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President gives cold-shoulder to Pakistan’s military chief
By Anthony David
Pakistan's top-most military man, General Mohamed Aziz Khan, received a snub when President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga called off an appointment given to him at the eleventh hour.

"The excuse given was that she was indisposed," the spokesman for the Pakistan Embassy, Zahoor Abbas Barlas, told The Sunday Times. Gen. Khan, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff - the joint apparatus of Pakistan's Army, Navy and Air Force - was scheduled to call on President Kumaratunga at 4 p.m.last Wednesday.

Mr. Barlas said Gen. Khan had paid a visit to Kandy on Wednesday morning and returned to Colombo for the call when the President's office informed them that President Kumaratunga was indisposed.

However, President Kumaratunga chaired a meeting of SLFP MPs that same Wednesday afternoon. That marathon session had lasted well over five hours.

Presidential Spokesman Harim Peiris told The Sunday Times the appointment was called off because the President was indisposed. However, he said "the President was unable to call off the SLFP parliamentarians meeting since members came from all parts of the country. There was no way they could be turned away."

On Thursday, President Kumaratunga cancelled previously scheduled engagements with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Norwegian Peace Facilitators, Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgessen and Special Envoy Erik Solheim.

Premier Wickremesinghe's meeting was scheduled for Thursday noon whilst the meeting with the Norwegian two-member team was scheduled for the evening on the same day.

However, President Kumaratunga turned up at a meeting the same day to mark the issue of a commemorative stamp in memory of Sri Lanka Muslim Congress leader M.H.M. Ashraff, who died in a helicopter crash. (Please see Editorial)

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