ISLAMABAD, 1 September 2007 — The opposition to a power-sharing deal between Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and exiled former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto grew yesterday and the sides failed to resolve key sticking points after days of intensive talks.
In addition to Benazir’s demand for constitutional changes to allow her to serve a third term as premier, her opposition party said it would refuse to endorse Musharraf’s bid to win re-election by the current Parliament before its term expires Nov. 15. Unresolved issues included the balance of power between the Parliament and the president, the existing constitutional ban on the limit of serving twice as prime minister, and Musharraf’s relinquishing of his post as army chief as he seeks a further five years in power. Benazir met leaders of her opposition party yesterday to decide whether to continue talks with Musharraf.
A party official said the gathering in London might also set a date for Benazir to return to Pakistan. “We would like to know firmly whether the government agrees to our proposals for the transition to democracy or not,” Farhatullah Babar, a spokesman for Benazir’s Pakistan People’s Party, told newsmen in Islamabad yesterday. “If we conclude that the talks are leading nowhere, we have a number of options,” including breaking them off, Babar said. The daylong meeting in London was inconclusive and will continue today.
Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday described Benazir’s dealings with Musharraf as a “gross violation” of an opposition pact to fight for the restoration of democracy.
Despite their differences, Babar insisted Benazir could still join Sharif in outright opposition to Musharraf. “In politics, the doors are always open,” he said.
Any collapse of the Benazir-Musharraf talks would likely alarm Pakistan’s Western backers, including United States, which is hoping for a stable transition that continues Pakistan’s efforts against the Taleban and Al-Qaeda.
Benazir met yesterday with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband for private talks on the upcoming elections, the Foreign Office in London said.
Benazir had set yesterday as the last day to settle terms of the deal that would free her from corruption charges and readmit her to political life at home in exchange for supporting the president’s re-election.
But a presidential spokesman said that Musharraf would not be pressured by any ultimatums.
The expected return of Sharif further complicates efforts to close the deal.
“The government is keeping all options open on Nawaz Sharif’s return,” Information Minister Mohammad Ali Durrani said. “If he comes back, we will devise a strategy.”
Meanwhile, resistance to the agreement with Benazir has grown within the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) party. “We have certain apprehensions about the deal with the PPP and we have made the president aware of these,” PML-Q leader Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain said yesterday.
Despite earlier optimistic comments by members of the Cabinet and Benazir herself that the deal was “80 to 90 percent complete,” Hussain painted a different picture. “The deal is not 90 percent complete and only nine percent of issues have been resolved,” he said. “If there is no progress in the dialogue in coming few days, it will return to zero.”
— With input from agencies
