The assassination of Benazir Bhutto in December has thrown Pakistan into further turmoil ahead of the scheduled parliamentary elections, which are scheduled for February 18^th. Already in a volatile state for much of this year following Musharraf's attempted sacking of the Chief Justice, the lawyers' movement, Musharraf's Lal Masjid massacre and his recent state of Emergency, Pakistan has seen an outbreak of renewed violence and tension across much of the country. Together with the ongoing flour crisis, the sharp increase in the price of other food items and the frequent power outages, life for ordinary Pakistanis has become intolerable. Coupled with Western forces engaged on it's Western front threatening to bring the so called ‘War on Terror' across it's borders, Pakistan faces an unprecedented existential crisis not seen before in it's 60 year history.

At the centre of this crisis lies General Pervez Musharraf and his alliance with America and the West. By joining America in her ‘War on Terror' in return for billions of dollars, Musharraf and his fellow army Generals are acting against the overwhelming sentiment of the Muslims in Pakistan. They are helping to wage war on fellow Muslims in the tribal areas and Afghanistan. For the West, Pakistan is absolutely critical in sustaining in it's occupation of Afghanistan and their greater strategic objective of securing Central Asia's huge oil and gas wealth. Without the supply lines and air corridors that run through Pakistan, the occupation of Afghanistan would be virtually impossible.

Musharaff's betrayal

Musharraf's actions since 2001 have resulted in him and his regime becoming hated by the common man in Pakistan. His abandonment of the Kashmir cause in favour of India, his arrest and humiliation of Dr A.Q.Khan on unproven charges of nuclear proliferation and his decision to allow America to help ‘guard' Pakistan's nuclear weapons have all contributed to this. His regime's desire to recognise Israel, the kidnapping and handing over of Pakistanis to America, the war on his own people in the tribal areas, the Lal Masjid assault and the continuing deterioration of living standards for the bulk of the people in Pakistan are the main reasons why he is vehemently hated. The ongoing flour crisis shows that for the average person in Pakistan, despite all the claims of the economy progressing, the Musharraf regime cannot even ensure supplies of an essential food staple. In particular Musharraf's actions have shown he holds Islam in complete contempt as he espouses his ‘enlightened moderation'. Musharraf is seen as nothing but a traitor to the Muslims of Pakistan, one who willingly serves his masters in Washington.

The consequence has been that the authority of his regime has gradually eroded, something that was all but predictable. In his recent state of Emergency, it was the judges, lawyers and journalists who bore the burnt of his crackdown. His attacks on the judiciary and civil society of Pakistan have demonstrated that his claims of fighting extremism are untrue. Functional organs of civil society were the real targets for the Musharraf regime.

Musharraf's struggle to somehow get himself ‘re-elected' as President has been the real issue behind his crackdown over the past few months. Musharraf has initiated a completely farcical and unconstitutional process, which lacks any credibility whatsoever. To prolong Musharraf's grip on power, Washington unashamedly tried to bring Musharraf and Benazir Bhutto together in a political deal, which saw the secular politician willingly team up with the dictator.

The February 18^th elections are designed to provide the final rubber stamp for the Washington backed regime. The sudden death of Bhutto may have thrown the fate of these elections into doubt, but nobody doubts that this part of the script will eventually be completed, where the elections will be conveniently engineered to deliver the right result.

The truth is that the Musharraf regime's gradual demise, Washington's constant interference, the Pakistan military's role in politics and another bout of elections touted as the solution to Pakistan's problems are all too familiar to Pakistanis' who see this as a part of a vicious cycle of political failure they have warily grown used to. A recent call by senior retired military officers' in Pakistan for Musharraf to go demonstrates Musharraf is rapidly losing support even within his own constituency of the military. Today it is the Musharraf regime which is on it's last legs; yesterday it was Nawaz Sharif's government that was thrown out much to the relief of the Public, such was it's record for corruption and misrule. Preceding that it was Bhutto's government for much the same reason, with power alternating between the two. Whatever ruler, whether military or civilian has come to power, he or she has been forced from power either in humiliation or been killed on the job. Such has been Pakistan's politics.

All of this leads one to question the very system and political ideology underpinning Pakistan. Pakistan was supposed to be the ‘land of the pure', created for the Muslims of the Indian sub-continent. It's vision, under the two-nation theory, was to provide a homeland where the Muslims could live safely under Islam, free from Hindu domination. In the 1920s the sub-continent saw the Khilafat movement in the wake of the weakening and eventual destruction of the Uthmani Khilafah in 1924. The creation of Pakistan was part of the culmination of a long struggle against colonial British rule in the sub-continent that was supposed to revive the Muslims again.

