Two parallel CJs not possible: PM

SHARM-EL-SHEIKH (Agencies) - Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has rejected any pressure on the issue of restoration of judiciary and judges, saying that the existence of two parallel chief justices is not possible.


"There is no doubt in my mind. There is no doubt in Nawaz Sharif's mind and there is no doubt in the mind of any political party that these deposed judges will have to be reinstated at the earliest," he said.


Addressing a news conference in Sharm el Sheikh on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East, he said there was no threat to the coalition government as it was broad-based and its objectives were to serve the masses.


He said experts were working on the modalities and soon they would be able to come up with recommendations. He said a mistake was committed and it could not be repeated.


"We cannot rock the boat," he said and added: "I want to give this commitment at this international forum that all the deposed judges will be restored."


When asked as to what were the modalities, the Prime Minister said: "There is a sitting chief justice and there is another chief justice who is to be restored and naturally we have to have one chief justice and this is being worked out by the constitutional experts."


Prime Minister said did not accept the resignations tendered by the PML-N ministers as they would hopefully be rejoining the cabinet very soon after the re-instatement of the judges.


Asked how long the people would wait for the restoration of the judges, he said people of Pakistan are very mature, intelligent and have a lot of patience. "They want to give the government time and we will not let them down."


To a question, he said he informed President Bush that a decision has been taken to follow a three-pronged strategy to deal with the menace of terrorism and extremism.


The strategy includes political dialogue with those people who are not militants or who decommission themselves and cooperate with the government in combating terrorism.


"One thing should be clear," Gilani told journalists. "We will not have a dialogue with militants, we will not have dialogue with extremists or terrorists."


"We only have dialogue with those forces, those tribals, who decomission themselves," Gilani said.


"If they lay down their arms then they are in the mainstream with us."


The government, he said, also wanted to launch development activities in FATA to improve the living standard of the people, improve communications, create jobs and business opportunities. And finally, the force is there to deal with the matter, he added.


Gilani said this strategy was acceptable to the United States and it appreciated our efforts. He emphasised that Pakistan was facing the brunt of war on terror.


"There are over three million Afghan refugees on our soil and the global food security threat is hurting us too. We are not only catering to our own needs but also of Afghanistan and wheat is being smuggled into Central Asian Republics," he added.


To another query, he said: "We are extending 300 million US dollars assistance for the reconstruction of Afghanistan. Pakistan wants stability in Afghanistan. We have to find out the root causes of terrorism."


About the Pakistan-India talks, he said Pakistan wants to maintain excellent relations with India. He said Pakistan expects good from India and wants to have very good relations with it. He said the core issues including Kashmir have to be addressed as Kashmiris want the right to self-determination.


About cooperation between the Muslim countries, the PM said during his meetings with Muslim leaders in Sharm el Sheikh, they had good discussions and wanted to share experiences in science and technology, IT, agriculture, defence and intelligence sharing.


Gilani expressed confidence that the restoration of democracy in Pakistan would help galvanize political support and create greater economic opportunities for the country and nation.


"We want to ensure rapid economic growth, attract investment, create employment opportunities and promote socio-economic development in the country", he said.


Prime Minister, who had meetings with a number of world leaders including the US President on the sidelines of the forum, said his first-ever overseas visit after assuming the office gave him an opportunity to interact with the world leaders and share the vision of a resurgent Pakistan under democracy.


"The welcome I have received and the response of everyone, from heads of state to the captains of industry and international business has been positive," he added.


Referring to his meeting with US President George W Bush, Gilani said: "We discussed our long-term strategic partnership."


The US President expressed full support for a democratic Pakistan and appreciated its cooperation in the war on terror.


The Prime Minister said during his meeting with Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai, the two sides expressed their shared commitment to fight terrorism, promote greater bilateral cooperation in keeping with the brotherly relations that exit between the two countries.


He said Pakistan and Afghanistan also agreed on the need for greater international support for the reconstruction of Afghanistan.


About his meetings with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Prime Minister of Jordan, leaders of countries with which Pakistan maintains strong brotherly ties, the Prime Minister said he conveyed Pakistan 's continued support for the Palestinian cause and discussed ways of further strengthening of bilateral relations.


Besides his meetings with the prime ministers of Egypt and Palestinian Authority on Monday, the Prime Minister will be addressing a session of the Arab Business Council on Tuesday (today).