Pakistan’s opposition to let government go on

Pakistan’s main opposition leaders have promised they won’t bring down the faltering government with a no-confidence vote.

Nawaz Sharif of the Pakistan Muslim League said to do so would worsen the current instability. But many observers believe the government will collapse on its own, with the opposition blocking legislation and backing street protests.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and his party lost their majority in parliament when a junior partner pulled out of the coalition in protest at rising fuel prices.

Gilani has been told by Sharif he has until Friday to back certain reforms or face being sidelined in the key province of Punjab.

With Gilani’s government so vulnerable, the West looks on anxiously. On the one hand, the IMF is unhappy that it has lent Pakistan money on conditions that have not been met, while Washington has criticised it for not doing enough to tackle Taliban insurgents within Pakistan.

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