|
Islamabad: The leader of a key party in Pakistan's shaky ruling coalition indicated yesterday that he wants to join the opposition because of the government's failure to reinstate judges fired by President Pervez Musharraf, but he wouldn't do so yet.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made the comments as he prepared to join lawyer-led protests aimed at pressuring the new government to restore the justices and pushing the US-backed president to resign.
Sharif's party wants the government to order the judges back to their posts. But its senior coalition partner, the party of Asif Ali Zardari, wants to include their restoration in a cumbersome package of constitutional reforms.
Long March
The judges dispute - as well as differences over how to deal with common rival Musharraf - have severely strained the coalition, with Sharif's party deciding to join the lawyers in their so-called "Long March" protests this week.
Sharif called it a "national duty" of Pakistanis to join the protests. The main procession left the central city of Multan on its way to Lahore yesterday.
The protests are to end in a rally and sit-in at Parliament in the capital, Islamabad, later this week.
"This is a war for democracy and we will win it through democratic means," Sharif said in the capital. He added that the marches should be peaceful and that he would join protesters in Lahore today.
Asked if he would join the opposition benches because of the delay in restoring the judges, Sharif said "my heart also wants the same" but that he could not make such an announcement now. Sharif has already pulled his ministers from the Cabinet, but has said in the past that leaving the coalition would only strengthen Musharraf, his despised rival who ousted his government in a 1999 military coup.
|
