In Pakistan, the distance between formal democracy and actual power has grown so wide that even the Interior Minister has declared the system collapsed. Field Marshal Asim Munir, commanding the nuclear arsenal, all three armed services, and the levers of domestic policy, governs from Rawalpindi while a civilian prime minister holds office in Islamabad — an arrangement that echoes the country's long history of military dominance, yet differs in its refusal to name itself. Whether this quiet accumulation of authority resolves into open martial law or continues as a democracy of appearances, Paki
Pakistan's Military Chief Tightens Grip as Coup Speculation Mounts
Pakistan faces simultaneous crises including economic collapse, insurgencies in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, instability in POK, and military crackdowns with international press restrictions.