling in the affairs of its neighbors. A range of officials inside and outside Pakistan have stepped up suggestions of links between the ISI and terrorist groups in recent years. In autumn 2006, a leaked report by a British Defense Ministry think tank charged, “Indirectly Pakistan (through the ISI) has been supporting terrorism and extremism—whether in London on 7/7, or in Afghanistan, or Iraq.” ...

Oct 19th - Bomb in Karachi

126 dead as blasts hit near former PM Bhutto in Pakistan (Jerusalem Post)
Suicide bombing hurts hundreds as crowd welcomes the former premier after eight years in exile; Bhutto remains unhurt...

Bombs Target Bhutto Procession in Pakistan (Wall Street Journal)
Bhutto was targeted by twin bombings that killed up to 126 in Karachi. The former premier, who wasn't injured, returned to Pakistan earlier in the day after an eight-year exile...

India condemns attack on Bhutto in Pakistan (The News Pakistan)
NEW DELHI: India condemned on Friday the bloody attack that targeted former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in Karachi and urged determined ac...

SC adjourns Musharraf re-election case till Monday (The News Pakistan)
ISLAMABAD: An 11-member bench of the Supreme Court hearing petitions against the legality of president General Pervez Musharraf’s October 6 election w...

President orders for report on blasts within 48 hours
RAWALPINDI: President General Pervez Musharraf has issued directives to intelligence agencies for submitting report on Karachi bomb blasts within 48 h...

Thur-Oct 11th ki Khabrein

Bhutto sticks to Pakistan return (Al-Jazeera)
The former prime minister rejects a call by Pervez Musharraf to delay her return. Benazir Bhutto, a former prime minister of Pakistan, is set to return to the country next week despite Pervez Musharraf, the president, calling for her to wait until the legality of his re-election is decided...

India PM meets IAEA head as nuclear deal clock ticks (Reuters)
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog head, Mohamed ElBaradei, made a strong pitch for the India-U.S. nuclear deal on Wednesday saying it was essential for India's economic growth, despite concerns a domestic row could scupper the pact...

Musharraf tells Benazir to delay return (The Hindu)
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has asked former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto to delay her return to Pakistan from a self-imposed exile till the Supreme Court decides on petitions challenging his re-election...

Thousands protest Western-style stores in India (Reuters)
MUMBAI (Reuters) - More than 20,000 traders, farmers and shopkeepers protested on Wednesday against the entry of private retail giants like Wal-Mart into India which they say would destroy millions of livelihoods...

US to continue cooperation with Pakistan: Townsend (The News Pakistan)
WASHINGTON: The White House reiterated that Pakistan''s president, Pervez Musharraf, had been a helpful ally in fighting terrorism and Pakistan offered...

Benazir, Zardari, Sherpao file petitions for withdrawal of references (The News Pakistan)
ISLAMABAD: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, her spouse Asif Ali Zardari and federal minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao have filed petitions in Acc...

Mon-Oct 8th ki Khabrein

The Power Elite Playbook, the Anglo-American Chessboard Part 4 - The People's Voice (ThePeoplesVoice)
The People's Voice The Power Elite Playbook, the Anglo-American Chessboard Part 4 The People's Voice, TN - 20 minutes ago A decade or two is irrelevant to the ultimate establishment of the North American Union (a step towards one world government ) which was formally organized ...

Majority of Pakistanis term Musharraf an ideal leader: US survey ( The News Pakistan)
WASHINGTON: President General Pervez Musharraf, an obvious and ideal choice for leadership of Pakistan in comparison to Ms. Benazir Bhutto and Mian…

Chopper escorting Musharraf crashes (Times Of India)
Four soldiers on board the chopper have died. The President's spokesman, Rashid Qureshi, was also on the chopper which crashed in the Pakistan occupied Kashmir…

IAEA chief arrives in India as nuclear row rages (Reuters)
MUMBAI (Reuters) - The U.N.'s nuclear watchdog head arrives in India on Monday on a long scheduled trip that has turned into a potential political flashpoint as a nuclear deal with the United States threatens to spark snap elections.

Here's what I found fer ya ! ! ! ! !

Who is Musharraf ? ? ?

FACTBOX: Five facts about Pakistani leader Pervez Musharraf(Reuters)

Here are five facts about Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf:

1) The second of three brothers, Musharraf was born into a middle class Muslim family in India in August 1943. His family moved to the newly created majority-Muslim state of Pakistan following India's independence and partition in 1947. He spent seven years in Turkey, during his civil servant father's posting to Ankara. In 1956 the family settled in Karachi, where Musharraf attended Roman Catholic and other Christian schools.

2) Entering the Pakistan Military Academy in 1961, the keen sportsman and career military man first saw action as a young officer in the 1965 war against India, which saw him decorated for gallantry. Marrying in 1968, he endured the army's humiliating defeat by India in the 1971 war and served voluntarily for seven years in Pakistan's special service commandos group.

3) Promoted to the rank of general and named army chief in October, 1998, Musharraf seized power from then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999 in a bloodless coup. He first led the country as chief executive and then won a five-year presidential term in a 2002 referendum critics say was rigged.

