Musharraf’s self-coup regime has put Benazir Bhutto under house arrest. 5000 of her supporters were rounded up too. The judiciary protests continue as well. Before her house was surrounded by military, Bhutto had announced her intention to reinstate the ousted judiciary that was the main target of the coup. The general announced that he intends to allow elections by February 15, but there is no reason to take that seriously.
Musharraf’s self-coup regime has put Benazir Bhutto under house arrest. 5000 of her supporters were rounded up too. The judiciary protests continue as well. Before her house was surrounded by military, Bhutto had announced her intention to reinstate the ousted judiciary that was the main target of the coup. The general announced that he intends to allow elections by February 15, but there is no reason to take that seriously.
As there was before the coup, there has also been some violence, including bombings, in different parts of the country. The Pakistani military appears to be doing worse than ever against the insurgency in the border region.
Musharraf’s repression is escalating, but combining military failure with total illegitimacy is not a path to stable dictatorship. There is still a chance he could be replaced with something more democratic.
