Musharraf's call to check fanaticism

Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf yesterday called on all Pakistanis, particularly religious leaders, to join the struggle against "cowardly" fanatics who targeted women and children, a reference to attacks on Christian targets near Islamabad last week in which 11 people died.

He was speaking to the nation to mark Pakistan's 55th Independence anniversary. The address, entirely in English, was broadcast live on Pakistan television. It lasted for nearly an hour.

"I am confident that we will, Inshallah, break the back of all these criminals and organisations supporting them," he said.

Against a backdrop of military tensions with nuclear-armed rival India, Musharraf said Pakistan could not be blamed for separatist violence that has racked India's sector of the Himalayan region since an insurgency began over 10 years ago.

The planned election in "Indian occupied Kashmir is yet another effort to give a mask of legitimacy to illegal occupation."

Pakistan's position on this issue is based on UN Security Council resolutions according to which elections cannot be a substitute for a free and impartial plebiscite under the auspices of the world body, he said. Musharraf said the APHC, which was the sole credible voice of the Kashmiri people, had already rejected the holding of the elections.

"If the past is any guide, the elections planned by India will once again he held without any participation of the Kashmiri people and they are only designed to obtain pre-determined results."

He dismissed as a "self-serving argument" New Delhi's claim that peaceful elections in Kashmir would be a test of Pakistan's sincerity for a dialogue with New Delhi. Islamabad cannot accept any responsibility for developments inside Kashmir nor can India shift the failure of elections on Pakistan, he said.

"However no one should dare think of any adventurism across our borders," Musharraf warned.

In an apparent reference to the military standoff on the borders with India since December, he said the Pakistani armed forces were standing guard on the frontiers to defend every inch of the motherland. He warned that the forces would not only defend but carry the fight across the border in case of any aggression.

Musharraf emphasised that the resolution of the Kashmir dispute "is imperative for durable peace in South Asia."

Speaking of the general elections in Pakistan on October 10, Musharraf gave a "personal guarantee" for fair polls. "On this solemn day, let me give the whole nation a personal guarantee. I will take all possible measures to ensure a free, fair and transparent election."

"In October we will, Inshallah, usher in an era of true democracy. This fine transition is critical to the future of democracy in Pakistan."

Highlighting achievements under the three-year military rule, he said he had demonstrated that good governance, economic progress and elimination of corruption was possible in Pakistan. "The world accepts this now."

About his campaign against terrorism, Musharraf said the government had showed a swift and effective response after two recent attacks on Christian targets.

He said 15 of the terrorists, who were involved in the attacks at Murree Christian School and the Taxila Christian Hospital and were planning more attacks, had been arrested and others had been killed.

"A sizeable number of gangs of terrorists have been busted and almost all top criminals have been apprehended," he said. "We all have to put a joint effort to root out those who are maligning our religion and tarnishing Pakistan's image."