<div><p>Pakistan faced fresh upheaval Thursday after a court annulled an amnesty protecting President Asif Ali Zardari and ministers from corruption charges, a move that could threaten his political survival.</p><p>The Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that a 2007 decree passed by ex-military ruler Pervez Musharraf was unconstitutional and struck it down, paving the way for thousands of criminal cases to be revived.</p><p>Zardari is immune from prosecution while in office, but his eligibility for president could be challenged soon, analysts say, as graft cases were pending against him when the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was adopted.</p><p>The latest upset in Pakistan's turbulent political landscape comes as the nation battles a fierce Taliban insurgency, and raises questions about the stability of the civilian government, a key partner in the US battle against global extremism.</p><p>Siddiqul Farooq, spokesman for the main opposition party Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), said that Zardari and all cabinet members implicated by the NRO decision "must immediately tender their resignations".</p><p>"President Asif Ali Zardari should resign on moral grounds and should not depend upon the crutches of the constitution," he told AFP.</p><p>Pakistan's constitution guarantees Zardari immunity while he is in office, but also states that presidential candidates must be pious, honest and truthful and never have been convicted in a criminal case.</p><p>Zardari, who took office in late 2008, has spent several years in jail for corruption and is still referred to as "Mr Ten Percent" because of his reputation for taking kickbacks on deals.</p><p>But questions remain over whether he was ever actually convicted of a crime, and he alleges the charges were politically-motivated.</p><p>The NRO was passed in October 2007 by then-president Musharraf, under pressure to hold elections and end about eight years of military rule.</p><p>It quashed charges against a number of politicians including Zardari and his wife and ex-prime minister Benazir Bhutto -- who was assassinated two months later -- to allow them to stand for office.</p><p>Zardari's PPP went on to win elections in 2008, restoring civilian rule, but the NRO expired at the end of last month.</p><p>Other beneficiaries of the amnesty included the interior and defence ministers, and number of ambassadors and senior government advisers.</p><p>The Supreme Court ruling also ordered the government to ask Swiss authorities to reopen a case looking into millions of dollars allegedly laundered through banks there by Zardari and Bhutto.</p><p>In a brief statement Thursday, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the government was awaiting a detailed judgement, but would respect the order.</p><p>"The government has already started consulting the legal experts for its implementation," the statement from his office added.</p><p>Shafqat Mahmood, a political analyst and columnist, predicted a court challenge to Zardari's rule this week.</p><p>"The whole Pandora's Box of Zardari's eligibility for this high office will now definitely be questioned," he told AFP.</p><p>"If you have a person who has cases of illegal means, corruption, pending, clearly that person is certainly not above board," he added.</p><p>Senior figures in the PML-N, led by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, have already called on Zardari to give up wide-reaching powers inherited from Musharraf to sack the prime minister and dissolve parliament.</p><p>Mahmood said the pressure on Zardari was now immense: "I don't think he has many options left."</p><p>The upheaval comes as Pakistan is embroiled in multiple offensives against Taliban militants across much of the troubled northwest, under US pressure to do more to dismantle Al-Qaeda and Taliban sanctuaries.</p><p>"The PML-N is likely to launch a campaign against the government on this issue... the infighting will be dangerous and will divert attention," said Hasan Askari, a visiting Pakistani professor at Johns Hopkins University.</p><img src="http://admatch-syndication.mochila.com/images/ad.gif?aid=65598094&bid=informcom" /></div><div id="copyright"><div>

Copyright 2009  <a href="http://www.afp.com/english/links/?pid=copyright">AFP South Asian Edition</a></div></div>