Pakistan Court Opens Presidential Race
Pakistan’s Supreme Court has ruled that exile Nawaz Sharif may return to run for president.
Sharif is a longtime enemy to the current president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the New York Times (reg. req.) reports. He was a popular prime minister in the 1990s, although he repressed civil liberties and cracked down on the Supreme Court during his tenure. After Sharif tried to dismiss Musharraf as army chief of staff, Musharraf took over the government in a coup.
The newspaper says the decision “provided a strong indication of the determination of the Supreme Court, and of the newly reinstated chief justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, to challenge military rule.”
Musharraf tried to oust Chaudhry, but the Supreme Court reinstated him in July after widespread lawyer protests.
