LAHORE, July 15: Federal Information Minister Sherry Rehman on Tuesday dispelled the impression that NATO forces were gathering on Pak-Afghan border, and said the PPP government’s allied parties were supporting it in the fight against terrorists.
Speaking at a reception hosted for journalists and later during an informal chat with them, the minister said the government had itself checked, and then inquired from the NATO forces, confirming that there was no movement of foreign troops at the border.
The minister also denied the government was conducting any military action in the tribal areas. She, however, said a targeted action and not a military operation was conducted the Khyber Agency on the demand of local people and in response to serious objections.
She said the allied parties were supporting the PPP in its resolve to fight against terrorists and all those endangering the country. “They are with us and the prime minister has also announced he will further talk to them on the issue of terrorism,” she said.
The minister said the late Ms Benazir Bhutto had always practiced the politics of peace but never comprised on the issue of terrorism. In pursuance of this policy, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani was adopting a multi-pronged strategy to deal with the issue of terrorism, she added.
Elaborating, she said, the policy included dialogue with terrorists willing to surrender, but never letting go those bent upon harming the country. The prime minister also wanted economic development and rehabilitation of institutions in the areas breeding terrorism to eliminate the sense of deprivation among their people.
“Our allies agree with this policy. We will not tolerate those who are a threat to the country and the people,’ she said, adding the elected PPP government would fulfill its mandate.
Replying to a question on the three-month performance of the government, the minister said it required at least one year to correct the wrongs done by the previous setup.
She said the previous regime destroyed the country and no one was asking as to where the $36 billion Pakistan got after 9/11 tragedy had gone. The previous government ignored the wheat crisis when it was brewing, she added.
The people were at least getting wheat due to the better management by the present government, which had made more laws in three months than by the previous regime in five years, she said.
The minister said the government could not reduce oil prices because of their upsurge in the international market from $50 per barrel to $150. Even the oil producing countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran were feeling uneasy because of the rise in oil prices, she said.
