The Pakistani leader, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, declared a state of emergency on Saturday night, shutting down all independent television stations and directly confronting Supreme Court justices who are deliberating on his possible re-election.
All members of the Supreme Court were required to sign a new provisional constitutional order mandating the state of emergency, but 6 of the 11 justices signed an order calling the state of emergency illegal, a court aide said.
The six, including the chief justice, gathered at the Supreme Court building, which was blocked by the police. Cell phone transmissions were also blocked around the building.
The police also blocked access to the Parliament and to the homes of Supreme Court justices. Cell phone transmission were also blocked at the justices’ homes.
General Musharraf was expected to make a statement on state-run television this evening.
Now here is a country that has nuclear weapons and an out of control leader. Are we gong to impose sanctions on them? Nope.
Pakistan is our friend, and we need them to continue our campaigns against Iraq and Afghanistan. So, just like China, they get a free pass.
Oh we will wave our hands and make all kinds of noise (one must keep appearances up), but we will not do anything substantial.
The real question is, will the Bush administration be watching this closely to make sure the Pakistanis are safe, or to learn how to implement martial law in this country.
I notice Musharref once again waited until his opposition (Bhutto this time) was out of the country before cracking down. IF Bush is watching closely, I'm hoping that Bhutto is right, that Pakistan won't stand for it & will take to the streets. I also wonder if Bush/Cheney are planning foreign trips anytime soon, heheh.
ReplyDeleteBush and the neocons already know how to implement martial law.
ReplyDeleteIf Naomi Wolfe knows, you can bet they do.