Whitehouse only interested to make Benazir Pakistan’s PM

The White house on Friday called for the release of its prime ministerial candidate Benazir Bhutto from house arrest. A White house spokesman said it is “crucial for Pakistan’s future that moderate political forces work together to bring Pakistan back on the path to democracy.” Washington wants its game plan of engineering the election of Bhutto as Prime Minister under a continued Musharraf presidency to remain on track, not withstanding the general’s crackdown on Pakistani civil society.
The Bush administration has so far winked at Musharraf’s sacking of Supreme Court judges, whose presumed ruling against the general’s re-election as president caused him to impose emergency. Bush till date has quietly endorsed Musharraf’s continuation as president although that is yet to be legally upheld. American media have ridiculed the Bush administration’s shallow response to Pakistan’s crisis time and again even then; the Bush administration has been notably silent on the large-scale arrest and incarceration of lawyers and civil right activists except for generic calls for their release. In contrast, the American civil society and human rights activists have been campaigning vigorously to free lawyers and civil right activists. Even the United Nations has put pressure on Musharraf. But predictably Washington’s only agenda appears to be to ensure that Benazir Bhutto is not harmed and she arrives at a “power sharing arrangement” with Musharraf.