The visiting chief of the Commonwealth, Don McKinnon, says that the organisation is satisfied with the restoration of democracy in Pakistan and wants it to play its full active role. He said that whether President Musharraf should hold the presidency as well as the command of the national Army was a decision to be made by its parliament, and the Commonwealth was satisfied with the 17th Amendment, which set democracy on its railings.
McKinnon on Friday morning made these observations at a joint news conference he and Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri addressed after their meeting at Foreign Office.
Earlier, soon after his arrival here, McKinnon and his team called on President Pervez Musharraf and later went into a conference with Kasuri and senior officials of Foreign Office. Pakistan's High Commissioner in London, Maleeha Lodhi, was also present.
This is McKinnon's first visit to Pakistan since restoration of the country's membership of the association early this year.
Before flying out of London, McKinnon was quoted by BBC to have said that he would discuss the question of wearing "military uniform" with President Musharraf, and expressed hope that "he would take the correct decision".
The photo-clips of President Musharraf's meeting with Commonwealth officials showed him wearing a smart dark suit and his aides and the visitors grinning broadly at some unquoted remarks.
He said that Pakistan was one of the founding members of the Commonwealth and it had to play an important role in the economic and social development of the community.
Answering a question, McKinnan said that in the current world democracy was not the "real challenge" to the nations but their economic development by providing them with equal opportunities.
He said the Commonwealth nations want that tariff barriers between them should be removed and all members should be given equal treatment. They understood each other and also the working of their political and economic systems and can co-operate in the efforts for alleviation of poverty, he added.
The Commonwealth chief said that as a result of Doha Round of conferences and the introduction of the WTO Regime in the very near future, the developing members of the community would have to double their efforts for removal of poverty.
McKinnon said his talks with President Musharraf and Kasuri included technical co-operation Commonwealth expected from their country.
In his review of the talks, Kasuri expressed satisfaction over the conferences the Commonwealth team had here and confirmed that he had told McKinnan that Islamabad gives much importance to its relations with the community and would be happy to share its experiences with less developed nations.
Kasuri also told the Commonwealth officials that Pakistan had returned to the path of democracy and its lower echelons had been firmed up. "We are providing greater autonomy and strength to women and the minorities", he said. He also spoke of the opening of the electronic media to private sector and said that private radio and television channels were working free without any official pressure.
Similarly, he told the visitors about the free role of the non-government organisations (NGOs) and other institutions, which are operating without any control and are a clear evidence of a functional democratic atmosphere.
The two teams also reviewed the progress of the Composite Dialogue between Pakistan and India.
MEETING WITH MUSHARRAF: Appreciating the decision of the Commonwealth on Pakistan's readmission to the organisation, President Pervez Musharraf on Friday emphasised that Pakistan and Commonwealth should now be looking forward to benefiting from various opportunities and useful exchanges through the organisation's activities and programmes.
"It is time that Pakistan should be appropriately represented in various Commonwealth committees," he said in a meeting with Commonwealth Secretary General Don McKinnon.
The President said that Pakistan is one of the eight founding members of the Commonwealth, the second largest member country and the largest Muslim country in the organisation, and said that Pakistan is keen to fully participate in the deliberations and activities of the Commonwealth.
The Secretary-General conveyed the desire of the Commonwealth to re-engage with Pakistan on a broad front.
McKinnon informed the President about the activities of the Commonwealth in assisting member countries to build capacity for negotiations under World Trade Organisation.
The Secretary-General offered technical assistance to Pakistan in the areas jointly identified for capacity building including education, health and media training.
The modalities of such assistance will be worked out by experts accompanying him in consultation with relevant Ministries in Pakistan.
The Secretary-General said that there was need for greater participation from Pakistan at the Ministerial level as well as senior government officials at Commonwealth meetings.
He appreciated the vital role played by Pakistan in the global war against terrorism.
He also briefed the President about various programmes of the Commonwealth to assist smaller countries of the organisation for the implementation of UN Security Council resolution on counter-terrorism.
The Commonwealth Secretary-General, who is in Pakistan at the invitation of Foreign Minister Kurshid M Kasuri, will also call on the Prime Minister, Speaker of the National Assembly and the Chairman of the Senate.
Pakistan is on the first leg of his tour of Asian countries including India, Maldives and Singapore.
Foreign Minister Kasuri was also present when McKinnon called on the President.
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