Musharraf-Benazir deal close to collapse: South Asian expert

The Musharraf-Benazir deal will be a non starter, if General Musharraf contemplates imposing martial law in Pakistan, said a noted South Asian expert.

Washington, Aug 23 : The Musharraf-Benazir deal will be a non starter, if General Musharraf contemplates imposing martial law in Pakistan, said a noted South Asian expert.

Marvin Weinbaum of the Middle East Institute said that if Musharraf declared martial law, even a short-term one, it would be seen in the US and Pakistan as a desperate attempt to retain both the presidency and the uniform.

He said the US would have been better off giving vigorous support to the democratic process and constitutional rule and should have avoided giving the impression of a favourite - a virtual "kiss of death" these days.

Weinbaum said the US support for democracy is unfortunately coming too late, and added that at present, Washington is in a no win situation and even the promotion of democracy in Pakistan is widely interpreted as political interference.

"As for the consequences for declaring a short-duration martial law, why should anyone believe that a strong man in Pakistan can be trusted on the promise of a time table?" he asked.

It is hard to imagine that anyone in Pakistan or the US would see such a move as anything other than a desperate attempt to retain the presidency and his uniform given the bleak chances that Musharraf can succeed with the current Supreme Court and without gross manipulation of the political process, Weinbaum said.

ANI