The victory of the Pakistani Peoples Party (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslims League – Nawaz (PML-N), in parliamentary elections was a severe blow for Musharraf and a demonstration of the strength of feeling against him. A L5I supporter in Pakistan reports on the election, looks to the future, and asks will the PPP impeach Musharraf?
The whole situation in the country is now more than ever marked by the war on terror. It has been truly terrible for Pakistan. The war in the border regions continues, while terrorist attacks threaten the cities. The country is also now gripped by the beginnings of a severe economic crisis, as food and fuel prices rise dramatically. The people are angry and want a change – even if there is only the bourgeois PPP and PML-N parties to vote for. The turn out was not high because people were scared about violence. The army on the street was a further intimidating factor since the army remains behind Musharraf.
The two main parties will try and form a coalition as they try and establish a national government. The PPP and PML-N however do not represent a radical break from the policies of the previous government. They are in favour of the war on terror (although the PML-N less openly so) and tied to the imperialists in the West. Indeed, Benazir Bhutto had several high level meetings with leaders in Washington and London before her return as they primed her for carrying out their dirty work in Pakistan. They also have the same fundamentally the same neo liberal economic policies. This means they have no way to solve the economic crisis except by attacking the working class and reducing the living standards. It is only a matter of time before they begin to struggle against the left and progressive movements.
Many progressive forces, including supporters of the League, called for a boycott of these elections. Clearly it was not possible for revolutionaries to vote for these capitalist parties. But in addition, these elections were held in the shadow of the state of emergency, which Musharraf used to stabilise his personal power and purge the judiciary of any forces that questioned him. Rather than corrupt, sham elections while this military bonpartist was still in power we said down with Musharraf and for an immediate constituent assembly.
In all the enormous revolutionary crises of the last year the last of which was the five days of riots following Bhutto’s assassination the PPP in particular have sought to derail the movement into compromise with Musharraf and the military. Now the PPP face an enormous test. They have said they will form a government with the PML-N and not with Musharraf supporters in parliament. However, they have now played down calls for re-instatement of the judiciary, and for the rolling back any of the constitutional changes brought in by Musharraf during the state of emergency – that centralised power in the hands of the presidency.
Despite the constitutional changes, together the PML-N and PPP have enough seats in parliament to impeach Musharraf. It is vital that all progressive, working class and leftist forces in Pakistan now demands they use these powers. The PPP in particular are reluctant to do this, knowing that a constitutional crisis could quickly spill into a revolutionary crisis that challenges the very stability of bourgeois class rule.
One of the few groups left groups that participated in the elections was the Class Struggle group (part of the International Marxist Tendency) which stood three IMT candidates that were standing as PPP candidates, including Manzoor Ahmed who was previously an MP. All three candidates lost the vote, and Ahmed lost his seat in parliament. They put forward the idea the mad idea that is increasingly exposed by events in Pakistan that the PPP are a working class party with a programme for socialism. In truth we know that the PPP is a party of the landowners, small traders and capitalists. It is supported by many poor peasants and some workers, but only because there is no real working class party.
Supporters of the League in Pakistan continue to make strides forward. Despite only being a very new group we are already becoming a national organisation. We will continue to campaign amongst the working class and progressive movements for a new working class party, won to a revolutionary socialist programme.