Yet since it's creation, Pakistan has had to contend with almost constant political uncertainty and turmoil. Whether it has been a military dictatorship or an elected democratic civilian government, the Muslims of Pakistan have had to endure successive corrupt rulers who have done very little to improve their lives. Their vision for a land of Islam, for which many of their forefathers paid with their blood and their lives at the time of independence, has been betrayed. Instead poverty and a failing state have become their lot. Together with the continued meddling and servitude to the colonial West, many in Pakistan have never experienced real liberation.

Colonial legacy

The ruling system in place today has it's origins in colonial British rule. The constitution, the parliamentary ruling system and the separation of Islam from the affairs of governance have all been based on Western political thought and systems. The lasting legacy of British rule has also seen the deliberate concentration of wealth and power in the hands of the few. Today these feudal landlords in Pakistan, their forefathers rewarded for their services to the British Raj, constitute just 5% of the population yet control 66% of the land. Many of the vast bulk of the 170 million people in Pakistan are nothing more than chattel for these feudals, living as peasants on their land, which rightfully should have been theirs in the first place. More than two third's of the National Assembly is dominated by representatives from this feudal landowner class. The problems that have engulfed Pakistan and it's people can rightly be laid at the doors of this ruling political system.

The failure of Pakistani civilian politicians in delivering good governance on every occasion has encouraged and allowed the Pakistani military the excuse of intervening on numerous occasions to ‘save' and run the country. The military represents another oligarch of interests that wants to safeguard it's influence and privileges. The top tier leadership of the military, particularly under the Musharraf regime, has also made great inroads into wealth acquisition in the Pakistani economy, including the ownership of land. Today it is calculated that the military controls up to $20 billion worth of businesses in Pakistan, equivalent to half of Pakistan's external debt.

For thirty-two out of Pakistan's sixty tortured years the military has ruled across three eras. It was under the civilian government of Muhammad Ali Bogra that the military first entered into politics when sitting Army Chief General Ayub Khan was actually invited by Bogra to simultaneously become the Defence minister. Ayub Khan with the co-operation of the civilian President Iskander Mirza became the first Pakistani General to declare martial law in 1958 by overthrowing Bogra's government and subsequently getting rid of Mirza as well. Ayub declared himself President and became the first of several Pakistani Generals to re-write the constitution. General Yahya Khan who deposed Ayub Khan passed his own constitutional amendments known as the Legal Framework Order in 1970 (LFO 1970), which the subsequent elected civilian assembly approved. General Zia ul Haq who came to power in 1977 subsequently passed the Eighth amendment to the Pakistani constitution in 1985 with the aid of civilian politicians which legitimised all of his actions undertaken under martial law in return for ending it

Musharraf who assumed power in 1999 has also passed his own constitutional amendments including his version of a Legal Framework Order (LFO 2002). The 17^th amendment to the constitution in December 2003 allowed Musharraf to do this with help provided by the religious parties (MMA) lead by Maulana Fazlur Rehman and Qazi Hussian Ahmed, who are supposed advocates of democratic rule. Musharraf has since then used the support of the PML(Q), lead by the Chaudaries of Gujrat, to continue his rule.

Whilst it is certainly likely that had these politicians not co-operated with the General in charge at the time, the military would have continued to rule anyway, this would have only been very likely for the short term. In all cases the regimes were beginning to face strong political unrest and faced the prospect of losing all credibility and subsequent loss of power. The whole reason why the military, as can be seen in the case of Pervez Musharraf, wanted such constitutional amendments with the aid of civilian politicians was to ensure longevity of their regimes. The civilian politicians, all to eager to get their share of the spoils and privileges that come with power in such a corrupt system, have been ever ready to strike a deal. The result has been the continuation of misrule and corruption, irrespective of who has held the reins of power. The military has shown it is at adept at holding power by manipulating the ruling system by conveniently fiddling with the constitution and passing amendments or legislation as needed. Crucially, civilian politicians eager to be allowed back into the affairs of running the country, have co-operated every time in legitimising such actions.

Moreover the nepotistic style of passing power from one family generation to another has ensured that the same vested powerful families continue to hold the fate of Pakistan in their hands. One only has to look at the installation of the Bilawal Zardari after his mother's death as the new PPP leader to witness this. His mother prior to him was nominated ‘Chairperson for life'. Parties such as these, who practice no internal accountability and whose leaders are self-appointed rather then elected, can never deliver an accountable government for Pakistan.

The military together with the large feudal landowners represented by the likes of the Bhutto family and the industrialists represented by the likes of Nawaz Sharif have perpetuated their hold by seeking legitimacy through the current ruling system in Pakistan. This facade has continued over the last 60 years either manifesting itself through an ‘elected government' or a complete military dictatorship which then eventually morphs into a hybrid joint military/civilian arrangement. Either way, power revolves amongst the ruling elite in Pakistan who are often further bonded with each other either through blood ties or marriage. Democratic and military rule have gone together hand in hand with each other in Pakistan and have learnt to co-exist for their mutual gain.

