ABSTRACT
The prominent role of Pakistan's army in politics has deep historical roots in the country's founding. The principal mechanism for implementing the policy tripod is what Husain Haqqani calls the mosque-military alliance. This refers to a partnership formed over the years, in which military rulers use religious parties and groups as instruments for achieving domestic and foreign policy aims in exchange for the country's deepening Islamization. When a political brawl in East Pakistan's provincial assembly resulted in the death of the deputy speaker, this provided the pretext for the county's first military coup. Left-wing opponents of the regime found a home in the Pakistan People's Party (PPP). While Zia spoke of his desire for a quick return to electoral democracy, he reneged on those promises and retained power until his death in a suspicious plane crash in August 1988. In the period following Musharraf's eight-year rule, there have been some hopeful signs for Pakistan's democracy.
