Musharraf steps down as army chief
Under mounting pressure from political opponents, a tearful President Pervez Musharraf stepped down this week as head of Pakistan
Under mounting pressure from political opponents, a tearful President Pervez Musharraf stepped down this week as head of Pakistan’s army, a conciliatory move he hopes will keep him in power. An emotional Musharraf formally passed control of the military to his handpicked successor, pro-Western Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, at a ceremony in which he sniffled and called assembled troops “the saviors of Pakistan.” Afterward, the embattled leader’s aides told reporters that he would lift the state of emergency he declared three weeks ago “in the next few days.”
But Musharraf’s concessions won’t head off strong challenges to his leadership from former Prime Ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif. Sharif, whom Musharraf ousted in a 1999 military coup, defiantly returned from exile this week and said he would drive his rival from office. “I am looking to rid my country from the menace of dictatorship,” Sharif told cheering supporters. He and Bhutto declared themselves candidates in the parliamentary elections scheduled for January.
Sorry, but it’s too late for Musharraf, said The New York Times in an editorial. With his “erratic and authoritarian whims,” he’s made himself the enemy of democracy, and the Bush administration should stop acting as if he’s vital to U.S. interests. He’s not. Rather than shoring up Musharraf, President Bush should openly support Bhutto and Sharif as they work to “build a broad civilian democratic front.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
I have some bad news, said Stanley Kurtz in National Review Online. “Pakistan is not a democracy” and never has been. In all of Pakistan’s history, “there has never been a peaceful transfer of power between two elected governments,” and the nation has yet to have a leader any less corrupt or authoritarian than Gen. Musharraf. That includes Sharif, a hard-line Islamist who is only now presenting himself as “the fulfillment of the West’s democratic dreams” so that we’ll dump Musharraf and help him seize power. “Shame on us” if we fall for it.
Let’s not overestimate our influence here, said Dan Simpson in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Having had a ringside seat to our recent adventures in Afghanistan and Iraq, it’s doubtful that Pakistanis are waiting for America to step in and decide what kind of government they should have. All we can do is tell them we’d prefer the January elections “to be as free and fair as possible” and then let them sort it all out. Ultimately, it’s the Pakistanis who “must fix Pakistan.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
'Horror stories of women having to carry nonviable fetuses'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Haiti interim council, prime minister sworn in
Speed Read Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigns amid surging gang violence
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - April 26, 2024
Cartoons Friday's cartoons - teleprompter troubles, presidential immunity, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published