Saturday, March 01, 2008

Hope is on the rise in Pakistan

The Boston Globe, March 1, 2008

By Shuja Nawaz

AFTER THE recent elections in Pakistan that were marked by their relative peace and the return of the two leading parties that dominated the scene before General Pervez Musharraf's coup in 1999, some commentators in the United States fear that a civilian government and a more assertive parliament will be less willing to fight America's "war on terror" than Musharraf. They are also concerned that the new government might be affected by the generally anti-US sentiment that appears to have gained ground in Pakistan. Such views are based on false assumptions and are likely to confuse Pakistanis into thinking that elements in the United States prefer to deal with autocrats rather than popularly elected governments. The people of Pakistan seem to have more confidence in the changes that have occurred than their erstwhile friends in the United States. While the noise of parliamentary democracy rises in Pakistan, hope is also on the rise.

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