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4 moderate civilians in Pak NSC

Andrew Hill in Islamabad

Pakistan's army rulers have named four moderate civilians, including a private banker and a woman, to run the country with the military, which seized power in a bloodless October 12 coup.

They appointed four civilians to the National Security Council, which will he headed by army leader General Pervez Musharraf and include heads of the navy and air force. It will be the nation's top executive body.

An official announcement also named civilians as ministers of foreign affairs, finance and as attorney-general, giving the army-led administration a liberal face untainted by links to the two parties which have ruled Pakistan for a decade.

''It's a liberal, moderate cabinet with internationally known Pakistanis who will be recognised abroad to a certain extent,'' said Ahmed Rashid, a writer on Pakistani affairs.

Civilians on the council include state (central) bank Governor Mohammad Yaqub and the only woman, Attiya Inayatullah, a one-time population minister.

The other two are Sharifuddin Pirzada, a constitutional expert who was appointed senior advisor to General Musharraf, and Imtiaz Sahibzada, a retired senior civil servant.

None of those named has direct links to the Pakistan Muslim League of former prime minister Nawaz Sharief, who was overthrown on October 12, or to Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party.

''The direction is clearly liberal, moderate, trying to end Pakistan's isolation from the international community because of its past foreign policy and also ending isolation from the MFIs (multinational financial institutions),'' Rashid said.

UNI

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