Archives

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon yesterday said:

"The Commonwealth would be concerned if the referendum in Pakistan on General Musharraf's continuation as President were used to entrench any undemocratic form of government in that country. We will continue to monitor developments closely", a press release issued by the communications and Public Affairs Division said.

Mr. McKinnon added that developments in Pakistan were on the agenda of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration (CMAG), which will be meeting shortly. He reiterated that Pakistan's leadership referendum was no part of the roadmap to democracy announced by General Musharraf last year.

"The Commonwealth's position remains that we wish to see a full return to constitutional rule in Pakistan. The conduct of the provincial and National Assembly elections in October 2002 in a free and fair manner and based on a level playing field is crucial in this regard. The Commonwealth will observe those elections".

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries |

Produced by Lake House
Copyright 2001 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager