Voting has begun in Pakistan
Three platforms in crib:
- 5 Es -- employment, energy, education, environment and equality -- PPP
- "RESTORE" -- Restoration of (pre-Nov 3) judiciary, democracy and the (pre-Oct 1999 coup) 1973 constitution, Elimination of military's rule in politics, Security of life and property, Tolerance, Overall reconciliation, Relief for the poor, and Education and employment -- PML-N
- 5 Ds -- democracy, development, defence, devolution and diversity -- PML-Q
In the last few hours Chaudhry Asif Ashraf, a candidate of the PML-N, for the Punjab provincial assembly was shot to death, and nine other party worker were wounded by an armed group in Lahore. Another armed group engaged a polling office of the PML-N at Lahore, killing one party worker and wounding several others.
Jemima Khan, the former wife of Imran Khan, has an interview with Mushy The politics of paranoia in The Independent on Sunday. A teaser:
The likely winners, boosted by the "martyr factor", are likely to be the PPP, followed by the party led by ex-prime minister Nawaz Sharif, the PML-N. There will have to be some uncomfortable but expedient alliances between sworn enemies. Sharif jailed Zardari. Musharraf jailed and exiled Sharif, Musharraf jailed Zardari, Zardari's wife jailed Sharif's father. Sharif brought corruption charges against Zardari's wife after she brought charges against him. And so on. It would be amusing to see this group all wrangling with each other for power, if only the consequences were not so dire.
Also worth reading is the re-working of a piece she's supposed to have written for The Independent on Sunday, an interview with Mushy. I can't find the original, but here's the link to the reworking of it in Dawn -- Musharraf predicts majority seats for PML-Q, MQM.
Joe Biden, Chuck Hagel and John Kerry are in Islamabad to observe the election. I hope they have the sense to do some reading.
US coverage? The NYTimes is aware there is a PPP, a PML-N, and a PML-Q, however, their narrative is the "fight against the Taliban and Al Qaeda in the region", so as far as the Gray Lady is concerned, what began as a fight against al-Qa'ida and the Taliban in the NWFP hasn't become a Pashtun uprising against the Punjabi army, and the majority sympathy is with the Pashtuns. The LATimes is aware there is a PPP, but not much else. So much for press coverage of the central front in the war on mumbleisms.
