NEW YORK: Fears that President Zardari and his PPP-led coalition government in the center could be overthrown – possibly through an intervention or approval by the army – have grown as the two-and-a-half-years old civilian setup struggles to cope with the flood crisis. Hoarding, rising prices with the advent of Ramadan, ethnic killings in Karachi and Balochistan have added to the political government's woes.
Najam Sethi, editor of the weekly Friday Times, told The Guardian: "The powers that be, that is the military and bureaucratic establishment, are mulling the formation of a national government, with or without the PPP [the ruling Pakistan People's party]."
I know this is definitely being discussed. There is a perception in the army that you need good governance to get out of the economic crisis and there is no good governance," he added.
Sethi's comments cannot be dismissed easily given his proximity to the power players both in the political arena and in the establishment.
Other analysts say a military coup is unlikely because the army's priority is fighting the Taliban insurgency, and taking over during a disaster makes no sense, the influential British paper added.
Sethi said, "though only the courts could legally dismiss Zardari, but as the present government is one reliant on coalition partners, behind-the-scenes military pressure on those partners could bring it down," ANI reported.
These partners include MQM of Karachi and ANP of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, who will remain beneficiaries no matter what the change of guard comprises of.
The influential Texas-based STRATFOR - a strategic forecasting company popular among the intelligence community has observed that the rising social unrest down the line due to the flood crisis could create a political situation in which the Zardari government may be unable to complete its term, which ends in 2013.
"Should the civilian government prove incapable of managing the overall situation, will the military be forced to step in and take a more active role in governing the country? The government — especially President Asif Ali Zardari, who is also the de facto chief of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party — is, rightly or wrongly, extremely unpopular. Zardari’s decision to take a week-long trip to Europe while the floods were hitting the country has only worsened the situation. Rising social unrest down the line could create a political situation in which the government may be unable to complete its term, which ends in 2013.
"These are obviously worst-case scenarios, but ones that cannot be dismissed. Even if the floods had not happened, the security, economic, and socio-political circumstances in Pakistan demanded close observation. The floods have increased this importance, especially since U.S. President Barack Obama’s entire war strategy involves stabilizing Pakistan."
Do all the above observations by Sethi and Stratfor point to A) a military take-over or B) a national government or C) a new coalition government?
The military is of course knee-deep in security issues. Only a national government or a new popular political government (through the parliament) would suit the stake-holders who are aplenty just as they were in 1977.
President Asif Ali Zardari may already have thrown in the towel with his irrational - almost incoherent acts. Will his (now) one-day visit to Russia be the last foreign trip he undertakes? Only a Mamoo or the coffee-cup reader can predict that. They however came close to predicting in May (on Meray Mutabiq) that they see changes beyond July.
Allah Khair Karey!
Showing posts with label ANP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ANP. Show all posts
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Karachi: Targeted killings, bloodbath and beyond..
NEW YORK, USA: Pakistan’s financial capital which is also its southernmost port city – Karachi – with a massive population of almost 20 million, has witnessed a sudden spike in violence, spate of targeted killings, arson, loot, during the last 24 hours particularly. The latest downward spiral in the law and order in the city is unprecedented – almost orchestrated – according to some Karachi observers.
MQM – which is the political party that controls the nerve of the metropolis was rattled by the targeted killing of one of its top loyalists – MPA Raza Haider – a staunch worker for the last 26 years, who belonged to the Shia community. Being a MQM leader, an Urdu-speaking, and a Shia is a mix bag of bad lucks in violent Karachi. Anti-MQM forces are aplenty, in a city whose peace means peace in Pakistan – but where the battle for its turf control has seen more than 800 deaths since January, according to published reports. Just in July, if the present count is updated, it will exceed 100.
Since 6pm Monday evening when Raza Haider and his body guard were gunned down in Nazimabad, more than 50 people have been body-bagged, with dozens of vehicles, push-carts, and khokas (roadside restaurants) set ablaze – reminiscent of what happened in December 2007 (Bhutto murder)and in December 2009 (attack on Shia procession).
Each of these gory incident was hijacked by those whose objectives were beyond protests and demonstrations. So it is this time it seems.
