Musharraf, Bhutto Reach Tentative Deal to Let Her Return With Amnesty

Pakistan Supreme Court Rules That Scheduled Election Can Proceed

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Oct. 5 -- President Pervez Musharraf and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto reached a tentative deal designed to give his election more credibility and allow her to return to Pakistan without facing corruption charges, officials on both sides said Friday.

As part of the deal, which followed months of seesaw negotiations, Railways Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said Musharraf signed a law that grants amnesty to Bhutto and other former politicians from corruption charges, the Associated Press reported. The full details of the deal were expected to be formally announced later Friday, the eve of a planned presidential vote in the national and provincial assemblies.

The Pakistan Supreme Court ruled Friday that the vote could proceed Saturday as scheduled, despite a pending legal challenge to Musharraf's eligibility. But the court said the results cannot be announced until justices finish considering the case -- a partial setback to Musharraf's plans for a smooth transition between terms.

Although the court ruled last week that Musharraf could still run for president despite his dual role as chief of the army, the ruling today will delay the reelection process until at least Oct. 17, the next scheduled court hearing and the day before Bhutto's planned return from exile.

Musharraf has the support he needs to win a new five-year term, but Bhutto's party had threatened to join other opposition groups in resigning from the assemblies in protest. Such a move would further erode the credibility of a vote that is already being questioned because Musharraf is choosing to have his tenure extended by assemblies that are about to expire. Under the deal, Bhutto's party members will either abstain or vote for their own candidate, but will not step down.

In return, the government has agreed to the amnesty for Bhutto and other politicians who have outstanding corruption charges dating to 1999 or earlier but who have not been convicted. The amnesty clears the way for Bhutto to return from exile on Oct. 18, after eight years abroad, and compete in parliamentary elections slated for late this year or early next year. Bhutto, who twice served as prime minister in the late 1980s and 1990s, has said that she wants to win back her old job.

On Thursday, Bhutto told reporters in London that although the deal with Musharraf was not finalized, she was optimistic.

"We expect there will be no obstacle in the path of my return," she said.

Musharraf, meanwhile, told Dawn News on Thursday night that he believed there was space for Bhutto in Pakistani politics.

"In the process of national reconciliation, the People's Party and she have a role to play," he said.

The United States has been quietly facilitating the negotiations, hoping that Musharraf and Bhutto -- both considered moderates -- can join forces to battle a rising tide of radicalism in the country's northwest.

The amnesty deal apparently does not include former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, who returned from exile last month only to be deported four hours later. He was convicted on charges in 2000, and government officials say that those convictions still stand.