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Musharraf Woos Bhutto, Sharif in Attempt to Remain Army Chief
By Khalid Qayum and Khaleeq Ahmed
Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf, facing the biggest opposition to his eight-year rule, is trying to win support for his re-election as leader next month while retaining his post as army chief.
``The government is talking to all political parties through various means for a national consensus,'' Tariq Azeem, the deputy information minister, said in a phone interview from the capital, Islamabad, yesterday. ``The efforts will continue till a fruitful outcome.''
In the past month, the 64-year-old president met former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and said he was ready to talk with Nawaz Sharif after the ex-leader, who Musharraf ousted in a 1999 military coup, won a court case allowing him to return to Pakistan.
Musharraf needs backing from the former premiers to curb protests as he asks the current parliament to appoint him for a second five-year term. Opposition parties say reconciliation is only possible if Musharraf resigns as president or quits as army chief of staff.
``Musharraf needs to explain what he means by reconciliation; if he wants to extend his tenure by five years and also stay as the army chief, it will be a national disaster,'' said Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for Bhutto, who leads the Pakistan Peoples Party, the country's biggest.
Ishaq Khakwani, deputy minister for information technology, resigned late yesterday saying he opposes Musharraf seeking a second term as president while remaining army chief. He is the first government minister to take such a step.
Khakwani said in Islamabad he would support Musharraf for a second term if the president quit his army post.
Second Term
Musharraf has said he will seek re-election in state and provincial legislatures between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15 before parliamentary elections by Jan. 15.
``There is a need for forgiving and forgetting the past because of the present political scenario and for moving ahead,'' Musharraf said, according to the official Associated Press of Pakistan. ``I hope that all the political parties will keep Pakistan's national interests supreme, ensuring that there is no political destabilization.''
Bhutto, 54, has made it clear that Musharraf shouldn't seek re-election from the current parliament and should quit as army chief, her spokesman Babar said. Talks will stall if Musharraf doesn't hold free and fair elections, he said.
London Talks
Deputy Information Minister Azeem didn't confirm an Aug. 27 report in Dawn newspaper that Musharraf sent two officials to London to complete the agreement with Bhutto.
``By talking about reconciliation, Musharraf has taken a big U-turn as he said in past the exiled leaders won't be allowed to return,'' said Ishtiaq Ahmed, associate professor of International Relations at Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad. ``Since his opponents have an upper hand now, they have set very tough conditions for reconciliation.''
Sharif said on Aug. 23 he intends to travel to Pakistan as soon as possible after the Supreme Court, the nation's highest, ruled he could come home. The former premier intends to return by Sept. 10, Ahsan Iqbal, a spokesman for Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, said in a phone interview yesterday.
``Reports that Sharif is talking to Musharraf for a deal to ease his return are baseless,'' he said. ``There won't be any talks with a dictator.''
Sharif, 57, who was prime minister from 1990 to 1993 and from 1997 to 1999, was convicted of corruption and treason and sentenced to 14 years in prison. Musharraf pardoned him in 2000 under an agreement in which Sharif was to be exiled to Saudi Arabia. As a condition of the pardon, Sharif was required to stay out of Pakistan for 10 years, the government says.
Revoke Pardon
Sharif may be arrested upon his arrival because Musharraf can revoke the pardon on the advice of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, GEO television reported on Aug. 24, citing Attorney General Malik Muhammad Qayyum. Musharraf doesn't need to abide by the accord if Sharif violates it, GEO cited Qayyum, the government's chief lawyer, as saying.
Aziz is a political ally of Musharraf, who is seeking support for his re-election from Aziz's Muslim League-Quaid-i- Azam party that has a majority in Parliament.
Opposition to Musharraf increased after he removed the country's top judge Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on March 9 on charges of misuse of authority. The removal sparked widespread demonstrations in support of the chief justice. The Supreme Court rejected Musharraf's decision and reinstated Chaudhry on July 20.
Demonstrations by Islamic parties against Musharraf escalated when he ordered an army raid at Islamabad's Red Mosque on July 10, ending a challenge by militants who wanted to impose Islamic rule in the capital. More than 100 people, including 75 militants, were killed in the raid.
The army has battled al-Qaeda and Taliban supporters in the country since 2001 when Musharraf backed the U.S.-led war against terrorism.
