Bloodthirsty Liberal

Uh-oh…

Faced with increasing violence and unrest, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Saturday declared a state of emergency, government sources told CNN.

The nation’s constitution has been suspended, government sources said, and martial law has been declared.

Up to this point, and considering the violence, one can understand Musharraf’s motivation.

However:

In Islamabad, troops entered the Supreme Court and were surrounding the judges’ homes, according to CNN’s Syed Mohsin Naqvi.

The Supreme Court has declared the state of emergency illegal, Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry told CNN. He said he and an eight-member panel of judges decided the declaration was unconstitutional, and that Musharraf has no power to make it.

Earlier, private networks had reported the declaration was imminent as top officials huddled at the presidency. Shortly after that report, most media channels went off the air in an apparent blackout, although some flickered off and on.

The declaration could potentially delay approaching parliamentary elections, according to CNN’s Nic Robertson. It also could provide Musharraf with a reason to continue serving as the nation’s military chief, although he has pledged to step down from that post.

I wasn’t aware that Supreme Court justices, television executives, and parliamentary candidates were behind the latest violence.

Or she:

The declaration follows the Thursday departure of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who went to Dubai to visit family. She returned to Pakistan last month after several years in exile.

A senior party leader with Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party had advised her not to leave the country because of the current political situation. She initially planned to leave Wednesday.

In spite of my discomfort with this news, I have to confess that I don’t know which is worse: Pakistan under martial law, or Pakistan not under martial law.

PS: Allah calls it a coup, which I’m not sure is technically accurate, as Musharraf already holds power, but it’s close enough for (overthrown) government work.

I thought…Musharraf would have to keep his nose clean from now on. Instead he’s doubled down. And since he’s relying entirely now on the military for his authority, he’ll have to address that disaffection by scaling back the campaign in the tribal areas. Which means we might as well finally turn off the tap of that military funding that’s brought us jack squat for the past 4-5 years.

Again, not wrong—but Pakistan is torn at least three ways, between Islamists, military hardliners, and democracy advocates. Some people are more than one of the above, but no one is all three. On any given day, it’s hard to know who’s ahead.