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Yahoo! My Yahoo! Mail More Yahoo! Services Account Options New User? Sign Up Sign In Help Yahoo! Search web search Home Singapore Asia Pacific World Business Entertainment Sports Technology Australia China India Indonesia Japan Malaysia Philippines Thailand Vietnam Pakistan president signs bill stripping his powers AFP - 2 hours 39 minutes ago Send IM Story Print ISLAMABAD (AFP) - – Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari on Monday signed into law sweeping constitutional reforms that strip him of key powers in a move to bolster parliamentary democracy weakened by military rule. The amendment rolls back decades of meddling by military rulers and removes the head of state's power to sack the prime minister, appoint heads of the armed forces, unilaterally declare emergency rule and dissolve parliament. Key points of Pakistani constitutional reform Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will assume executive power in a move that could help ease simmering political instability in the nuclear-armed country on the front line of the US-led war on Al-Qaeda and Islamist extremism. A grinning Zardari signed the amendment at a ceremony attended by Gilani and popular opposition leader Nawaz Sharif -- a sign of the rare cross-party support for the bill in the fractious and bitter world of Pakistani politics. "It is my hope that the doors of dictatorship are closed forever," he said after signing the 18th amendment to Pakistan's 1973 parliamentary constitution. "We have reason to feel proud... provincial rights and parliament's sovereignty have been restored," he told dignitaries gathered at his offices. Gilani also hailed the signing of the bill as a "momentous occasion" and praised beleaguered Zardari's "magnanimity". "It is an unprecedented event in the political history of Pakistan that a leader has willingly transferred power in such a smooth process," he said. "(The) passing of the 18th Constitutional Amendment Bill is indeed a historic success of parliamentary democracy and supremacy of parliament." The lower and upper houses of parliament this month approved the 102-clause bill. The amendment was an election promise of Zardari, whose popularity has been battered by graft controversies, Islamist violence and economic woes. The package removes many of the sweeping powers amassed by military dictators Pervez Musharraf and Zia ul Haq, although the army remains a powerful force in Pakistan. No senior military officials attended Monday's ceremony. Raza Rabbani, a senator and chairman of the constitutional reforms committee, said the 1973 charter "had been mutilated by successive dictators who sought to perpetuate themselves in power". The bill also abolishes a clause barring the election of a prime minister for more than two terms. This would allow the popular Sharif, who was toppled by Musharraf in 1999, to become prime minister again. The amendments will effectively make Zardari a titular head of state who can only formally appoint heads of the armed forces, dissolve the national assembly and appoint provincial governors on the advice of the prime minister. Zardari assumed the presidency from Musharraf after his Pakistan People's Party won elections in February 2008, but is an unpopular figure. Although the reforms make no changes to Zardari's immunity in office, the Supreme Court is pressuring the government to reopen scores of corruption cases at home and abroad, after it scrapped an amnesty shielding politicians. Tainted by corruption allegations, Zardari is nicknamed "Mr Ten Percent" and spent 11 years in jail, although he was never convicted on any charges. The bill's passage has been hailed as a rare feat of consensus that could ease tensions that have threatened Zardari's rule, but analysts warn it may have little practical benefit in a country crippled by problems. "His powers are going to be reduced, but his influence will continue," said analyst Hasan Askari, a visiting professor at Johns Hopkins University. Pakistan, a largely impoverished country, suffers from major unemployment and inflation. Insecurity is rampant, particularly in the northwest and semi-autonomous tribal belt, which Washington calls a stronghold of Al-Qaeda and Taliban, blamed for bombings that have killed 3,200 people in less than three years. The 18th amendment also renames North West Frontier Province, a throwback to the British colonial era, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. 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