Bhutto pitch for power urges US to see her as her best ally against terror

[Sharmarkee]

Bhutto pitch for power urges US to see her as best ally against terror

 

 

· Former Pakistan leader disparages Musharraf

· Military rule has fuelled extremism, Congress told

 

Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington

Wednesday September 26, 2007

The Guardian

 

Benazir Bhutto, the exiled former leader of Pakistan, yesterday tried to persuade a Democratic-controlled Congress to support her return to power by arguing that she would be a more effective ally against al-Qaida than the country's military leader.

The Bush administration's partnership with the country's president, Pervez Musharraf, in the war on terror was a "strategic miscalculation", Ms Bhutto said.

 

She told an audience in a Senate committee room that General Musharraf had tried convincing the world that he was the only one standing in the way of an extremist takeover of nuclear armed Pakistan. "It appears to me that military dictatorship has fuelled extremism."

 

 

Ms Bhutto's pitch to Congress comes during a time of intense political activity in Pakistan ahead of next month's presidential elections in which Gen Musharraf will seek to add to his five years in power.

The country's supreme court is expected to rule today on an opposition legal challenge arguing that the general should be barred from contesting presidential elections while serving as army chief.

 

Ms Bhutto, 54, has set her sights on parliamentary elections, which could be held early next year. She plans to return from self exile to her home town of Karachi on October 18 to launch her campaign to be the country's prime minister, a post she has held twice before.

 

Ms Bhutto's greatest rival, Nawaz Sharif, was promptly deported when he tried to return from exile in Saudi Arabia this month, and the Pakistani constitution bars prime ministers from serving more than two terms. But Ms Bhutto, who spent seven months trying to negotiate a return with Gen Musharraf, said yesterday she was in a stronger position than Mr Sharif. She had not been sentenced in any of the corruption charges again her, and as she had not sought refuge in a third country, as did Mr Sharif, did not think she could be "handed over."

 

In her 20 years as a politician, Ms Bhutto has grown adept at cultivating influence in Washington. But the woman who, as a young Harvard and Oxford graduate, was seen as the embodiment of modernity and democratic aspirations for Pakistan, has fallen into deep disfavour with the Democratic party following her two stints in power that were marred by misrule and corruption charges.

 

Yesterday's meetings with Joseph Biden, the Democrat who chairs the US Senate committee on foreign relations, was intended to try to salvage Ms Bhutto's reputation in Washington by playing on suspicions that Gen Musharraf has been an unwilling or ineffective ally against a resurgent Taliban in Afghanistan and a growing al-Qaida presence along the Pakistani frontier.

 

In her speech yesterday Ms Bhutto said that Gen Musharraf's rule had compromised the struggle against extremism in the border areas. She took the view that even serving Pakistani army officers now thought it was time to divorce politics from the military.

 

She claimed she would be able to pacify the tribal regions, which US intelligence officials say have become a haven for both al-Qaida and Taliban extremists.

 

Ms Bhutto also claimed, without offering evidence, that extremists had been unable to gain a foothold in Pakistan during her relatively brief terms as prime minister. She tried to disassociate herself from AQ Khan, the former head of Pakistan's nuclear programme. Mr Khan confessed in 2004 to presiding over a clandestine network that spread nuclear technology from Pakistan to North Korea and Iran.

 

During her appearance yesterday, Ms Bhutto acknowledged that she could face trial or a jail sentence on her return. But she insisted she would be welcomed by Pakistani people. As for whether she would be able to stay in power if elected, she said: "The third time around and being over 50, I would like to be my own person because even if you do everything you can to try to last a long time you don't really last long."

[Sharmarkee]

^^This is the rut muslims are in today, this lady want to come to her country not to do something for her people and eridicate poverty but satify US congress hawks and dance in their tone and song, before she even set foot on her soil. literary she is saying if Musharaf was licking your shoes am about to eat the socks.

 

No wonder considering almost three-quarters of all political refugees in the world are muslims. for having such leaders what you expect.

[Malika]

^^Agreed.

 

Reminds me of a hadith,Sahih Bukhari book 89,number 263:Narrated Abu Musa:Two men from my tribe and I entered upon the Prophet.One of the two men said to the prophet,"O Messenger of Allah! Appoint me as a governor,"and so did the second.The prophet[saw]said,"We do not assign the authority of rulling to those who ask for it,nor to those who are keen to have it."

[Jacaylbaro]

waaba loo kala dheeraynayaa ,,,, what do you think of the new world when we have Karzai in Afghanistan, Al-Maliki in Iraq, A/Y in Somalia, Musharaf in Pakistan and Zenawi in Ethiopia ?

 

and the list is even growing each day ,,,,,,,

 

 

"if Musharaf was licking your shoes am about to eat the socks."

 

True ,, they all want to do that ...

[me]

^Wasn't it Riyaale that ordered the socks when Meles told him the shoes have already been licked by Cade Muse.

[Jacaylbaro]

now don't tell me you suddenly recognize Somaliland as a real government ,,,, I'm glad you changed

[me]

^Does it take only eating socks to become a government these days?

[Jacaylbaro]

It is you how you quitted the denial and added Somaliland to those governments just like the other recognized ones .......

 

Now according to you we've:

 

Iraq

Afghanistan

Pakistan

Somalia

Ethiopia'

Somaliland

 

they are all dabo dhilif for the US ,, sow maaha ??

[me]

JB is you say that you will eat socks for the sake of teh secessionist administration, I will recognize you. Deal?

[Jacaylbaro]

I don't need your recognition ,,, i did that without eating anyone's socks.

 

Now keep changing ,,, from MA JIRTO to WAY JIRTAA ,, labadaba adigaa lagaa hayaa