The reality is that in such a ruling system, the rich and the powerful will always climb to the top, using their extensive wealth, resources and connections. The ability to legislate at will, the creation and abrogation of man-made law, is the key that makes such ruling possible. Democracy is inheritantly flawed and corrupt because it continuously throws up and loads the dice in favour of the rich and powerful who end up ruling; thus legislation is in their hands, forming a dangerous self-serving enterprise. Under any political system, including the Islamic system of Khilafah, the powerful and influential will always try to further their interests'. This unfortunately is man's instinctive behaviour in most people. The key difference though is that in the Khilafah the Shari'ah cannot be changed by anyone, not even the Khaleefah; a legislative state organ does not exist. Thus, providing the people fulfil their duty in accounting the Khaleefah  and his appointed assistants, it less likely that ruling policies will go unchecked and unopposed; a violation of the Shari'ah will mean a violation of Allah's(SWT) divine law and will weigh heavily on the mind of an ordinary Muslim. Moreover in a country such as Pakistan where only 55% of the population is literate and one third live below the poverty line, the people are at the mercy of the rich and the powerful. The people are prey to easy manipulation and coercion using simplistic campaign promises at election time; most are simply not informed enough to make an enlightened choice if there exists one in the first place. In Pakistan where whole tribes live on the land owned by feudal landowners the poor simply vote for whom they are told to support.

Why impose the flaws of Democracy onto Pakistan?

Today, Pakistani and other Western secularists argue that Pakistan has no other choice. New elections, backed by the West, are now once again being held out as the solution for all of Pakistan's problems. Corrupt or inept politicians in a democratic system are better than none at all according to these people.

This claim however that the West ‘learnt' it's Democracy over a period of a few hundred years and so too will Pakistan is a simplistic and mistaken argument. It ignores the fact that the West itself has growing problems and never has achieved tranquillity in the first place. Moreover it also ignores that to become economically successful the West relied on a large part on colonialism and still does today. Most crucially it ignores the fact that as Muslims we do have a credible alternative; the Khilafah. Why should the Muslims of Pakistan endure hundreds of years of turmoil, with no certainty in the outcome, when the Khilafah rooted in the history of the Muslims, is a proven successful alternative? For the West, Christianity brought ruin and oppression when the clergy was involved in running the affairs of government; for the Muslims the Khilafah brought unparalleled success and progression.

The truth is now that the military and it's PML(Q) civilian proxies have been thoroughly discredited, a change in the faces running the country, perhaps with Musharraf eventually being forced to leave, is what the West and others in Pakistan who have a vested interest in preserving this rotten Pakistani ruling system actually desire The fact is that none of the Pakistani ruling elites – the military, the landowners and the industrialists – see it in their interest to reform such a corrupt system. Why would they work against the very system that has provided so much for them over the last 60 years? Together with the constant meddling and interference of the West to ensure Pakistan remains under it's colonial subservience, there is no chance that the current ruling system in Pakistan will ever deliver equality and good governance. The same parties, the same politicians with the addition of their new younger generation, will again put themselves forward at these elections. How can the political outcome of the elections promised for February 18^th be any different to those in the past?

This is a question that those who advocate change through the current ruling system particularly must answer. Politics in Pakistan is not based on any rational vision or political science; it is based on personality cults and dynasties. The same old political parties and politicians will again be re-aligned into new seats in the National and Provincial assemblies. The same people who have ruled before will again be in control; the promised elections will not change anything apart from saving the current regime. The suggestion of a coalition or ‘national unity' government in the aftermath of these elections is simply another way of selling these tried and failed corrupt politicians.

Those in opposition and others agree that the Musharraf regime will rig the elections to produce a favourable outcome in favour of the PML(Q) and PPP or whoever next strikes a deal. Yet by deciding to take part, these same opposition political parties are only legitimising this election and it's results. A principled position would be to condemn this rotten system and seek to genuinely change it.

Undoubtedly there are many within the ranks of the religious parties in Pakistan who are sincere and yearn for the return of the Islamic ruling system, the Khilafah. Yet the leadership of these parties, by deciding to work within the system only legitimise it and it's actions. Allah سبحانه وتعالى says:

The Muslims of Pakistan as Muslims elsewhere do not recognise the democratic system or any other as one from their heritage and culture. This is why democracy has never really taken root in the last 60 years in Pakistan, as practiced in the West. To do so, it would have to displace Islam from the hearts and minds of the Muslims. The very best intellectuals amongst the Muslims, whose support is crucial in developing a stable political environment and enlightened society, reject such a kufr system. Only the ruling elites in Pakistan, their minds being colonised by the West, make use of such a system to enrich themselves at the expense of the people of Pakistan.

