‘Explanatory note’ attached with Kerry Lugar Bill not part of law, admits Kaira
October 19th, 2009 - 2:37 pm ICT by ANIRawalpindi, Oct. 19 (ANI): Pakistani Information and Broadcasting Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira has admitted that the explanatory note attached the Kerry Lugar Bill is not part of the law.
According to the joint explanatory statement signed by Pakistan and the US, there are no conditions attached with the civilian aid. The only requirements on this funding are financial accountability measures that Congress is imposing to ensure the assistance supports programmes that benefit the Pakistani people.
The News quoted Kaira as saying that the heads of two committees had to file their interpretation that was endorsed by the US President.
On being asked why the explanatory note was not part of the law, he said the Americans had to face their courts and legislators and Pakistan would not challenge the law in the US.
Kaira also defended Pakistan’s accepting to the bill when most parliamentarians were against it, saying it was not Pakistan’s bill that a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ was to be said in the Pakistani parliament.
He added that it was not a loan but foreign assistance that did not need to be repaid.
Explaining Foreign Minister Shah Mohammad Qureshi’s visit to the US when the parliament was discussing the bill, he said Qureshi had gone to the US with the explanatory note as the US President had to sign it within 10 days of the US Senate adopting it. Otherwise, it could have not been signed. (ANI)
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Tags: accountability measures, committees, congress, financial accountability, foreign minister, kerry, legislators, pakistan, parliament, parliamentarians, qamar, qureshi, shah mohammad, us senate, zaman