4) One of President George W. Bush's most important non-NATO allies in Washington's war on terrorism, supporters paint Musharraf as a strong leader who can save Pakistan's moderate Muslim majority from militant, religious extremism seeping intocities from tribal areas along the northwest frontier. However a bloody army assault on Islamabad's Red Mosque in July, during which 102 people were killed, led to a rise in attacks by Islamist militants that have killed several hundred people.

5) A failed attempt to sack Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry in March created a judicial and political crisis. Musharraf's popularity slumped and the Supreme Court reinstated Chaudhry. With exiled ex-leaders Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif threatening to return, Musharraf has made some pre-election concessions -- dropping long-standing graft charges against Bhutto, and designating a successor to take over as army chief so he can finally shed his uniform and be sworn in as a civilian president by November 15.

Source: Reuters, Presidential Web site (www.presidentofpakistan.gov.pk/Biography.aspx)

Aaj ki Khabrein

US, Russia dominate arms sales to developing countries (Jerusalem Post)
According US congressional report, military rivals Pakistan and India top the list as buyers, followed by Saudi Arabia and Venezuela...

Bhutto amnesty signed by Musharraf (Al-Jazeera)
Pakistan's president grants amnesty for former leader, boosting power-sharing deal...

Pakistan awaits court ruling on vote, Bhutto deal (Reuters)
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court is expected to rule on Friday on whether to suspend an election President Pervez Musharraf is set to win, just as he closes in on a power-sharing deal with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto...

Musharraf, Bhutto Strike Accord (Wall Street Journal)
Musharraf and Bhutto struck a tentative deal designed to allow the old foes to shepherd Pakistan from military rule to civilian government amid political tensions and militant violence...

'Army has no role in politics' (Times Of India)
The military ruler, who came to power 8 years ago in a bloodless coup by ousting former PM Nawaz Sharif, is seeking a second term in the October 6 presidential poll...

Hearing of petitions challenging Musharraf’s nomination completed (The News Pakistan)
ISLAMABAD: A 10-member larger bench of the Supreme Court completed hearing of the constitutional petitions Friday, challenging validation of General Musharraf...

Pak prez polls: SC gives go ahead (Times Of India)
Pakistan's Supreme Court has ruled that the weekend elections expected to extend President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's eight-year rule can proceed as planned...

Aaj Ki Khabrein

Pakistan's Bhutto optimistic about Musharraf deal ( Reuters)
LONDON (Reuters) - Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto said on Thursday she was optimistic that a political deal could be reached with President Pervez Musharraf, but had yet to hammer out a conclusive text.

Iran has right to pursue peaceful nuclear program: India (The News, Pakistan)
NEW DELHI: India has said that Iran has right to pursue a civilian nuclear programme for peaceful purposes. Maintaining that India has the best

Pak power-sharing talks in final stage (Times Of India)
The statement by Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, a minister close to President Musharraf, came as Bhutto said in London that the government is about to issue an amnesty.

Musharraf admits ISI's role in politics (Times Of India)
The Pakistan president has said that the military and intelligence set-up should have no political role so as to allow an impartial and transparent general election.

Aaj ki Khabrein...

Talks with Musharraf totally stalled, says Bhutto
The former Pakistani premier dismissed the amnesty offer over corruption cases and termed it a disinformation campaign...

Musharraf may share power with Bhutto: Report
A media report quoted a Cabinet minister as saying that Musharraf will not hesitate to share power with Bhutto, if she gains enough seats to be part of a government...

Pakistan's Bhutto says talks with Musharraf stalled
LONDON (Reuters) - Talks with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf aimed a reaching a power-sharing deal have...

Benazir has a place in future political set-up in Pak.: Rice
WASHINGTON: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto does hold a position in the evolving situation in Pakistan but the people would have to determine when...

Musharraf’s candidature: SC issues notices to parties
ISLAMABAD: A larger bench of Supreme Court Wednesday issued notices to the parties and Attorney General during hearing of three constitutional petitio...

Musharraf says to doff uniform by Nov. 15 after re-election
ISLAMABAD: President Pervez Musharraf has said he will doff military uniform till Nov. 15 after getting re-elected on October 06. The president...

Daily News

Former ISI chief to succeed Musharraf as Army chief
ISLAMABAD: The former head of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, will succeed President Pervez Musharraf as Army chief, a military statement said, but gave no date for the succession. Promoted to the rank ...

Bhutto not to be prosecuted for corruption
Pakistan government's move to grant an amnesty from prosecution to the former premier, satisfied one of her key demands for a power-sharing deal with Musharraf.

Pakistan to Throw Out Bhutto Charges
Musharraf named a trusted ally to take over as head of Pakistan's army, and began steps toward giving Bhutto amnesty on corruption charges, in moves aimed at cementing his power should he be re-elected president Saturday.

Sharif exiled to Saudia -- Again

In a dramatic turn of events in the Pakistan’s volatile political scene, Pakistan’s Military government lead by General Musharraf, resorted to power tactics to throw Nawaz Sharif, the last democratically elected Premier into his second exile, back to Saudi Arabia. The government/ Musharraf argues that there was a deal brokered by Saudi Government/ Mr. Hariri that Binds Mr. Sharif from a- Returning to Pakistan for 10 years, b- Taking part in Pakistani Politics for ten years, c- getting out of Saudi Arabia for 10 years.

