Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Saturday dismissed recent reports of a coup by the military, asserting that democracy in Pakistan was not in danger and fears of a clash between state institutions were baseless.
“All institutions in the country are in sync to support democracy; hence; there is no chance at all for the armed forces to step into the power.” “The army desires democracy and stability in the country,” he said. In an interaction with the media on the fringes of the ongoing annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, Gilani said, “I don’t think there will be a coup in Pakistan ever. There is no threat to democracy.” He said no state institution, military or the people of Pakistan, wanted a coup and all were in favour of democracy. Gilani said there was “a trust deficit” between Islamabad and Washington, as he criticised the resumption of US drone strikes in the country’s Tribal Areas. Speaking a day after over 100,000 people massed in Karachi to protest the strikes, Gilani said the strikes only served to bolster militants. “Drones are counter-productive. We have very ably isolated militants from the local tribes. When there are drone attacks that creates sympathy for them again,” Gilani told reporters at the Davos forum.
“It makes the job of the political leadership and the military very difficult. We have never allowed the drone attacks and we have always maintained that they are unacceptable, illegal and counterproductive.” Relations between the US and Pakistan have deteriorated sharply over the last year, with Islamabad furious about the surprise deadly raid on al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden’s hideout in Abbottabad last year. The two sides have also been at loggerheads over a US air strike in November in which 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed.
The US halted drone strikes on Pakistani soil in the immediate aftermath of that strike but they have since resumed.
Gilani said Pakistan now wanted to agree to new rules of engagement with the US.
“The unilateral action taken in Abbottabad, that was not liked in any quarter … We need assurances that such a unilateral action will not be repeated in the future. There is a trust deficit.” The prime minister said it was in both countries’ interests to cooperate as partners and Pakistan had paid a high price at the hands of militant groups. “We want to work together and we are fighting against militants and terrorists. We have paid a huge price for that.” On the subject of neighbours, Gilani said Pakistan wanted good relations with all negihbouring countries, including Afghanistan. He also mentioned the Kashmir issue in his talk and said dialogue was the only possible way to resolve all outstanding issues with India. The prime minister said democratic institution of the country should be respected.
No threat of military coup in Pakistan: PM
