[Marxism] Police overwhelmed by Pak. protesters as Zardari government weakens

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Pakistan Security Forces, Protesters Clash Amid Growing Unrest

By Pamela Constable
Washington Post Foreign Service
Sunday, March 15, 2009; 12:06 PM 



LAHORE, Pakistan, March 15 -- Thousands of demonstrators poured into the
streets of this provincial capital Sunday, throwing rocks at police and
cheering exultantly as they called for the restoration of Pakistan's deposed
judges and denounced the government of President Asif Ali Zardari. 

An extraordinary cross-section of Pakistan's political, social and religious
sectors joined the day-long protests, while two major opposition leaders --
former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and top legal dissident Aitzaz Ahsan --
escaped house arrest in the city and led caravans of chanting supporters
through the city streets. 

Security forces sealed off the federal capital, Islamabad, before dawn,
placing huge cargo containers across major roads and cordoning off the
government center in an effort to block demonstrators from reaching there
for a planned peaceful sit-in Monday. There were reports that the government
had also jammed the frequencies for cell phone text messages to prevent
opponents from coordinating their actions. 

But despite the crackdown, which included an emergency ban on public rallies
in three of Pakistan's four provinces, protesters in Lahore seemed to
overwhelm police as they packed the city amid boisterous tumult. Thousands
converged outside the Lahore High Court complex, and vowed to depart from
there in caravans for Islamabad, about 150 miles away Sunday night. 

By late afternoon, the deputy city administrator and numerous officials of
the provincial government had resigned and provincial police had been
withdrawn from the protest areas, signaling the collapse of Zardari's bid to
seize control of Punjab from Sharif, whose party has dominated it for years.


The protests also increased pressure on Zardari to meet opposition demands
or face further confrontation with the public, which would alienate his
Western allies and tempt the Pakistani army to intervene. Zardari's
government won elections last year after a decade of military rule, but it
is threatened by an Islamist insurgency and a failing economy. 

"The writ of the government has ended. Nobody can stop us from reaching
Islamabad," Ahsan told a cheering crowd inside the court complex, where
stirring music played from loud speakers. "All barriers and barricades will
be removed from our way." 

By nightfall, the streets that had been full of tear gas and flying stones
all morning became scenes of celebration. People danced, sang and waved
banners atop cars and trucks as smiling police watched from the sidelines,
their riot gear lying on the ground. Ice cream and sugar cane sellers came
out on the sidewalks and boys set off fireworks. 

As the central government rapidly lost control of the situation, officials
in Islamabad were reported to be inconsultation with Punjab authorities.
Pakistani television stations reported that the federal law minister had
offered to negotiate on the major opposition demand that all judges deposed
under former President Pervez Musharraf should be restored to office. 

Zardari, whose government is fighting Islamist insurgents and depends
heavily on U.S. military and economic aid, is under strong pressure from the
army and the United States to prevent a violent confrontation, which could
destabilize the country. The government has responded to the challenge from
Sharif and the lawyers with a sweeping crackdown against opponents. 

Since Tuesday, police have arrested hundreds of opposition activists and
placed others under house arrest. On Friday, officials temporarily blocked
transmission of a major independent TV news channel, and Zardari's
information minister resigned several hours later in apparent protest. 

On Saturday night, the president said he would be open to discussing most
issues with Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N. But Zardari had excluded from
negotiations the one issue that matters most to his opponents in the legal
and civic communities: the restoration of Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, the
former chief justice of Pakistan. Chaudhry was fired two years ago by
Musharraf and has gained celebrity status during the struggle to reinstate
him. 

Many Pakistanis say Zardari fears that Chaudhry would reopen old court cases
against him and nullify many of his year-old government's actions. Analysts
said Zardari's stand has also been strengthened by U.S. ambivalence about
the former justice, an unpredictable maverick who has questioned the
disappearance of terrorism suspects. 

The protesters Sunday included a remarkably wide range of groups, including
black-suited lawyers, members of Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-N,
conservative Muslims from the Jamaat-i-Islami religious party, women from
civic and human rights groups and disaffected members of Zardari's ruling
party, the Pakistan People's Party. 

"We have already achieved success. The whole city has come out to support us
and the government is helpless," said Mohammed Fareed Chaudhry, 55, a
lawyer. "We respect and appreciate all the parties and groups that have
joined our cause. It is only a matter of hours or days before Zardari will
have to leave power." 

Sharif, who joined the protest campaign last month after Zardari fired his
brother as chief minister of Punjab Province and the Supreme Court banned
both brothers from political office, seemed to emerge as its popular hero
Sunday. At dawn, he was placed under house arrest and police surrounded his
city home, but by mid-afternoon, police were escorting his convoy through
the streets along with thousands of supporters. 

Punjab Province is the traditional political stronghold of Sharif's party,
and provincial authorities including the police were reported to be unhappy
with the imposition of federal emergency rule there. Many protesters called
Sunday for Zardari to lift emergency rule and bring back Shahbaz Sharif,
Nawaz Sharif's brother, as chief minister.



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