The current Military backed government maintains that Nawaz Sharif is not keeping his end of the bargain that has been propagated as a DEAL that was brokered while Mr. Sharif was in jail. How much of an option did he have as a captive is not discussed in the media a whole lot.

The matters were complicated when the Supreme Court of Pakistan decided to intervene and pass a verdict allowing Mr. Sharif to come back to the country. In the process the highest court of the country dismissed the document shown by the Attorney General as ‘Not a binding agreement’ since it did not have the signatures of both parties involved.

AFP reported on his second exile, following the events unfolding at Islamabad Airport,

“In a dramatic showdown at Islamabad airport, the 57-year-old Sharif refused to hand over his passport as he came home from seven years abroad, sparking an immediate confrontation and prompting police to board his plane.
The two-time premier, ousted by close US ally Musharraf in a bloodless 1999 coup, was then arrested on corruption charges and put on a plane to the Saudi city of Jeddah four hours after he touched down.”
The PML(N) workers still consider this an ongoing struggles and all is not lost just yet in their minds. According to AFP’s report,

“Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party condemned his deportation and filed a legal challenge in the Supreme Court, saying the government was in contempt of court.
"I believe that the Saudi government has also interfered in Pakistan's internal affairs and shown disrespect to the constitution and the Supreme Court," party spokesman Siddique-ul Farooq told AFP.”

Most of the west, still sees Pakistan through the lens of Terrorism and Militancy, had their own opinion about Sharif’s second exile. For instant, Washington Post chose to run Pakistan Military’s skirmishes with the Militants in NWFP rather than the unfolding political chaos. Most of the western claims do not truly line up with their argument of supporting democracy and restoring the rights of the people, there were some statements made that seemed to be helping Sharif’s quest for returning to Pakistan. For instance EU issued a statement about adhering to the law, avoiding direct mention of Supreme Court.

On the other hand Benazir seems to be getting her way by way of US brokered deal that will see her become the new Prime Minister. How true does that statement remains, it still needs to be seen. For now she seems on course to come back and win the elections since her main Rival – Sharif- has been ousted by force once again.

"Mrs Bhutto has decided to travel to Pakistan," Bhutto's spokesman Wajid Hassan told Reuters Television in an interview. "She has planned it next month, probably. She will announce it on Sept. 14 as to the date of her arrival in Pakistan."
"She has got to go back and lead the party into the elections, to campaign for the party in the elections," Bhutto's spokesman said.
"I'm sure that there will be no compromise on it. She will go back and she will compete for the party and she will definitely win the elections."

As with all political nautanki, there sure seems to be more twist in this saga as there are too many players still on the table.

Political game on a Chess table

As Musharraf entered into talks with Benazir thinking her involvement will keep the stronger player, Nawaz, out of Power and out of Pakistan, the emboldened Supreme Court Justice Iftikhar chaudhry slammed a verdict that might make him think that he entered into negotiations with the wrong party. With the twist of fate, it seems that all of a sudden there are far more players on the political chess board than Musharraf would ever have imagined before March 9th. Judiciary, empowered by Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, Media empowered by their coverage of Judicial strikes and events surrounding it which Musharraf tried to stop by passing a bill against it, Benazir whom Musharraf engaged into negotiations before the fall of events, Ameica -- Of course, due to war on terror, the hardliner Muslim right that Musharraf managed to infuriate by pressing over Red Mosque issue which resulted in many suicide bombings soon after, and Nawaz Sharif who Musharraf thought was done and dusted, is soon to come back into the political scene. With so many players vying for power it would test Musharraf's political wisdom he's conjured up in the last 8 years, to all ends.

Ever since Musharraf came into power he made it clear that there is no room for the two ex-prime ministers that have each held power twice in the country. He has been pretty adamant on not cutting them any concessions whatsoever the circumstances may be. As fate has it or should I say 'the hand of God' the current political situation in Pakistan has forced him to reconsider his options. Bitter enemies are once again being brought together albeit their dislike. There are all sorts of news and analysis in the media as to which direction the current scenario of Pakistan's political future will take .

Reuters - Allies of Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf have raised objections to a power-sharing deal he is negotiating with former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, casting fresh doubt on the future of the embattled president. But many members of Musharraf's ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML) are alarmed at the prospect of their old rival Bhutto returning from eight years of exile to take power from them. PML president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain said he had conveyed his reservations about parts of the proposed deal to Musharraf.

"We told him that there are certain things which are harmful for the country and the nation and they should be asked to review them," Hussain told Reuters on Friday, referring to Bhutto and her party and some of the demands they have been making.
Bhutto, who has been prime minister twice, wants the lifting of a ban on a person serving a third term. She also wants the president stripped of the power to dismiss governments, but Hussain said his party opposed those demands.

The New York Times analyzes the turmoil with a heading "Pakistan's Bhutto gambles on Musharraf", alleging her 'Deal' is due to the fact that she wants to come back having dropped all the corruption charges against her.

