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Musharraf orders emergency rule

Sunday, 04 November 2007

Musharraf, an army general who seized the presidency in a coup eight years ago but has seen his grip on power falter in recent months, said rising Islamic extremism had forced him to act.

He wasted little time in asserting his new authority, sending troops into the streets, expelling Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, rounding up opposition politicians, and jamming private TV channels that have been critical of his rule. Telephone service in Islamabad, the capital, was cut shortly after the announcement.

The declaration suspended Pakistan's constitution and threw into doubt parliamentary elections that had been set to occur by mid-January.

Musharraf's step came days before an expected Supreme Court ruling on whether his election last month to a new presidential term was valid. Opponents said the vote should be thrown out because Musharraf, under the constitution, was not eligible to run while serving as chief of the army.

Seven of the 17 Supreme Court judges immediately rejected the emergency order. Police blocked entry to the Supreme Court building and later took Chaudhry and other judges away in a convoy, the Associated Press reported. Musharraf later named Judge Abdul Hameed Dogar to replace the chief justice.

Musharraf's emergency order accused some judges of "working at cross purposes with the executive" and "weakening the government's resolve" to fight terrorism.

Military vehicles patrolled Islamabad's main avenues last night and blocked roads including Constitution Avenue, leading to the Supreme Court building.

Today, police arrested the acting president of the party of exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. Javed Hashmi was arrested along with 10 aides when he stepped outside his house in the central city of Multan.

Source: Boston

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