Pakistan's Musharraf 'is ready to quit'
Updated on 15 August 2008
Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf has reportedly said he would rather resign than face impeachment.
But the former army chief is seeking immunity from prosecution for imposing emergency rule, a coalition government official said.
Speculation has been mounting that Mr Musharraf would quit since the ruling government coalition, led by the party of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, said last week that it planned to impeach him.
A spokesman for the president has repeatedly denied reports that he is about to quit, and has done so again.
But a coalition official said negotiations on the terms of the unpopular president's resignation are going on.
"He is ready to resign but he is putting conditions like indemnity for the November 3 action," the official said, referring to Mr Musharraf's order for six weeks of emergency rule last year.
"Back-door talks are still going on. Things have not yet been finalised. Let's see what happens."
The long-running crisis surrounding Mr Musharraf's future has heightened concern among Western states about the stability of the nuclear-armed Muslim state, which is in the frontline of the campaign against Islamic extremists.
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