KEY POINTS:
The 53-nation Commonwealth suspended Pakistan's membership yesterday after President Pervez Musharraf failed to meet a deadline to lift emergency rule and resign as Army chief.
The Commonwealth had given Musharraf until Thursday to lift the state of emergency he imposed on November 3.
Musharraf has begun rolling back some elements of emergency rule and Pakistani officials say he will be sworn in as a civilian leader within days.
This week he freed thousands of detainees held since November 3. He has also promised a parliamentary election on January 8.
But the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group, charged with reviewing Pakistan's membership, said: "The situation in Pakistan continues to represent a serious violation of the Commonwealth's fundamental political values."
CMAG had therefore "suspended Pakistan forthwith from the Commonwealth pending the restoration of democracy and the rule of law in that country", its secretary-general, Don McKinnon, said.
He expressed disappointment that although there had been some progress, many of the Commonwealth's demands, laid down at a meeting on November 12, had "remained substantially unfulfilled". While suspension has few immediate practical consequences, analysts say it could further isolate Pakistan and discourage foreign investment.
The nine-member CMAG was established in 1995 to deal with violations of Commonwealth rules on democracy. The meeting ran five hours over schedule, possibly indicating difficulty in reaching a decision.
Commonwealth sources said Asian CMAG members Sri Lanka and Malaysia were reluctant to act now against Pakistan, while Tanzania and Canada had pushed hard for it to be suspended.
But British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said: "Every country was fully in favour of the decision, but it was a decision taken in sorrow, not in anger ... the chance is for Pakistan now to make the changes that are in their interest."
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who arrived in Kampala shortly before the CMAG decision, said: "Commonwealth ministers have made a clear and necessary decision with the suspension of Pakistan from the Commonwealth."
Suspension: What it means
A ban on Pakistan attending any Commonwealth meeting in the world, including the three-day heads of government summit that begins in Kampala today.
The withdrawal of "technical assistance", where officials from one Commonwealth country are sent to another member state with a view to improving public administration and government.
A ban on attending Commonwealth-run training programmes and workshops for officials.
Exclusion from the Commonwealth Games, in India in 2010.
- Reuters
