Musharraf's exit could turn Pakistan around: Haqqani

NEW YORK - Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States Husain Haqqani, addressing concerns in some US circles over Pervez Musharraf's departure, has said the former president's resignation was not anyone's loss, rather it could help turn the country around and that would be the world's gain.
“Mr. Musharraf’s exit is not a loss. It is an opportunity to jump-start a much more durable and stable relationship between the U.S. and Pakistan as nations sharing democratic values,” he wrote in an article published in The Wall Stree Journal on Thursday.
Ambassador Haqqani reaffirmed the elected government’s resolve to focus on the pressing economic, food and energy challenges facing Pakistan and said it has the ability to secure popular support to restore peace in the tribal areas and defeat violent extremists.
He argued that the assumption that dealing with a single, authoritarian leader is the best way to do business with a foreign government is erroneous. “In a nation of 160 million, the U.S. should not count on only one man as its ally. Those who are American allies by conviction and a shared belief in democracy, tolerance and free markets are bound to be better allies than an ally of convenience seeking only aid and political support,” he said in the article entitled: ‘America Is Better Off Without Musharraf.’
Pointing out that there is no shortcut to building democracy, Haqqani noted that reforms pushed through governments installed by coups d’tat have repeatedly failed to bring stability and Musharraf’s much-trumpeted economic achievements are in tatters at the end of his nine-year rule.
“In the final analysis, Pakistan will only be as strong as its political system. Pakistan ‘s democratic parties, most notably the current coalition partners PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League (N), must be given a chance to lay the foundations of lasting constitutional governance. Like all transitions, the transition from one-man rule to a pluralist system will be tough. But Pakistanis have proven their commitment to the democratic ideal after four failed military dictatorships in 60 years.”