New Delhi: The resignation of Pervez Musharraf as president of Pakistan removes a favourite bogeyman of Islamic militants both in and outside of the country, but the government that forced him out is unlikely to change the policies that keep the jehadis fighting.
The outgoing Pakistani president — who abandoned Pakistan's support of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and sided with Washington after the September 11 attacks — has been largely sidelined since February elections brought his foes to power.
“It will take away a symbol of hatred but the essential issues don't end with Musharraf,” said a former government minister and political analyst Shafqat Mahmood.
The new civilian government headed by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has done surprisingly little to change his policies in the militant-infested northwest regions bordering Afghanistan and wants to retain close ties with the US, supporting the international fight against Islamic extremism.
In recent years, the Taliban movement has strengthened on both sides of the border, fuelled by long-standing poverty, poor governance, frustration with military operations in Pakistan's northwest, and anger at US operations inside Afghanistan.
At the same time, Musharraf's departure could set up a new power struggle inside Pakistan over who should take his place, despite recent efforts by the coalition to strip the presidency of some of its powers while strengthening Parliament.
Although suicide bombings overall have dropped since last year in Pakistan, the insurgent threat is as pervasive as ever.
"It's a virulent cancer that is eating into our society," defense analyst Ikram Sehgal told Associated Press (AP).
The coalition government's efforts to strike peace deals with terrorists are in tatters, and it is back to relying on the military to try to root out the extremists — as Musharraf did.
Though, its reputation has been damaged by its affiliation with Musharraf, who used to be the army chief, the role of the military will be crucial, Rasul Bakhsh Rais, a politics professor at Lahore's University of Management Sciences told AP.
"The terrorists are not going to surrender. They have long-term objectives in the region," Rais said.
The military has indicated it will report to the civilian authorities, but it still appears to have considerable autonomy in dealing with the insurgent threat.
Meanwhile, Pakistani Taliban spokesman Maulvi Umar said on Monday that the Islamist movement was happy that Musharraf has resigned, but he called for an end to his policies — mainly the use of the military.
"This is a positive change, but it is just the beginning," Umar said. "If the government ends these policies, the Taliban will stop their activities immediately."
Pakistan’s ruling coalition's main parties have been distracted since they took power over how to deal with Musharraf as well as how to restore dozens of judges he fired last year.
His departure could now force the new government to focus on the Islamist threat, said analyst Talat Masood.
The outgoing president's own future residence may depend on the terror threat against him. He has survived multiple assassination attempts and there is speculation that he may seek exile abroad for his own safety.
(with inputs from AP)
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