NYT: Exiled former leader Benazir Bhutto is gambling her future on a power-sharing deal with President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, hoping to revive a political dynasty.
Bhutto is urging Musharraf to step down as military chief and drop corruption charges so she can come home and compete in parliamentary elections due by January. In return, the U.S.-allied Musharraf gets to stay on for another five years as a powerful civilian president.
"For the first time in the history of Pakistan, from one end to the other end of Pakistan, there's complete unanimity: No more dictatorship," said Ghulam Mustafa Khar, a senior politician who has broken with Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party over her talks with Musharraf. "Now, Benazir stands up and says, 'Stay, Musharraf, stay!' ... That is something which is a nightmare for the people of Pakistan," he said.
Bhutto and Musharraf also argue that joining forces will strengthen Pakistan's efforts to combat extremism and prevent the kind of political chaos that could prompt another burst of martial law. "I am trying to convince (party colleagues) that the international community and the armed forces have confidence in Musharraf, and therefore we need to work out a solution" with him, she told The Washington Post recently.
Khar was a close colleague of her father, party founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, who was hanged on murder charges in 1979 after his ouster in an earlier military coup. By entering talks with Musharraf, Bhutto has offended the party's "long history of struggle against dictatorship," Khar said. Khar accused her of betraying her party's values by reaching out to a man who toppled Pakistan's last civilian government and has lost public support at home and abroad for recently trying to fire the country's top judge. "This is one thing that I have not even visualized or dreamt," he said.
If Bhutto fights only for her own immunity from prosecution, she will lose further credibility, said political columnist Ayaz Amir. But if she gets Musharraf out of his army post, she can claim to have broken a political deadlock. "Then the People's Party will go to town and say, 'Look here, no one else could do this, and we've done it ... We won this great victory for democracy,'" said Amir, a former lawmaker in Sharif's party now writing for the Dawn newspaper.
Sharif, poised to profit from any hiccups, says Bhutto has committed a "gross violation" of an agreement with him and other opposition parties not to talk with Musharraf. But the embrace of an army discredited by eight years of military rule could see her lose the upcoming election, said Talat Masood, a former Pakistani army general turned political analyst. "As a pillar of anti-establishment, she has become the supporter of establishment. It's a big departure in ideological terms," he said. "The die-hard support that she had received from a certain class of people all along will be seriously impaired." Masood counted himself among Bhutto's well-wishers but worried that "she has lost touch with the people in these last few years that she has been away. It's the support of the people that's important. If you get that, you are in a much more advantageous position than even having the support of the uniform," he said.

Pakistan's politics will get to see more of the same old. In an interesting twist of turns it seems that both the heads of the strongest parties that Musharraf tried so hard to keep away for 8 years seem to be coming back, not exactly as he planned.

BBC analyzed that the government is keeping all it's options open after Sharif's announcement to come back on Sep 10th, before the holy Month of Ramadan, "Pakistan's government is keeping all options open after exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced plans to return next month, a minister says...Another former Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, is demanding a response before the weekend to her terms for a power-sharing deal with Gen Musharraf...On Thursday, the US reminded Gen Musharraf of his commitment to resign his army position before contesting elections. 'We expect him to honour that commitment," said a US spokesman'."

Muhammad Ali Durrani, the Information Minister, had a different say about the whole scenario. while speaking to BBC he said, "The government is keeping all options open on Nawaz Sharif's return, If he comes back, we will make a strategy."
That may also mean that government might consider negotiating with Sharif, since he still has quite a few well wishers in Mushrraf's own PML(Q), who'd rather align with Nawaz Sharif than Benazir.

Mr Sharif seems to be playing his legal and political position wisely. Let's not forget that pre-1998 coup, he was the only politician to have come into the office in Pakitan with clear majority. He announced his return a week after Pakistan Supreme court defied the government and ruled that being a citizen of Pakistan he has a legal right to go back to his home country.Government and independent think tanks say that Mr Sharif could still face jail if he returns.
Mr Sharif reiterated that he wants to "start a decisive struggle against dictatorship", and said that it would be unfortunate if Benazir made a deal with the General. "I disagree with Ms Bhutto's current policy of shaking hands with a dictator," he said.

Chronology of Current Events

9th March: Musharraf suspends Iftikhar Chaudhry ( Chief Justice) for "abuse of power". Lawyers start their protest which will go on for a couple of months to come.
April: Protests grow larger and violent with quite a few clashes with police.
12 May: Iftikhar Chaudhry arrives in Karachi for his pre-announced/ pre-planned visit which sparks clashes between rival political parties. 34 people die and images a broadcasted live on TV.
11 July: Stand off at Red Mosque picks up pace while the Chief Justice predicament is being played out. eventually on this date 102 people die when army decides to take action against alleged militants in the mosque. Opposition/Judiciary blames the government for trying to play 'kill bill' and taking the focus away from the Chief Justice issue.
July-Aug: Sharp rise in suicide attacks by pro-Taliban militants, the reasons are liked with the Red Mosque debacle.
20 July: Supreme Court reinstates chief justice in a historic decision.
9 Aug: Musharraf rejects emergency rule after a call from Condoleeza Rice, even though the media reports that it was imminent and decided by Musharraf in a meeting.
23 Aug: Supreme Court says exiled ex-PM Nawaz Sharif can return and dismisses the evidence provided by attorney General as a legal agreement since it was only signed by Nawaz and not by any 2nd party.

