BUSH'S FOREIGN POLICY IN TATTERS AFTER MUSHARRAF AND SAAKASHVILI

It's about time that Gen. Pervez Musharraf resigned as president of Pakistan. After firing justices of the Pakistani supreme court and having his henchmen go out and beat up protesting lawyers, Musharraf's time has long since passed. But the Musharraf treatment of lawyers and judges says a lot about the foreign policy of the United States under Bush, Cheney and Rice.

The U.S. urged Musharraf not to re-instate the judges after they refused to go along with his unconstitutional scheme to be both president and head of the army. Bush would rather have Musharraf as head of Pakistan than respect the rule of law and the independence of the courts. So much for Bush the guardian of democracy.

Contrast the situation in Pakistan with that of Georgia. Bush protests and howls that Russia is illegally attacking and occupying Georgia after Russia steps in to defend its citizens in South Ossetia from shelling by the U.S. trained and supported Georgian army. For Bush, it is a case fof a large imperium, Russia, having its way with a small democracy, Georgia. Georgia's president, Saakashvili, is a Bush protege having being wined and dined in Washington by all the neo-cons after saying all the right things about Bush and Cheney. But at heart he is a small dictator who tried to suppress dissent and opposition by creating a more powerful executive in Georgia, a la Bush and Cheney.

Bush supports Saakashvili because Georgia is a "democracy," whereas he supported Musharraf in his undemocratic quest to get rid of all those justices who opined that Musharraf was violating the Pakistani law and constitution.

Bush is not interested in "democracy." All he wants are leaders of other countries who pay tribute to him and tell him how great a leader he is. Oh, and if their countries send troops to the "Coalition of the Willing" for the immoral war in Iraq, Bush will forever support them.

IMPEACH GEN. MUSHARRAF FOR CRIMES AGAINST PAKISTANI CONSTITUTION

It is about time that the Pakistani elected government holds Gen. Pervez Musharraf to account for his violation of the Pakistani constitution. When Musharraf saw that the Supreme Court would not approve his bid to be both president and head of the army, he fired the justices and locked them up. He then sent out his police to beat up and arrest the lawyers who protested the gross violation of the rule of law.

And what position did the Bush administration take on this sorry affair? As you might guess, it told Musharraf to stand firm, not to re-instate the justices he illegally fired, and not to concede anything. Just what we would expect from the lawless regime in Washington.

Bush goes to the Olympics pretending to be the defender of the rule of law and rights for all. But we all know he is the worst offender. His cynical position on Pakistan and Musharraf just re-enforces his sorry record on civil rights and good government.

The sooner Musharraf is impeached and removed from office, the better will be democracy in Pakistan.

NEW PAKISTANI PRIME MINISTER FREES JUDGES ILLEGALLY DISMISSED BY MUSHARRAF

Finally we have the release of the Pakistani judges detained by Gen. Pervez Musharraf. The BBC reports that the new prime minister, Yusuf Raza Gillani, just ordered the judges to be freed:

"New Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gillani has ordered the release of all judges detained under emergency rule, minutes after being elected by MPs.

"President Pervez Musharraf sacked dozens of judges in November and former chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry was among those still held."

Musharraf had the judges, including Chief Justice Chaudhry, kicked out of office and arrested when they would not go along with his scheme to run for office at the same time that he was still an active general in the Pakistani Army.

Musharraf thought the Pakistani constitution did not apply to him. He apparently thought himself above the provisions of the constitution. Thus he got rid of the "messengers" or judges who would not rule in his favor.

Finally we get a return to constitutional law in Pakistan. Gillani, the new prime minister, made it a point in his party's quest for election that he would free the judges and return the constitutional rule of law. And this in spite of the cynical position of Bush and the U.S. in urging Musharraf not to back down on the judges.

