Commonwealth head discusses Musharraf's army role (Roundup)

Sep 19, 2007, 12:56 GMT

Islamabad - Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon met Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad Wednesday to discuss his upcoming bid for re-election and recent pledge to step down as army chief.

Arriving in Islamabad on a three-day visit, the head of the 53- member grouping of former British colonies also met Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri to discuss topics including preparations for the presidential vote, which is due before October 15.

'We want elections to be held in fair and transparent manner in Pakistan and all political parties to be allowed a level playing field,' McKinnon told the minister in remarks carried by the Online news agency.

The Commonwealth also wanted Musharraf to deliver on his commitment to the nation about giving up his army status, he said, reiterating its call of 2005 for the president to allow full-fledged civilian democracy.

Pakistan's membership of the Commonwealth was suspended for five years after the army general came to power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

Musharraf announced Tuesday that he will give up his dual military role if he is re-elected by parliament.

However, this failed to appease opposition forces that are trying to block his candidacy on constitutional grounds which they say prohibit him from running in uniform.

The president has come under increasing opposition pressure since the bungled attempt in May to remove the country's chief justice, while battling with rising Islamic militancy in the tribal areas by Afghanistan and in the capital itself.

McKinnon also reportedly discussed the issue of the September 10 expulsion of exiled former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who Musharraf sent into exile in 2000.

The opposition leader returned to Pakistan to lead political resistance to the president after the Supreme Court ruled in August that he could come home, but was deported to Saudi Arabia within five hours.

According to unconfirmed media reports, Sharif is likely to be readmitted to the country after the presidential vote to contest elections of new parliamentary assemblies that will follow.

The elections would meet international standards and involve all political parties, Kasuri said.

McKinnon was also due to meet leaders of opposition parties before leaving Pakistan.

The Commonwealth represents one quarter of the world's governments, one-third of its population and one-fifth of global trade. The grouping still carries considerable authority in Pakistan, which gained independence from Britain after partition from India in 1947.