Musharraf says country must be saved

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, who has no immediate plans to end his emergency rule, says the country is more important than democracy, Dawn reported.

Speaking in Quetta, Musharraf said the constitution and democracy are for the country and not the other way around, the newspaper reported Monday.

Earlier in his meeting with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, Musharraf did not set a date for lifting his Nov. 3 emergency decree, despite a reminder from the U.S. envoy that emergency rule is not compatible with fair and credible elections set for January.

In Quetta, Musharraf urged all political parties to participate in the elections, which he said would usher in a new era of democracy, Dawn reported.

A BBC report said Negroponte was careful to praise Musharraf to reporters, before criticizing him.

"In diplomacy, as you know, we don't get instant replies," Negroponte was quoted as saying. "I'm sure that the president is seriously considering the exchange we had."

Wendy Chamberlin, former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, told the BBC Negroponte was "not saying that President Musharraf is indispensable. We've dropped that line. He is saying that our relationship is with the people. That we trust the army and trust the institutions there. And I think we've taken the right step."