NEW PARTIES IN PAKISTAN TO RE-INSTATE JUDGES DISMISSED ILLEGALLY BY MUSHARRAF

It looks like the new coalition in Pakistan will soon re-instate the judges dismissed illegally by Gen. Pervez Musharraf last year. The BBC reports:

"The leaders of the two parties that won Pakistan's elections have signed an agreement on a coalition government. Asif Ali Zardari, widower of ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, and ex-PM Nawaz Sharif called on President Pervez Musharraf to convene parliament immediately. February's parliamentary elections delivered a crushing defeat to parties loyal to President Pervez Musharraf. Mr Musharraf has urged the incoming government to leave politics aside and concentrate on good governance. The coalition deal will bring together the Pakistan People's Party, which was led by Benazir Bhutto until her assassination, and the PML(N) party of Mr Sharif. "

This is a significant defeat for Musharraf and for George Bush. The U.S. government wanted to keep Musharraf in power. It even went so far as to advise him not to reinstate the judges. Recall that when the Pakistani Supreme Court was set to rule against allowing an army general such as Musharraf to run for civil office, Musharraf dismissed Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and the rest of the court. Musharraf also sent the police to beat up lawyers protesting Musharraf's violation of the Pakistani Constitution.

Reports the BBC:

"All the sacked judges will be reinstated via a parliamentary resolution passed within 30 days of forming a new government. That appears to mean that the chief justice will get back his job, in defiance of Mr Musharraf's strong objections, our correspondent says."

BUSH AIDS AND ABETS MUSHARRAF IN CONTEMPT OF PAKISTANI CONSTITUTION

Dan Froomkin in his blog White House Watch in today's washingtonpost.com refers me to a story in McClatchy Newspapers by Jonathan S. Landay and Warren P. Strobel on Bush's efforts to keep Pervez Musharraf in the Pakistani government even after his party suffered a huge defeat in Sunday's elections.

Write Landay and Strobel:

"The Bush administration is pressing the opposition leaders who defeated Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf to allow the former general to retain his position, a move that Western diplomats and U.S. officials say could trigger the very turmoil the United States seeks to avoid.

"U.S. officials, from President Bush on down, said this week that they think Musharraf, a longtime U.S. ally, should continue to play a role, despite his party's rout in parliamentary elections Monday and his unpopularity in the volatile, nuclear-armed nation."

It seems Bush, Cheney and the rest of their gang are so enamored of that dictator Musharraf that they are putting pressure on the winning Pakistani parties to keep Musharraf in the ruling circle. The worst part of this is that Bush is also counselling against reinstatement of the Supreme Court Justices that Musharraf illegally forced out of office last year in his quest to remain Pakistani president.

Report Strobel and Landay:

"The U.S. is urging the Pakistani political leaders who won the elections to form a new government quickly and not press to reinstate the judges whom Musharraf ousted last year, Western diplomats and U.S. officials said Wednesday. If reinstated, the jurists likely would try to remove Musharraf from office."

This is outrageous. Talk about destroying any semblance of the rule of law. Bush aids and abets Musharraf in this dismissal of the judges when their decisions go against Musharraf's personal interests. And we have not even mentioned Musharraf's use of force against the peaceful demonstrations of the judges and lawyers when he had the police beat them with canes and arrest them. Now Bush counsels don't reinstate them because then they will rule that you, Musharraf, occupy the presidency in violation of the Pakistan Constitution. Bush shows his contempt for the Pakistan Constitution, notwithstanding his constant mantra of democracy being the gift of the Almighty for all.

"Bush's policy of hanging on to Musharraf has caused friction between the White House and the State Department, with some career diplomats and other specialists arguing that the administration is trying to buck the political tides in Pakistan, U.S. officials said. . .

"One Western diplomat said, however, that the strategy could backfire if Pakistanis feel betrayed after voting to kick Musharraf from office. "This is dangerous," said the diplomat. The officials spoke to McClatchy on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss internal government debates.

"The effort to persuade Pakistan's newly elected parliament not to reinstate the judges could be perceived in Pakistan as a U.S. attempt to keep Musharraf in power after voters overwhelmingly rejected his Pakistan Muslim League-Q political party.

""There is going to be an uprising against the people who were elected" should opposition parties agree to the plan, warned Athar Minallah, the lawyer of ousted Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, whom Musharraf has under house arrest."

BUSH PLANS NO CHANGE IN HIS FAILED POLICY TOWARDS MUSHARRAF

Bush's policy towards Pakistan and Musharraf seems to be, "full steam ahead," notwithstanding the policy's support of a leader who kicked out the judiciary, and jailed and beat lawyers protesting the suspension of the rule of law. Bush plans no different policy towards Musharraf, even after the tragic assassination of Benazir Bhutto, sent back to Pakistan with Bush's blessing.