Benazir Bhutto, close to a DEAL with Musharraf

Benazir Bhutto had adamently stood for the principle that she would not return to pakistan under the Military rule. She has been one of the many strong political voices against the military rule. Recently there have been talks of her making a DEAL with the military dictator, General Musharraf. It seems that she seems as desperate to take on the power regardless of the fact if she has to cut a deal with the General as much as the General is desperate to cut a deal with a popular politician.

The political game seems to be getting hot with the fact that, thanks to Judiciary, the playing field has been somewhat leveled and a long forgotten player has been allowed to enter in Pakistan. Whether that actually happens or not still remains to be seen, because the Military ruler seems adament on returing the favour on not allowing a safe landing to Nawaz. Refusal of safe landing to the General was the precise reason which helped the General use his military muscle and depose the then democratically elected prime minister.

BBC: Former Pakistani PM Benazir Bhutto says she is close to reaching a deal to share power with President Musharraf.

The embattled military ruler is seeking support for presidential elections that could give him another five-year term. But he is under pressure to reach a deal with the opposition after several Supreme Court rulings went against him.

Ms Bhutto told the BBC that most issues had been resolved, but an agreement had not been finalised. She wants a clear statement he will resign as army chief. She also wants a pledge to remove legal obstacles currently preventing her from becoming prime minister for a third time, and the removal of corruption cases against her.

Ms Bhutto was speaking to the BBC's Urdu service after weeks of mounting speculation that a deal was being worked on.

"We are still negotiating. There are so many things we have agreed upon," she said. "But it's not been finalised so I can't go into details." She said she hoped General Musharraf would make a decision to stand down as head of the army "according to the wishes of the Pakistani people". "And the people of Pakistan want him to get rid of his uniform."

Earlier, Pakistan's railways minister, Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, told reporters the deal was "80% done". He said the crucial issue over Gen Musharraf's dual role as president and army chief had been resolved, but did not elaborate.

Until now Gen Musharraf has said he will abide by the constitution when it comes to the dual role. Some say this means he will take off the uniform before the end of the year, some say before presidential elections in autumn, reports the BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad. The crucial thing for Ms Bhutto is that he publicly announce his intentions because right now she is losing support by negotiating with the military ruler, our correspondent says.

Analysts say Ms Bhutto was alarmed by the Supreme Court's decision last week allowing the other exiled opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, to return to Pakistan, perhaps as early as next month. Mr Sharif has gained much support for opposing army rule and vowing to force President Musharraf out of office.

It is not clear whether the military leader can accept Ms Bhutto's demands. At the moment he has enough votes in parliament to win another five-year term. But there are growing defections from the ruling party and the emboldened Supreme Court might yet rule that his re-election from existing assemblies is unconstitutional.

BBC's Profile on Nawaz Sharif

BBC World's has a detailed profile over Nawaz Sharif's political history. It goes into details about the major players in Paksitan politics and the views of the analysts over what would it imply if he was to come back into Pakistan's politics.

BBC: Nawaz Sharif's recent re-emergence as one of the power players in Pakistani politics has surprised many. Fellow ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has recently manoeuvred her way into an "unofficial" deal with President Musharraf.

Mr Sharif's party, on the other hand, has put together a new all opposition parties alliance ahead of the upcoming elections. This, along with his possible return, has caused many of his ex-party men, now part of Gen Musharraf's government, sleepless nights.

It is the latest extraordinary twist in the career of a man who was once Pakistan's most powerful politician. Before his dramatic overthrow in a military coup in 1999, Mr Sharif appeared to dominate the political landscape. He had convincing majorities in both houses of parliament, and exerted a powerful hold over all the country's major institutions - apart from the army. But when the army seized power, Mr Sharif was arrested, and eventually sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of hijacking and terrorism. He was also convicted of corruption and banned for life from political activities. But an alleged deal, reputedly brokered by the Saudi government, saved him and other family members from being put behind bars. Mr Sharif, along with 40 members of his family, was thus exiled to Saudi Arabia for a period of 10 years.

Nawaz Sharif was born into the family of a prominent Lahore industrialist in 1949. He made his mark in politics representing an urban constituency. He first came to national prominence when he was brought into the Punjab government during the early days of General Zia's martial law, serving as finance minister and then chief minister. Although he was never considered a particularly impressive political figure, he proved himself a competent administrator during his time as chief minister.

He first became prime minister in 1990, but was dismissed in 1993, clearing the way for the then opposition leader, Benazir Bhutto, to form a government. After becoming prime minister again in 1997 with a comfortable majority, Mr Sharif brought about a series of constitutional changes. These were seen as part of an attempt to stifle any institutional opposition to his rule.

He controversially reversed a constitutional amendment which took away the president's powers to dismiss the prime minister. A power struggle with the judiciary also gripped the country after Mr Sharif fell out with the then Chief Justice, Sajjad Ali Shah. Mr Sharif faced possible disqualification from office after charges of contempt of court were brought against him, but these were eventually dismissed.

