In a small note on page 5 of November 10's Washington Post, it was reported that the Bush administration has found that it is not legally required to cut or suspend "hundreds of millions of dollars" in aid to Pakistan, despite's Musharraf's declaration of de facto martial law, despite "numerous legislative requirements" that would trigger automatic aid cutoffs in the wake of Musharraf's crackdown on activists and the media — they are all covered by "locked-in" presidential waivers which exempt Pakistan from aid restrictions.

So much for supporting democracy.


In this panel, the Bush/Musharraf regime's open contempt for democracy is well articulated by Senator Azim Khan of Musharraf's ruling party.
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Mr. Ehsan Iqbal, currently in hiding somewhere in Pakistan, pleads for public participation in civic life as the only basis for any sort of national development and progress.
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Aitzaz Ahsan describes the continuing US/military/fundamentalist alliance that dates back to US and Saudi support for anti-soviet mujaheddin during the cold war.
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Aqil Shah provides a scholarly overview of the situation at the time (2004), emphasizing the fact of dictatorship (something we don't hear emphasized much in the US) and the role of the military.
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