EDITORIAL: As Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf abandons his military façade yet maintains military rule, international critics accuse him of strategically stalling the Pakistani democratic process. With a tumultuous history that encompasses six generations of military misrule, repeated suspension of constitutional rights and internal instability, Pakistan seems an unlikely candidate for a flourishing civil society.

But recent events have proven otherwise. As Musharraf struggles to retain control over a fragmented state, the increasing number of Pakistanis protesting unconstitutional rule is a hopeful indication of the sort of political participation central to democracy.

Instead of accepting cooperation with the largely illegitimate military regime, prominent members of the judicial system, including chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, have been dismissed, arrested or imprisoned by Musharraf. By doing so, the president demonstrated not only a continued disregard for the Pakistani constitution, but also a growing fear of a multitude of opposition groups.

Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's second return to the country – in defiance of exile imposed once again by Musharraf – indicate the tenacity of the opposition to military rule and contributes to a veritable foundation of grassroots democracy in Pakistan.

Although martial law has been imposed before, tolerance of such flagrant disregard for public opinion is now at its nadir.

Chaudhry's repeated dismissal and Bhutto's return highlight not only the inconsistencies of Musharraf's policies but also that the fear so necessary to run an illegitimate state is no longer present among the people or his political rivals.

Now that Musharraf has become a general without an army, both literally and figuratively, the state is set for opposition groups to re-rout power to the people in an attempt to establish the representative government that Pakistan has long deserved.