ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's ruling party says it is willing to initiate negotiations with "sane voices" in the opposition ahead of a scheduled nationwide protest to dislodge the government, a senior official said on Saturday.
The opposition has recently formed the Pakistan Democratic Movement, vowing to hold countrywide rallies and resign en masse from the national and provincial legislatures to force the government to hold early general elections.
“We are ready to engage with sane voices in the opposition for public and national interest, but surely not with their corrupt and inept leadership,” Senator Faisal Javed Khan, a close aide to Prime Minister Imran Khan, told Arab News.
“They want us to give them relief in corruption cases against them, and let me say it categorically this can’t happen on Prime Minister Khan’s watch,” he said.
Prime Minister Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party came into power in August 2018 after defeating all major opposition parties in the general elections. The opposition parties, however, claim the elections were rigged, a charge that the government denies vehemently.
“We are one of the biggest democratic political parties in the country, and we believe all conspiracies being hatched against us by the opposition would die down soon,” the senator said, adding that the opposition would be dealt with an "iron hand" if they tried to create chaos through street agitation.
“We can’t let them derail the economic progress made in the last two years,” he said. “We will ensure political and economic stability in the country at any cost.”
The opposition alliance is going to hold the first of its public rallies in Gujranwala, Punjab province, on Oct. 16. The rallies are planned to conclude on Dec. 27 in Larkana, Sindh province — the hometown of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. After the nationwide rallies, members of the alliance say they will march towards Islamabad in January.
In response to Senator Khan's expression of willingness to engage in talks, Raja Zafarul Haq, chairman of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), told Arab News that "there is absolutely no chance of any negotiations with the government."
"We are proceeding ahead as per our plan to mobilize the public, and will be using all other democratic and constitutional rights as well to dislodge the government," he said, adding that the opposition alliance can bring a no-confidence motion against the prime minister or tender en masse resignations from the assemblies to collapse the system.
"This government doesn't have a capacity and attitude to engage with the opposition to resolve the issues of public interest through dialogue," Haq said.
According to political analysts, however, there is little for the opposition to negotiate with the government if it demands new elections and dissolution of assemblies.
“Now the ball is in the opposition’s court. Will they be able to sustain their movement and bring enough people on streets to force the government to quit? It seems highly unlikely at this stage,” political analyst Zahid Hussain told Arab News.
He said the opposition movement will definitely put pressure on the government, which in turn may try to disrupt the rallies citing coronavirus fears.
“The government may detain some opposition leaders and try to disrupt their public rallies schedule under the pretext of coronavirus pandemic, so a kind of standoff may persist for some time,” Hussain added.
Pakistan ruling party says ready to engage with 'sane opposition voices' ahead of antigovernment rallies
https://arab.news/mwz5g
Pakistan ruling party says ready to engage with 'sane opposition voices' ahead of antigovernment rallies
- Opposition vows to hold countrywide rallies to force the government to hold earlier general elections
- Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) says 'no chance' of any negotiations with the government
What is Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’?
- Countries asked to pay $1 billion for a permanent spot on the board
- The board was originally conceived to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza
BRUSSELS: US President Donald Trump’s government has asked countries to pay $1 billion for a permanent spot on his “Board of Peace” aimed at resolving conflicts, according to its charter seen by AFP.
The board was originally conceived to oversee the rebuilding of Gaza, but the charter does not appear to limit its role to the occupied Palestinian territory.
WHAT WILL IT DO?
The Board of Peace will be chaired by Trump, according to its founding charter.
It is “an international organization that seeks to promote stability, restore dependable and lawful governance, and secure enduring peace in areas affected or threatened by conflict,” reads the preamble of the charter sent to countries invited to participate.
It will “undertake such peace-building functions in accordance with international law,” it adds.
WHO WILL RUN IT?
Trump will be chairman but also “separately serve as inaugural representative” of the US.
“The chairman shall have exclusive authority to create, modify, or dissolve subsidiary entities as necessary or appropriate to fulfil the Board of Peace’s mission,” the document states.
He will pick members of an executive board to be “leaders of global stature” to “serve two-year terms, subject to removal by the chairman.”
He may also, “acting on behalf of the Board of Peace,” “adopt resolutions or other directives.”
The chairman can be replaced only in case of “voluntary resignation or as a result of incapacity.”
WHO CAN BE A MEMBER?
Member states must be invited by the US president, and will be represented by their head of state or government.
Each member “shall serve a term of no more than three years,” the charter says.
But “the three-year membership term shall not apply to member states that contribute more than USD $1,000,000,000 in cash funds to the Board of Peace within the first year of the charter’s entry into force,” it adds.
The board will “convene voting meetings at least annually,” and “each member state shall have one vote.”
But while all decisions require “a majority of member states present and voting,” they will also be “subject to the approval of the chairman, who may also cast a vote in his capacity as chairman in the event of a tie.”
WHO’S ON THE EXECUTIVE BOARD?
The executive board will “operationalize” the organization’s mission, according to the White House, which said it would be chaired by Trump and include seven members:
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special negotiator
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law
Tony Blair, former UK prime minister
Marc Rowan, billionaire US financier
Ajay Banga, World Bank president
Robert Gabriel, loyal Trump aide on the National Security Council
WHICH COUNTRIES ARE INVITED?
Dozens of countries and leaders have said they have received an invitation.
They include China, India, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky and Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Argentina’s President Javier Milei have also confirmed an invite.
Other countries to confirm invites include Jordan, Brazil, Paraguay, Pakistan and a host of nations from Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East.
WHO WILL JOIN?
Countries from Albania to Vietnam have indicated a willingness to join the board.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Trump’s most ardent supporter in the European Union, is also in.
Canada said it would take part, but explicitly ruled out paying the $1-billion fee for permanent membership.
It is unclear whether others who have responded positively — Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Morocco and Vietnam among them — would be willing to pay the $1 billion.
WHO WON’T BE INVOLVED?
Long-time US ally France has indicated it will not join. The response sparked an immediate threat from Trump to slap sky-high tariffs on French wine.
Zelensky said it would be “very hard” to be a member of a council alongside Russia, and diplomats were “working on it.”
WHEN DOES IT START?
The charter says it enters into force “upon expression of consent to be bound by three States.”
