No week has elapsed without Pakistani politics being thrust onto the international media in the last couple of months. The tragic event of Benazir's assassination has once again shed the spotlight on the volatile nature of Pakistani Politics; something which no one is currently aloof of. However, the debates continue to rage within Pakistan as well as outside of the country in Europe, USA and the Middle East where many Pakistanis reside on attempting to understand and reason out the events.
Without a shadow of doubt, military despotism and anarchical conditions created by Musharraf's government echoes sole responsibility for Benazir's assassination. Despite the government highlighting Islamic extremism in the country as the root cause of the unrest and consequent assassination of the opposition leader, the Pakistani population no longer seems to be buying the argument any more.
From the Lal mosque stand-down, sacking of the Chief justice Iftikhar Choudhry, banning Nawaz Sharif from entering the country, declaring a state of emergency, and calling the date for elections and standing down as chief of army staff after pressure from America; the only conclusions being drawn by any independent observer is the excessive foreign interference in Pakistan's domestic Affairs through direct Western support of a Military man for years who recently even rigged rigged his own Presidency.
The common person in Pakistan has witnessed with open eyes the political sovereignty of the country being handed directly over to Washington and London in deciding their country's future. Musharraf seems only interested in highlighting how Islamic extremists are against such moves which he believes are the chief architects behind the un-stability in the country. However, these arguments are losing credibility with the masses as they witness systemic political problems being ruptured by power hungry individuals using any means necessary to execute foreign country demands.
Gallup, an independent think tank which delivers in-depth insights on public opinion polling recently conducted a study finding that over 64% of Pakistanis believed that corruption is widespread throughout the government, 68% believed that America is a threat to Pakistani security and less than 6% thought that America was trustworthy or friendly.
"How can America talk of restoration of democracy when compared to it s adventures in Iraq and Afghanistan which have spawned major political crisis for those countries?" are the mirror reflections currently being advocated on the Internet, independent news channels, emails and blog sites, all of which have allowed more diverse views to be aired as opposed to the discredited Pakistani state channels which seem to insult the intelligence of 165 million people.
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