In Pakistan, Grip Tightens as U.S. Protests
Rice says aid to Pakistan under review, but Defense Dept says aid will continue.
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 4, 2007 — -- The tension in Islamabad is rapidly increasing. Hundreds of opposition leaders, lawyers and activists have been rounded up across Pakistan, as President Pervez Musharraf tightens his grip on power.
Independent Pakistani media is still off the air, and international media, including ABC News, was not allowed to transmit from local media installations. Satellite transmissions using a videophone were used as a backup.
There were also reports of cell phone and computer blackouts for lengthy periods of time.
The U.S. embassy issued the following statement: "The government of the United States is gravely concerned about orders by the government of Pakistan to suppress the news media and to detain lawyers, politicians, human rights activists and others during the proclamation of emergency. Such extreme and unreasonable measures are clearly not in Pakistan's best interest, and contradict the progress Pakistan has made toward becoming a fully democratic society. We urge the government of Pakistan to quickly lift the detention orders and immediately permit broadcasters to resume their programming, thereby ensuring that all citizens can take a constructive role in peaceful progress toward democratic elections."
The presidential palace and all government buildings in downtown Islamabad were off limits, with barriers and police keeping people hundreds of yards from the facilities. But the police seemed relaxed, with riot gear thrown into nearby piles as the officers lounged in the sun.
There have been no major demonstrations in Pakistan's capital city, which may be in part due to the fact that many of the opposition leaders have been detained.
Today, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz echoed what President Musharaff said in his address last night, saying, "These extraordinary measures, which are limited in certain ways, are to ensure effective governance. They are there to ensure the right of the government to maintain law and order and security, to contain extremism, and to bring harmony amongst the various pillars of the state -- pillars being the executive, thejudiciary, and the legislature."
