Bhutto ready for talks with Sharif's party

Former Pakistan premier Benazir Bhutto has said the next few days will indicate whether a political solution has been worked out with President Pervez Musharraf while signalling intention to chalk out a joint strategy for restoration of democracy with an opposition alliance floated by exiled leader Nawaz Sharif.

"We want a level playing field. We don't want to go into the 2007 elections and find that more members of our party are factionalised, regulated, threatened and intimidated. People of Pakistan want to see a revival of our Constitution," Bhutto said at the Middle East Institute in Washington.

Bhutto, who has vowed to return to Pakistan on October 18 after nine years in exile, said Musharraf, with whom her party has held negotiations, realised the need for moderate forces to come together and work for restoration of democracy.

"Both sides have spent a lot of time trying to find a solution, but despite our best intentions whether we get one or don't get one will be determined in the next few days," she said.

Apparently seeking to mend fences with Sharif, the Pakistan People's Party's leader said their doors were open for talks with All Parties Democratic Alliance led by Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.

"If tomorrow the APDM comes to us and asks what our advice is or consults us on a joint strategy certainly we will open our doors and listen to them," Bhutto said.

"We always believed that it was better to keep the ARD strong, but now that the APDM has been formed, if it wants to discuss the political situation we will discuss it with them. We think a strategy must be made to restore democracy," Bhutto said.

Asked about the low key response of her party to the deportation of Sharif after he landed in Pakistan on September 10 following seven years in exile, Bhutto said: "We respect the rights of every citizen of Pakistan. The situation of Nawaz Sharif was more complicated because Nawaz Sharif brought in the friendly country of Saudi Arabia who stood as a guarantor for him to leave the country."

"We feel it would be wrong for us to upset our relations with Saudi Arabia given that we were not taken into confidence about the understanding Nawaz Sharif reached with the Saudi government to get him out of Pakistan," she added.

Bhutto, who had earlier accused the hardliners in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q of stalling the talks with Musharraf, said, "The ruling party has done politics on the shoulders of the military whether it is General Zia's military or Gen Musharraf's military. But at the end of the day if Gen Musharraf wants to move the country to a democracy then he has to tell them of the steps that are necessary."

Bhutto denied that she favoured pull out of troops in Taliban-infested tribal areas.

"Most certainly not. I am not suggesting the pullback from the frontiers of Pakistan. We feel there is more to the situation than meets the eye and that the effort in the tribal areas at the moment is being lost and there has to be a review of what policy can work," Bhutto remarked.

"Military is an option, but it is not the only solution," she said.