In his web exclusive article for Prospect this week, Kamran Nazeer argues that the results of Pakistan’s recent elections suggest a growing weariness among the population with extremist and dynastic politics, and present the country’s main power blocs with an opportunity to forge a lasting accommodation via the constitution.
Whether this can or will happen remains an open question, and one tied closely to the fate of Pervez Musharraf, who has declared his intention to remain president despite his party’s substantial losses. What deals might he make in order to broker greater legitimacy; and what will be the supreme court’s ultimate verdict on the status of his presidency? A crucial and intriguing month for politics in Pakistan is set to unfold.
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The article seems speculative at best and utopian at worst. There is a deep undercurrent of tribalist thought that often is not addressed, and the most extreme elements are in the tribal areas and probably did not vote at all.