ISLAMABAD, Nov 9: The International Human Rights Commission (IHRC) while appreciating the efforts of the Election Commission of Pakistan observed that the elections 2002 were held in a fair, free and transparent manner.

In its detailed report on Elections 2002 released here today, the IHRC declared that these elections were free and fair since the 1970 election in the history of Pakistan.

The IHRC stated that the results of the elections showed that the government of Pakistan and President Musharraf had fulfilled its promises made to the international community.

A group of 60 observers of IHRC witnessed the election 2002 held on Oct 10, under the supervision of the commission’s world chairman Dr Muhammad Shahid Amin Khan.

The IHRC also appreciated the police department, rangers and other government agencies for keeping law and order on the polling day.

The IHRC also thanked the EC and other agencies for extending full cooperation to national and international observers on the occasion.

Regarding the EC’s role, the report stated that it had made elaborate arrangements and neither the voters nor the presiding officers faced any difficulty or problems during the polling process.

The IHRC’s report indicated that the elections no doubt were a success to a large extent and the credit goes to the president of Pakistan, who tried his best to rid the country of the rotten political culture.

The report, appreciating the role of government stated: “The regime had promised to hold free and fair elections, which it did despite many problems and limited resources.”

The report also included some untoward incidents that happened in some parts of the country, particularly the NWFP and Sindh. —APP