The general's dilemma

摘要

The opposition was not happy on October 14th, during the passage of a bill that would enable General Pervez Musharraf to be president of Pakistan and army chief at the same time. When the speaker abruptly terminated a debate on the subject and readied to pass the bill, opposition MFS besieged his podium, shouting slogans against him and General Musharraf. They shredded copies of the bill, tried to break the speaker's microphone and demanded the death penalty for "those who had overthrown the constitution". Then they walked out in a huff. The speaker ordered a swift second and third reading of the bill and pronounced it passed. It now goes to the Senate, on October 27th, where it is assured of approval in a similarly raucous manner.