'US, UK try to broker power sharing deal between Mush, Bhutto'

LONDON: Britain and the US are trying to broker a power-sharing deal between President Pervez Musharraf and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as they believe that it will bolster the Pakistani regime and give it some democratic credibility, the media here reported on Friday.

Quoting a senior Western diplomat, 'The Daily Telegraph' reported that the two nations were exerting pressure on Musharraf to broaden his political base by bringing Bhutto into his government.

It said they are anxious to ensure that the General, a key ally in the US-led war on terror, retains his hold on power after the worst political crisis of his eight-year rule sparked by the suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar M Chaudry, who was reinstated by the Supreme Court last month.

The paper noted that last week Musharraf, who clashed with the Supreme Court over plans to stand for re-election while remaining head of the Army, contemplated imposing a state of emergency which would have given him sweeping powers.

It quoted US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher, currently in Islamabad for talks with Musharraf, as saying on Thursday that Washington hoped the General would hold "free and fair" polls and pave the way for a transition to democracy. "The more that those (moderate) tendencies can be brought forward, the more solid base there is to deal with the serious problem of extremism."

Musharraf and Bhutto, he noted, would make "their own choices based on their own calculations," the daily reported.

US and British officials believe that a power-sharing deal with Bhutto's popular, secular Pakistan People's Party (PPP) will bolster Musharraf's regime and give it some democratic credibility, it said.

If Musharraf were to fall from power, the officials of the two countries fear that his successor might be less inclined to help America's war against terrorism and could even threaten the West with the nuclear arsenal.

Musharraf wants to be re-elected by the existing national and provincial assemblies between mid-September and mid-October before their dissolution for a general election, due by the end of the year.

The Supreme Court is likely to uphold opposition objections to his being re-elected by the outgoing assemblies and to his re-election while still Army Chief.

A senior Presidential adviser told the newspaper that Musharraf would step down as military chief when he had "consolidated his position after the general election".

Self-exiled Bhutto, whose two previous governments were dismissed amid allegations of corruption, has held on- talks with Musharraf since 2002. The latest round was in Abu Dhabi last month.

Any deal would require changes to the Constitution to remove a ban on anyone serving as Prime Minister more than twice and to shelve corruption charges against Bhutto.

But, the paper said, she has to overcome opposition within her own party to what some see as a grubby deal with a discredited President.

Bhutto had told the New York Times: "We want to avoid a situation where we are seen as bailing out an unpopular military dictatorship."

She said talks with Musharraf were too slow and claimed that he had already reneged on some of his promises.