Janine Zacharia writes for Bloomberg:

"Bush's support for Musharraf hasn't changed, an administration official said, adding that the U.S. sees itself as playing a supporting role as Pakistan decides how to move forward on the path of democracy.

"The death of Bhutto, 54, followed on the heels of other setbacks to Bush's pro-democracy efforts in the Islamic world, including the sectarian bloodshed that has undermined Iraq's government and the U.S.-backed Palestinian elections that ended up bringing the militant group Hamas to power last year."

Instead of taking Musharraf's part, Bush/Rice/Cheney should be taking the part of the lawyers and judges who represent the most stable part of Pakistani society. They are the ones who believe in the rule of law and democracy for Pakistan. Bush, however, sides with the autocrat who believes he is above the law and above the constitution. So much for Bush's protestations that he wants to spread "democracy."

MUSHARRAF MUST REINSTATE SUPREME COURT JUSTICES ILLEGALLY DISMISSED

I fully agree with Juan Cole in his observations at Informed Comment on the situation in Pakistan given the tragic assassination of Benazir Bhutto. If Gen. Pervez Musharraf is to remain in power and keep the backing of the United States, he must restore the rule of law. This means restoring the Supreme Court Justices, including former Chief Justice Ifthikar Chaudhry now under house arrest, to their rightful judicial positions before he illegally dismissed them. This also means freeing the lawyers and judges that Musharraf locked up after their street demonstrations in favor of the rule of law. Further, it means Musharraf must acknowledge that he will follow and respect the Pakistani Constitution, something that he has trashed whenever it did not fit his political ambitions.

Writes Juan Cole:

"In order to get through this crisis, Bush must insist that the Pakistani Supreme Court, summarily dismissed and placed under house arrest by Musharraf, be reinstated. The PPP must be allowed to elect a successor to Ms. Bhutto without the interference of the military. Early elections must be held, and the country must return to civilian rule. Pakistan's population is, contrary to the impression of many pundits in the United States, mostly moderate and uninterested in the Taliban form of Islam. But if the United States and "democracy" become associated in their minds with military dictatorship, arbitrary dismissal of judges, and political instability, they may turn to other kinds of politics, far less favorable to the United States. Musharraf may hope that the Pakistani military will stand with him even if the vast majority of people turn against him. It is a forlorn hope, and a dangerous one, as the shah of Iran discovered in 1978-79. ' "

MUSHARRAF BLAMES CHIEF JUSTICE FOR HIS OWN CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS

In taking the oath to protect and defend Pakistan's Constitution, President Pervez Musharraf blames the recent constitutional crisis on Ifthikar Chaudhry, the deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan's Supreme Court.

Carlotta Gall writes in today's The New York Times:

"Mr. Musharraf defended his record in power, saying that he had always intended to lead the country toward democracy and to remove his uniform, but had to act in the interest of Pakistan’s stability.

"He said he had to impose emergency rule on Nov. 3, and delay removing his uniform, because of a clash between state institutions, namely the judiciary and the government, and the growing threat of terrorism.


"He blamed Mr. Chaudhry, the former chief justice, for derailing his planned transition to democracy and suggested it was a conspiracy hatched against him. (Emphases added).


"“I feel this derailment could have led the nation to chaos,” Mr. Musharraf said. He said he had not wanted to impose the emergency rule but in light of a growing threat from terrorism and the clashes between the judiciary and the executive, he had acted in the country’s interests.


"“This was an extraordinary circumstance, ladies and gentlemen, it needed extraordinary measures to control,” he said. “No half-hearted measures could have delivered.”

Musharraf blames the constitutional crisis on the Chief Justice because Chaudhry would not go along with Musharraf's scheme to remain head of the army at the same time Musharraf was running for president.


"Let's kill all the lawyers [and judges]" is the operative phrase when the king cannot get them to rule in his favor. And this is what Musharraf has done. Because the Pakistani Bar would not support his power-grabbing ambitions, he has imprisoned them and had his police attack them. Then he tries in Bush-like fashion to blame them for the destruction of the rule of law.

BUSH SHOWS CONTEMPT FOR RULE OF LAW IN PAKISTAN

So now Musharraf has the go ahead from his "Supreme Court" to become president even though he was elected during a time that he was also head of the Armed Forces, something that violates the Pakistani Constitution. No matter that he arrested or suspended those Justices who refused to go along with his power-grabbing scheme, or that he had police beat and arrest thousands of lawyers and judges who took to the streets to protest against the acts of a dictator.

