Boucher assures Pak politicians of free polls

Islamabad, June 14: Visiting US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher has met a cross-section of the Pakistani politicians and assured them that the US was pressing Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to hold free and fair elections in the country.

Dawn newspaper quoted sources as saying that Mr Boucher talked to leaders of mainstream political parties at the residence of acting US Ambassador Peter Bodde here last night here and said the US believed that a free and vibrant media was a prerequisite for free and fair elections in Pakistan.

Mr Boucher is on his third visit to Pakistan this year for the periodic consultations that both sides hold.

Without elaborating, Mr Boucher said Gen Musharraf had made some commitments on the issues of free and fair elections, uniform and war on terrorism and the US believed that he would fulfil them.

The US wanted to have friendship with the people of Pakistan and not with just an individual, he said.

Mr Boucher met the politicians from the government as well as the opposition parties and sought their views on the ongoing political situation in Pakistan and the forthcoming general elections.

Those who attended the reception were former speaker Syed Yusuf Raza Gillani, Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan, Farhatullah Babar, Sherry Rehman and Naheed Khan of the People's Party Parliamentarians (PPP), Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and Mohammad Mehdi of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N), Dr Farooq Sattar and Syed Haider Abbas Rizvi of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Liaqat Baloch of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA), Asfandyar Wali and Zahid Khan of the Awami National Party (ANP), Mehmood Khan Achakzai of the Pakhtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party and Mushahid Hussain Syed, S.M. Zafar and Kabir Ali Wasti of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML).

The sources said former prime minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali was present at the reception and had a one-to-one meeting with Mr Boucher after the other guests had left. The opposition parties told Mr Boucher that free and fair elections were not possible under Gen Musharraf, they added.

The opposition leaders further said the return of former prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif was also a must to ensure free and fair polls.

They also drew the attention of the US official towards the large-scale arrests of political activists in the country.

Mr Boucher also met a select group of national and international media to reiterate Washington's commitment to a strong, broad-based relationship with Pakistan.

The US Assistant Secretary also held out the assurance when he separately called on Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri and Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammad Khan at the Foreign Office here.

Their discussions focused on Pakistan-US relations and Afghanistan, a foreign ministry statement said today.

During the 45-minute meeting Mr Kasuri underscored the importance of a broad-based, long-term, strategic relationship between Pakistan and the US and the deepening of cooperation in the agreed areas of economy, energy, education, and science and technology.

According to sources privy to the meeting, the domestic situation also figured in the discussions as did the upcoming general elections in Pakistan, Dawn newspaper added.

Without going into the specifics, the sources said the US Assistant Secretary had some questions about the latest developments in the country and preparations for the elections.

On the bilateral front Mr Boucher apprised Mr Kasuri of the efforts undertaken by the Bush administration to support the various initiatives with Pakistan in the US Congress, the statement said.

He observed that the visits of senior Bush administration officials and several Congressional delegations to Pakistan in the recent past had contributed to deeper understanding on issues of mutual interest and moving the bilateral agenda forward.

While reaffirming Pakistan's commitment to fight extremism and terrorism, Mr Kasuri highlighted Pakistan's efforts to strengthen security along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.

UNI

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