Those of us who are South Asia watchers had a particularly exciting time of it this weekend as President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan chose to stand back and allow Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudry resume his role in Pakistan’s Supreme Court. But the reinstatement of the chief justice is only a first step in righting rule of law in Pakistan. The editors of one of Pakistan’s largest English language newspapers, The Dawn, put out a particularly good summary of the complex situation in today’s publication.
The chief justice’s situation came into question back in March 2007, when then-president Pervez Musharraf suspended Chief Justice Chaudry over a difference of opinion on constitutional interpretation. Since then, Pakistan has seen its first free election in almost a decade, the departure of Musharraf, and the ongoing wrangling between President Zardari and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. The editorial in The Dawn cites some key areas of focus for the next few months in Pakistan as the judiciary and the government try to sort out the mess, particularly noting the importance of division of powers.
Having been returned to office on the back of a popular movement, Chief Justice Chaudhry will feel the pressure to be the people’s champion. That may well be necessary in certain circumstances, but the Supreme Court must not become a policymaker. If, for example, the people don’t like the government’s food or fiscal policy, the corrective measure is to vote it out in the next election. Judicial intervention may be popular, but what is popular at any given time isn’t what is best from the perspective of systemic stability.
Stayed tuned for new developments. Pakistan may be moving towards democracy, but the roller coaster ride is sure to continue in the near future. Given the long history of animosity between the president and the chief justice, it will be interesting to see if the president can ride out what will surely be a contentious battle over his right to remain out of jail on old corruption charges, waived under the Musharraf government before Zardari and his wife, the late Benazir Bhutto, returned to Pakistan.
Published Date: March 18, 2009