If I was a Pakistani lawyer, I would be outraged at Musharraf, and even more incensed about Bush's statement a few days ago that Musharraf is a supporter of democracy and that his actions have "not crossed the line." So Bush believes that dismissing Justices of the Supreme Court who would not vote to allow Musharraf to fashion himself into ruler for life does not cross the line? I thought George Bush was the great white American beacon for all things democratic and free?

Pamela Constable writes in today's The Washington Post that Pakistanis resent Bush's statement of confidence in Musharraf, notwithstanding the decision of Musharraf's new hand-picked Pakistani Supreme Court to clear the way for Musharraf to remain in power.

Constable reports:

"Even if the planned elections are flawed, however, they could be sufficient to earn Musharraf a reprieve from mounting international criticism of his rule. Musharraf is a longtime U.S. ally in the war against terrorism, and the Bush administration, while urging him to lift emergency rule, has continued to support him and to suggest it will be satisfied if he fulfills his pledge to step down as army chief and hold elections.

"Earlier this week, President Bush said Musharraf had not yet "crossed the line" and that he believed the Pakistani leader was a believer in democracy and "a man of his word." On Thursday, protesters here carried posters saying, "Where is the line, Mr. Bush?" and showing cartoons of Musharraf and Gen. Mohammed Zia ul-Haq, a former Pakistani dictator, as "Bush's favorite democrats.""

Bush for all his blusterings about democracy shows himself to be a supporter of anti-democratic dictators. By allowing Musharraf to dismiss the Pakistani Justices, substitute his own stooges, and to beat and imprison lawyers, Bush shows his contempt for the rule of law and an independent judiciary.

MUSHARRAF AFRAID OF PAKISTAN SUPREME COURT AND PAKISTANI LAWYERS

This whole Musharraf affair aims squarely at overturning the judiciary and negating the lawyers of Pakistan. Musharraf claims he had to declare martial law and suspend the Pakistan Constitution because of the threat of terrorism. That's transparently false. He has just wanted to avoid an adverse decision of the Pakistan Supreme Court barring him from holding the presidency at the same time as he is the head of the Army. Musharraf fears the judiciary and lawyers of Pakistan.

However, to hear George Bush dictate to another country what it must and must not do is sickening. Bush tells Musharraf to restore constitutional rights, yet Bush himself has violated the U.S. Constitution continuously during his presidency. (Thanks to Think Progress. org for initially pointing out the hypocrisies.) Consider the Bush violations of: the Fourth Amendment by stealing telephone records and by eavesdropping without a valid warrant issued by an independent judge or magistrate; the Eighth Amendment by inflicting torture and other cruel punishments on prisoners suspected of being terrorists; the Fifth Amendment by denying due process to the prisoners at Guantanamo and others. Bush loves to dictate to others but as for himself he should be brought up on criminal charges for the constitutional violations he has committed.

GEN. MUSHARRAF DISMISSES CHIEF JUSTICE, IMPOSES MARTIAL LAW

Gen. Pervaez Musharraf finally beat the Pakistani Supreme Court. Dismissing Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, the Chief Justice, before the court could rule that Musharraf could not be both president and head of the army under the Pakistani Constitution, Musharraf declared martial rule and appointed his own people to be justices on the Supreme Court.

The BBC reports:

" . . . [R]esentment is brewing among the judges of the higher judiciary. More than 60 judges, out of a total of 97, have declined to take oath under the new Provisional Constitutional Order (PCO).

"Their homes have been placed under strict security, presumably to prevent them from going to the courts on Monday, as some of them plan to do.

"In a hurriedly-called sitting on Saturday evening, seven Supreme Court judges issued an order barring the government from proclaiming emergency rule, and advising the state functionaries not to carry out emergency orders, if issued."

No wonder lawyers have taken to the street to resist Musharraf's destruction of the rule of law in Pakistan. Because Musharraf did not like the decision that he feared from the Supreme Court, he simply dismissed the justices and appointed those he knows would rule in his favor.

Writes the BBC:

"This order is likely to be used by the leaders of the lawyers' movement to mobilise agitation against the government. An act of defiance by the judges could further exacerbate the situation.
"The lawyers' movement emerged in March when Gen Musharraf tried to remove the country's Chief Justice, Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry, from his post."