Pakistan’s Governance Imperative

After a turbulent year in Pakistan, a civilian parliament has taken over the reins of government from General Pervez Musharraf and confronts a range of domestic and foreign issues. “Prime Minister Yousef Raza Gillani therefore faces not only the problems created by Musharraf’s national security state, but also the accumulation of decades of mangled constitutions, mixed civil-military law, weakened state institutions and fragmented political parties,” writes Paula Newberg for the MIT Center for International Studies. “Its domestic governance is a function of its foreign policy, and its regional and global roles are a function of the way it governs itself.” Despite some low expectations both within Pakistan and without, decisive action by the new parliament, working for the best interests of Pakistanis, could move the country toward stability, cooperation and even prosperity. – YaleGlobal