To contact the reporters on this story: Khalid Qayum in Islamabad at [email protected] ; Khaleeq Ahmed in Islamabad at
Bloomberg.com: Worldwide
By Khalid Qayum and Khaleeq Ahmed
Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf, facing the biggest opposition to his eight-year rule, is trying to win support for his re-election as leader next month while retaining his post as army chief.
``The government is talking to all political parties through various means for a national consensus,'' Tariq Azeem, the deputy information minister, said in a phone interview from the capital, Islamabad, yesterday. ``The efforts will continue till a fruitful outcome.''
In the past month, the 64-year-old president met former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and said he was ready to talk with Nawaz Sharif after the ex-leader, who Musharraf ousted in a 1999 military coup, won a court case allowing him to return to Pakistan.
Musharraf needs backing from the former premiers to curb protests as he asks the current parliament to appoint him for a second five-year term. Opposition parties say reconciliation is only possible if Musharraf resigns as president or quits as army chief of staff.
``Musharraf needs to explain what he means by reconciliation; if he wants to extend his tenure by five years and also stay as the army chief, it will be a national disaster,'' said Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for Bhutto, who leads the Pakistan Peoples Party, the country's biggest.
Ishaq Khakwani, deputy minister for information technology, resigned late yesterday saying he opposes Musharraf seeking a second term as president while remaining army chief. He is the first government minister to take such a step.
Khakwani said in Islamabad he would support Musharraf for a second term if the president quit his army post.
Second Term
Musharraf has said he will seek re-election in state and provincial legislatures between Sept. 15 and Oct. 15 before parliamentary elections by Jan. 15.
``There is a need for forgiving and forgetting the past because of the present political scenario and for moving ahead,'' Musharraf said, according to the official Associated Press of Pakistan. ``I hope that all the political parties will keep Pakistan's national interests supreme, ensuring that there is no political destabilization.''
Bhutto, 54, has made it clear that Musharraf shouldn't seek re-election from the current parliament and should quit as army chief, her spokesman Babar said. Talks will stall if Musharraf doesn't hold free and fair elections, he said.
London Talks
Deputy Information Minister Azeem didn't confirm an Aug. 27 report in Dawn newspaper that Musharraf sent two officials to London to complete the agreement with Bhutto.
``By talking about reconciliation, Musharraf has taken a big U-turn as he said in past the exiled leaders won't be allowed to return,'' said Ishtiaq Ahmed, associate professor of International Relations at Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad. ``Since his opponents have an upper hand now, they have set very tough conditions for reconciliation.''
Sharif said on Aug. 23 he intends to travel to Pakistan as soon as possible after the Supreme Court, the nation's highest, ruled he could come home. The former premier intends to return by Sept. 10, Ahsan Iqbal, a spokesman for Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, said in a phone interview yesterday.
``Reports that Sharif is talking to Musharraf for a deal to ease his return are baseless,'' he said. ``There won't be any talks with a dictator.''
Sharif, 57, who was prime minister from 1990 to 1993 and from 1997 to 1999, was convicted of corruption and treason and sentenced to 14 years in prison. Musharraf pardoned him in 2000 under an agreement in which Sharif was to be exiled to Saudi Arabia. As a condition of the pardon, Sharif was required to stay out of Pakistan for 10 years, the government says.
Revoke Pardon
Sharif may be arrested upon his arrival because Musharraf can revoke the pardon on the advice of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, GEO television reported on Aug. 24, citing Attorney General Malik Muhammad Qayyum. Musharraf doesn't need to abide by the accord if Sharif violates it, GEO cited Qayyum, the government's chief lawyer, as saying.
Aziz is a political ally of Musharraf, who is seeking support for his re-election from Aziz's Muslim League-Quaid-i- Azam party that has a majority in Parliament.
Opposition to Musharraf increased after he removed the country's top judge Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on March 9 on charges of misuse of authority. The removal sparked widespread demonstrations in support of the chief justice. The Supreme Court rejected Musharraf's decision and reinstated Chaudhry on July 20.
Demonstrations by Islamic parties against Musharraf escalated when he ordered an army raid at Islamabad's Red Mosque on July 10, ending a challenge by militants who wanted to impose Islamic rule in the capital. More than 100 people, including 75 militants, were killed in the raid.
The army has battled al-Qaeda and Taliban supporters in the country since 2001 when Musharraf backed the U.S.-led war against terrorism.
To contact the reporters on this story: Khalid Qayum in Islamabad at [email protected] ; Khaleeq Ahmed in Islamabad at
Bloomberg.com: Worldwide
