The US government believes it is time to seek a fair and transparent
judicial process for Pakistan's former ambassador to Washington in the
memo scandal.
On Friday, the US State Department said that it felt
the time had come to demand a fair and transparent judicial process for
Pakistan's former ambassador to Washington Husain Haqqani and make it
clear that 'we're watching', the Dawn reported Saturday.
Three US Senators Thursday voiced concern over the reported mistreatment of Haqqani.
During
the US State Department briefing, spokesperson Victoria Nuland said the
US administration was concerned about Haqqani's fate.
'While it's
obviously an internal matter for Pakistan, and we respect Pakistan's
constitutional and legal processes, we expect that any process for
resolving the matter of Ambassador Haqqani will proceed in a way that is
fair, that's transparent, that is as expeditious as possible,' she
said.
'We also expect that Ambassador Haqqani will be accorded all
due consideration under Pakistani law and in conformity with
international legal standards. And we will be watching and monitoring
the situation closely,' she added.
Until now, the State Department had been refusing to comment on the issue, saying that it was Pakistan's internal matter.
Replying
to a question as to whether the US was now more concerned about
Haqqani's case than earlier, Nuland said: 'The situation is obviously
evolving in Pakistan, so we want to see it evolve in a manner that meets
the highest international legal standard.'
Haqqani was forced to
resign last year after Pakistani-American businessman Mansoor Ijaz
claimed that he was asked by Haqqani to pass on a memo to the American
government seeking its help to oust Islamabad's military leadership.
Currently
staying as a guest at the prime minister's official residence in
Islamabad, Haqqani fears that he will be murdered if he leaves the
place, the Daily Telegraph reported earlier this week. IANS
