ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The head of Pakistan’s new leading party said Wednesday that it will push to reinstate the country’s embattled judiciary and lift restrictions placed on the news media under the leadership of President Pervez Musharraf.
Asif Ali Zardari, co-chair of the Pakistan People’s Party and widower of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, said he will work with other parties in parliament for the reinstatement of the chief justice of the Supreme Court and called for the release of several judges and lawyers currently under detention.
“We want the judiciary to be an independent institution,” Zardari, whose party captured more votes than any other in Monday’s vote, said during a news conference at his home Wednesday.
Restoration of the judiciary has been a flashpoint issue for politicians here since last year, when Musharraf sacked chief justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry and detained several lawyers. Zardari plans to meet with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif today to discuss the possible formation of a coalition.
The outcome of the political alliance-building will not only determine parliament’s next choice for prime minister, but it will also have significant ramifications for the U.S.-backed counterterrorism efforts here.
The United States has spent more than $10 billion in aid to Pakistan to bolster the fight against militants in the country’s restive tribal areas and northwest frontier. But newly empowered parties in parliament could diverge from Musharraf’s strategy. Zardari said Wednesday that his party wants to redefine Pakistan’s struggle with Muslim extremists and smooth the way toward greater political inclusion for the millions that live in Pakistan’s tribal regions.
Musharraf, in an interview Tuesday with The Wall Street Journal, vowed to stay in office despite the poor electoral performance of his Pakistan Muslim League-Q.
