November 14, 2007
Musharraf Remains Defiant Amid Calls To End Emergency Rule
As U.S. envoy John Negroponte prepares to visit South Asia later this week to try and smooth over the political rift between Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the two leaders continue to spar, blaming each other for the chaos that has been brewing ever since Musharraf threw out the constitution and instituted emergency rule there.
In an interview with AP, Musharraf rebuffed Bhutto's call for his resignation and accused her of stoking the flames of unrest. Although he acknowledged an "acute trust deficit" between him and the former prime minister, he said he would still be open to working with her. "If she does become the prime minister, we will see.... It depends on her if she wants to be on a confrontational course or a conciliatory one," he said. Bhutto, however, closed the door on a possible power-sharing agreement with Musharraf in comments made yesterday.
Musharraf also remained resistant to requests to end emergency rule from both the opposition within his own country and from Western allies, including the U.S. "I take decisions in Pakistan's interest, and I don't take ultimatums from anyone," he said. He told reporters he would probably leave his army post, as promised, by the end of the month and would continue serving as a civilian president through the elections in January. The declaration of emergency rule would likely remain in place during that time, he said.
