5, April 2005	Tuesday	25 Safar 1426

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ISLAMABAD/ QUETTA, April 4: Pakistan Muslim League president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and party’s secretary-general Mushahid Hussain returned to Islamabad on Monday evening after holding another round of talks with Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) chief Nawab Akbar Bugti. The two sides finalized names for the three-member monitoring committee which was agreed upon during their second round of talks on March 27.

While both sides had already agreed on the name of Mushahid Hussain, Nawab Akbar Bugti is reported to have nominated Sher Ali Mazari as his representative and the government side has named Brig Salim Nawaz of the Frontier Corps.

Sources close to Chaudhry Shujaat said that during the four-hour meeting the government team had achieved a breakthrough by getting a firm assurance from Nawab Bugti that full security would be provided to government installations in Sui if the government withdrew security forces from Dera Bugti.

The sources claimed that Nawab Bugti had adopted a tough attitude in Monday’s meeting on the issue of withdrawal of security forces and he told the government team that the promised withdrawal had not started yet.

The PML leaders, who were scheduled to meet Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz later in the evening, instead went to meet some other ‘high functionary’.

They will now meet the prime minister on Tuesday to brief him on details of the talks.

The agreement between the government and Nawab Bugti would allow the government to announce a development-cum-political package for Balochistan to meet the demands of other political forces of the province, the sources added.

The PML leaders had travelled to Sui in a special plane and went to Dera Bugti by a helicopter.

According to sources in Quetta, Chaudhry Shujaat informed Nawab Bugti about his talks with Prime Minister Aziz on the issue of Sui and Dera Bugti.

Both sides agreed that the three-member committee would monitor implementation of the accord expected to be reached between the government and Nawab Bugti. It was also decided that no details would be made public until a final decision had been taken. “A lot of progress is seen in the third round of talks and both sides would soon reach an accord,” the sources added.

Nawab Bugti confirmed the setting up of the three-member committee and said he would nominate his representative on Tuesday.

“We have discussed all issues of Dera Bugti in detail and formally finalized the setting up of the three-member committee,” he told Dawn by telephone from Dera Bugti.

He said he did not know who would represent the government in the committee. However, he said, he was not in a hurry in this regard and might decide his nominee for the committee later in the night. He said the committee would monitor the ongoing process and implementation of expected decisions.

When his views were sought on the three rounds of talks, he said: “They are alright.” However, he added that there was a difference between ‘alright’ and ‘satisfactory’.

When asked about any decision taken in Monday’s meeting, he said that in view of Chaudhry Shujaat’s wish he could not disclose details and decisions of the meeting. “It is the desire of Chaudhry Sahib that no details of talks should be disclosed,” Nawab Bugti said.

Responding to a question, he said Chaudhry Shujaat and Mushahid Hussain would hold consultations with the authorities in Islamabad on the process of settling the Dera Bugti issue. He said that after completing their consultations if they felt the need for further talks they would again come to Dera Bugti. The date for the next round of talks and the committee meeting would be decided in Islamabad, he said.

“We have held talks and now we are looking for the implementation of things discussed. We would like to see what practical steps they are going to take for implementation of the matters discussed,” he added.

Responding to a question about removal of pickets in Dera Bugti, the JWP chief said no decision had been taken in this regard. He said both sides were holding their positions and there was no change in the situation.

However, he said, people who had left Dera Bugti after the March 17 incident had started returning.