The Bubbling Cauldron...
The Supreme Court of Pakistan has done what it was expected to do---struck down the time and purpose serving National Reconciliation Ordnance as being contrary to the Constitution of Pakistan.
The Supreme Court of Pakistan has done what it was expected to do---struck down the time and purpose serving National Reconciliation Ordnance as being contrary to the Constitution of Pakistan. If the NRO had been enacted with the broader purpose of eventually being the forerunner to some kind of Grand National reconciliation it may not have met the same fate. If the government had had the vision to convert it into a measure for harmony, strengthening democracy and promoting political stability it may have survived. The NRO remained what it was---a bad precedent. The run up to the Supreme Court decision was seen by some as a conspiracy of sorts to derail democracy and some even saw it as an attempt bring back a military backed government. This never made sense. The military has a no interference policy that allows the dynamics of political situations to play out—they are keeping their hands off and out of politics. The Court’s decision stands out as a testimony to its complete freedom---hard won freedom. The idea that this decision came about because of prodding by some mysterious ‘establishment’ is preposterous. This was a unanimous decision by a 17 member bench of an independent court—a widely appreciated and welcomed first for Pakistan. With the NRO consigned to oblivion the situation of the court cases returns to the pre October5, 2007 situation. The Supreme Court has indicated that it does not want the ‘system’ derailed nor does it want indefinite court proceedings—in fact they want these cases to be decided ‘expeditiously’. The fact that the Supreme Court decision has been accepted by the government as fair and just and upholding of the law and constitution is good and possibly the reason why there has been no chaos. The hope on all sides is that justice will prevail and if there was political motivation behind the cases it will stand exposed. No one wants a witch hunt---certainly not the judiciary or the military.