Pakistan has experienced direct military coups before, but a new report warns that under Army Chief General Asim Munir, the country is entering a qualitatively different phase — one where military dominance is being woven into the constitutional, judicial, economic and administrative fabric of the state rather than imposed through an outright takeover.

The assessment, published by the US-based Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), argues that the shift marks a more durable and harder-to-reverse form of authoritarian entrenchment than Pakistan's previous periods of martial law.

The Defence Forces Act: A Legal Architecture for Military Supremacy

The Defence Forces of Pakistan Act, 2026, passed on 20 August 2026 amid an opposition walkout in parliament, is described by the MEMRI report as 'perhaps the most decisive step yet' in cementing military supremacy under Munir.

According to the report, the law grants the Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) operational command and control over all of Pakistan's armed forces, extending authority over 'organisation, administration, readiness, tri-service operations and personnel matters, including powers relating to the retirement, discharge, release and retention of members of the Army, Navy, and Air Force.'

Critically, Munir simultaneously holds the offices of Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces, concentrating authority over all three services in a single individual. He also holds the five-star rank of Field Marshal, enjoys an extended tenure, and operates in an environment where civilian oversight of the military has, according to the report, progressively weakened.

Shrinking Civic Space and Intensified Repression

The MEMRI report argues that the authoritarian trajectory becomes unmistakable when expanding institutional reach is set against the simultaneous contraction of civic freedoms. Citing a Human Rights Watch report on 2025, it documented 'arbitrary detention, restrictions on media coverage, disruption of communications and the prosecution of civilians through military courts.'

Freedom House's 2026 findings, also cited in the report, noted that 'the military intimidates the media and enjoys substantial impunity,' while Pakistan's online environment is classified as 'Not Free' in Freedom House's internet-freedom assessment.

The pressure has reportedly persisted into 2026. An August 2026 joint appeal led by Amnesty International documented mounting restrictions on journalists and lawyers, punitive measures against broadcasters, prolonged internet disruptions in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and new curbs on the movement of foreign journalists outside Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi.

Transnational Repression: Dissidents Abroad Under Pressure

The crackdown is not confined to Pakistan's borders, the report warns. Freedom House flagged in March 2026 an intensifying Pakistani campaign of transnational repression, particularly targeting exiled journalists and dissidents through legal harassment.

According to the report, seven exiled journalists and commentators had been sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment. Meanwhile, British authorities were reportedly treating physical intimidation against Pakistani dissidents on UK soil as possible transnational repression — a significant diplomatic signal.

What This Means for Pakistan's Democratic Future

Unlike classic military coups, the current model embeds military authority within legal and constitutional structures, making it significantly harder to reverse through elections or judicial intervention alone. Analysts note that this mirrors patterns seen in other hybrid regimes where the armed forces retain decisive veto power over civilian governments without formally dissolving them.

With the Defence Forces of Pakistan Act, 2026 now in force and civilian checks weakening, the trajectory — according to the MEMRI report — points toward a consolidation of power that could define Pakistan's political landscape for years to come.