World | Pakistan
Distinction between Sharif and Benazir's return
Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto can return to Pakistan but will have to face corruption cases against her, the government said yesterday, as her party announced her arrival date.
- AP
- Published: 23:11 September 14, 2007
- Image Credit: AP
- Amin Fahim (with microphone in hand) announces the return plan of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto yesterday in Islamabad.
Islamabad: Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto can return to Pakistan but will have to face corruption cases against her, the government said yesterday, as her party announced her arrival date.
Britain's Sky News cited unidentified sources as saying that Benazir, who lives in London and Dubai, will fly to Pakistan on October 18.
Benazir, who is in talks with President Pervez Musharraf that could see them share power after elections, will not be deported in the manner of another former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, a government spokesman said. Sharif was expelled hours after he flew in on Monday.
That action sidelined Musharraf's chief political rival while indicating the general's willingness to take authoritarian steps to extend his eight-year rule, amid a surge in attacks by Islamist militants.
Distinction
In an interview yesterday, Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azim drew a clear distinction between the rights of Sharif and Benazir to return to Pakistan.
"Nawaz Sharif's case was different. He went back to Saudi Arabia because of an undertaking he had with the Saudi government," Azim told The Associated Press. "She [Benazir] was always allowed to come back." Asked about pending corruption cases against Benazir, he added: "It's for the law to take its own course. Everybody has to face cases against them and the same applies to her."
Azim said the talks with Benazir were snagged over her desire for the corruption cases to be closed, for a constitutional amendment to let her seek a third term as prime minister, and over the president's re-election.
"The talks are continuing but not at the same pace we might have wished. It's in the national interest for a resolution between political leaders to be reached. But it should be in the national interest, not in the personal interest of anyone," Azim said.
Benazir has led her party from exile since leaving Pakistan in 1999 over the corruption allegations. Her party said it would announce her return date at simultaneous news conferences at key Pakistan cities at 5pm (1200 GMT).
Backlash
She risks a backlash among the public and her party if she strikes an agreement with the US-allied military leader, who ousted Sharif in a 1999 coup. Yesterday, Sharif's party urged her not to reach terms with Musharraf. "We welcome her coming back, but let me say that it will be an insult to democracy if she agrees to share power with a man who ousted the elected government of Nawaz Sharif and has caused irreparable damage to democratic institutions," said Sadiq-ul-Farooq, a senior figure in the party.
Musharraf, a key Washington ally, has been trying for months to reach an agreement with Benazir that would overcome legal obstacles to him seeking a new five-year term. Benazir's party says time is running out, though with Sharif out of the way, Musharraf may be in a stronger position to dictate terms.
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