Wars, guns and votes: Will Pakistan's fledging democracy grow up?
A man walks past election posters of Malik Shakeel Awan, a candidate of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N), outside a polling station in Rawalpindi May 11, 2013. Pakistanis voted in a landmark test of democracy on Saturday and were quickly reminded of the militant violence that plagues the country, with election-related bombings in several cities.
Pakistani police officers stand guard outside a polling station in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday, May 11, 2013. Despite a bloody campaign marred by Taliban attacks, Pakistan was holding historic elections Saturday pitting a former cricket star against a two-time prime minister once exiled by the army and an incumbent blamed for power blackouts and inflation.
Photo Credit : AP
Women voters stand in a queue outside a polling station in Islamabad, Pakistan on Saturday, May 11, 2013. Meanwhile, in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa officials confirmed a Dawn.com report that women would not be allowed to vote in parts of the province, ostensibly with the tacit approval of PPP, ANP, JUI-F, PML and JI.
Photo Credit : AP
Pakistani men react next to the body of a relative who was killed in a bomb blast, in Karachi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 11, 2013. The blasts in the port city of Karachi targeted the political offices of the Awami National Party, one of three secular liberal parties that have been targeted by Taliban militants during the run-up to the election, said police officer Shabir Hussain.
Photo Credit : AP
Pakistani army soldiers react as they secure the area around a polling station that was hit by a bomb blast, in Peshawar, Pakistan, Saturday, May 11, 2013. In the northwestern city of Peshawar a bomb exploded outside a polling station, killing at least one person and wounding 10 others, said police officer Mukhtiar Khan.
