Qadri may take part in Pakistan election

ISLAMABAD/ABU DHABI: A protest leader who has been pushing for electoral reforms in Pakistan will resort to street protests again if the government does not abide by an agreement that eased a political crisis, an aide said yesterday.
Muhammad Tahirul Qadri, who has a history of ties with the military, reached a deal with Pakistan’s ruling coalition on Thursday that will give his party some say over the formation of a caretaker government ahead of elections this spring. Qadri’s party may also participate in the elections.
The cleric’s reappearance on Pakistan’s political stage a few weeks ago after years of living in Canada, and his calls for the military to play a role in forming an interim administration, has raised speculation he may be backed by the country’s powerful army.
Qadri and the military deny this.
The cleric, who led four days of street protests in the heart of the capital aimed at forcing the government to resign, will keep pushing for political reforms and a halt to corruption, said his spokesman.
“We will ensure implementation of the agreement with full letter and spirit,” Qazir Faizul Islam, secretary of information for Qadri’s charity, told Reuters.
“If the government tries to deviate, we will force them to follow through the power of the people and media.”
Aside from giving Qadri a voice in who leads the caretaker administration, the government also agreed to dissolve Parliament before a scheduled date of March 16, although it did not specify a date.
It also said elections would be held within 90 days of the dissolution and electoral reforms would continue to be discussed.
An announcement of an election date could come during a Parliament session on Monday.
“After signing the agreement for electoral reforms, we are part of the electoral process. We might take part in elections,” said Islam, adding however that Qadri had no ambitions to become prime minister.
But the focus for the moment seems to be on the interim administration that will be formed after the dissolution of Parliament and will oversee the elections.
A new political crisis could erupt if Qadri tries to promote candidates for caretaker prime minister seen to be sympathetic to the military, which has ruled the country for more than half of its history as an independent nation. Qadri supported a 1999 military coup, and praised the military during speeches this week, appealing to thousands of supporters and members of the middle and lower class who have grown tired of Pakistan’s dynastic politics.
Any disagreements between Qadri and the government on electoral reforms could also bring fresh turmoil, distracting the state from a host of challenges, ranging from a Taleban insurgency to crippling power cuts to a fragile economy.
Karachi shut over leader’s killing
Shops, businesses and schools shut across Pakistan’s financial capital Karachi yesterday, as the city braced for further unrest following the funeral of a politician the Taleban claimed to have killed.
Manzar Imam, 42, a lawmaker from the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), a coalition partner in the federal government and the dominant political party in Karachi, was shot with three of his guards in a drive-by shooting on Thursday. Pakistan’s umbrella Taleban faction claimed responsibility for his death and threatened further attacks on the party.
Karachi last year saw its deadliest year in two decades, with around 2,000 people killed in violence linked to ethnic and political tensions, raising fears over elections due this year.
Overnight violence in Karachi left five people dead and around 30 wounded, according to police.
Police said “thousands of people” attended funeral prayers for Imam and his three guards. Their coffins, wrapped in the MQM’s tricolor, were later taken for burial.
“All political and religious parties have to unite against the terrorists killing our lawmakers and politicians, otherwise terrorists will occupy the whole country,” said MQM provincial information technology minister Raza Haroon.
Markets shut, streets were deserted and schools closed, with office attendance thin, although government departments, the port and stock exchange remained open.
Hyderabad, the second largest city after Karachi in southern province Sindh, was similarly shut down and people burnt tyre to protest against Imam’s killing. It is the second shooting of an MQM provincial lawmaker in just over two years in the city, Pakistan’s business centre, which has a population of 18 million.
The death of MQM lawmaker Raza Haider in an ambush in August 2010 sparked a fierce wave of ethnic and politically linked violence that killed scores of people.
“Chances are low that the government will demonstrate progress on other Qadri demands (like reforms) before elections are held, increasing the likelihood that this timetable will fail and a caretaker government could stay on indefinitely,” said Shamila Chaudhry, South Asia specialist at the Eurasia Group.
Qadri’s call for a campaign to root out corruption could also create obstacles and delays.
“Corruption is rampant among all political actors, not just the current government,” said Chaudhry.
“So true implementation of the declaration will require a complete overhaul of political behaviour in Pakistan - a virtually impossible task before elections if they are to occur by June.”
The government got some relief on Thursday when the chief of the state’s anti-corruption agency rejected a Supreme Court order to arrest Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf.
All Taleban detainees to be freed
Pakistan plans to release all Afghan Taleban prisoners still in its detention, including the group’s former second-in-command, an official said yesterday, the clearest signal yet that it backs reconciliation efforts.
“The remaining detainees, we are coordinating, and they will be released subsequently,” Jalil Jilani, Pakistan’s foreign secretary, said at a news conference in Abu Dhabi.
Asked if the former Taleban number 2 Mullah Baradar would be among those to be released, he said: “The aim is to release all,” without elaborating further.