South Asia News
More arrests in Pakistan amid calls for uprising (Roundup)
Nov 6, 2007, 16:02 GMT
Plain cloth policeman thrashes lawyers as they protest against the Emergency rule for the second consecutive day in Multan, Pakistan, 06 November 2007. Police on 05 November 2007 arrested hundereds of lawyers and human rights activists who were protesting against the Emergency rule declared by Pakistani President and chief of Army staff General Pervez Musharraf who set aside 1973 constitution and announced a Provisional Constitutional Order on 03 November 2007. EPA/MK CHAUDHRY
Islamabad - Police arrested scores more protesting lawyers across Pakistan on Tuesday as the country's ousted top judge incited citizens to overthrow the 'dictatorship' of President General Pervez Musharraf.
The US-backed leader on Saturday placed the country under emergency rule, partially suspending the constitution and fundamental civil rights, and dismissed the judiciary, which had been close to deciding on the legality of his controversial October 6 re-election.
Irate lawyers clashed with stick-wielding police in the central Punjab province city of Multan when they attempted to march outside court premises in protest at what they termed the 'naked violation of the constitution' by the military leader.
'Eight office-bearers of the High Court Bar Association of Multan were manhandled by the police at the court complex and taken away in waiting vans,' lawyer Mohammad Aashiq told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
Some attorneys were badly beaten and at least a dozen demonstrators sustained cuts and bruises, Aashiq added.
Violence also broke out at district courts where an agitated crowd invaded government-owned premises and police used batons and tear gas to disperse them.
Similar incidents were reported during anti-Musharraf protests in other cities, including Lahore, Karachi, Quetta, Peshawar and Rawalpindi. Around 100 people were reportedly arrested.
In the capital Islamabad, dismissed chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry urged Pakistanis 'to rise up and make sacrifices for the supremacy of the law.'
Chaudhry, who was removed from his post on Saturday along with other top judges, was addressing a lawyers' assembly by phone from his official residence where he was being kept under house arrest.
In a short speech, he claimed that a seven-member bench of the Supreme Court had annulled Musharraf's emergency decree just before authorities removed the judges and rendered them incommunicado.
Musharraf said earlier that emergency rule was to ensure 'effective governance, maintenance of the writ of the government, law and order, security in the country and averting decline in economic growth.'
He also said judicial activism was obstructing the fight by intelligence agencies against extremism and terrorism, and blamed Chaudhry for ordering the release of detained militant suspects.
'People know that the Supreme Court dispensed justice,' the sacked judge told the lawyers as cellphone networks were temporarily switched off, allegedly on government orders.
'Lawyers are the vanguard of the movement against this dictatorial regime and we will resist until the army general is deposed,' said lawyer Shakeel Amin, who was among the crowd.
However, he expressed regret that the political opposition had failed to mobilise the masses, who he said stood 'on the verge of revolt against poverty, illiteracy and lawlessness.'
Police reportedly rounded up some 3,500 people, mostly anti-government activists, since the emergency proclamation on Saturday afternoon.
The president, an army general who came to power in a 1999 coup, also imposed curbs on the media, which he said appeared to be helping the cause of extremists and terrorists by showing gory scenes of suicide bombings.
This only encouraged these elements to continue their heinous acts, according to Musharraf.
The weekend drama and its aftermath have drawn widespread criticism of the military leader, who has said the transition to democracy will be completed but without giving a timeframe.
Pakistan on Tuesday rejected international condemnation of Musharraf's decision to impose emergency rule and growing calls for restoration of democracy as interference in its internal affairs.
'This is an extraordinary step that was taken to meet extraordinary challenges Pakistan is facing in form of extremism and terrorism. We expect friendly countries to show understanding to the delicacy of situation,' Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Sadiq told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
US President George W Bush on Monday urged Musharraf, a key ally in the war against terrorism, to restore civilian rule and hold elections - currently set for January - 'as soon as possible.'
Pakistan's incumbent parliament is due to be dissolved by mid-November.
The ruling Pakistan Muslim League, a party staunchly backed by Musharraf for its unflinching support, claims it will sweep the polls on the basis on its 'incredible performance'.
However, the country's former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has returned from eight years of self-imposed exile to lead her Pakistan People's Party in the polls. = Her return is reportedly a part of an arrangement with Musharraf that was also favoured by the US for a liberal government in the world's only nuclear-armed Muslim country.
Bhutto's homecoming on October 18 was marred by at least one suicide bombing of her slow-moving procession in the southern port city of Karachi. Some 145 people died and around 500 were injured.
