Pak govt ready to talk to non-militants, says Gilani

Islamabad, Nov 2 (PTI) The Pakistan government is ready
to initiate dialogue with Taliban elements, who lay down their
arms, and prefers to reserved the use of force as a last
resort, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani has said.

"We should have dialogue with non-militants," Gilani said
in an interview with Turkey's Sunday's Zaman newspaper.

"We are not talking to people who are militants. We are
only talking to the people who have denounced terrorism,
decommissioned themselves or who have surrendered according to
the customs of tribes," he said.

He was responding to a question on whether Pakistan would
seek talks with the Taliban. The U.S. has described Pakistan's
northwestern tribal areas as a safe haven for militants since
coalition forces drove away the Taliban from Afghanistan.

The U.S.-led forces have carried out a series of missile
strikes on militant bases in the tribal areas over the past
few months. The surge in such attacks has strained
U.S.-Pakistani cooperation against terrorism.

Gilani criticised the U.S. attacks in Pakistani territory
and said they were not helping efforts to counter terrorism.
Instead, he said, his seven-month-old government is committed
to giving priority to peaceful measures.

Besides stressing on the need for dialogue with
non-militants, Gilani said efforts should also get underway to
ensure development in the poverty-stricken tribal areas,
describing poverty as a "root cause" of terrorism.

"The third element of this policy is deterrence, which
means the use of force. That should be the last resort,
however, and should not be used all the time," he said.

"The army is not the solution. It may have to be called
for temporary periods to assist the government and at the
request of the government. But ultimately, the soldiers have
to go back," Gilani said.

Gilani asserted his government's democratic credentials
would boost efforts to counter terrorism and extremism,
contrary to the rule of former President Pervez Musharraf, who
resigned in August.

"He (Musharraf) didn't have the support of the people of
Pakistan whereas my government has the full support of the
entire parliament. We have the full backing of the people and
that means the army is being supported by the people," in its
fight against terrorists, he said.

Gilani insisted that Pakistan, a U.S. ally in the war on
terror, is not fighting an American war and the country had
its own reasons to be part of it.

"Actually it is a wrong perception that we are fighting
the war for the US... The truth is I have lost my own leader,
Benazir Bhutto, because of extremism and terrorism," he said,
referring to the former premier who was assassinated in
December last year.

Tribal and political leaders from the tribal areas of
Afghanistan and Pakistan participated in a mini-jirga in
Islamabad last week to find ways to counter extremism.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has repeatedly accused
Pakistan, which backed the Taliban rule, of secretly aiding
militants to exert its influence in the Pashtun region.
Pakistan has denied the charges, and Gilani said a stable
Afghanistan would benefit Pakistan since 3.5 million people
have fled Afghanistan and become refugees in his country.

Gilani, who met Karzai and Turkish Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on Thursday on the sidelines of a
World Economic Forum meeting, said the three countries were
working on a date for a trilateral summit.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari is expected to visit
Turkey next month, raising the possibility that the next round
of three-way presidential talks could take place then.

Terrorism has also exacerbated Pakistan's financial woes
amidst a global economic crisis. "Extremism and terrorism are
destroying the economy of my country. Whenever a suicide
bombing hits a part of Pakistan, there is a flight of
capital," Gilani said.

Pakistan has been in negotiations with the I.M.F. to cope
with its crisis. It is also hoping to get help from the
Friends of Pakistan group, which includes Turkey, the U.S.,
U.K. European Union, U.A.E., U.N. and China.

The group is due to meet soon in the U.A.E. "I'm hopeful
that things will be taken care of," Gilani said.