The mob has torched dozens of vehicles, petrol pumps and shops as situation remained tense and normal life has stood still in the metropolis.
Several petrol pumps were also set on fire and the roads wear a deserted look. Aerial firing was also reported across the city.
In Liaquatabad, Karachi, miscreants set on fire a Geo News staff van. Several vehicles were also set on fire in several cities of interior Sindh.
A complete strike is being observed in Hyderabad and Sukkur, over the killing of the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) MPA. Karachi is already payyah jammed (wheel jam strike).
All educational institutions in the metropolis remained closed today and examinations have been postponed.
The government has blamed the Taliban and the banned militant group Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) for the killing of the lawmaker. Twenty people have been arrested in connection with the violence, federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the Senate on Tuesday.
Some analysts said the violence could ultimately affect the economy. Karachi is home to the country’s main port, the central bank and the stock exchange, which has so far seen thin trade and closed an hour early today because of the violence.
“This obviously raises concern and anxiety, and if these things continue, Pakistan’s economy gets undermined,” said Hasan-Askari Rizvi, a political and security analyst, to a news agency.
“It is a pathetic situation and exposes the helplessness of the government to perform its basic duty towards its citizens,” said Rizvi.
Police and officials said that they also found evidence suggesting that militants had planned a suicide attack during Haider’s funeral, scheduled for later on Tuesday.
“On the basis of evidence available at the moment, it (the killing of Haider) was carried out by the Tehrik-e-Taliban and Sipah-e-Sahaba,” Malik told reporters in Islamabad.
The MQM, a coalition partner in the federal as well as the provincial Sindh government, renewed calls for a crackdown on militants after the killing of its lawmaker.
“For the past 3 to 4 years we have been pointing out and giving evidence about the presence of Taliban and extremists in Karachi,” said Wasay Jalil, a spokesman for the MQM.
“We were ridiculed at that time. But now everyone is admitting that the Taliban and the SSP are here.”
GANGS, MAFIAS
On Tuesday, a day after the killing, Karachi was tense as police and paramilitary troops patrolled deserted streets.
Hyderabad, the second largest city of the province, was also largely deserted as were other towns after the MQM called for three days of mourning.
“This could be the last nail in the coffin and could be disastrous for the stock market because as it is, volume has been below average and this may lead to foreign investors exiting the market,” said Sajid Bhanji, a director at brokerage Arif Habib Ltd, of Haider’s killing and the ensuring violence.
Karachi has a long history of ethnic, religious and sectarian violence. It was a main target of al Qaeda-linked militants after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, when Pakistan joined the US-led campaign against militancy, and foreigners were attacked in the city several times.
“All political forces in Karachi have their armed groups,” Rizvi said. “And then there are a lot of other groups – criminal, sectarian, drug mafia.”
Including last night’s death toll, officials say at least 193 people have been killed in targeted attacks since the start of the year, although analysts and political parties say the number is likely much higher.
Mohajirs, the descendants of Urdu-speakers who migrated from India after the creation of Pakistan in 1947, are the biggest community and dominate the city’s administration through the MQM.
It is also home to the largest concentration of ethnic Pashtuns outside the northwest.
Government officials also say criminals, including drug lords competing for turf in the city’s teeming neighborhoods, take advantage of the tension, complicating the police’s difficulties. So does the land mafia who have influence on all parties.
What lies beyond Karachi’s targeted killings and bloodbath is almost impossible to predict at the moment. “Whether it will lead to limited army control of the city or a civil-military administration is difficult to predict,” said one observer. Meanwhile both sectarian and ethnic forces appear to have made Pakistan’s largest city – its financial hub – their bed, bath and beyond!
MQM – which is the political party that controls the nerve of the metropolis was rattled by the targeted killing of one of its top loyalists – MPA Raza Haider – a staunch worker for the last 26 years, who belonged to the Shia community. Being a MQM leader, an Urdu-speaking, and a Shia is a mix bag of bad lucks in violent Karachi. Anti-MQM forces are aplenty, in a city whose peace means peace in Pakistan – but where the battle for its turf control has seen more than 800 deaths since January, according to published reports. Just in July, if the present count is updated, it will exceed 100.
