Mustafa Qadri

Faced with terrorism, a flagging economy and a raft of potential lawsuits, how long can Pakistan’s president survive?

Mustafa Qadri
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 27 January 2010 15.10 GMT

With his chequered past and unlikely rise to the top, it is understandable that Asif Ali Zardari has faced constant calls to resign ever since becoming president of Pakistan two years ago. The central focus of the grievances has been Pakistan’s supreme court where a raft of charges have been submitted against Zardari and most of the senior leaders of the ruling Pakistan Peoples party by a motley mix of political parties, private citizens, and the court itself.

But in the glasshouse that is Pakistani politics the risk is that perceptions of judicial independence will be shattered by all the stone throwing. To understand the fracas it is necessary to consider recent history. After public pressure forced the Zardari government to reinstate Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, there was widespread celebration that at last Pakistan had found one institution that was above the cronyism that has plagued political life here.

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Now that an amnesty providing immunity to thousands has expired, Pakistan’s supreme court has the chance to showcase its merits

· Mustafa Qadri
· guardian.co.uk, Saturday 5 December 2009 18.00 GMT

It may be more a matter of wits than weapons, but the battle for control of Pakistan’s executive branch of government is as significant for the country as the war against the Taliban. Resolving this latest crisis, the fiercest tussle over the stewardship of the country since Pervez Musharraf was ousted from the presidency in August 2008, will determine the future of Pakistan’s parliamentary democracy for many years to come.

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Public Unites Against Taliban in Pakistan

Mustafa Qadri | 16 Jul 2009

KARACHI, Pakistan — There has been a perceptible shift in the battle against militancy in Pakistan. The massive army operations that recently concluded in the Swat valley, the largest ever conducted by Pakistan against the Taliban, are but one facet of it. For the first time, the government is also winning the propaganda war.

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The following report for The Guardian, published today, looks at the recent meetings between the Presidents of the United States, Afghanistan and Pakistan in Washington D.C. and the risks to civilians caught up in the war with the Taliban:

‘Collateral damage’ in AfPak hurts the US too

The bombardment of civilians in Afghanistan undermines the security credentials of western forces in the region

o Mustafa Qadri
o guardian.co.uk, Friday 8 May 2009 16.30 BST

The timing may have been a disaster for Washington, but for villagers in Afghanistan’s south it was far worse. A day after a US bombing killed up to 120 civilians in Afghanistan’s southern Farah province, President Obama asked the visiting presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan, Hamid Karzai and Asif Ali Zardari, to step up their attacks on Taliban and al-Qaida militants.

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My analysis of the grassroots democracy movement that led to the reinstatement of Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry as Chief Justice of Pakistan’s Supreme Court was published in the Los Angeles Times today:

Pakistan’s clear message to the West

It’s not all fanaticism and violence. A grass-roots democratic movement is making strides.

By Mustafa Qadri

March 21, 2009

Writing From Islamabad, Pakistan — Politics is never dull in Pakistan. This week, it was inspirational too.

On Monday, I watched people flock to the home of Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry. A tense standoff between the government and a coalition of opposition groups over Chaudhry’s reinstatement as chief justice of Pakistan’s Supreme Court had finally been resolved. After two years of government-enforced “retirement,” Chaudhry would return to the bench…

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Pakistan’s prime minister said in an interview he would seek to tip the balance of power back toward parliament and away from embattled President Asif Ali Zardari, a move that could help restore democratic checks and balances in the turbulent nation and possibly help bring the opposition into the ruling coalition.

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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told Pakistani leaders that some US lawmakers “may not feel inclined” to support aid to Islamabad if political chaos continues, a top US official said on Monday.
But the official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, said Clinton presented the issue as a reality rather than a threat in her [...]

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Pakistan’s prime minister said in an interview he would seek to tip the balance of power back toward parliament and away from embattled President Asif Ali Zardari, a move that could help restore democratic checks and balances in the turbulent nation and possibly help bring the opposition into the ruling coalition.

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My analysis of the reinstatment of Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry as Pakistan’s Chief Justice was published in Crikey.com.au today:

Democracy revitalised by Pakistan’s Chief Justice

By demonstrating the importance of functioning and accountable institutions, Pakistan’s lawyers may well have paved the road upon which the long road from its present hell may be charted, writes Mustafa Qadri.

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Before Gilani could say anything, an uneasy Zardari abruptly told Sherry: “OK, please start talking, as you have five minutes.” To the surprise of both of them, all of a sudden, Sherry Rehman dropped a bombshell and said: “I am resigning from my ministry.” Even before Sherry could explain the reasons behind her dramatic decision, [...]

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Here is my report for NewMatilda.com from the lawn of the Chief Justice’s residence in Islamabad the day of his reinstatement.

