Pakistan Leader Faces Court Test, Militant Attacks, The Wall Street Journal, 9 December 2009
EXCERPT: "Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari holds $1.5 billion in assets across the world, Pakistan's main anticorruption body alleged in a report delivered Tuesday to the country's Supreme Court. The court is considering the constitutionality of an amnesty protecting the embattled leader and thousands of other officials from corruption charges. The National Accountability Bureau, a politically independent government investigative body, gave the court a list of allegations involving Mr. Zardari, following a request by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry. Mr. Zardari's spokesman denied the allegations and said the asset list was inaccurate and fabricated to victimize Mr. Zardari. 'Reports of $1.5 billion of national and foreign assets allegedly belonging to President Zardari are no more than a regurgitation of decade-old unproven politically motivated allegations,' said Farhatullah Babar, the chief spokesman for the president. . . The National Accountability Bureau alleged that Mr. Zardari accumulated wealth 'beyond his means.' The bureau said Mr. Zardari owned properties and bank accounts in the U.S., U.K., Spain and several other countries. . . Mr. Zardari spent a total of 11 years in jail in Pakistan while facing trial for corruption and murder charges. He was released on bail in 2004 and allowed to leave the country. Six cases against him remained open, relating to alleged corruption. Those charges were dropped under an amnesty enforced in October 2007."
Read the full story.
Related articles:
Petraeus doesn’t think the Pakistani military wants a coup [blog], The Washington Independent, 9 December 2009
Verdict against NRO to affect sitting lawmakers, DAWN, 9 December 2009
A military coup in Pakistan? [opinion], The Globe and Mail, 8 December 2009
The survivor? [blog], Al Jazeera // Asia Blog, 28 November 2009
Related reports:
Statement of General David H. Petraeus, US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 9 December 2009
Related posts:
Amnesty case stirs tension, charges challenged, 7 December 2009
Top court takes up amnesty challenges, lawmaker killed, 1 December 2009
President cedes control of nuclear weapons, 30 November 2009
Is Pakistan’s internal war spinning out of control?, 12 November 2009
