Bronco_Beerslug
08-23-2007, 12:59 PM
Seems as if there is enough dissent in that country that U.S. backed Musharraf may be in trouble.
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Pakistani court rules exiled Sharif can return (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070823/ts_nm/pakistan_sharif_dc_5)
By Kamran Haider
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif can return home after seven years in exile in a decision he hailed as a victory against dictatorship.
Sharif, a two-time prime minister overthrown by army chief General Pervez Musharraf in a 1999 coup, has vowed to oppose a bid by President Musharraf for another term in office.
"This is a victory for democratic struggle. Dictatorship has lost, democracy has won and the constitution of Pakistan has won," he told reporters in London.
"It is the beginning of the end of Musharraf."
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20070823/2007_08_23t112327_450x304_us_pakistan_sharif.jpg?x =380&y=256&sig=n8OyDORiURRV_Y_LQNBH2g--
Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif smiles during an interview with Reuters in London, August 23, 2007. (Luke MacGregor/Reuters)
The timing of a return by Sharif could hardly be more awkward for Musharraf, who is expected to seek re-election from the national and provincial assemblies between mid-September and mid-October and hold parliamentary elections within months.
After the 1999 coup, Musharraf co-opted the rump of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (PML) to form his own political base, and analysts say that could splinter if Sharif were to return.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry told the court in Islamabad Sharif and his brother, Shahbaz, who is also a politician and was exiled with his brother in 2000, had an "inalienable right" to come back and stay in Pakistan.
The government should not obstruct their return, he said. Both brothers are in London.
Hundreds of jubilant Sharif supporters chanted "go Musharraf, go!" outside the court after the ruling.
The government said in comment carried by the state news agency that the verdict would be respected.
"We will prove to the world that we abide by the law and constitution and believe in tolerance and fairness," an unidentified government spokesman told the news agency.
But such talk is unlikely to completely allay fears that Musharraf might impose a state of emergency, even though he has repeatedly ruled that out and vowed to abide by the constitution.
Musharraf has seen his popularity slump since he tried to dismiss Chief Justice Chaudhry in March.
The United States and other Western allies are likely to watch developments closely in a nuclear-armed country seen as vital to efforts to end terrorism and bring peace to Afghanistan.
CONT.
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Pakistani court rules exiled Sharif can return (http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070823/ts_nm/pakistan_sharif_dc_5)
By Kamran Haider
ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif can return home after seven years in exile in a decision he hailed as a victory against dictatorship.
Sharif, a two-time prime minister overthrown by army chief General Pervez Musharraf in a 1999 coup, has vowed to oppose a bid by President Musharraf for another term in office.
"This is a victory for democratic struggle. Dictatorship has lost, democracy has won and the constitution of Pakistan has won," he told reporters in London.
"It is the beginning of the end of Musharraf."
http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/nm/20070823/2007_08_23t112327_450x304_us_pakistan_sharif.jpg?x =380&y=256&sig=n8OyDORiURRV_Y_LQNBH2g--
Former Prime Minister of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif smiles during an interview with Reuters in London, August 23, 2007. (Luke MacGregor/Reuters)
The timing of a return by Sharif could hardly be more awkward for Musharraf, who is expected to seek re-election from the national and provincial assemblies between mid-September and mid-October and hold parliamentary elections within months.
After the 1999 coup, Musharraf co-opted the rump of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League (PML) to form his own political base, and analysts say that could splinter if Sharif were to return.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry told the court in Islamabad Sharif and his brother, Shahbaz, who is also a politician and was exiled with his brother in 2000, had an "inalienable right" to come back and stay in Pakistan.
The government should not obstruct their return, he said. Both brothers are in London.
Hundreds of jubilant Sharif supporters chanted "go Musharraf, go!" outside the court after the ruling.
The government said in comment carried by the state news agency that the verdict would be respected.
"We will prove to the world that we abide by the law and constitution and believe in tolerance and fairness," an unidentified government spokesman told the news agency.
But such talk is unlikely to completely allay fears that Musharraf might impose a state of emergency, even though he has repeatedly ruled that out and vowed to abide by the constitution.
Musharraf has seen his popularity slump since he tried to dismiss Chief Justice Chaudhry in March.
The United States and other Western allies are likely to watch developments closely in a nuclear-armed country seen as vital to efforts to end terrorism and bring peace to Afghanistan.
CONT.