European observers cite Pakistani election flaws

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- European Union observers assailed Pakistan's military government Saturday for giving preferential treatment to pro-government candidates, misusing state news broadcasts, and locking out top political rivals during elections held this week.

Observers cited "serious flaws" in this week's vote -- the first since President Gen. Pervez Musharraf seized power in a 1999 coup.

Before the vote, Musharraf issued a series of decrees, including the establishment of a security council that institutionalizes the military's role in government. He also gave himself the power to fire the prime minister and dissolve the legislature, and passed laws that required that all candidates have a university degree -- that effectively barred 90 percent of the country's largely illiterate population from seeking office.

The government's moves constituted "unjustified interference with electoral arrangements and the democratic process," said the European Union's chief observer, John Cushnahan. "The action taken by the authorities led to serious flaws in the process."

EU observers also criticized the government for blocking the two best-known Pakistani politicians from running. Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was eliminated by a Musharraf decree barring anyone convicted of crimes in absentia, and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif accepted a 10-year exile in Saudi Arabia in return for his release from prison after the 1999 coup.

The observers said the Election Commission was partial to government candidates, steered state funds to pro-government parties and limited campaign time.