NEW YORK, Oct 10: Former prime minister Benazir Bhutto may avoid a money-laundering trial in Switzerland under the terms of a power-sharing deal which grants her amnesty, the Swissinfo website said on Wednesday.
Daniel Zappelli, the general prosecutor of Geneva, is in a quandary. Should the politician and her husband stand trial now that Ms Bhutto has been granted an amnesty by her own country, the Swissinfo said.
Dominique Henchoz, the lawyer representing the Pakistani government in Geneva, said it was still not clear whether legal action would be stopped, Swissinfo said.
“We’ll have to wait to examine the exact wording used in the decree,” he added. “Because surely to speak of an amnesty implies that there has been an act of corruption.”
An official at the Pakistani embassy in Berne declined to comment on the case when contacted by Swissinfo, saying that it was being handled directly from Islamabad, Swissinfo said.
Vincent Fournier, one of the three judges, has confirmed his office is about to pass on the case to the prosecutor.
“It is surprising to note that for ten years Pakistan has constantly pushed us to see that justice be done. And now, in the light of a change of political allegiance, Madame Bhutto benefits from an amnesty,” Fournier pointed out.
