950807

Govt-MQM parleys

Khan predicts

5th round within

a few days

RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: The Federal Law Minister and chief of the Government negotiating team, N.D. Khan, on Monday confidently predicted that the fifth round of talks between the Government and the MQM teams will be resumed within a few days.

Talking to newsmen at Sindh Governor House, he said the ice was melting now and the two sides will come to the table soon. But he was unable to give any firm date for the resumption of the talks.

N.D. Khan said that the MQM(A) team, in his opinion, was sitting in what he called a "wait-and-see" posture and that he was unable to understand.

He said his team member, Zuhair Akram Nadeem, was asked to contact the MQM and tell them that their objection to calling them "Altaf Group" would be considered positively if they came to the negotiating table.

He reiterated that the demand of the opposition party to call them as MQM will be given sympathetic consideration once they resumed the negotiations. Therefore, he said, there existed no major obstacle in the negotiations. Shoaib Bukhari's departure to the U.K. would also be considered at the negotiating table, he added.

When asked why Bukhari was stopped at the airport when he was going to get instructions from the party chief, Altaf Hussain, the law minister said that Bukhari's name was on the exit control list but this point would also be given due consideration at the resumption of the talks.

He said that he was optimistic about the success of the talks. The Prime Minister and the President also wanted that the talks should come to the logical conclusion as, according to him, everybody wanted peace and tranquillity in the city.

He repeatedly denied that there was any deadlock in the talks. Only some clarifications are needed and nothing else, he added.

Although N.D. Khan did not commit in clear words, on repeated questions of reporters about the name of the party he is going to negotiate with, he said that "one bottleneck was removed now" and the talks must be held as early as possible. At the same time, he was not ready to call the party MQM.

He said the prime minister wanted that there should be no delay in the resumption of the talks. He had come to Karachi for this purpose and would stay here for another four to five days.

N.D. Khan said that the economic prosperity and the welfare of the masses depended on peace and tranquillity in the metropolis.