Pak army back in driving seat
Sharif may have to be subservient to generals on issues like fight against Taliban, ties with India
ISLAMABAD : Besieged Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been assured by the country’s military there will be no coup, but in return he must “share space with the army”, according to a government source who was privy to recent talks between the two sides.
Last week, as tens of thousands of protesters advanced on the Pakistani capital to demand his resignation, Sharif dispatched two emissaries to consult with the army chief.
He wanted to know if the military was quietly engineering the twin protest movements by cricket star-turned-politician Imran Khan and activist cleric Tahir ul-qadri, or if, perhaps, it was preparing to stage a coup. According to a government insider with a first-hand account of the meeting, Sharif ’s envoys returned with good news and bad: there will be no coup but if he wants his government to survive, from now on it will have to share space with the army.
The army’s media wing declined to comment on the meeting.thousands of protesters marched to parliament on Tuesday, using a crane and bolt cutters to force their way past barricades of shipping containers. Military spokesman General Asim Bajwa tweeted a reminder to protesters to respect government institutions and called for “meaningful dialogue” to resolve the crisis.
Even if, as seems likely, the Khan and Qadri protests eventually fizzle out due to a lack of overt support from the military, the PM will emerge weakened from the crisis in coup-prone Pakistan. Sharif may have to be subservient to the generals on issues he wanted to handle himself — from the fight against the Taliban to relations with ‘arch foe’ India and Pakistan’s role in neighbouring, post-nato Afghanistan. “The biggest loser will be Nawaz, cut down to size both by puny political rivals and the powerful army,” said a government minister who asked not to be named. “From this moment on, he’ll always be looking over his shoulder.”
The ‘powerless’ PM would have to “sharing space” with the Pakistan Army. The phrase is a familiar euphemism for civilian governments focusing narrowly on domestic political affairs and leaving security and strategic policy to the army.
The fact that the military is back in the driving seat will make it harder for Sharif to deliver the rapprochement with India that he promised when he won the election last year.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Wednesday summoned Khan and Qadri on a petition filed against them over their protests that have called for Sharif ’s ouster. The Supreme Court issued notices to Pakistan Tehreek-i- Insaf (PTI) chairman Khan and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) chief Qadri to appear in court on Thursday for the hearing of the petition filed by the Lahore High Court’s Multan Bar Association.