Pakistanis queued in front of polling stations across the country amid tight security, following an election campaign marred by violence, including a suicide attack over the weekend that killed dozens of people and injured many more.
Some 80,000 troops backed up police during the crucial vote, which was expected to diminish President Pervez Musharraf further, and present Washington with new political challenges as it pursues its fight against the Taliban and Al Qaeda groups in the region.
The 2008 ballot was the second time that voters could more easily choose Christian politicians and other minority candidates, following legislative changes that gives them greater influence in constituencies where minorities form a seizable population.
CRUCIAL PROVINCE
Most of about 70 minority pockets, some 44 areas, are in Pakistan’s province of Punjab, which has seen tensions between Muslim militants and churches.
Over a dozen Christian politicians joined a Muslim party, the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz), or PML-N, led by former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif after he vowed to "rescind all the discriminatory laws" including controversial blasphemy laws, officials told BosNewsLife before Monday’s ballot began.
Under the blasphemy laws, Christians across Pakistan face prison terms, and potentially execution, on charges of insulting Islam. Rights groups and churches have said however the legislation has been misused to settle quarrels over issues such as marriage and properties.
BENAZIR BHUTTO
Other Christian politicians earlier joined the party of Benazir Bhutto, after she promised to improve the plight of religious minorities. Bhutto, a former prime minister, was murdered December 27 while campaigning for the elections. The assassination triggered nationwide rioting and led the government to delay the vote from January 8 until February 18.
As voting began, major parties warned the government that rigging during the polls would result into anarchy of enraged masses. It came as a witness told BosNewsLife that activists of the Musharraf backed Pakistan Muslim League (Q) tried to force women in the NA-49 are of Punjab povince to vote for its local candidate.
"The voting had to stop for 1:30 hours and [special police] was called in for help. With the help of the police polling resumed," the witness said, on condition of anonimity. There was no iimmediate comment from Musharraf, who cast his vote at Fatima University Polling Station in the city of Rawalpindi just outside the capital Islamabad.
CHRISTIANS URGED
Despite these and other tensions, the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA), a major advocacy and political group, and churches urged Christians to participate in the ballot.
APMA Chief Shahbaz Bhatti repeated the need for peaceful elections at a campaign meeting in Punjab’s city of Faisalabad where, he said, "people all over the province" gathered in defiance of militants who interrupted several other rallies with deadly bomb blasts.
Over 2,200 candidates are running for roughly 270 national parliamentary seats, while over 5,000 candidates hope to snatch som 570 Provincial Assembly seats “available in all four provinces, Punjab, Sindh, North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Balochistan,” said Chief Election Commissioner Qazi Muhammad Farooq. (Read more from Jawad Mazhar and find ways to support him and his group via www.raysofdevelopments.org).
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I love these arltices. How many words can a wordsmith smith?