Information on Mion Abdul Satter and the October 1993 provincial elections and on his December 1994 status could not be found among the sources currently available to the DIRB.

According to Keesing's, however, an Abdus Sattar assumed the post of minister of foreign affairs in the caretaker Pakistani government after Prime Minister Mian Mohammad Nawaz Sharif and President Ghulam Ishaq Khan resigned on 18 July 1993 (July 1993, 39561). The nine members of the interim government "were reported to be former civil servants or army officers, chosen for their supposed political neutrality and their willingness to refrain from contesting the next elections" (ibid.). Caretaker provincial governments were also appointed (ibid.).

According to the attached Radio Pakistan Network release, Nawaz Sharif's cabinet colleague Maulana Abdus Sattar Khan Niazi was defeated in the national assembly elections of October 1993 (7 Oct. 1993).

Please refer to the attachments for further information.

This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

Reference

Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. July 1993. Vol. 39, No. 7/8. "Pakistan: Resignation of Sharif and Khan Appointment of Caretaker Government."

Radio Pakistan Network [Islamabad, in Urdu]. 7 October 1993. "Pakistan: Latest National Assembly Election Results Noted: 'Slight' PPP Edge Over PML N Seen." (FBIS-NES-93-193 7 Oct. 1993, p. 53)

Attachment

Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. July 1993. Vol. 39, No. 7/8. "Pakistan: Resignation of Sharif and Khan Appointment of Caretaker Government," p. 39561.

Radio Pakistan Network [Islamabad, in Urdu]. 7 October 1993. "Pakistan: Latest National Assembly Election Results Noted: 'Slight' PPP Edge Over PML N Seen." (FBIS-NES-93-193 7 Oct. 1993, p. 53)

Sources Consulted

Asia Week [Hong Kong]. Weekly. August 1993 to present.

The Europa World Year Book. Yearly. 1993, 1994.

DIRB Indexed Media Review "Pakistan" [Ottawa]. Weekly. June 1993 to present.

Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS) Reports. Daily. May 1993 to present.

Herald [Karachi]. Monthly. January to May 1994.

India Today [New Delhi]. Fortnightly. August 1993 to present.

Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. Monthly. 1993 to present.

People in Power [Cambridge]. Monthly. 1994.

On-line search of media sources.