Pakistan braces for return of defiant Sharif

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ISLAMABAD, Sept 9 (AFP): Pakistan's government braced Sunday for a showdown with former premier Nawaz Sharif as the man ousted by President Pervez Musharraf in 1999 vowed to defy international appeals and return from exile.
Officials indicated that Sharif could be immediately sent back to Saudi Arabia if he comes home as planned Monday to challenge Musharraf, a key US ally, ahead of crunch elections for the nuclear-armed Islamic republic.
Saudi Arabia's intelligence chief and the influential son of assassinated former Lebanese premier Rafiq Hariri at the weekend joined calls by president Musharraf for the two-time ex-prime minister to scrap his plans.
"I and my brother Shahbaz are going back to Pakistan on September 10 and that will be the day of the people's victory," Sharif told a news conference in London Saturday.
Former industrialist Sharif was sentenced to life in prison on tax evasion and treason charges but released in December 2000 on condition that he and his family live in exile in Saudi Arabia for 10 years.
The Sharifs say they were forced into the agreement and Pakistan's Supreme Court handed down the latest in a series of judicial setbacks for Musharraf last month when it ruled that they could fly back.
Musharraf, facing his worst political crisis at home, has asked arch-foe Sharif to abide by the agreement as his return would destabilise the political environment ahead of general elections expected in the next five months.
With growing public support behind him, Sharif is a potential obstacle to a power-sharing deal that Musharraf is trying to reach with another former premier, Benazir Bhutto, which could see him quit the army.
"Nawaz Sharif should respect his commitment to the most revered Muslim country (Saudi Arabia) and its leadership and complete ten years in exile," Information Minister Muhammad Ali Durrani told AFP.
Saudi Arabia is where Islam's most holy sites are located and often plays a key behind-the- scenes role in the politics of the world's second most populous Muslim nation, which is home to more than 160 million people.
Lebanese politician Saad Hariri and Saudi intelligence chief Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz said during a visit to Islamabad on Saturday that Sharif must honour the deal that sent him into exile seven years ago.
Government officials said the Saudi comments had given a moral boost to the government in dealing with Sharif, adding that if the ex-leader is allowed back "Pakistan will be in an embarrassing position."
The government "now has the justification to send him back to Saudi Arabia if he defies the agreement and flies into Pakistan," a senior cabinet minister told AFP on condition of anonymity.
An apparently nervous administration has ordered a police crackdown against workers from Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League- Nawaz party. Party leaders claim 1,500 have been arrested in different parts of the country.
An anti-terrorism court Friday ordered the arrest of Sharif's brother Shahbaz in a murder case and the government asked another court to grant an arrest warrant for Nawaz on corruption charges.
"Nawaz Sharif's return will not destabilise Pakistan but will take Pakistan towards democracy," Sharif party spokesman Ahsan Iqbal said.
Analysts said that preventing Sharif from returning to his homeland could cause unrest in Pakistan, whereas allowing him back could ease tension and create space for a dialogue between the government and the opposition.
"It may not serve the interest of internal order if his return is obstructed by the government," political analyst Hasan Askari, the former head of political science at Lahore's Punjab University, told AFP.
"In such a situation of confrontation problems are not generally resolved through peaceful means. So Pakistan may now be entering a period of extreme uncertainty and internal disharmony," Askari said.