If anything, the very nature of democracy is actually helping to stir up ethnic strife in Pakistan; Pakistan has always had ethnic tensions since it's inception. Various parties formed on their provincial or ethnic identity are only detrimental to the unity of the Nation state. The most recent example of this can be seen in the brutal ethnic violence unleashed in Kenya after it's elections. Democracy only helps to legitimise such ethnic differences; Islam on the other hand bonds all Muslims under one Khilafah because any ethnic or regional nationalism is haraam and not allowed.

Working within such a political system will almost certainly require compromise on Islamic principles; this is an attribute of the democratic system. To pass any legislation in Pakistan one requires a majority of at least 51%; to pass any constitutional amendments requires a two-thirds majority. Despite knowing this and never having attained more than 20% of the seats in parliament, the parties that make up the Mutahida Majlis-e-Ammal (MMA) still participate in the ruling system, thus providing it with legitimacy. Not only do they participate, they actually helped to pass the LFO in the 17^th amendment in December 2003. This legitimised all of Musharraf's actions under his martial law and his changes to the Constitution.

The MMA have also been instrumental in the occupation of Afghanistan and military operations in the tribal regions of Pakistan. Despite ruling the NWFP provincial government, they have been unable to prevent the use of NWFP territory being used to facilitate the killing of Muslims in the tribal areas and Afghanistan. Supplies to the American and NATO armies pass through their territory. As Allah سبحانه وتعالى says:

أَ فَتُؤْمِنُونَ بِبَعْضِ الْكِتَابِ وَتَكْفُرُونَ بِبَعْضٍ فَمَا جَزَاءُ مَنْ يَفْعَلُ ذَلِكَ مِنْكُمْ إِلاَّ خِزْيٌ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَيَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ يُرَدُّونَ إِلَى أَشَدِّ الْعَذَابِ

"Do you believe in a part of the Book and reject the rest? What else, then should be the retribution of those among you who do this than that they should live in degradation in the present life, and that on the Day of Resurrection they should be sent to the severest chastisement?" [Surah Al-Baqarah 2:85]

To think that change in the Muslim world can be achieved through ‘democracy' is simply wishful thinking; looking at the examples of Turkey and Algeria one can see this is not possible. Despite even winning elections, the Islamist parties such as the AKP in Turkey have been unable to re-establish the Khilafah or enforce the Shari'ah in it's totality. In fact in Algeria, the election results won by the Islamic parties were simply nullified by the Algerian army with the blessing of the West. The leaders of these Islamic parties in Pakistan are naïve if they think the present system will allow itself to be changed into a genuine Islamic State. In fact, by participating in the system it is often they who get changed by diluting their original goals and helping to preserve the corrupt system.

Pakistan is at a very critical juncture; what will happen in the next few months will be decisive to it's fate. The elections scheduled for February 18^th will change nothing, the apathy amongst ordinary Pakistanis can be felt everywhere. They are only designed to preserve the corrupt ruling system. The only people who will benefit from this are Pakistan's ruling elite and the West. With Pakistan at the foot of the Gulf and bordering Afghanistan, the gateway to the riches of Central Asia, the West sees greater strategic objectives to be secured in Pakistan; a representative government is the last thing it needs in it's game plan. The mantra of ‘democracy' uttered by western politicians today is really a call for new cosmetic changes to help preserve the status quo.

A University of Maryland survey in 2007 showed Pakistanis want the Shariah, a government based on ‘Islamic principles' and where it mentions ‘democratic ideals' it reflects Muslims desire for  an independent judiciary and elected representatives. The Quran, the Sunnah, Ijma-e-Sahaba and Qiyas would be the source of all legislation, this being the fundamental difference between the Shariah in the Khilafah and man-made law in a democracy.

The removal of Musharraf and his regime by itself will not solve the problem; another General or civilian government will simply take his place and follow the betrayal and failed policies already seen in the last 60 years of Pakistan's history. What is urgently needed now before further calamities befall the Muslims in Pakistan is an end to this corrupt system of rule and the basis for it's existence. That can only happen with the re-establishment of the Khilafah in Pakistan and the rest of the Muslim lands. It is clear that this sentiment exists very strongly in the Muslims of Pakistan and elsewhere; it is inshallah only a matter of time before this happens. As Allah (SWT) says:

وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنْكُمْ وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُم فِي الأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَى لَهُمْ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا يَعْبُدُونَنِي لاَ يُشْرِكُونَ بِي شَيْئًا

"Allah has promised those amongst you who believe, and do righteous deeds, that He will certainly grant them succession in ruling on the earth, as He granted it to those before them, and that He will grant them the authority to practice their religion, that which He has chosen for them. And He will surely give them in exchange a safe security after their fear provided they worship Me and do not associate anything in worship with Me." [Surah an-Nur 24: 55]