US 'interference' condemned (Pakistan)

[TexasLawyer]

Source: Gulf Daily News

Saturday 18th August 2007

US 'interference' condemned

ISLAMABAD: The US was accused yesterday of meddling in Pakistani affairs amid reports Washington is trying to broker a power-sharing deal between President Pervez Musharraf and Benazir Bhutto. Washington acknowledged that it was discussing with "all parties" in Pakistan amid reports it was prodding Musharraf to share power with Bhutto.

Sources in both government and opposition denounced reports that Washington is pressuring military ruler Musharraf to come to an arrangement with two-time former prime minister Bhutto ahead of national elections.

A government spokesman said the choice of national leader lay with the people of Pakistan and should depend on the vote "Pre-judging the mandate of the people of Pakistan is an insult to the electorate," deputy information minister Tariq Azeem said. In a report, the New York Times said the US was discussing reforms with key political players in Pakistan amid reported plans to get Musharraf to share power with Bhutto.

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed the power-sharing arrangement in a telephone call to military ruler Musharraf last week, the newspaper said, quoting American and Pakistani officials.

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Read more: http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=190988&Sn=WORL&IssueID=30151

[Kagemusha]

1. With all due respect to Pakistani nationalism here...

Deputy information minister? That title translates as "nobody" to me.

[Posteritatis]

2. Deputy minister's a moderately high position in parliamentary systems

In Canada it's the ranking civil servant in whatever department the cabinet minister him/herself is running. The UK has the same thing, albeit with a different title I don't immediately recall. I'd assume the role is similar in a lot of Commonwealth countries (of which Pakistan is one). Basically, it's as high as someone can get in a given branch of the civil service without being elected and then appointed the role by the government.

I don't think it's quite the same as deputy secretaries in the US, but the role's close enough to rhyme. The position isn't trivial, even if the ministry itself might be kinda silly.

[bobthedrummer]

3. New from The National Security Archive "Pakistan: 'The Taliban's Godfather'?"

http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB227/index.htm

[cosmicone]

4. Pakistan is the real swamp of terrorism

Pakistan has fomented and expanded terrorism from Bosnia to Philippines in order to become a "big player" in competition with India which is a far bigger country economically and in size.

Every terrorist act in Bosnia, Chechnya, Kosovo, Dagestan, Xin Jiang, India (Kashmir and Assam), Afghanistan, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Philippines has had a Pakistani connection.

Someone needs to clean up Pakistan and balkanize it into Sindh, Punjab and Baluchistan so this menace will be gone forever.

Instead, Bushco has given Pakistan >$30 Billion and latest military hardware -- go figure!

[ohio2007]

5. Bhutto links Pakistan terrorism to Musharraf regime

MONTREAL: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto warned Saturday that the threat of terrorism in northwestern Pakistan's lawless tribal zones will not go away while a military government is in power. "The root cause of the problem lies in the inability of the government of Pakistan to assert governmental authority and state authority in the tribal areas," Bhutto said while talking to a local news television channel. "As long as we have a cabinet that needs the threat of terrorism to sustain a military dictatorship in Pakistan we're never going to get rid of terrorism," she said of the leadership of President Pervez Musharraf.

"The military is the problem," she said Saturday. "True democracy will deal with the social and economic needs of the people of Pakistan." She also called on the international community to support a transfer to a regular democratic government in Islamabad. Bhutto's participation in the election would depend on a constitutional amendment that would allow prime ministers to serve a third term.

"The money that has gone into Pakistan so far has not led to the pacification of the tribal areas where people are desperately poor and the militants exploit this poverty to hire them as soldiers," Bhutto said Saturday.

"Our people have been thrown to the wolves; they've been thrown to the militants," she added.



http://thenews.jang.com.pk/updates.asp?id=27756

The divide and conquer plan is far from finished.