Pakistan: Potential for Change

Where Pakistan stand today? An article highlights some recent developments:

"After a lull during Pakistan's elections, militants have reasserted themselves with a string of suicide blasts that have killed more than 90 people, including an army general and tribal leaders fed up with the violence. "

Suprisingly elections went more smoothly that most originally thought they would. However since the elections carnage has been spread by suicide bombers throughout the country. With these increased attacks, the newly elected parties now have a chance to show how well they can manage the situation.

"The parties of Bhutto and Sharif insist they are committed to
fighting extremism. Bhutto was assassinated on Dec. 27 in an attack that authorities have blamed on Islamic militants. Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for her party, said it would not bow to attacks that were a deliberate attempt to destabilize and iscourage the democratic government that will soon be taking over. They are trying to nullify the results of the election."

While these parties may say they are ready to manage these terrorists many people wonder if the country will now plunge into chaos. As senior miliary officers are now targeted and have been actually killed, this signals a potential problem. If we further analyze these attacks it shows that terrorists are most likely gaining intelligence through sources and are targeting targets of higher value. This shows that the terrorists actually have a functioning network that is working rather than just targeting random people. I think this is a major concern for the elected government and its president. If the government cannot gain control of these suicide attacks this will lead to further instability of the country. The international community has witnessed several instances where riots have spewed throughout the nation before. If further riots ensue this could be a key time that the government could use to show whether it is capable of managing this country.