In 1998, he was confronted by another stand-off after a former army head said the army should formally have a say in the running of the government. Tensions with the army resurfaced in 1999 when the prime minister used his influence to withdraw Pakistani-backed forces from the Indian side of the Line of Control in Kashmir in 1999. The army has always been a highly powerful institution in Pakistan. Mr Sharif's overthrow by General Musharraf in a bloodless coup showed how dangerous it was for any politician to attempt to curtail its influence.

His removal from active politics and his subsequent imprisonment led to serious differences emerging within his Pakistan Muslim League (PML) party. These threatened to become an open split with a decision by some senior party members - led by Mr Sharif's wife - to join an opposition alliance against the military. The move - which would have meant joining forces with arch-rival Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party - was deeply controversial with some party members. The split became a reality soon after Mr Sharif was sent into exile.

Erstwhile party loyalists, led by veteran politician Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, announced support for Gen Musharraf. They also provided support during his controversial presidential referendum.

Before the 2002 general elections, these rebels formed the PML-Q (Quaid-e-Azam) with a strong pro-Musharraf stance. The PML-Q was elected to form the government in 2002 amongst allegations of widespread rigging and political manoeuvring. The party has continued to form the political backbone for the current military-led regime. But all that may well end with Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto's return to Pakistan. Analysts contend that Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif continue to be the only populist politicians in the country.

But while the PML-Q fears Ms Bhutto's return, it is terrified by the thought of Nawaz Sharif coming back. Analysts say Mr Sharif's return would split the PML-Q and spell the end of the line for several politicians in the party.

New York Times's Background on Nawaz Sharif

NYT: Nawaz Sharif, 57, from one of the richest business families in Lahore, was twice prime minister in the 1990s. He came to power in 1990 with close links to military and intelligence agencies but gained popularity and won a large majority for a second term in 1997.

Yet he clamped down on the news media, civil liberties and the Supreme Court, and faced accusations of gross mismanagement and corruption.

The enmity between him and General Musharraf stretches back to October 1999, when Mr. Sharif was prime minister and General Musharraf his chief of army staff, and Mr. Sharif ordered the general’s dismissal.

As General Musharraf was returning from a trip to Sri Lanka, Mr. Sharif signed the dismissal order and refused to allow his plane to land. Senior military officers overruled the order as the plane was running low on fuel, and General Musharraf swiftly carried out a coup and imprisoned Mr. Sharif and his brothers on charges of hijacking a plane, terrorism and corruption.

Mr. Sharif was sentenced to life imprisonment but the following year General Musharraf arranged for Mr. Sharif, his brother, and their families to live in exile for 10 years in Saudi Arabia.

A trifecta might be needed here :)

NYT: Pakistan’s increasingly assertive Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a political rival to Pakistan’s president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, can return from exile, throwing Pakistan’s politics into turmoil and threatening the American strategy of support for the president.

The court’s decision dealt a blow to General Musharraf by allowing the rival, Nawaz Sharif, whom he ousted as prime minister in a 1999 military coup, to run for election here this fall.

For the Bush administration, which has backed General Musharraf as a crucial ally in a terrorism hot spot, Mr. Sharif’s re-entry into politics would overturn its plan to prod the general to share power with Ms. Bhutto as a way of keeping him in power, foreign policy analysts said.

“At the very least, he is not a good friend of the United States,” Daniel Markey, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a former State Department official responsible for southern and central Asia, said of Mr. Sharif.

He noted that, as opposed to Ms. Bhutto, Mr. Sharif drew his support more from the right of Pakistan’s politics, including the religious parties. “But then again,” he added, “you can say the same thing about Musharraf.”

The decision also provided a strong indication of the determination of the Supreme Court, and of the newly reinstated chief justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, to challenge military rule.

General Musharraf tried to dismiss Justice Chaudhry in March, but after a five-month battle and nationwide demonstrations, the Supreme Court reinstated him on July 20. Soon afterward, Mr. Sharif and his brother, Shahbaz, filed petitions to the Supreme Court contesting their exile. On Thursday, Mr. Chaudhry, leading a bench of seven judges, declared to a packed courtroom that the Sharifs had an “inalienable right to enter and remain in country, as citizens of Pakistan.”

“We did not take any path of a secret deal with General Musharraf,” Mr. Sharif’s information secretary, Ahsan Iqbal, told reporters outside the court. “Instead, we took a path of transparent judicial courts. Today, by the grace of God, we have been victorious and dictatorship has been defeated today.”

There is no doubt, however, that the ruling is a strong personal rebuke to the increasingly embattled General Musharraf, who said only last week that in the interest of stability, neither Ms. Bhutto nor Mr. Sharif should return before elections.

The decision also provided a strong indication of the determination of the Supreme Court, and of the newly reinstated chief justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, to challenge military rule. General Musharraf tried to dismiss Justice Chaudhry in March, but after a five-month battle and nationwide demonstrations, the Supreme Court reinstated him on July 20.

