The United States on Tuesday said that it has begun reviewing whether to suspend any of its multi-billion dollar aid programmes to Pakistan in the wake of imposition of emergency in that country.
"We have people in the State Department, the Department of Defence, other government agencies taking a look at our assistance programmes to Pakistan, taking a look at those vis-a-vis the laws and legal requirements, our rules and regulations," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said in a briefing.
McCormack declined to give a time-line for the review, but said that it's something that all concerned were actively engaged in. "We take seriously our obligations under the law, and we are going to take a look at our programmes with respect to Pakistan," he said.
McCormack said, "The ultimate goal is to make sure that anything that the US does helps Pakistan get further down the road of building democratic institutions, down the pathway to democracy, down the pathway to further political and economic reform."
"Now, we can help with that, but we all know that what needs to happen first is that President Pervez Musharraf and his government need to roll back the extra-constitutional orders that they have given, get back on the pathway to democracy," he said.
"President Musharraf has made certain commitments with respect to taking off the uniform and to holding elections as scheduled in January. We have, through a number of different means, conveyed to him that we expect him to abide by those commitments," McCormack said.
McCormack said the American Ambassador in Islamabad has met the chief of the election commission and emphasised the need to hold the election as scheduled in January in a free, fair and transparent manner.
"I've seen some press reporting in that regard. I have not yet seen that commitment to holding elections in January -- on January 15th. That's what we're looking for. We continue to urge the Pakistani government to hold those elections on time. But in all the reports that I have seen I have not seen a firm commitment to that date and that timing," he said.
The spokesman was asked to describe the 'tone' of the telephone call that involved US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Musharraf.
"They've talked quite a bit over the past weeks and months and even over the past year... Secretary Rice wanted to have a constructive conversation with President Musharraf, and I think that -- he took the phone call in that spirit as well," he said.
McCormack was asked for a 'message' that the United States has for individual Pakistanis, particularly those involved in protests, who are willing to put their own freedom at risk to make their point.
"From the very beginning, we have asked that any restrictions on the media should be lifted. Free media is an important component of any functioning, stable and thriving democracy. In terms of people speaking their minds and expressing their opinions, absolutely we encourage that. But we encourage that in such a way that it does not lead to violence that is -- and that they don't express themselves in violent ways," he said.
"If Pakistan is going to successfully get back on the road to democracy, get back on the road to reform, get back on the road to constitutional rule, the chances of that happening in a urgent way are aided by calm, by the freedom of violence. And that's what we would encourage anybody who has an interest in expressing their views, that they do it in such a way that is not violent or doesn't lead to violence," McCormack added.
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