Dawn of a New Democratic Era in Pakistan
By Anila Ali
Irvine, CA
Before his return to Pakistan, ex-President Musharraf had appeared on American TV networks, assumptive of a hero’s welcome. Obviously, he overestimated his support and is now placed under house arrest in Pakistan with an uncertain future. During his rule of Pakistan, he had vowed to keep Benazir and Nawaz out of power. In 1999, he overthrew Nawaz Sharif and tragically, Benazir was assassinated in 2008 and her husband took power in 2008, coercing Musharraf into self-exile.
Nawaz Sharif has now established himself as the most experienced politician in Pakistan. He has shown maturity in decision-making and gained the confidence of the majority of Pakistanis who turned out in huge numbers to vote for PML (Nawaz). This political mandate is significant because of the huge turnout of voters. It is believed that 60% of voters cast their ballots; that is a milestone achievement for Pakistan.
Imran Khan, the cricketer turned politician, gained momentum towards the end, and got out the urban middle-class voters in droves to vote, building expectations of a landslide victory for his party, PTI. Although he brought masses of urban voters, he failed to win enough seats in the National Assembly to form government, much to the disappointment of his supporters, who are now crying fraud and observing sit-in protests. Impartial observers suggest that PML N’s landslide victory in Punjab, the country’s largest province, didn’t hold back a sweep for PTI.
Now that Nawaz has the mandate of the majority, the trust and hope bestowed in him must be sanctified by politics of inclusion. That means forming alliances with other main political players to combat what plagues the nation most - terrorism. Nawaz has overtly criticized the shameless attacks by Pakistani Taliban and Nawaz has also not ruled out dialogue with Taliban to resolve the issue of terrorism. However, much will depend on his relationship with the Pakistani military and his ability to achieve peace with the Taliban without giving in to their preposterous demands.
Pakistan is now on par with any other democracy in the world. In the words of the President of the United States: “My administration looks forward to continuing our cooperation with the Pakistani government that emerges from this election as equal partners in supporting a more stable, secure, and prosperous future for the people of Pakistan.” Moreover, the President expressed his desire to meet with Nawaz soon: “America respects the mandate you have been given,” said Obama. “I have heard great things about you……and I wish that we get to meet soon,” he said.
This is a new era of democracy in Pakistan and could well be a turning point. However, the real success from these elections belongs to the Pakistanis. The defiance and resilience of Pakistanis who turned out in huge numbers to choose their leaders, despite threats and bombings, is to be commended. Whether there was fraud or not, is for the Election Commission to decide but one fact is evident - Pakistan is an established democracy and Pakistanis have spoken.
Back to Pakistanlink Homepage
