VZCZCXRO5348
RR RUEHBI RUEHLH RUEHPW
DE RUEHIL #5017/01 3301234
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 261234Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3456
INFO RUCPDOC/USDOC WASHDC
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 2324
RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL 7830
RUEHDO/AMEMBASSY DOHA 1463
RUEHBI/AMCONSUL MUMBAI 3729
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE 4167
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI 8180
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR 2729

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 005017 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL ECON ETRD EFIN EINV PGOV PK
SUBJECT: AMERICAN BUSINESSES EXPRESS VIEWS ON STATE OF EMERGENCY 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY:  The Ambassador spoke November 20 at the Islamabad 
monthly American business breakfast meeting to share U.S. views the 
political and economic situation and to gauge business reaction to 
the state of emergency.  Opinions diverged among the executives on 
the current state of affairs and the future of investment activity. 
Some U.S. companies are proceeding with expansion plans.  Most 
expressed a desire for communication and support from the Embassy, 
particularly regarding the travel advisory.  END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) The Ambassador spoke for the first time November 20 at the 
Embassy-organized breakfast for the American companies located in 
Islamabad.  Eighteen companies attended.  The Ambassador shared the 
U.S. perspective on the current situation in Pakistan and solicited 
attendees' views.  Considerable debate erupted among the audience, 
which one attendee stated reflects the divided views throughout 
Pakistani society. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Several executives worried that Pakistan is headed down the 
wrong path.  Farrukh Aslam, CEO Touchstone (a founder and American 
citizen who currently resides in Ft. Worth, Texas) said most 
Pakistani-Americans believe that Musharraf has the blessing of the 
U.S. government to impose the state of emergency because the U.S. 
has supported him for the last eight years. (Note: Aslam has spent 
24 years living in the U.S. and visits Pakistan several times a 
year.  End Note)  Musharraf's administration, he said, has "failed 
to deliver" in the crackdown on terrorism, demonstrated by recent 
events such as the Red Mosque and Swat.  Articles like the recent 
Newsweek edition titled "Iraq is Not the Most Dangerous Country in 
the World, It's Pakistan" seriously harmed public opinion, which, as 
Zahid Mirza of Netsol Technologies commented, has caused alarm among 
its global customer base. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Irfan Qureshi, Country Manager of Chevron (CalTex) 
expressed concern over the U.S. support for Benazir Bhutto given her 
corrupt past.  He described threats of arrest against him by 
Bhutto's husband and worries that her return will bring back the 
large scale corruption that harmed many companies' growth and 
Pakistan's international reputation. 
 
¶5. (SBU) On the other hand, several executives said the 
international media has blown the current situation out of 
proportion.  Khurram Rahat, Managing Director of Teredata, said 
Pakistan is still a top 20 revenue generating country for his 
American company.  There is a misperception, he said, that what is 
happening in Swat also occurs in Islamabad, and he has worked 
internally at Teredata to correct this view.  Malik Imran, 
Government Account Manager of Microsoft, said the company is looking 
to expand its workforce by 40% over the next year.  He personally 
visited areas of the NWFP regularly over the last year and did not 
see widespread chaos.  In discussions with his Seattle headquarters, 
Imran tells senior executives that the situation in Pakistan is not 
as problematic as it appears in the media.  Rahat and several 
members asked the Ambassador to look at developing an Embassy 
message that the companies can send back to their American 
headquarters saying the situation is not as dire as the media 
portrays.  The Ambassador offered companies with concerns to contact 
the Embassy individually for reassurance. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Despite the current situation, a number of companies are 
proceeding with investment activities and hosting U.S. visitors. 
Aslam plans to go ahead with a $1 billion power plant project in 
connection with ALCOA and currently employs 1,100 people in his 
three existing businesses in Pakistan, including Touchstone. 
Visiting Uch U.S. executive Mark Molacek was not overly concerned 
about his trip to Pakistan.  He is working with Uch Power in 
Baluchistan to double the capacity of their existing power plant, 
worth an estimated $500 million.  Teradata plans to have three 
executives from the U.S. visit in the next month, including two Vice 
Presidents and the Chief Technology Officer. 
 
¶7. (SBU) COMMENT:  There are many diverse opinions about the current 
and future situation in Pakistan. One common thread is that it would 
be better to end the state of emergency as soon as possible, hold 
elections, and then move on.  All American company executives would 
like to overcome the negative public opinion from their headquarters 
and customers.  The potential growth, through investment, 
employment, and expansion plans, is enormous given the momentum of 
the past five years of seven percent growth and record levels of 
portfolio and direct investment.  However, the potential to for 
continued expansion of the U.S. business community and Pakistan's 
economic growth will be greater if the state of emergency is not 
prolonged and January elections are credible.  END COMMENT. 
 
 
ISLAMABAD 00005017  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
PATTERSON