Pakistan election puts US in dilemma
The United States hopes Pakistan's upcoming election will be free and fair and bring an end to domestic violence so that Islamabad can focus on the "war on terror." But it may not get what it wants.
In addition, experts warn, any post-election violence that results in a confrontation between President Pervez Musharraf or the powerful military and moderate democratic forces could force Washington to make a difficult choice on who to back.
Even before the ballot Monday, the State Department has predicted some rigging was expected in the election process to be supervised by a commission that lacked neutrality and independence.
Human Rights Watch, a US group, claimed Thursday it had obtained an audio recording in which Pakistan's Attorney General Malik Qayyum stated that the elections will be "massively rigged."
The popular Pakistan People's Party of assassinated ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto has threatened mass agitation if fraud denies it victory.
On the other hand, Musharraf, a top US "war on terror" ally, vowed to crush any opposition protests against result of the poll he pledged would be free and fair.
Against the ominous backdrop, US security officials fear any internal strife could divert Islamabad's attention from what they call the very urgent task of flushing out al-Qaeda and Taliban militants from their Pakistan "safe haven."
"Just about every political player in the Pakistani elections has already declared in words or deeds that 'good elections' are not going to happen," said the Centre for American Progress, a Washington-based think tank.
Meanwhile, in Pakistan's political hub Lahore election posters plaster almost every lamppost, with eclectic party logos and impassioned candidates' faces staring out at potential voters.
One image is absent -- the mustachioed, bespectacled face of President Pervez Musharraf, the man who has dominated Pakistan for nearly a decade and whose approval ratings have plunged amid turmoil and economic hardship.
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