Judges Shake Pakistan Coalition, Again

Sharif has threatened to quit the ruling coalition over reluctance to reinstate the sacked judges. (Reuters)

"You will see within the next eight to ten days that either all the deposed judges, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudry, will be reinstated or we will be out of the government," Chaudry Nisar Ali Khan, vice president of former premier Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), told IslamOnline.net.

"There will be no third thing."

Sharif and Asif Zardari, the co-chairman of slain former premier Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), have for months been at loggerheads over the sacked judges issue. 

Their differences, which have been put on the backburner for sometimes, popped up again after they managed to achieve their top priority: forcing Pervez Musharraf to resign as president under the threat of impeachment.

Sharif announced on Monday, May 12, froze the participation of his nine ministers in the 24-member federal cabinet over the re-installment of the sacked judges.

He only returned to the government after Zardari had assured him that the judges, who refused to take oath under an emergency order issued by Musharraf in November, would be restored within 24 hours of removing Musharraf.

But Zardari has once again backtracked on his promise, propelling Sharif to threaten to quit the six-month coalition.

The two coalition partners, who crushed Musharraf's allies in February's general polls, are to hold last-ditch talks on the issue on Friday.

The talks will be mediated by leaders of the two smaller groups in the coalition, Asfandyar Wali of the left-wing Awami National Party (ANP) and Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman of the right-wing Jamiat Ulema Islam (JUI).

Dangerous Game

Analysts believe Zardari has personal reasons for opposing the reinstatement of judges, especially independent-minded Chief Justice Chaudry.

"Zardari is worried about the fate of the NRO in case judges are of reinstated," Shamim-ur-Rahman, a Karachi-based political analyst, told IOL, referring to the National Reconciliation Ordinance issued by Musharraf as part of a power-sharing deal with Bhutto.

Zardari, jailed on corruption and criminal charges following the sacking of his wife's second government, only returned to Pakistan last year after all corruption cases against him and other PPP leaders were dropped under the NRO.

The expert believes Pakistan's new kingmaker fears that if Chaudry comes back, all the cases may be re-opened.

A source in the PPP told IOL Zardari insists on giving indemnity to Musharraf for all his actions so that the issue of the NRO might not be reopened in future.

Irfan Siddiqui, an Islamabad-based political observer, believes Zardari is playing with fire.

"He is playing a dangerous game by saying one thing and doing another," he told IOL.

"If Zardari puts his signature to communiqués, declarations and other watertight commitments but then turns around and treats them as political agreements that can be renegotiated, then he is reinforcing the stereotype of venal, duplicitous politicians.

"This drains away so much of the credibility of the democratic process."

Bad Days

Many believe it's high time for the coalition partners to stop bickering and start addressing the country's problems, which they put on the backburner until getting rid of Musharraf.

"We thought that the bad days would be over with Musharraf’s ouster, but it seems that we have more bad days to see," laments Shamim, the Karachi-based analyst.

He insists that the coalition government is already lagging behind in addressing issues that concerns the people, including a sluggish economy and soaring prices.

Reports on the deepening cracks inside the coalition have already damaged the Karachi stock exchange market which nosedived by 400 points on Thursday.

The Pakistani Rupee also lost 1.20 points against the US dollar.

"I would ask Zardari and other coalition partners that for God sake the economy is already in shambles," Shamim says.

"Don’t act like opposition parties. You are the government, and a government cannot afford delays in settling down issues which disturb economic and political stability."

The expert warns the PPP and the PML-N that if they continue along the same path any longer they will pay.

"If they continue to hang such issues in balance, then they should get ready to pack up."