Musharraf calls for political reconciliation

BBC: Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf has called for political reconciliation and dialogue within the country. The remarks came overnight after a Supreme Court ruling on Thursday allowed the return of exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Gen Musharraf deposed Mr Sharif in a coup in October 1999 and forced him and his family into exile in 2000. "Political reconciliation and national consensus is the need of the hour," President Pervez Musharraf said.

Gen Musharraf's comments came just hours after the Supreme Court, headed by a judge the president tried to remove, ruled that Mr Sharif and his family could return to Pakistan.

Musharraf tried to sack Iftikhar chaudhry back in March. The attempt to sack Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was aimed at taming a judiciary seen as increasingly independent. It backfired as Mr Chaudhry fought the charges in court and won.

Months of protests have seriously weakened President Musharraf and led to speculation that emergency rule might be imposed. If that were to happen, it would severely limit the power of the courts. Meanwhile, the judiciary continues to pursue cases in which the government is accused of over-reaching its authority.

Pakistan ex-PM Sharif to return

cnn: Pakistan's embattled leader, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, could face a key challenge to his rule in the coming months following the expected return of two major opposition leaders.

Pakistan's Supreme Court Thursday lifted the exile imposed on former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, ousted from power eight years ago by Musharraf in a bloodless coup.

The move is expected to clear the way for Sharif to run for office in elections scheduled for later this year or early next year. The court is led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, who was recently reinstated after he was suspended in March by Musharraf.

"I don't believe in power-sharing with Musharraf -- he is a dictator, we are democrats," Sharif said Thursday, shortly after the Pakistani court's ruling. "How can a democrat share power with a dictator?"

Musharraf wielded a tight grip on power after imposing military rule in 1999, but has seen an increased backlash after failed attempts to control Islamic militants within the country's borders as well as his controversial suspension of the country's top judge in March.

The Bush administration continues to support Musharraf, who it views as a key ally in the war on terrorism.

Thursday's ruling was the latest blow to Musharraf, who is currently facing the most serious challenge since seizing power. The ruling was expected after the top court freed the acting president of Sharif's opposition party from prison in Pakistan several weeks ago.

Exiled Pakistani PM to go home

BBC: "The Sharifs have an inalienable right to return and remain in the country as citizens of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry Chief JusticeThe Sharifs have an inalienable right to return and remain in the country as citizens of Pakistan." Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry Chief Justice"

Exiled former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has pledged to go home soon and contest elections, in a bid to oust President Pervez Musharraf.
He was speaking in London soon after Pakistan's top court ruled against the government and said he could return.

Mr Sharif, who left Pakistan after he was deposed by Gen Musharraf in a 1999 military coup, said it was "the beginning of the end" for his rival.

Mr Sharif told the BBC: "Dictatorship and democracy don't go together. One will have to go." ... "It is dictatorship which will have to go. The sooner Musharraf understands this, the better it is for him and the country." ... "I'm not scared," he said. "If Musharraf wants to fabricate cases against me, let him do that. I'll face them."

Mr Sharif was sentenced to life in prison for tax evasion and treason among other offences and went into exile following the coup eight years ago. The authorities said Mr Sharif had promised to stay out of Pakistan and away from politics for 10 years in exchange for his freedom and exile.

But Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry said in his judgement on Thursday: "(The Sharifs) have an inalienable right to return and remain in the country as citizens of Pakistan."

The Pakistani government said it accepted the ruling but hinted the Sharifs might face legal action on home soil. Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum said: "Let them come and the law will take its own course."

Sharif to Return from Exile

Dawn: "Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Thursday ramped up his campaign to return to Pakistan to contest elections, arguing that President Pervez Musharraf had illegally sent him into exile. Sharif's lawyers were presenting arguments in a Supreme Court hearing. A lawyer for Sharif said his client had an "undeniable, unqualified, fundamental right to remain in Pakistan and contest the forthcoming elections."

"You have no right to send someone abroad, to send someone into exile," attorney Fakhruddin Ibrahim said in the first hearing on a petition filed by the former leader and his brother. Attorney General Malik Mohammed Qayyum said the government accepted that it could not prevent the Sharifs from returning but suggested they could face legal action on Pakistani soil. "Let them come and the law will take its own course," he said. He asked the court to dismiss the petition and not to interfere in an arrangement that involved another state, Saudi Arabia.

At one point, government lawyer Ibrahim Satti drew indignation from the judges for suggesting that Sharif's rights were still limited by a state of emergency declared back in 1998. Qayyum hastily asked for an adjournment and came back with a denial that any emergency powers were in force. "The country is not under any emergency and all the citizens have full, fundamental rights available to them under the constitution."

LORDs Of War:

The News: A businesswoman in the county of Lexington, in the US state of South Carolina, pleaded guilty on August 16, 2007 to defrauding US taxpayers of $ 20.5 million in shipping costs for Pentagon supplies. According to a front-page story in The State newspaper, Charlene Corley, 46, pleaded guilty to a nine-year fraud that included charging the Pentagon $ 998,798.38 for shipping (wait for it) two 19 cent bolt washers.

At 19 cents each, the two bolt washers cost 38 cents (equivalent to less than Rs 23 at the current exchange rate). Yet the Pentagon paid C&D Distributors, a company co-owned by Corley and her twin si ster Darlene Wooten, nearly a million dollars for shipping the two bolt washers.

