A more representative Pakistan would be a disappointment to Barack Obama.
The announcement of the restoration of the chief justice of the Pakistani Supreme Court is a victory for those who desire a more representative state in Pakistan. But it is a blow for Barack Obama, who appears intent on escalating American military involvement in Afghanistan.
The reason is simple: the U.S. needs a Pakistani state that is significantly unrepresentative of the Pakistani people, because most Pakistanis are opposed to America’s war in Afghanistan, and the U.S. cannot hope to succeed there without Pakistan’s support.
Pakistan is a vast and complicated country, and it is witnessing many confusing and contradictory developments. Among the most important of these appears to be a narrative of increasing representativeness: despite itself, the Pakistani state is being shaped by the will of its citizens as never before.
The power of this narrative has been breathtaking, particularly over the past year and a half. In November 2007, General Musharraf, an unpopular president, was pressured into giving up his uniform. Three months later the army stood back and refused to facilitate the rigging of national elections, allowing Musharraf’s party to suffer a crushing defeat. And in August 2008, Musharraf was removed from the presidency by an unprecedented alliance of the PPP — the Pakistan People’s party — and the PML(N). It was the first case in Pakistan’s history of a military strongman relinquishing power to democratically elected civilians without first being killed or plunging the nation into civil war.
http://newageislam.com/pakistan--state-at-a-crossroads---/islam-and-politics/d/1257
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