Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani on Thursday said that there was no political prisoner in Pakistan, adding that his government would bring an accountability bill to parliament with consensus. He was talking to Andrew Mitchell, UK’s Secretary of State for International Development, who called on him on Thursday. The prime minister said it would be first smooth civilian transition in Pakistan according to the best practices of parliamentary form of government and the constitution. He said the civilian rule had taken roots in Pakistan, which had resulted in the strengthening of democratic institutions in Pakistan. He said the present democratic government was committed to the cause of democracy. Talking about relations with the neighbouring countries, the prime minister said the federal cabinet took a unanimous decision to normalise trade relations with India, which would give impetus to trade between the two countries.
He said he had a number of meetings with Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and the latest one was held in Maldives where both the prime ministers expressed the resolve to settle all outstanding issues, including the core issue of Jammu and Kashmir. He referred to his recent meeting with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in which he made an appeal to Pakistan to help him in the Afghan reconciliation process. Conceding to the request of the Afghan president, he said he appealed to all factions of the Taliban to support the president in his endeavours to bring peace through reconciliation. The prime minister appreciated the UK’s support for GSP plus status for Pakistan and also praised UK’s assistance in the development of Pakistan’s social sector. Andrew Mitchell said the British government was keenly looking forward to the visit of Prime Minister Gilani to the UK this May under Enhanced Strategic Dialogue. He highly appreciated Pakistan’s decision to normalise trade relations with India, adding that it would benefit the people of both countries including “positive impact on the borders”.