When Cheney was Defence Secretary in President George Bush Senior’s administration, he commissioned a study for the US Department of Defence by Brown and Root Services (now Kellogg, Brown and Root), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Houston-based oil services giant Halliburton Corporation.

As Turnipseed noted, “The study recommended that private firms like Halliburton take over logistical support programmes for US military operations around the world. Just two years after he was Secretary of Defence, Cheney stepped through the revolving door linking the Department of Defence with defence contractors and became CEO of Halliburton.”

Cheney remained CEO of Halliburton for five years (1995-2000). In the summer of 2000, he left Halliburton to become George W. Bush’s running mate in the US 2000 presidential campaign. On leaving Halliburton, Cheney received a severance package of $ 37 million from the company.

Halliburton was (surprise, surprise!) the principal beneficiary of Cheney’s privatisation efforts for the US military’s logistical support. As Turnipseed noted, “Cheney was paid $ 44 million for five year’s work (as Halliburton’s CEO) before he slipped back through the revolving door of war profiteering to become Vice-President of the United States.”

Before the Bush administration launched its invasion of Iraq, Halliburton was 19th on the US Army’s list of top contractors. It zoomed to number 1 in 2003, after the US occupied Iraq and the Bush administration awarded $ 12 billion worth of reconstruction and supply contracts in Iraq to Halliburton and its construction subsidiary Kellogg, Brown and Root (KBR) through a manifestly non-transparent no-bid process.

Turnipseed pointed out in his article, “(The US) media have always abetted war profiteering with their tradition of romanticising war because it sells papers, raises ratings, and makes profits for war-related businesses who advertise with them. Peace doesn’t make news for long.

A reader named C. Clark said, “Well done, but incomplete. Never forget that the two wars (Iraq and Afghanistan), combined with tax breaks combined with the lowering of both estate taxes as well as investments, the Bush family and heirs stand to make out just fine, thank you, from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bush pere (former President George Bush Senior), remember, has a lovely feather bed with The Carlyle Group (a multibillion-dollar private investment firm), which used to be focused on just the defence industry but has branched off into being a fully fledged hedge fund…you know, one of those shadowy private corporations that are anything but transparent. No one knows what they own or how much. But the Bush children and grandchildren stand to gain quite a nice inheritance. Can anyone say Paris Hilton? Well, she would probably feel quite inferior considering the size of the Bush swag bag.”

Arc of Freedom

DAWN NewsPaper: "India and Japan vowed on Wednesday to seal an economic partnership deal by December as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urged New Delhi to join Tokyo in the creation of an Asian arc of freedom. Abe laid out his vision for a new four-way “arc of freedom and prosperity” bringing together Australia, India, Japan and the United States."

Emergency likely to be declared in Pakistan

Al-Jazeerah: The decision followed a meeting between the president, top military leaders and other government officials on Wednesday.The possibility of emergency rule has been mooted for months.

Earlier on Wednesday, Musharraf pulled out of a peace meeting with tribal elders in Afghanistan. Sean McCormack, US state department spokesman, said regarding the pullout, "President Musharraf certainly wouldn't stay back in Islamabad if he didn't believe he had good and compelling reasons to stay back. Certainly we would understand that."

Three reasons were given for the move: the recent threat of US air strikes on the country, the recent kidnapping of Chinese workers and the ongoing heated debates within Pakistan's national assembly on the country's future.

Kamal Hyder, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Pakistan said the state of emergency would give the government greater control. "Civil liberties will be suspended such as the right of speech. It will be difficult for the people," Hyder reported.

Reuters: "ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Private Pakistani television channels reported on Wednesday that President Pervez Musharraf was preparing to declare a state of emergency imminently, but government spokesmen denied there were any such plans. State-run Pakistan Television quoted official sources as saying the reports were baseless and Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani denied to Reuters that a meeting had been held to discuss the imposition of an emergency, as rumors swept the country.

Political analysts and opposition leaders, however, have feared that Musharraf, who is going through his weakest period since coming to power in a 1999 coup, might resort to an emergency because of difficulties he faces in getting re-elected by the sitting assemblies, while still army chief. "

Times Of India: There is very hot news running around in News channels and part of discussion at every level amongst groups in Pakistan. Here are some excerpts from what the world's media have to say about this.

"ISLAMABAD: Speculation was rife here late on Wednesday that Emergency might be imposed in Pakistan at any time in the wake of the volatile situation in the country's north western parts bordering Afghanistan, infested by Taliban and Al-Qaida militants, after a senior minister said the condition was ripe for the measure.

"Pakistan Muslim League (QA) President Chaudhry Shujaat also reportedly told women parliamentarians of the party during a reception hosted by him at his residence that Emergency is likely to be declared, the channel said. Speaker National Assembly was also called at the reception in which he was consulted that in the case of Emergency how it could be approved by the National Assembly. Pakistan Tribune website said Musharraf was consulting his associates and legal experts about Emergency."

News Ki Duniya

Welcome to my blog where I will have reviews for all the news pertaining to the subcontinent(India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka). Look for updates soon.