Islamabad - Pakistan went through with crucial parliamentary elections on Monday, which were relatively peaceful despite at least 20 deaths in poll-related violence and low voter turnout amid fears of rigging by the backers of embattled President Pervez Musharraf. The deaths followed clashes among rival supporters of pro- government and opposition parties, mostly in Punjab province, the most hotly-contested region, but also in Sindh, Balochistan, and North-West Frontier provinces, Interior Minister Hamid Nawaz told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
Feared large-scale suicide attacks by Islamic militants, who have killed more than 1,000 people in a massive bombing campaign in the past year, never materialized as more than 80,000 military personnel were deployed to protect polling stations.
"The numbers will change as we get more reports," Nawaz warned, but said the polling was less violent that in 2002. "We did not have any terrorist incident in the entire Frontier Province. There were occasional incidents of violence at polling stations, which are very much common during Pakistani elections."
Aaj TV reported that 27 people were killed and more than 80 injured in poll violence.
But the spectre of more violence remained as election results begin to trickle out beginning late Monday and preliminary results were released on Tuesday morning, especially if the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) emerges as the winner.
Slain opposition leader Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party led pre-election polling with 50 per cent support among likely voters, followed by fellow opposition leader Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) with 22 per cent. The PML-Q had a dismal 14 per cent.
Pakistani and foreign election observers were due to begin releasing their assessments of whether the polls were free and fair on Monday.
A US-led team was scheduled to release its findings on Tuesday, while a European Union observation mission, the largest foreign contingent, was scheduled to follow on Wednesday.
"We are still analyzing the data we received ... (but) at hundreds of polling stations our observers were told not to stay inside for long periods of time," said Sarwar Bari, secretary-general of Pakistan's Free and Fair Elections Network, which deployed more than 10,000 observers across the country.
"In hundreds of polling stations, (political) party agents were inside trying to influence voters," he said, adding that women were prevented from voting in numerous polling stations across Punjab's Mandi Bahauddin district.
The same problem occurred in the north-west city of Peshawar and in the neighbouring lawless tribal areas, where militants linked to the Taliban and al-Qaeda are active.
While Musharraf is not running, the polls are seen as a referendum on his rule, and the outcome could decide the future of the retired army general who is a key ally in the US-led fight against terrorism.
The polls for both national and provincial parliaments are meant to bring a return of civilian government after more than eight years of military rule under Musharraf, but they have been marred by Bhutto's December assassination at a campaign rally in the city of Rawalpindi.
Pakistani elections have a long history of violence and fraud, and it remained to be seen if turnout was higher than in 2002, when only 42 per cent of eligible voters showed up.
Nonetheless, tens of millions of people did go to the polls.
"I'm not afraid of anything," said voter Hamida Khizer, 40, as she stood in line at a polling station in Rawalpindi. "Life and death are in God's hands. When Benazir was not frightened, why would I be?"
Aside from their national and international implications, the elections were also about pressing domestic issues, including daily power rationing, rising food and fuel prices, and shortages of flour for bread, a crucial staple item for tens of millions of poor Pakistanis.
However, other voters opted to stick with Musharraf and the ruling PML-Q, whom they credit for the country's 7-per-cent economic growth during the past five years.
"Regardless of whether I like him as a person or not, I support his policies and I'm going to vote for PML-Q because Musharraf supports it," said Mohammed Saghir Raja, 38, as he prepared to cast his ballot in Rawalpindi.
"Under him, Pakistan has seen huge economic progress and many development projects."
