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| Last gasp? Policemen beat demonstrating lawyers in Lahore on Monday. The number of arrests after Saturday's declaration of
a state of emergency has exceeded 1,000. Mohsin Raza/Reuters |
Key leaders stay silent in Pakistan
Amid protests, Bhutto walks a fine line as she weighs response.
from the November 6, 2007 edition
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For the middle class, which had been increasingly influencing the nation's political conversation before the emergency order blacked out all independent media, this is a crucial moment for Bhutto.
"This is Benazir's moment to shine," says Asha Amirali, a political activist with the People's Rights Movement of Pakistan, an Islamabad-based social justice advocacy group. "But if she decides to support Musharraf," she will be discredited.
Whether it would influence the legions of less-educated rural voters who make up the backbone of her support and back her with almost feudal devotion is a key question. Bhutto's father, one of Pakistan's most revered historical figures, was executed by a military dictator. Entering into an allegiance with the head of the military could significantly damage Bhutto's credibility, even among her loyal supporters.
Should Bhutto take it to the streets?
What is more certain is that Bhutto and all of Pakistan's political leaders could have a substantial impact if they threw their weight behind the lawyers and took their case to the streets, experts say.
Since March, the lawyers' community has become the nucleus of the larger movement against Musharraf. Through their efforts, Pakistan's judiciary was able to become more active and defiant. Musharraf said this activism was a major reason for the emergency order. The high court was set to rule this week in a case questioning the legality of Musharraf being both president and Army chief.
Even amid baton-wielding police, lawyers contended that "we still have a legal case," says Akram Shiekh, a lawyer who had filed a case against Musharraf's eligibility. "But personally I have serious doubts that the lawyers' community will now look to a legal recourse."
Instead, many have vowed to stay in the streets and boycott all legal proceedings, hoping to bring the country to a standstill. For all intents and purposes, Mr. Sheikh says, "there is no Supreme Court" now.
Some of Pakistan's political parties agree. But their leaders have been arrested. "Our leader Qazi Hussain Ahmad, is under house arrest now, we will join the street movement of the lawyers everywhere," says Shahid Shamsi, secretary of information for Jamaat-e-Islami, one of Pakistan's largest opposition Islamic parties. "We feel the opposition needs to unite now, and we would like to work with all parties – the Pakistan People's Party as well – in this struggle," he says, referring to Bhutto's political party.
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