Nawaz Sharif threat to Pakistan’s stability: Musharraf

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Nawaz Sharif threat to Pakistan’s stability: Musharraf

Tuesday, 16 Mar, 2010

Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf. — AP Photo

WASHINGTON: Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has slammed PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and labelled him as a ‘closeted Taliban’, media reports said.

The reports claimed that while talking to journalists at a dinner reception near Seattle, Mr Musharraf said that the former prime minister was a great threat to the stability of Pakistan.

Mr Musharraf also said that Pakistani politicians were being hypocritical on the issue of the NRO as those who favoured the controversial ordinance when it was issued were now opposing it.

But the organisers of the reception contradicted media reports, saying that the former general did not call Mr Sharif a “closeted Taliban”.

“He did not say anything of the sort,” said Rizwan Nasr, a member of the executive board of the Friends of Pakistan First group which had organised the dinner and Mr Musharraf’s visit to Seattle.

“He did not utter these words at any event in Seattle,” Mr Nasr said.

In his address to the reception, Mr Musharraf said India and Pakistan must end their confrontation and go for peace.

Speaking to several hundred mostly Pakistani-Americans, Gen (retd) Musharraf also said he would return to politics if he believed he had enough support to make a difference.

“We must stop this confrontation between India and Pakistan... We must go for peace for the sake of the world, because the world considers us to be a nuclear flashpoint,” Seattle Times quoted him as saying at a press conference in the city on Sunday.

Denying that Pakistan had supported terrorist activity in India, he accused it of “hyper reactions” after the 26/11 Mumbai carnage that India blamed on Pakistani terrorists.

Mr Musharraf also accused India of supporting terrorism in Pakistan, including in Balochistan.

Mr Musharraf has been on an extended lecture tour of the US and Europe since stepping down in August 2008.

His visit to Seattle prompted more than 70 protesters to gather on Sunday evening outside the Westin Hotel in Bellevue where he spoke after the press conference.

Responding to a question about his return to Pakistan, Mr Musharraf said he would do so if the people wanted him and if he believed he had enough support to make a contribution.

“If I have to just go there and join a political fray and be involved in accusations and counter-accusations ... like most of the politicians are doing...I am not interested in that kind of politics,” he maintained.

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/...ed-taliban-630

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Shahbaz has alienated Punjab, hurt feelings

* Punjab governor says statement has damaged image of provincial harmony
* PML-N is heir to Gen Zia’s legacy
* Statement ‘tantamount to bowing to Taliban’

LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s statement, asking the Taliban not to target Punjab, has alienated the province from the rest of the country as well as hurt the sentiments of the people of Punjab, Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer said on Monday.

“The statement has damaged the image of provincial harmony in the country, as Punjab is the largest stakeholder in the war against terror. Shahbaz’s statement has proved that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is a provincial party, as it has disassociated Punjab from other provinces and hurt the sentiments of Punjabis,” he said while talking to journalists at the 2nd convocation of the Pak-Aims Institute of Management Sciences at Aiwan-e-Iqbal.

“If Punjab provides protection to such elements it would nurture sectarian sentiments,” he said, adding that Shahbaz’s statement would have long lasting effects on the PML-N’s political history. The governor said the statement negated the founding principles of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, adding the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) had always worked for the strengthening of the federation. He advised the PML-N not to claim allegiance to Benazir Bhutto’s mission, “as the PML-N has alienated itself from Benazir’s political mission by aligning itself with the Taliban and their supporters”.

Heir: “It is not the stance of the Benazir Bhutto… it is the viewpoint of Gen Ziaul Haq,” he said, adding the PML-N was the heir to Gen Ziaul Haq’s legacy.

To another question, Taseer said the CM’s statement was tantamount to bowing to the Taliban and sectarian elements in the province.

“It is unfortunate that the statement has come at a time when our armed forces are engaged in a war against the terrorists,” the governor said.

To a question, he said terrorists did not respect any treaties. Referring to Sufi Muhammad, he said that he misused time and opportunity in the name of reconciliation provided to him in Swat.

Commenting on Shahbaz’s statement of maintaining anti-US policies, he said that history was a witness to who had sought US help after Kargil.

He said the CM’s statement had clarified the Punjab government’s support for the Taliban, adding that the Anti-Terrorism Act clearly defines that whoever supports and promotes terrorists is their ally.

The governor asked Shahbaz to clarify whether he wished to promote Talibanisation in Punjab.

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default...6-3-2010_pg1_1