As the presidential impeachment drama unfolds in Pakistan, the indications are that Pakistan’s President Pervez Musharraf might resign if he is allowed to stay on in Pakistan and gets immunity from legal action. I recommend three interesting stories as to where Musharraf could find a sanctuary.
“The United States and Britain remain top of the list of with Turkey and Saudi Arabia the other options,” says The Times of India. “A wicked idea floated by Musharraf-haters: Send him to Neharwali-gali in Old Delhi’s Daryaganj (in India), where the Pakistani general was born and grew up till he was a toddler (in an undivided India).
“According to Pakistani writer Tariq Ali, sanctuaries in Manhattan, Texas and the Turkish island of Büyükada are being considered for Musharraf. The toothless dictator ”would prefer a large estate in Pakistan, preferably near a golf course. In fact, the Pakistani security agencies themselves are not keen to guard Musharraf because he is a sure-fire candidate for assassination attempts. Turkey, a country Musharraf grew up in as a young boy, is said to think on similar lines.
“US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice more than hinted that Musharraf is not welcome in the U.S as a political refugee… Ironically, Musharraf’s safest option is probably Saudi Arabia, to where he exiled his current nemesis Nawaz Sharief. But the whisky-swilling, dog-loving, media-crazy dictator is not the ideal guest for the fundamentalist kingdom.” More here…
The Independent has a story about the luxurious home in the quiet suburbs of Islamabad, less than six weeks from completion, that has been built by Pervez Musharraf as a retirement home for himself and his wife. Mr Hammad Husain, the architect commissioned by Mr Musharraf, said the home will include a fish-pond, a walking track and an extraordinary amount of barbed wire.
” ‘Most of what you see is his input, along with mine,’ said Mr Husain, as a team of labourers slaved beneath the blistering sun. ‘He has gone into the detail, he has been part of it and comes here to look at things.’ Mr Husain, a family friend of the Musharrafs, said the President’s wife, Sehba, had chosen the curtains and fittings for the house, estimated at £1.25 million.” More here…
And finally the story from The News of Pakistan…Please click here…
The photo above (courtesy Getty Images) shows Musharraf with his family members.
Swaraaj Chauhan describes his two-decade-long stint as a full-time journalist as eventful, purposeful, and full of joy and excitement. In 1993 he could foresee a different work culture appearing on the horizon, and decided to devote full time to teaching journalism (also, partly, with a desire to give back to the community from where he had enriched himself so much.)
Alongside, he worked for about a year in 1993 for the US State Department’s SPAN magazine, a nearly five-decade-old art and culture monthly magazine promoting US-India relations. It gave him an excellent opportunity to learn about things American, plus the pleasure of playing tennis in the lavish American embassy compound in the heart of New Delhi.
In !995 he joined WWF-India as a full-time media and environment education consultant and worked there for five years travelling a great deal, including to Husum in Germany as a part of the international team to formulate WWF’s Eco-tourism policy.
He taught journalism to honors students in a college affiliated to the University of Delhi, as also at the prestigious Indian Institute of Mass Communication where he lectured on “Development Journalism” to mid-career journalists/Information officers from the SAARC, African, East European and Latin American countries, for eight years.
In 2004 the BBC World Service Trust (BBC WST) selected him as a Trainer/Mentor for India under a European Union project. In 2008/09 He completed another European Union-funded project for the BBC WST related to Disaster Management and media coverage in two eastern States in India — West Bengal and Orissa.
Last year, he spent a couple of months in Australia and enjoyed trekking, and also taught for a while at the University of South Australia.
Recently, he was appointed as a Member of the Board of Studies at Chitkara University in Chandigarh, a beautiful city in North India designed by the famous Swiss/French architect Le Corbusier. He also teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students there.
He loves trekking, especially in the hills, and never misses an opportunity to play a game of tennis. The Western and Indian classical music are always within his reach for instant relaxation.
And last, but not least, is his firm belief in the power of the positive thought to heal oneself and others.