pass the roti on the left hand side

A state of emergency has been declared in Pakistan, with General Musharraf finally wearing his true hat, that of a Martial Law Administrator. This declaration puts the democracy movement back a long way.

But what kind of democracy movement is it anyway? The national opposition to Musharraf and military control is in fact opposition to the Pakistani Army’s actions against militants in the Northern Areas, which has led to the destruction of villages and thousands of civilian casualties, retaliation against government and military installations: a civil war by any other name. The opposition to these actions comes in two forms: political and civil society calls for the restoration of democracy and attacks on government installations.

It goes almost without saying that the conflict spreading through the Northern Areas is pushed ahead by the United States’ expectations of Pakistan’s role in the War on Terror. These expectations are not shared by most Pakistanis. Therein lies the problem.