Long March ends in triumph

Instead of violent confrontation there was jubilation in Islamabad yesterday as the Government bowed to protestors’ demands and reinstated the sacked Chief Justice. Mustafa Qadri reports

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My report for The Guardian from Islamabad the day of the Chief Justice’s reinstatement has just been published here:

Democracy has been revitalised by Pakistan’s Chief Justice

President Zardari’s decision to reinstate Chief Justice Chaudhry has stabilised the country – and saved his political career

Mustafa Qadri

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Here’s a list of breaking developments on the lawyers’ Long March to Islamabd (to restore the deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry):
Allegations of torture of lawyers arrested by Police, from Imran Schah in Islamabad.
With the US and UK’s blessing, have Prime Minister Gilani and Army Chief Kayani given President Zardari an ultimatum to reach a [...]

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My report for NewMatilda.com from the start of the lawyers’ Long March in Karachi for NewMatilda.com was published today:

The Long March Begins

Protestors in Pakistan’s lawyers’ movement set out yesterday on their long march to the capital. Mustafa Qadri reports from Karachi on what has become a street-level vote of no-confidence in the Government

From across the country they took to the streets, re-enacting scenes from the darkest days of the Musharraf regime over a year earlier.

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Mustafa Qadri: History Repeats Itself In Pakistan

Guardian: Comment Is Free

By invoking a Raj-era law against public protest, the government demonstrates its inability to handle the country’s real problems…

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The crackdown began late Tuesday night, with the government invoking Section 144 of the 1860 Penal Code, a law from the British colonial era that forbids public gatherings of four or more people.

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Pakistan has arrested hundreds of opposition political activists in an overnight sweep ahead of a planned protest rally, as a looming political showdown presents the most serious challenge yet to the year-old government.

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Mustafa Qadri: Long March To Nowhere

As bickering politicians bring paralysis to Pakistan, will Washington give the army its backing?

It seems with each new week a fresh crisis is thrust upon the people of Pakistan. This year, in a little over two months, the nation has faced more traumas than most countries face in a generation. Last month authorities in the north-western Swat valley reached a peace deal with a religious group closely aligned to the Taliban. This week another peace deal was signed directly with the Taliban in the neighbouring Bajaur tribal agency after a series of successful if devastating operations by the Pakistani army.

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Will Pakistan’s Army Chief step into the political fray the country’s civilian leadership is currently embroiled in? That’s the question I ask in my latest piece for newmatilda.com:

A New Dictator For Pakistan?

Speculation is mounting in Islamabad that a military coup is on the cards, writes Mustafa Qadri. And Pakistan’s most powerful ally doesn’t seem to mind…

Pakistan is facing its greatest political crisis since the resignation of Pervez Musharraf as president last year.

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Pakistan needs a modern day “Marshall Plan” to help it fight Taliban militants through economic development, President Asif Ali Zardari said, referring to the U.S. aid plan for Europe after World War II.

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Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari has been accused of launching a purge of his late wife Benazir Bhutto’s closest supporters within his ruling Pakistan People’s Party.

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Across much of the North-West Frontier Province—around a fifth of Pakistan—women have now been forced to wear the burqa, music has been silenced, barbershops are forbidden to shave beards, and over 140 girls’ schools have been blown up or burned down. In the provincial capital of Peshawar, a significant proportion of the city’s elite, along [...]

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Hillary Clinton, on her first day as the secretary of state, telephoned President Asif Ali Zardari and told him that the Obama administration was appointing a special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

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The following article, on tensions between India and Pakistan following the November attacks on Mumbai, was published in the Guardian Comment is Free website today:

Are India and Pakistan heading for war?

Pressure is mounting on politicians in both countries to take drastic action in the wake of recent terrorist attacks

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Here are some common assumptions about Pakistan and its citizens that I have come across in the Indian media…

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Afghanistan and Pakistan Take Centre Stage
Called ‘the central front’ by Barack Obama, Pakistan and Afghanistan have endured another year of turmoil, writes Mustafa Qadri.
My latest piece for The Diplomat magazine is a review of the political and security situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan this year. It is available on subscription from their website here.

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The following article, a year in review of the countries I’ve covered in 2008, was published in NewMatilda.com today:

Silver Linings in Short Supply

From the Holy Land to South Asia, violence remained a constant in 2008, reports Mustafa Qadri. Will elections in Palestine and Israel – and the inauguration of Obama – promote dialogue or further violence?

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“And if we get to the stage where there is tangible proof, then I assure you that our democracy will take the action laid down in our law, in our constitution”.

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The government is working on a new model of economic development, which envisaged that the tribal people will be made shareholders in various development projects with a view to weaning the unemployed youth away from militancy.

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The following piece, on Pakistan’s deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, was published on ABC Unleashed today:

Lone Chief still waiting for justice

It was cold and windy in New York two Mondays ago when Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan’s Supreme Court, accepted his honorary membership of the New York City Bar Association. It was certainly a departure from the hot, humid pro-democracy rallies where Chaudhry has been demanding an independent judiciary in Pakistan ever since being removed from the bench in November last year.

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