Since 6pm Monday evening when Raza Haider and his body guard were gunned down in Nazimabad, more than 50 people have been body-bagged, with dozens of vehicles, push-carts, and khokas (roadside restaurants) set ablaze – reminiscent of what happened in December 2007 (Bhutto murder)and in December 2009 (attack on Shia procession).
Each of these gory incident was hijacked by those whose objectives were beyond protests and demonstrations. So it is this time it seems.
The mob has torched dozens of vehicles, petrol pumps and shops as situation remained tense and normal life has stood still in the metropolis.
Several petrol pumps were also set on fire and the roads wear a deserted look. Aerial firing was also reported across the city.
In Liaquatabad, Karachi, miscreants set on fire a Geo News staff van. Several vehicles were also set on fire in several cities of interior Sindh.
A complete strike is being observed in Hyderabad and Sukkur, over the killing of the Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) MPA. Karachi is already payyah jammed (wheel jam strike).
All educational institutions in the metropolis remained closed today and examinations have been postponed.
The government has blamed the Taliban and the banned militant group Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) for the killing of the lawmaker. Twenty people have been arrested in connection with the violence, federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the Senate on Tuesday.
Some analysts said the violence could ultimately affect the economy. Karachi is home to the country’s main port, the central bank and the stock exchange, which has so far seen thin trade and closed an hour early today because of the violence.
“This obviously raises concern and anxiety, and if these things continue, Pakistan’s economy gets undermined,” said Hasan-Askari Rizvi, a political and security analyst, to a news agency.
“It is a pathetic situation and exposes the helplessness of the government to perform its basic duty towards its citizens,” said Rizvi.
Police and officials said that they also found evidence suggesting that militants had planned a suicide attack during Haider’s funeral, scheduled for later on Tuesday.
“On the basis of evidence available at the moment, it (the killing of Haider) was carried out by the Tehrik-e-Taliban and Sipah-e-Sahaba,” Malik told reporters in Islamabad.
The MQM, a coalition partner in the federal as well as the provincial Sindh government, renewed calls for a crackdown on militants after the killing of its lawmaker.
“For the past 3 to 4 years we have been pointing out and giving evidence about the presence of Taliban and extremists in Karachi,” said Wasay Jalil, a spokesman for the MQM.
“We were ridiculed at that time. But now everyone is admitting that the Taliban and the SSP are here.”
GANGS, MAFIAS
On Tuesday, a day after the killing, Karachi was tense as police and paramilitary troops patrolled deserted streets.
Hyderabad, the second largest city of the province, was also largely deserted as were other towns after the MQM called for three days of mourning.
“This could be the last nail in the coffin and could be disastrous for the stock market because as it is, volume has been below average and this may lead to foreign investors exiting the market,” said Sajid Bhanji, a director at brokerage Arif Habib Ltd, of Haider’s killing and the ensuring violence.
Karachi has a long history of ethnic, religious and sectarian violence. It was a main target of al Qaeda-linked militants after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, when Pakistan joined the US-led campaign against militancy, and foreigners were attacked in the city several times.
“All political forces in Karachi have their armed groups,” Rizvi said. “And then there are a lot of other groups – criminal, sectarian, drug mafia.”
Including last night’s death toll, officials say at least 193 people have been killed in targeted attacks since the start of the year, although analysts and political parties say the number is likely much higher.
Mohajirs, the descendants of Urdu-speakers who migrated from India after the creation of Pakistan in 1947, are the biggest community and dominate the city’s administration through the MQM.
It is also home to the largest concentration of ethnic Pashtuns outside the northwest.
Government officials also say criminals, including drug lords competing for turf in the city’s teeming neighborhoods, take advantage of the tension, complicating the police’s difficulties. So does the land mafia who have influence on all parties.
What lies beyond Karachi’s targeted killings and bloodbath is almost impossible to predict at the moment. “Whether it will lead to limited army control of the city or a civil-military administration is difficult to predict,” said one observer. Meanwhile both sectarian and ethnic forces appear to have made Pakistan’s largest city – its financial hub – their bed, bath and beyond!
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