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Pakistan rolls back military powers
Agence France Presse - April 10, 2010
Islamabad – Pakistan's national assembly has unanimously approved reforms stripping President Asif Ali Zardari of key powers in a push to bolster parliamentary democracy, weakened by military rule.
The historic 18th amendment, which rolls back four decades of infringements by military rulers on Pakistan's 1973 constitution, is expected to go through the upper house of parliament as early as next week, and then pass into law.
The package, approved late on Thursday, reverses the sweeping powers imposed by former military dictators Pervez Musharraf and Zia Ul Haq, and could ease instability in the nuclear-armed nation on the front line of the US-led war on al-Qa'ida.
All 292 legislators at the session of the 342-member national assembly voted to approve the bill, with no votes against.
A jubilant Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said parliamentary democracy was restored as MPs slammed fists on desks in celebration, after shouting "Hang Musharraf, hang" when his 1999 coup was declared illegal.
"The impossible has been made possible by the house today," Mr Gilani told legislators. "We have been saying we will go to the Westminster-style parliamentary system... Today we removed the anomalies. We are giving you a parliamentary form of government with balance of power between president and prime minister."
Under the constitutional reforms, Mr Zardari will no longer have the power to dismiss the prime minister, dissolve parliament – as happened many times in the past – or appoint the head of the powerful armed forces.
The bill abolishes a clause that bars the election of a prime minister for more than two terms. This would allow popular opposition leader Nawaz Sharif, toppled by then general Musharraf in 1999, to become premier again.
The package, which grants greater autonomy to smaller provinces, renames North West Frontier Province – a title dating back to British rule – Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa, to honour the wishes of its Pashtun population.
The amendment has been hailed as a rare success for cross-party co-operation in Pakistan and is supported by Mr Zardari, who urged legislators to approve the amendments without delay, hailing the package as a "crucial reform bill".
It will effectively make Mr Zardari a titular head of state who can only appoint heads of the armed forces, dissolve the national assembly and appoint provincial governors on the advice of the prime minister.
Among other reforms, courts will no longer be able to endorse suspensions of the constitution, a judicial commission will appoint judges and the president will no longer be able to appoint the head of the election commission.
Although the legislation has been widely welcomed by politicians and the media, it is unlikely to improve Mr Zardari's popularity among the masses, hit by crippling power cuts, rising prices and fears of terrorism. The move may build pressure on the government to reopen the graft cases against Mr Zardari, although as co-chairman of the Pakistan People's Party to which Mr Gilani belongs, the head of state will remain powerful.
Political analyst Jafar Ahmed, of Karachi University, welcomed the unanimous vote and cross-party consensus but said the government must now deliver.
"It should display good governance and take long- and short-term measures to bring down inflation and resolve the power and water shortages," he said. "The bill has been approved unanimously at a time when it appeared the nation was in disarray.
"Zardari would like some praise for surrendering his powers, but challenges will remain."
Tainted by corruption allegations, Mr Zardari spent 11 years in jail on charges ranging from corruption to murder, although he was never convicted.
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