February 15th, 2008 by Kent

Matt Kondracke of Roll Call stresses the stresses the importance of Pakistan’s parliamentary elections on Monday, which will determine if the U.S. ally will move towards democracy or authoritarianism. He hopes that the United States will exert pressure on the state to ensure its liberalization. “Bush has delivered great speeches about fostering democracy in the Islamic world. Now, he has to deliver.”Paul Wiseman of USA Today suggests that this exercise of democracy could result in the weakening of President Pervez Musharraf’s hold on the country. An abrupt removal of Musharraf from office could damage the United States’ strategic position in the region. Thus, Wiseman reports that the United States stands to lose as well in the election.

In The Los Angeles Times, Laura King examines the military’s role in the upcoming elections. Army chief of staff General Ashfaq Kayani has pledged not to intervene in the political process, but King says that a chaotic aftermath may force the military to act. Musharraf has warned that he will not allow wild protests in response to the election results.

Posted in Elections, Pakistan |