Sunday, May 25, 2008

Pakistan's People's Party proposes stripping Musharraf of power

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan's fragile coalition government set itself on a collision course with the country's U.S.-backed president Saturday with a plan to strip Pervez Musharraf of his powers.

The move could create further instability in the country and is likely to heighten US concerns that political infighting is taking attention away from the anti-terror fight. American officials have repeatedly warned that the next terrorist attack on U.S. soil is likely to come from extremists based in Pakistan's wild tribal region.

The Pakistan People's Party, which leads the coalition, announced a legislative package that would take power away from the presidency and return it to the prime minister, the directly elected official who is supposed to run the government under Pakistan's original constitution.

Such a move would rob Musharraf of the authority that he currently holds to dismiss the government and also to appoint the head of the army.

"Democracy and dictatorship do not mix," said Asif Zardari, who became head of the People's Party following assassination of his wife, Benazir Bhutto, in December. "All powers will revert back to the parliament."

He described Musharraf as a "relic of yesterday."

The move was an abrupt change in Zardari's stance towards the president, following months in which he and his party had sought an accommodation with Musharraf — under pressure from Washington, many believe.

Abida Hussain, a leading member of the People's Party and a former Pakistani ambassador to the United States, said: "It is going to be a big nuisance for Washington if an American-friendly dictator falls on the eve of the presidential elections."

Continued . . .

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