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Emergency
in Pakistan but US support to continue
WSN Bureau
WASHINGTON: As the massive state crackdown on civil rights activists
and political protesters continues in Pakistan in the wake of an
emergency being imposed by the country's military ruler Pervez
Musharraf, the White House has made it clear that it is not willing
to abandon Musharraf and US support to the country will continue.
But it said that it does expect some clarification from him later
this week about his decision to impose emergency rule in Pakistan.
At a background briefing on Monday evening, a senior White House
official told reporters that while the United States wants to use
its influence to restore democracy, it will be careful about using
sanctions because it may send a wrong signal to the Pakistani
people.
“Look, on our judgment, President Musharraf, you know -- who is the
leader of his country -- but in our judgment, he’s made a mistake,”
the official said. “And the question is what do you do when someone
makes a mistake that is a close ally?” he asked.
“You know, do you cut him off, hit him with sanctions, and walk out
the door? Or do you try and see if you can work with them to get
them back on track? And President Bush’s guidance to us is: see if
we can work with them to get back on track.”
Asked if the White House was expecting a direct clarification from
President Musharraf, the official said: “The clarification needs to
come from the Pakistani government to their people. And, obviously,
what the Pakistani people are going to want to look for at some
point is, what the intention of their President is.”
The official recalled that in the 1990s, the United States had
imposed sweeping sanctions on Pakistan, which disillusioned the
Pakistani people.
He said that since Sept 11, 2001, when Pakistan joined the US-led
war against terror, “one of the questions they have had is whether
the United States was prepared to stand with the government and the
Pakistani people through ups and downs, or whether at the moment
something happened that we didn’t like, we would cut off the aid.”
The official added: “So this issue about the aid and assistance has
a real resonance to them and that’s why it’s a card that has to be
played fairly carefully.”
The official, however, said that in the 1990s, the United States had
very little influence on Pakistan while now the situation was
different and Washington could use its influence to persuade
Islamabad to reconsider its decision.
The United States, he said, wants to use “carrots and sticks” it has
to try and get the Pakistan government to move to back to a
constitutional path.
The
official, however, conceded that the declaration of emergency in
Pakistan will also cause concerns on Capitol Hill and the US
administration will have to see if there’re sanctions -- mandated by
pro-democracy laws -- that need to be used against Pakistan.
“What we think we ought to be doing is using our various forms of
influence at this point in time to help a friend, who we think has
done something ill-advised,” the official said.
Asked if there would be consequences for Gen Musharraf’s action, the
official said: “That’s going to depend heavily on what we hear,
obviously, from the Pakistani government,” making sure to add: “And
that is not a threat in any way.”
The official said it was difficult to say if the current crisis had
weakened Gen Musharraf. “We are concerned about it; … but I think,
you know, you don’t really know. And what you need to do is have a
set of principles and have a set of policies that advance our
interests, and then work with a strategy to try and achieve them.
And that’s what we’re trying to do.”
The official also refused to say if President Bush regrets
supporting Gen Musharraf and if the emergency was a setback to
Bush’s freedom agenda.
“We don’t know, because we don’t know how this story comes out,” the
official said.
“It is important to both Pakistan and the United States to retain
that partnership. But we also think it’s important for Pakistan to
move on the democratic track. … I think it’s too soon to say. We’re
in the opening days of this crisis.”
What they say
NANCY PELOSI: Speaker of the US House of Representatives
Nancy Pelosi in a statement blamed the Bush administration for
sacrificing democracy in Pakistan in order to fight terrorism.
Ms Pelosi said that the Bush administration enabled President Pervez
Musharraf’s “delusion” by ignoring his undemocratic acts.
“For too long, President Musharraf failed to confront effectively
his growing unpopularity,” she said.
“The Bush Administration enabled Musharraf’s delusion by ignoring
his undemocratic acts and lack of internal support in exchange for
his assistance in efforts against terrorism.” Ms Pelosi said that
Pakistan would only be a reliable and capable ally against terrorism
when its government was not seen as an enemy by its own people.
SHEILA JACKSON LEE: Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee,
Co-Chair of the Congressional Pakistan Caucus, called for sending a
special US envoy to Pakistan for talks with the Musharraf government
for lifting the state of emergency.
Representatives from the departments of State and Defence should
also accompany this envoy, she told a news conference in Washington.
HILLARY CLINTON: Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton has called on
President General Pervez Musharraf “to cancel the state of
emergency, restore the Constitution, release arrested opposition
leaders, and hold free and fair elections on schedule”, adds Masood
Haider from New York.
OBAMA: Senator Barack Obama condemned Gen Musharraf’s action
and asserted “the United States must be clear and unequivocal:
President Musharraf should reverse this declaration, respect the
decision of the Supreme Court, and hold free and fair elections for
parliament in January.
7 November, 2007
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