October 18, 1999 – BBC World News –
All eyes were on Pakistan, this October 18th – The head of Pakistan’s military regime announced a unilateral reduction of troops on the Indian border, the establishment of a military-technocrat ruling council and an eventual return to civilian rule. In a speech to the country, Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf announced the formation of a six-member National Security Council of army officers and experts in legal, foreign and national affairs to govern the country. The council would be assisted by “a think-tank of experts.” The speech was Musharraf s first public appearance since he went on national television to announce the ouster of the civilian government on Tuesday. “This is not martial law,” said Musharraf, but rather “another path toward democracy.” The constitution was not scrapped only temporarily suspended, he said.
He gave no indication when civilian rule would be restored, but said “the armed forces of Pakistan have no intention to stay in charge longer than necessary.”
In other news – Secretary of State Madeleine Albright called on political leaders in Sierra Leone today to stick by a peace agreement negotiated after an eight-year civil war in which anti-government rebels committed widespread atrocities. During her several-hour stay, Albright witnessed the effects of the war firsthand by visiting a camp where 516 wounded Sierra Leoneans are being treated. All lost limbs during the conflict, mostly the result of machete-wielding insurgents. Albright, who was on a six-nation tour of Africa, met with the elected President Ahmed Tejan Kabbah and Johnny Paul Koroma, an ex-junta leader whose forces are allied with the main rebel group, The Revolutionary United Front.
And President Clinton, during his remaining months in office has, as some observers put it, “reached a certain coveted point in his Presidency” where he can “feel free to say whatever he likes”. There are self-deprecating jokes colored by what some friends believe is “a genuine envy” about how vice-President Gore and first Lady Hillary Clinton “now command the spotlight”.
And along with the developing story in Pakistan, a lot more via this BBC World Service daily wrapup of world events for October 18, 1999.
