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"Musharraf must cede power"

B. Muralidhar Reddy

Think tank says instability may worsen

ISLAMABAD: In a hard-hitting report, an international think tank has said "instability" would worsen and sectarian conflict could spin out of control in Pakistan unless the Musharraf Government ceded real power to civilians and removed its curbs on the moderate parties.

"Authoritarianism and Political Party Reform in Pakistan," the latest report from the International Crisis Group (ICG), an NGO that reports on conflict zones, has argued that Gen. Musharraf's marginalisation of moderate political voices has allowed religious parties to fill a political vacuum, and their increasing strength, if left unchecked, could erode regional stability.

The report has said the mainstream political parties must become serious about internal reform if they are to steer Pakistan towards democracy and political stability. "With international help, Pakistan's moderate political parties should strengthen and transform themselves into more viable political players," it said. According to the Group report the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League (PML-Nawaz) have regained some of the credibility they lost when they led Governments during the flawed democratic transition of the 1990s.

Credible alternative

"These parties are the most effective safeguard against the religious lobby's anti-Western agenda and still present the most credible alternatives to authoritarian rule," says Samina Ahmed, Crisis Group's South Asia Project Director. "But the parties themselves must step up and make changes to ensure their own survival."

It said the parties need to promote internal discipline and accountability, better organise their grassroots base and allow more party workers, especially women and young persons, to play meaningful roles in the decision making process.

In addition to halting pressure tactics on the mainstream parties, the military government should appoint an independent federal Election Commission and allow parties to establish their own requirements, the report said.

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