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India-Pakistan
Pakistanis see risks in UN inquiry
2008-05-09
Senior Pakistani officials and political pundits have expressed concern over the newly-elected government's decision to request a UN-led inquiry into the death of Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister and leader of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP). Bhutto was killed during a rally in Rawalpindi on December 27 last year, creating a wave of support in the country that helped her party win the most seats in February's parliamentary election.

"It will will open the door to foreign intervention in our domestic affairs that may extend, eventually, to the nuclear programme."
Mushahid Hussain, secretary-general of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q), a party which firmly supports Pervez Musharraf, the current president, told Al Jazeera: "[The investigation] will have adverse ramifications for Pakistan's national security since it will open the door to foreign intervention in our domestic affairs that may extend, eventually, to sensitive domains like the nuclear programme. It will also send a message that the government of Pakistan has no confidence in its own security institutions, which are under its control. Pakistan's sovereignty and security could both be at stake."

Resistance to the idea of a foreign-led inquiry may be gaining momentum. Last week two senior members of the government resigned. Pakistani media suggested that the resignations were in protest against the idea of a UN investigation.

"Lethal" commission
Tariq Fatemi, a former Pakistani ambassador to the US, Jordan and the EU, says a UN commission to investigate Bhutto's killing would be compromising sovereignty and independence and interfering in a "purely domestic" affair.

"The commission could be lethal. The UN will feel it is able to come and investigate issues such as differences within the provinces or non-conventional weapons," Fatemi told Al Jazeera.
Posted by:Fred

#1  I wouldn't worry too much about it, folks. By the time the UN gets it all figured out, nobody will remember who Benazir Bhutto was.
Posted by: tu3031   2008-05-09 09:22  

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