Musharraf ignites firestorm in Pakistan with deportation

As President Bush was addressing the American people Thursday night on the conflict in Iraq and the need for the United States to maintain a military presence for the foreseeable future, his leading ally in the war on global terrorism, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, was facing a serious threat to his leadership.

Just days after he ordered the deportation of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had flown back to Pakistan after living in exile in London for the eight years, a suicide bomber blew himself up in an army mess hall in a military facility 60 miles south of the capital Islamabad. At least 15 soldiers were killed.

At the same time, Pakistan’s political opposition launched a legal challenge to the deportation, which observers viewed as a broader campaign aimed at toppling Musharraf, who also is head of the military.

And, another suicide bomber killed at least 18 people in a village in Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province where Pakistani soldiers have been conducting a campaign against Islamic militants. Government officials contend that the militants are tied to the Taliban and Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida terrorist organization. Bin Laden is said to be hiding in caves in the mountain region between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

All this does not bode well for the political future of a country that possesses nuclear weapons.

Walking a fine line

The Bush administration is walking a fine line. While it cannot be seen as endorsing Musharraf’s dictatorial actions, it also cannot condemn the man who has had three attempts on his life and is spurned by many because of his support of the United States in the war against terrorism.

The expulsion of former Prime Minister Sharif and the arrest of 5,000 lower-level opposition activists only served to bolster the claims of many Pakistanis that Musharraf is no longer committed to democracy and will do whatever he can to silence his opponents and even the courts.

His ill-fated attack on the chief justice of the Pakistan Supreme Court has backfired. Lawyers around the country are boycotting the courts because of Musharraf’s interference. The president wants to be able to set aside the law that prevents him from seeking another term in office and from maintaining his control of the military. The supreme court has been unwilling to give him what he wants.

The preoccupation of the Bush administration with the war in Iraq means that the situation in Pakistan could explode at any time. This week’s meeting in Islamabad between Musharraf and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte did little to appease members of the opposition and even common Pakistanis.

Even the announcement that the U.S. had committed $750 million for the development of the country’s tribal regions over the next five years did not quell the violence or the criticism of the government.

While the Bush administration has tried to steer clear of getting directly involved in the country’s internal politics, it needs to develop a strategy for ensuring that the nation does not fall into the wrong hands.