Musharraf Plans To Quit Army by Month’s End

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan — President Musharraf said today he expects to step down as army chief by the end of November and begin a new presidential term as a civilian, warning that Pakistan risked chaos if he gave into opposition demands to resign.In an interview, he accused a former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, currently under house arrest, of fueling political turmoil and rejected Western pressure to quickly lift emergency rule, which he indicated was likely to continue through the January elections.“All those who are blunt enough to tell me to my face what the reality is, all of them think, yes, it will lead the country to chaos if I do not handle the political environment now with me remaining as the president,” he said at his army office.The American-backed general had originally planned to quit as chief of the powerful army by tomorrow, when his presidential mandate and the term of the current parliament expire, but he said he was forced to delay the restoration of civilian rule until a court ruling on his recent re-election.He said the timing would depend on the Supreme Court — which he purged of independent-minded judges when he suspended the constitution November 3 — but expected it to happen this month.America and other Western allies have been pushing for him to quit his military post and end the emergency, warning that it could seriously undermine the legitimacy of the elections that are meant to end eight years of direct military rule since he took power in a coup. The Bush administration sent its no. 2 diplomat, Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, to Pakistan.Washington wants General Musharraf to share power with other moderate forces to combat rising Islamic extremism that the general cited as the justification for seizing emergency powers.Authorities put Ms. Bhutto under house arrest yesterday for the second time in a week, and a senior federal government official said that she was grounded until at least tomorrow.“The position for her will remain like this until at least tomorrow. Then the government will review what to do with her,” the official said on condition of anonymity because the matter was politically sensitive and no decision had been made to release her.Another opposition leader was arrested after he showed up at a student rally in Lahore, police said. Imran Khan, a cricket legend who leads a small but outspoken opposition party, was the only one of General Musharraf’s most outspoken critics not in detention or exile.Ms. Bhutto said yesterday she was working to forge a partnership with Nawaz Sharif, the man overthrown as prime minister in a 1999 coup by General Musharraf. She demanded that General Musharraf step down, dashing Western hopes the two moderate leaders would form an alliance to confront strengthening Islamic extremists.Ms. Bhutto’s call, which could see Pakistan’s two main opposition parties joining, raised a new threat for General Musharraf. It further complicated matters for Washington, which has criticized General Musharraf’s recent crackdown on dissent but sees him as a dependable partner against Al Qaeda.Mr. Negroponte was expected in Pakistan on Friday to underscore American concerns about the situation, where rallies have been banned and independent TV news blacked out.

Musharraf Plans To Quit Army by Month’s End

Musharraf Plans To Quit Army by Month’s End

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