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Editor's
Note:
This is an edited transcript of the interview.
The man-in-charge of the Parliament House in Islamabad
is the military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf.
He's
in head to the host of problems for Pakistan's both
domestically and on the foreign policy front. This 2
part series of In Conversation, delves into the man
behind the military ruler and how he plans to deal with
these problems. This first part is on the domestic issues
of Pakistan.
Pakistan
was born when the Muslims of British India demanded
a separate homeland. At the time in 1947, it had
two parts, East and West Pakistan.
In 1971, East Pakistan broke away to become Bangladesh.
Today's Pakistan is an Islamic Republic with a
population of about 140 million.
Its chequered history has seen more military dictatorships
than democratic governments.
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SHANKAR:
General Pervez Musharraf welcome to In Conversation.
GENERAL: Thank you.
SHANKAR:
How does it feel to be yet another military dictator
in Pakistan?
GENERAL:
Well my focus is towards the development of Pakistan.
It feels good certainly to be doing something for the
country.
SHANKAR:
What is the greatest difficulty that you are facing
now? Wasn't there credibility when you first took over?
GENERAL: No.
SHANKAR: The
credibility especially outside of Pakistan?
GENERAL:
Yes. Credibility outside of Pakistan. But inside Pakistan
I have total credibility and total support of the masses
and the military. There is no doubt about that. But
outside of Pakistan, yes. People are allergic to the
uniform taking over but the situation here is different.
I tried to explain to the world that it's not a matter
of taking over. It was being part of being trust on
me. And then yes, I talked he agreed - that the situation
is so bad that the military has to do something about
it. So therefore I certainly didn't think of returning
power to the civilian immediately and putting Pakistan
back into their hands.
SHANKAR:
Well, you certainly not in uniform
now?
GENERAL:
Yes I try to tell everybody that this is not a dictator
that they're dealing with. I have civilian around.
SHANKAR:
Not even a benevolent dictator?
GENERAL:
Well certainly I would like to be benevolent. But I'm
more democratic than any other democratic leaders here
in the past. And my government is all civilians.
SHANKAR:
So
what is the biggest problem that you have to face since
you come to power?
GENERAL:
The biggest problem is revival of the economy. I would
say. That is the biggest problem and that is the biggest
issue.
SHANKAR:
Certainly
not Kashmir?
GENERAL: Well, that yes - Kashmir does impinge
on everything here. The Kashmir is certainly very important.
But I was talking about the internal problem of Pakistan.
Otherwise yes, Kashmir is certainly very important -
from the regional point of view. From the regional point
of view, Kashmir is most important and it certainly
has effect on our internal situation also.
Pakistan
and India have fought wars over Kashmir.
While
India accuses Pakistan of stoking militancy
in its northern most state, Pakistan claims
it sees them as freedom fighters.
The
result is that today, the United States in its
annual report on terrorist organisations around
the world, notes that General Musharraf has,
"continued previous Pakistani government
support of the Kashmir insurgency and Kashmiri
militant groups continued to operate in Pakistan,
raising funds and recruiting new cadre."
And
despite Pakistan publicly endorsing a UN arms
embargo on the Taliban, the report claims it
"is providing the Taliban with material,
fuel, funding, technical assistance and military
advisers."
None
of this helps Pakistan convince the international
community for crucial financial aid to resuscitate
its economy.
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SHANKAR:
You surely have to prioritise now - given the situation
in Pakistan. So your first priority now is to deal with
the economy. Is that what you're saying?
GENERAL: Well, I don't think one can prioritise
between Kashmir and the economy. Kashmir as they call
in the military - the rider's clause. It is there, it
has to be resolved. It's run in the blood of every Pakistani.
Every Pakistani is involved deeply in it. So therefore
one can't say that you need to prioritise and if they
afford their own economy only and leave Kashmir after
the economy - there are a number of issues that have
to go on concurrently I would say.
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