Asia (West & South)

You probably know by now that Benazir Bhutto has been assassinated, and a couple of dozen other people murdered besides. It is just one of thousands upon thousands of tragedies visited upon the region, but with wider repercussions. It is the last thing Pakistan needs right now, and by extension, the last thing the region and the world needs.

I just finished Ayesha Siddiqa's important book, "Military Inc." I'll say a few words about it - I hope to write something more extensive for ZNet in the coming days or weeks as well. But more from Dawn, first.

The situation in Pakistan hasn't stabilized and there is still some pressure on the regime to lift the emergency and, hopefully, back off even further. The regime has released some of its opponents from house arrest - though, as in other dictatorships (Haiti's comes to mind) the high-profile detainees always do far better than the no-profile ones.

So Benazir Bhutto is back under house arrest - the regime is trying to prevent her from leading a major protest, a cross-country caravan. The regime has also tried to placate international opinion by promising elections in January.

Reading the incredible Pakistani daily newspaper the Dawn, it is difficult to link what is happening in the regions with what is happening in the capital.

Musharraf's self-coup regime has put Benazir Bhutto under house arrest. 5000 of her supporters were rounded up too. The judiciary protests continue as well. Before her house was surrounded by military, Bhutto had announced her intention to reinstate the ousted judiciary that was the main target of the coup. The general announced that he intends to allow elections by February 15, but there is no reason to take that seriously.

Let no one say that the people of Pakistan took this coup lightly. Let no one say that the courts and the human rights activists in the cities, who were the coup's principal targets, went gently. They are taking incredible risks in the streets and their courage has already forced Musharraf's regime to back off somewhat and the international community to say a few obvious things.

Interesting isn't it, given that Musharraf took power claiming that he needs the power to deal with "threats" and alluding to Islamic extremism, how the post-coup roundups are of human rights activists and supreme court justices. These regimes just aren't that scared of what they say they're scared of, are they?

In trying to decide where to focus some of my analysis in the coming weeks and months, the interface between South and West Asia keeps coming up. Readers may have seen that Musharraf has made his move in Pakistan, declaring a state of emergency, and dismissing the Chief Justice. Presumably this is to pre-empt a political process in which he might lose power.

Last night I went to the preview screening of the Toronto opening of Amu the Film. It was a treat because the director, Shonali Bose, and the producer were there for Q & A afterwards. It is actually a very clever political film because it is very strong and honest as a film and the politics are not at all contrived. The opposite is true, in fact: the politics are conveyed through a very human story that is also a very political story.

I haven't said anything about the quake in Pakistan and Kashmir. I am at a bit of a loss. There are some good articles on ZNet South Asia Watch, including one by Hoodbhoy.