Pakistan was suspended from the Commonwealth councils at the last minute before a ten day deadline expires on Thursday, a Commonwealth ministerial committee decided in Kampala late in the day.

 

Following two meetings on Thursday, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) headed by Malta Foreign Minister Michael Frendo, made the decision hours before the biennial Commonwealth summit kicks off on Friday.

 

"The Group expressed disappointment that while there had been some progress, these conditions remained substantially unfulfilled -- the State of Emergency had not been lifted, the Constitution and independence of the judiciary had not been restored, and fundamental rights and rule of law remain curtailed," said a statement from the CMAG.

 

"CMAG acknowledged President Musharraf's intention to remove his uniform and looked forward to him doing so as soon as possible," said the statement read by the Commonwealth Secretary General Don McKinnon.

 

"Accordingly, consistent with that decision, CMAG suspended Pakistan forthwith from the Councils of the Commonwealth," said a statement from the committee, pending the restoration of democracy and the rule of law in that country," he announced.

 

This is the second time that Pakistan is suspended from the bloc mostly comprising former British colonies in less than a decade.

 

The suspension means that Pakistan is restricted from all Commonwealth activities, but still remains a member of the group.

 

Pakistan was suspended from the Commonwealth in 1999 but readmitted in 2004.

 

"It was not an easy meeting. It is going to be a tough decision," McKinnon said at a briefing earlier in the day.

 

In a letter written to the Commonwealth leaders of the CMAG, caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro said the "political situation in Pakistan was returning to normalcy."

 

The CMAG, including Britain, Canada, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Malta, Lesotho, Papua New Guinea, St. Lucia and Tanzania, last Monday condemned the suspension of the constitution by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, saying the move was not in line with "Commonwealth values."

 

The group called for an "immediate repeal of the emergency provisions and full restoration of the constitution and of the independence of the judiciary."

 

However, it was reported that CMAG appeared divided on the issue of suspending Pakistan. Some believed pushing Pakistan to the wall would not help find a solution while others insisted there cannot be double standards on disciplining countries, citing Nigeria and Fiji for examples.

 

Nigeria was suspended from 1995 to 1999. Fiji was suspended following a military coup in the country late last year.

 

Most of heads of government from the 53 member states of the Commonwealth are to discuss issues of situation in Pakistan and Zimbabwe, which is no longer a Commonwealth member, as well as issues like climate change and poverty eradication during the three day summit.

 

Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth in 2003 after it was suspended in 2002 for election violence and land reform.

 

(Xinhua News Agency November 23, 2007)