In a panel discussion last night in Cubberley Auditorium, three Stanford professors provided valuable commentary on the current political situation in Pakistan, repeatedly emphasizing the need for the American people, especially top policymakers, to become more familiar with the nation’s past.

Enlarge
#gallery http://daily.stanford.org/image/full/8200
Anum Afzal

Senior Hoover Fellow Larry Diamond spoke Tuesday night on the current state of affairs in Pakistan, which has faced upheaval since Musharraf’s declaration of martial law last week.

With democratization quickly becoming the international norm, the panelists’ views offered insight into the legitimacy and sustainability of Gen. Pervez Musharraf’s authoritarian crackdown.

“It is vital to understand the history,” said Senior Hoover Fellow Larry Diamond. “Pakistan has such a troubled but interesting history of democracy.”

“The Evolution and Implications of an Emergency State,” an event co-sponsored by the Muslim Students Awareness Network (MSAN), focused on the repercussions of last week’s imposition of martial law in Pakistan.

Pakistan caught the world’s attention because of Musharraf’s declaration of emergency rule, which has effectively undermined the democratic nature of the state.

Last March, Musharraf incensed the nation’s lawyers by dismissing the chief justice. Over the past few months, the political situation has gotten progressively worse. Currently, the country’s independent media stations have been closed, the constitution has been suspended, the Supreme Court has been dismissed and many political and human rights activists have been detained.

Given the nature of Pakistan’s vital role in contemporary international politics, the speakers stressed the importance of being more educated about Pakistan, agreeing that not enough people know about the country’s political history, institutions or economy.

Panelist Erik Jensen, a lecturer at Stanford Law School and co-director of the law school’s Rule of Law Program, expressed his dismay at media analysts’ lack of knowledge about the current situation in Pakistan.

“Sunday talk shows are absolutely careless,” he said.

The speakers also addressed the fear of a nuclear-armed nation in a state of political chaos. Paul Kapur, a visiting professor at the Center for International Security and Cooperation, informed the crowd about the physical separation between the nuclear warheads and the actual fissile core, which make the theft of nuclear weapons very difficult.

“Sometimes in the press you get a sense that the weapons are sitting in a tent waiting for someone to steal them,” he said, drawing laughter from the crowd.

Audience members were impressed by the quality of the discussion.

“It was a very enlightening event,” said Shiza Shahid ‘11, a student from Islamabad, Pakistan. “I was scared the event was going to be less intellectual and more political. But they did a good job — they stressed that to fix the country, you need to start a dialogue toward democracy.”

“I think we will see a very quiet exit of General Musharraf over the next ten days,” Jensen said. “What we are seeing in Pakistan is something we have never seen — the judiciary standing up and saying no to a military dictator.”

When asked what steps the United States can take to mollify the political situation in Pakistan, Jensen issued a warning to the audience.

“Whatever we do,” he said, “it shouldn’t be what we did in the past.”