JEDDAH, 25 August 2003 — Pakistan’s Minister for Information and Media Development Sheikh Rashid Ahmad has underlined his government’s readiness for talks with the opposition on all contentious issues including the Legal Framework Order but added he does not rate chances of a breakthrough very high. “The opposition comes up with new demands whenever we reach an agreement on a point,” he said.
At a press conference in Jeddah on Saturday, Rashid, who was accompanying Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali on his trip to the Kingdom, also vowed the Kalabagh dam would go ahead because it was in the interest of the country, but at the same time, he said, the dam would not be built until there was consensus among all parties. About a possible alliance between the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal and the ARD, the information minister said the parties had different agendas but stressed the government’s readiness for talks on all issues.
Rashid said the frequent boycotts and disorder in Parliament were nothing unusual and happened everywhere.
On the issue of Kashmir, the minister underlined Pakistan’s commitment to its “principled position” on the issue and said Islamabad would push for the Kashmiris’ right to self-determination. It was in the interest of both India and Pakistan to resolve all the issues and his government was ready for discussion with its neighbor.
There was nothing new about a flare-up in border skirmishes between the two countries, the minister said, and Pakistani troops were quite capable of thwarting “any aggression.” “There is nothing to worry about,” he added. When asked what his government is doing to improve the law and order situation in Sindh, the minister said the media had blown the incidents out of proportion. “We are taking steps,” he said.
