Pakistan between Allah and Army

Abstract

There has been little so far to distinguish Pakistan's new military regime from its predecessors except its regard for 'man's best friend'. Many still recall with bemusement the moment in October I999, some days after Chief Executive General Parwez Musharraf had staged his bloodless coup against former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, when foreign journalists seeking a timetable for the restoration of democracy were regaled instead by the antics of the Chief Executive's pet chihuahuas, Dot and Buddy. While some construed the event as a bold gesture by the outspokenly liberal Musharraf to defy the orthodox Muslim establishment's contempt for 'unclean' dogs, others were outraged by his attempt to reduce Pakistan's ever-deepening political malaise to the level of farce. However, tempting as it is to mock the absurdity of Pakistan's politics and dismiss it as mere entertainment fuelled by strutting military dictators, sinister bureaucrats and corrupt politicians, it is no longer affordable. The emergence of Pakistan as a nuclear power in i998 has brought a new urgency to the debate about the restoration of democratic rule. While there is of course no doubt that recent elected governments in Pakistan have plumbed even greater depths of