No mere prime ministerDIPLOMATS call it Pakistan’s forthcoming “transition of power”. They don’t mean a change of government, but rather the appointment of a new army chief. The incumbent, Raheel Sharif (pictured on the next page), is due to retire on November 29th. What would be a humdrum appointment in most other countries is a rare moment when the civilian government has the whip hand over Pakistan’s overbearing army. The institution that dictates the country’s policies on defence, foreign affairs and, to a large extent, internal security is not used to awaiting decisions by politicians. Yet the prime minister, Nawaz Sharif (no relation to Raheel) will have his pick, probably from one of four senior generals.
For the army, the prime minister is a dubious figure. He swept into office in an electoral landslide in 2013, determined to reduce the army’s clout. His previous two stints in power had both been cut short by the army: in 1993, when it demanded new elections, and in 1999, when the army chief of the day, Pervez Musharraf, took power in a coup. Mr Sharif also wanted to befriend India, a country most military...Continue reading
from Asia http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21710020-nawaz-sharif-has-clawed-back-precious-little-power-army-general-consternation?fsrc=rss
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