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Hold elections or face sanctions, Canada tells Pak

Ajit Jain
India Abroad Correspondent in Toronto

Canadian Minister for Foreign Affairs John Manley told his visiting Pakistani counterpart Abdul Sattar on Friday in Ottawa that Pakistan's return to democracy would be a key element in the re-establishment of full relations between the two countries.

During their one-hour meeting, Sattar spoke about the recent local elections in Pakistan and the likelihood of their holding federal election by October 2002, a spokesman of the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

Manley, however, wanted a firm indication of elections both at the federal and the provincial levels and he advised Sattar that they should go to Brisbane (Australia) for Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in October with "very specific dates" of elections.

Sattar was repeatedly advised by Manley, the spokesman said, to come out with specific dates "of what their electoral time table is."

If the Pakistan administration is not clear about the electoral time table, the country may face sanctions from the Commonwealth, Manley told Sattar.

"Our policy with Pakistan is one of critical engagement" and that, the spokesman explained, implies maintaining pressure on the military regime to live up to its undertaking in the country's transition to democracy.

"We want to see a specific time-table," he said.

During his two-day stay in Ottawa, Sattar also met Secretary of State for Asia Pacific Dr Rey Pagtakhan.

Before his arrival in Canada, Pakistani side indicated that Canada would announce lifting of sanctions imposed in May 1998 but to their dismay that hasn't happened.

Some Pakistanis told this reporter that Canada was desperately in need of votes for their 2008 Olympic bid. Having lifted sanctions against India, they have India's vote and they don't want Pakistani vote to go in China's favour.

There was no such thing in the mind of the Canadian side when sanctions against India were lifted, informed sources said.

"The Canadian move to keep Pakistan frozen in sanctions looks all the more inexplicable in view of the fact that Pakistan's nuclear blasts were in response to India's initiative in the nuclear field," said Andy Merchant, president of the Pakistan-Canada Business Council. "As such, if India can be deemed worthy of being absolved of its 'guilt', there is no understandable reason why Pakistan should still be made to pay for its infraction," he said.

While announcing lifting of sanctions against India, Manley had stressed on March 20 that Canada's deep concern about the dangerous trend toward nuclear proliferation in South Asia remains undiminished and its policy unchanged.

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