Pakistan Election - Saturday 11 May 2013

[Orphia Nay]

The election is underway today in Pakistan.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-22487805

The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) along with the Karachi-based Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) and the Awami National Party (ANP) have been singled out for attacks by the Taliban.

Ten people have been killed in an attack on the ANP in Karachi today.

There were also reports of explosions in Peshawar in the north-west of the country and Quetta in the south-west. At least five people were hurt in Peshawar when a bomb went off attached to a motorcycle.

Militants have so far avoided targeting the campaigns of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) of Nawaz Sharif and the Tehreek-e-Insaf (Movement for Justice)[PTI] party of Imran Khan.

More than 600,000 security and army personnel have been deployed to guard against possible attacks on polling day.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-05-11/pakistanis-brave-taliban-threats-to-cast-their-votes/4683544

Mohammed Jahangir, a journalist for a business newspaper, told AFP the election was very important.

"For the first time we have crossed five years of real democracy," he said.

"I think this is going to be the start of true democracy in Pakistan.

"We are moving in the right direction - either PTI comes or N-league comes. Both parties are good."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/10/pakistan-women-clerics-elections-custom

Election authorities say there has been an increase in women candidates this year. But social traditions and threats from the Taliban still hold back female candidates and voters.

Few women that stand in regular constituencies are likely to win, least of all Shaheen. Those that do sit in the next parliament will more likely have been selected for one of the 70 seats reserved for women, which critics say are handed out to female members of well-connected political families.

Lots to watch as this event takes place.

 

[Childlike Empress]

Most polling stations closed an hour ago. Dawn has live coverage.

:

 

[A'isha]

The Taliban has been going after the PPP, the ANP, and especially the MQM for years now, so their attacks now are unsurprising.

Their giving Khan's PTI a pass is also unsurprising.

 

[Childlike Empress]

Progressive results here.

 

[A'isha]

I hope Naina Lal and her fellow candidates do well.

 

[Orphia Nay]

Sharif has declared victory, but it's not clear if the PML-N will have enough seats to not need to form a coalition.

 

[Childlike Empress]

Disappointing.

I was wondering what happened to that strange preacher who made headlines organizing mass protests some time ago. Deducted from observing twitter that a certain #TuQ aka Dr. Tahir-ul-Qadri told his followers to boycott the election as the system was so corrupt that only "the same evil faces" would emerge anyway. And now his followers say "told you so" to Khan's followers, who are undecided if they should accuse #TuQ's followers of having initiated a self-fulfilling prophecy or the system of #rigging the vote. Both with some justification, apparently. Unfortunate. #TuQ has called for post-election rallies and if Khan's followers join, it could get ugly tomorrow.

Could be though that the most realistic tweet I read was along the lines of "#ImranKhan trending in social media while #NawazSharif is trending in the real world".

 

[A'isha]

Qadri is...a mixed bag. He's the one who's responsible for Pakistan's blasphemy law, but he's certainly no darling of the Islamist fringe.

And his complaints about corruption and how the current system shows only "the same evil faces" ring kind of hollow, considering he was one of General Zia's loyal catspaws back in the day.

 

[Orphia Nay]

Could be though that the most realistic tweet I read was along the lines of "#ImranKhan trending in social media while #NawazSharif is trending in the real world".

I agree the result so far is disappointing, but thanks for making me smile about it.

 

[Childlike Empress]

"The cleric and the cricket player", as the dead-eyed propagandist doing the dirty work for Washington puts it, are leading mass protests over what they claim is proven vote-rigging, demanding that Nawaz Sharif has to go. This could get "interesting" (i.e. worth mentioning and spinning by the pre$$titutes) soon.

 

[Childlike Empress]

Pakistan: 294 Injured, 7 Dead as Protesters Break Down Parliament House Gate

Anti-government protesters were fired on with heavy tear gas by security forces as they marched towards the Parliament House and Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's official residence on Saturday (30 August).

Seven people are dead and 294 injured, most of them women and children, the Express Tribune confirmed.

As Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) supporters marched towards the PM's official residence and broke down the gates of the Parliament House using a truck, government leaders continued to order arrests of all the injured people being brought into hospitals for treatment.

Doctors across the capital have also been ordered not to officially comment on the number injured, reported ARY News. [...]

Meanwhile, government officials, including Pakistan PM Sharif remained firm today (30 August) despite the scores of injured women and children mocking the concept of a 'democracy' by questioning why women participated in the protests in the first place.

"The government has a limit as well. No one forced women and children to take part in the protests, they joined in willingly. You live by sword, you die by sword. We were forced to take action. We had no choice but to use force," said Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif in retaliation. [...]

2014, from a non-personal point of view, definitely sucks.

 

[Orphia Nay]

Thanks for the news, CE, even if it's not good news.