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| Kasuri rules out imposition of martial law in Pakistan | | |
Washington, June 21: Notwithstanding the unabated protests against the suspension of the Chief Justice, Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid M Kasuri has ruled out imposition of martial law in the country while conceding that the Pervez Musharraf regime had "underestimated" the public reaction.
"...I hope we will never resort to martial law. Martial law is unconstitutional. So when he (Musharraf) has repeatedly said he will work within the confines of the constitution, I have no reason to doubt that," he said.
When asked about the recent protests over the sacking of Chief Justice Iftikhar M Chaudhry and if indeed it was a mistake on the part of the government, Kasuri said that "... The government has put up a case which it finds pretty strong, but that's not the issue. The issue is public reaction... Probably the government had underestimated the public reaction, because the government thought it was acting according to the constitution."
In an interview with a news agency in USA, he indicated that Musharraf will give up his military post by the end of the year.
"On the issue of the uniform that you asked me, the constitution allows the President to wear his uniform until the end of 2007. And he has said on many occasions that he will abide by the constitution. Any more concrete answer has to be asked of the President," Kasuri said.
The Minister said the us had "full faith" in Musharraf's assertion that he will lead the country to democracy.
"They (US) have full faith in the leadership of President Musharraf. And they've told me repeatedly that they believe when the President says that he is the man who's leading to a transition to civil democracy.
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