Lu sceptical about polls fairness

ISLAMABAD:

US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Donald Lu on Wednesday underscored the importance of transparency and accountability in addressing claims of irregularities, and investigation into allegations of interference or rigging in Pakistan’s recent general elections.

Lu, the man at the centre of a diplomatic cable controversy in Pakistan, came out in public for the first time in two years, rebutting all the charges that either he or the US government was involved in the removal of former prime minister Imran Khan in April 2022.

The US diplomat testified before a subcommittee of the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs, titled ‘Pakistan After the Elections: Examining the Future of Democracy in Pakistan and the US-Pakistan Relationship’.

In his testimony, Lu stressed that it was the responsibility of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to ensure the integrity of the electoral process and uphold democratic principles. He pointed out that thousands of petitions had been filed with the ECP.

This, he stressed, underscored the urgency for the ECP to hold those responsible for the alleged rigging accountable in a transparent manner. He hinted at the possibility of re-elections if the claims of poll irregularities were substantiated.

He warned that if Pakistan did not have a democratic process that upheld its own Constitution, “it will be an impediment to our relationship”. He added: “It will retard our ability to have” the bilateral relations in security, trade and others. “All of that suffers if Pakistan is not a full democracy.”

Addressing allegations of a conspiracy involving cypher manipulation, Lu dismissed claims made by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former prime minister Imran Khan. “These allegations… these conspiracy theories are a lie… it is not accurate,” he said. “It is a complete falsehood.”

The cipher controversy first emerged on March 27, 2022, when Imran, while addressing a public rally in Islamabad waved a letter before the crowd, claiming that it was a cipher from a foreign nation that had conspired with his political rivals to have the PTI government ousted through a no-confidence motion.

While the US government officials repeatedly rejected Imran’s allegations, this was for the first time that a detailed account came from Lu himself, whose meeting with the then ambassador, Asad Majeed, was at the heart of conspiracy allegations.

“I have reviewed the press reporting related to this, what is called the cipher in Pakistan, the alleged leaked diplomatic cable from the embassy here,” Lu responded to a question raised by the subcommittee chair at the outset of the proceedings.

“It is not accurate. At no point does it accuse the US government or me personally of taking steps against Imran Khan. And thirdly, the other person in the meeting, the then-ambassador of Pakistan to the US, has testified to his own government that there was no conspiracy,” he said.

He added that the US respected Pakistan’s sovereignty. “We respect the principle that Pakistani people should be the only ones to choose their own leaders through a democratic process,” the assistant secretary of state stressed.

Also read: US describes Donald Lu’s testimony as routine

The subcommittee endorsed his stance. The reaction from the members suggested that Lu was provided a platform to put the record straight regarding the oft-repeated allegations by the PTI and its founder Imran Khan.

During its proceedings, Lu’s response was met with chants of “liar” by certain people, present there, who were later removed by the chair. He replied in the negative, when a subcommittee member asked if the US asked for Imran’s removal from power after his visit to Russia.

Lu was also asked about the status of press freedom, access to social media platforms, and the issue of Exit Control List (ECL) in Pakistan. “We are talking to the Pakistani government at the highest levels about these issues,” he said, adding that there were laws, and that the US was pursuing the matter.

In his testimony, Lu reiterated that the State Department’s observations regarding the Pakistani elections. “We were particularly concerned about electoral abuses and violence that happened in the weeks leading up to the polls,” he said.

In this regard, he mentioned attacks on police, politicians and political gatherings by terrorist groups; harassment and abuse of journalists, particularly female journalists by party supporters and “several political leaders were disadvantaged by the inability to register specific candidates and political parties”.

“We condemn the electoral violence and restrictions on human and fundamental rights and restriction on internet services,” he continued. He revealed that election monitors had said that they were barred from observing vote tabulation in “more than half of the constituencies across the country”.

A lawmaker questioned Lu whether the State Department had conducted its own investigation into the general elections. Lu replied that certain actions were being taken such as monitoring of the process to address poll irregularities.

Govt reactionTarar condemned the PTI’s conspiracy and its anti-state moves, including May 9 riots and protests outside the International Monetary Fund (IMF) headquarters for derailing Pakistan’s standby agreement.

“The PTI hired lobbyists in the US for a congressional hearing on the so-called regime change conspiracy, but their leader could not evade the divine justice,” he said. “Hiring of the lobbyists … was solely meant to malign the country, but it was the PTI founder who was declared a “certified liar” in the end.”

The minister said the US diplomat had not only exposed the “cipher drama”, but also expressed satisfaction over the credibility of the general election as well as women empowerment in Pakistan during the proceeding.

(WITH INPUTS FROM NEWS DESK & APP)