Though the government has banned political gatherings under the state of emergency, the two-time premier is set to hold a rally in the capital's twin city of Rawalpindi on Friday.
Bhutto is expected to arrive in Islamabad on Wednesday.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
page: 1
Shut up tard
you are an idiot. do you have any real comments, or just a foul mouth?
who are you, some neo-nazi scum with partisan blinders? Are you trying
to suppress my freedom of speech? Sorry I do not live in Pakistan.
Why don't you go there and help Musharraf run his dictatorship, so you can try to shut people up from expressing their thoughts.
For the sake of history;it was not Pakistan that created the Taliban or Al Quaida .The Taliban was armed by Ronald Reagan to combat the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan .The consequences of this support were deemed unimportant by Reagan ,whom had no understanding of the political ideology .The support from Pakistan was requested and given in echange for the nuclear bomb by the same Ronald Reagan .The detonators of such device were imported from the USA via South Africa .
These errors from the past might now come back to haunt them as the political situation in Pakistan is volatile .However the risk of fundamentalist islamist taking over Pakistan is overrated by Musharraf for the purpose of clinging to power .The support of islamist is estimated at about ten precent .Not very alarming .
It would appear that the real threat is Pakistan, not Iran, and if Bush and his twin weren't so intent on starting a war with Iran, they would know this!
Tonny is correct. You must not be alarmed by Islamist support. You will very much enjoy living under Caliphate. You will see.
From Bush's speech given Sept.20th, 2001 ...
'From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.'
So here we are in 2007 ... Pakistan allows Al Qaeda to exist within it's borders ... even having an agreement with Al Qaeda ... agreeing that the Pakistani government will not pursue them in the northern border areas ...
And blatantly contradicting himself, Bush openly supports the Pakistani government ... the very same Pakistani government that harbors Al Qaeda within it's borders.
If you're not outraged, you're not paying attention.
tonny, I think that your synopsis can be proven correct, and I am aware
of the United States past involvement with the Taliban, although I merely
hinted at this, when I said that Pakistan was 'instrumental' in creating
the Taliban. The taliban was armed by the United States to fight the Russians, possibly as a 'get back' for the Russian support to North Vietnam earlier. We did create a frankenstein monster as a result of
supplying them with ak-47s aND stinger missles, money, etc. conduited thru Pakistani intelligence services. Incidentally, Iran has been fighting the Taliban since before 9/11, although the US govt doesn't want to recognize the facts. A lot of Americans are misinformed because of the propaganda of fear and paranoia perpetrated by the politicians.
Notice how crudely the crazies respond to thoughtful postings. All they
can do is preach fear and hate, and criticize free speech.
'For the sake of history;it was not Pakistan that created the Taliban or Al Quaida'
For the sake of history you are DEAD WRONG. AGAIN. Good god, they have Google over there, do some research before you blather.
how can you have democracy in a place that is rif with phychotic killers and thier phychotic leaders . Pervez , go for it ! while ya got the chance , kick some terrorist ass in a serious way ;then stand-down a-bit .
The sooner a Pakistan soldier stands up for his people and blows the head off the tyrant dictator the better.
page: 1
truconserveNov 7th, 2007 - 15:03:34
I can not understand the logic behind the US government's support for
the military dictator in Pakistan. This is the country that was instrumental in creating the Taliban and al qaeda. [Along with Saudia Arabia]. This is the country that intelligence reports say is harboring
osama bid laden today, six years after 9/11. This is the country that has allowed a vast narco-terrorist network to thrive in Pakistan and
Afghanistan. This is the country that shared nuclear weapons technology
with North Korea. This is a coutry with an estimated 50-60 nuclear bombs
and missle delivery systems. This is the military dictatorship that the United States has given billions of dollars to, supposedly help us fight our war on the 9/11 terrorist network. But they has done next to nothing
as Musharraf takes our money and laughs at us behind our backs. This is
a military dictatorship that makes a complete mockery of the United States
quest to bring freedom and democracy to the middle east region.
I have read comments from other posters who cowardly claim that
we could not attack Pakistan after 9/11, or now, because that would de-stabilize the region. Meanwhile, isn't that what we did by attacking Iraq, instead of Pakistan? The 9/11 al qaeda terrorist training bases are in Pakistan, not Iraq. Osama bin laden is taunting the US from Pakistan, not Iraq. The British subway bombers were from Pakistan, not Iraq. Why is the United States so cowardly that it can not eliminate osama bin laden, and bring freedom and democracy to Pakistan?
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