Word: zardari
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...troops to neighboring Afghanistan, its principal aim is to keep Islamabad's attention on stanching the flow of militants across the border. Toward that end, Army Chief Gen. Ashfaq Kayani - who has been keen to win support for his troops' faltering campaign against the militants - met on Friday with Zardari and his Prime Minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani. Although Pakistan's army has routinely staged political interventions, analysts believe that it is unwilling to seize power in another military coup. But as Zardari and Sharif joust for control over Punjab, the largest province and the home of the bulk...
...politicians continue to stagger toward a head-on collision. As Washington and its allies watch with mounting anxiety, the government has broadened its crackdown, requisitioning troops and silencing a leading TV news channel. A senior government minister has resigned in protest over the media clampdown, but President Asif Ali Zardari appears unwilling to negotiate under pressure. And his chief rival, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, is pressing ahead with preparations for a lawyer-led protest march due to arrive in the capital of Islamabad on Monday...
...insecurity, fears are growing that the current clash between political rivals could push the country further toward the precipice. Senior U.S. and British envoys have attempted to pull the two sides back. In the most high-profile intervention yet, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made phone calls to both Zardari and Sharif on Saturday. According to a statement from the Pakistani President's office, Clinton "discussed the prevailing situation in Pakistan and said the U.S. was keen to see a stable and democratic system strengthened in the country." Earlier in the week, the U.S. ambassador to Pakistan paid visits...
...Zardari's popularity has fallen steadily since he reneged on reinstating Chaudhry. Pakistan's vocal media has taunted him with video footage of his slain wife vowing to restore the independent-minded judiciary. Zardari allies argue that Chaudhry has become "too politicized"; they also worry that the former Chief Justice could paralyze the government with judicial activism if restored to office. Critics charge that the President only wants pliant judges who won't threaten to revive corruption charges against...
Analysts believe the crackdown will make Zardari even more unpopular, while boosting the standing of Sharif, a man once loathed for his own earlier attacks on the judiciary. "It's a very ominous turn of events," said Farzana Shaikh, a Pakistan expert at London's Royal Institute of International Affairs. "These are not actions that one normally associates with an elected government that has flaunted its democratic credentials." While she rules out a coup, Shaikh believes that Zardari's latest maneuvering will "create great consternation in the senior ranks of the army." General Ashfaq Kayani made a surprise visit...