July 26th, 2010 by Jennifer

Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani has decided to extend the term of his military chief, Gen. Ashfaq Pervez Kayani, by three more years, in light of Pakistan’s ongoing campaign against the Taliban. The extension is the first of its kind with a civilian government in power, and has sparked concerns that the decision may undermine the authority of the parliament.  Talat Masood, a retired Pakistani Army general and a military analyst, dismisses such concerns, arguing that “the extension has been given not for political reasons but for professional reasons,” and adding that Kayani has “been a supporter of democracy.” However, according to Rasul Baksh Raaes, a political analyst at the Lahore University of Management Sciences, the decision shows that “the civilian leaders have failed to establish their constitutional supremacy over the military and the military remains a very powerful institution.” According to Omar Waraich writing in Time, the decision represents an indication that “the civilian government is too unpopular and too weak to resist a powerful army chief’s whims” and has made Kayani “the most powerful man in the country.” Waraich explains that although Kayani has avoided overtly interfering in political affairs, he nevertheless holds enormous clout, quoting the analysis of editor-in-chief of the Friday Times Najam Sethi, who has argued that “‘when it comes to policy in regards to the U.S., Afghanistan and India, it is General Kayani who is calling the shots.’” Arguing that the U.S. will likely support the decision given the critical stage of the conflict in Afghanistan, and noting that a previous extension on military leadership in Pakistani history led to a series of dictatorships, Waraich says that “the episode repeats a familiar cycle, in which the geopolitical agendas of others inevitably put military men in power.”

Posted in Democracy Promotion, Military, Pakistan, US foreign policy |