If Pakistan did not have General Musharraf as its president, then I would suggest that it is on the verge of yet another military coup, which would throw out the elected government. But, Musharraf is there as its president, and his handpicked man is the military chief. So, I am sure he does not want to reinforce his reputation as some power-crazy dictator. Maybe things will get so bad that Pakistanis will launch protests to bring back dictatorship?
Here is what an opinion in The Hindu says (it does not list the 35% stock market dive in two months, and the stone-throwing riots as a result!):
Pakistan’s nearly four-month-old government is struggling hard to dispel the impression that it is floundering, but it’s a losing battle so far. There is a crisis on almost every front — runaway prices, the rupee in free fall, food shortages, power outages, the tightening grip of the Taliban in the northwest, panic that the United States is about to invade the country, and a shadow on India-Pakistan relations following the Indian Embassy blast in Kabul.
And, if Pakistan descends into chaos? This is the scenario that is likely to unfold. Not pretty!
No comments:
Post a Comment