Update @ 1445: Asma Jahangir e-mails her detention order
The following e-mail came in via Omer from Asma Jahangir who is the Secretary General of HRCP (Human Rights Commission Pakistan):
The situation in the country is uncertain. There is a strong crackdown on the press and lawyers. Majority of the judges of the Supreme Court and four High Courts have not taken oath. The Chief Justice is under house arrest (unofficially). The President of the Supreme Court Bar (Aitzaz Ahsan) and 2 former presidents, Mr. Muneer Malik and Tariq Mahmood have been imprisoned for one month under the Preventive Detention laws. The resident of the Lahore High Court Mr. Ahsan Bhoon and former bar leader Mr. Ali Ahmed Kurd have also been arrested. The police is looking or 6 other lawyers, including President of Peshawar and Karachi bar. The President of Lahore bar is also in hiding. There are other scores political leaders who have also been arrested. Yesterday I was house arrested for 90 days. I am sending my detention order (please click here):
Ironically the President (who has lost his marbles) said that he had to clamp down on the press and the judiciary to curb terrorism. Those he has arrested are progressive, secular minded people while the terrorists are offered negotiations and ceasefires. Lawyers and civil society will challenge the government and the scene is likely to get uglier.We want friends of Pakistan to urge the US administration to stop all support of the instable dictator, as his lust for power is bringing the country close to a worse form of civil strife. It is not time for the international community to insist on preventive measures, otherwise cleaning up the mess may take decades. There are already several hundred IDPs and the space for civil society has hopelessly shrunk.
We believe that Musharaf has to be taken out of the equation and a government of national reconciliation put in place. It must be backed by the military. Short of this there are no realistic solutions, although there are no guarantees that this may work.
Comments
The emergency imposed by President Musharraf was the only option left with him due to unconstitutional attitude of Supreme Court Judges especially Ex.CJ Iftikhar Muhammad Ch. alongwith his likeminded colleague Judges was bent upon destroying the whole Administrative Set Up of Pakistan due to personal enmity with President Musharraf who filed Reference againt Ex.CJ on nepotism and corruption charges.It is irony that majority of Judges and lawyers in Pakistan are corrupt.Most lawyers in Pakistan are touts of Judges.The whole Judicial system in Pakistan, barring a few honest Judges And Lawyers,has rotten due to them.Ex.CJ ordered release of terrorists and religious extremists in order to creat problems for Musharraf
I would like to mention Ms Asma Jahangir a self made champion of HRCP.His husband and other relatives are frauds and cheaters.They have looted general public through listing of their companies namely Data Ago,Hala Spinning and Hala Enterprise etc.The balance statements of these companies will tell you the truth as they have shown tremendous losses.
Had there been no fuss created by Supreme Court,there would have been smooth transition to complete democracy in Pakistan as President Musharraf had commited in SC that he will leave the charge of Army Chief while taking oath as President.But due to our Ex.Vindictive CJ,the whole country remained in tension because of intended delay tactics by SC Judges.They were waiting for dissolution of Assemblies and then wanted to give decision against the President in order to creat anarchy in Pakistan.There is complete calm in amrkets,Bazaars and streets of Pakistan.People are happy on declaration of Emergency which will help in fight agaist terrorism and extremism which is limited to Tribal Areas and few neighbouring cities of NWFP(mostly terrorists belong to Pukhtoon Tribes.
Sheikhu, you’re a damned fool. Hala and the other companies were financed by the IFC. No local money was involved. Your criticism has nothing to do with anything.
These “progressives” in the judiciary and civil society have never helped the govt in the fight against terrorism. Rather the judiciary sets terrorists free while the civil society accuses the govt of “killing its own people”. The media is also very sympathetic to any lunatic with a gun and a beard.
The emergency is meant to remove these obstacles so that the govt and security forces can fight terrorism.
What kind of an idiot Supreme Court orders compensation for Jamia Hafsa after all the crimes they had committed? An Iftikhar Chaudhry SC.
The President announced that Election in Pakistan will be held before 15th Nov.,2008 as provided in the constitution and he will leave the post of Army Chief before taking charge as President for next term.There will be complete democratic set up in Pakistan.What else these so called champions of democracy wants.There is complete calm and relief among general public of Pakistan as there is absolutely no agitation anywhere in Pakistan except by lawyers and journalists which is a very small majority.The majority of lawyers are touts of Judges and corrupt.They don’t care about the interests of their clients and prefer to boycot the courts.They did not attend the courts for about two months during agitation when reference was filed against Ex.CJ Iftikhar Ch. by President on nepotism and corruption charges.They never bothered about their clients’ interests.Similaly the Media alongwith Ex.Supreme Court Judges were fully supporting Terrorists and Talbans for vested interests since they have formed alliance against the sitting Government and wanted to topple her.News TV channels loyal to Nawaz Sharif were openly insultig the President,Prime Minister,CM’s,and all Government functioneries.There was so much cruelity and bloodshed being shown every hour that the general public was depressed and mentally sick though only a few Terrorists in remote areas of NWFM Province especially in Tribal Areas were involved in these activities.All these Terrorists,Talban and Suicidal Bombers belong to Pukhtoon Tribes and Afghan Refugees settled in Pakistan.In the end I again confim the proprietership of the Companies namely Data Agro,Hala Enterprise,Hala Spinning belonging to Asma Jahangir’s Husband family and my statement may kindly be got verified from Karachi Stock Exchange.
The whole world knew that Pakistan is promoting terrorism but because of support of west it had not come under the scrutiny. But now their own nurtured terrorists are taking toll of Pakistanis. And now many Pakistanis are regretting who once upon a time were happy to see bloodshed in India. NWFP has already been converted into Talibanism and the whole nation is under the threat of civil war.
It seems Mr.Sheiku has very soft corner towards Mr. Musharraf. I would call him Mr. Musharraf because he is not elected by people and according to law he should be retired from the post of chief of army.After 60 years of independence it depends on the U.S. aids. No secure future of rural women. Many youth get caught in faulty madressas and after their brain washing they are made suicide bombers or terrorists. The religion fundamentalists are making their foothold strong.In this situation a rare ray of hope is also a distant thing. I appreciate even in these situations Ms. Asma is fighting for human rights.
Perhaps most of the Pakistan’s population has not felt the environment of freedom and independence. They have not tasted the power of secularity. It is unfortunate and sad but everything lies in the hands of Pakistan’s citizens whether they want to do slavery of the dictator or they want to embrace freedom.
In this context I thought it worthwhile to copy the mail and the message I had sent yesterday to THE DAWN. You may if you wish spread the message around
To,
Editor,
‘The DAWN’
Karachi,
Pakistan.
Dear Sir,
A storm is raging in Pakistan. We from India want to express our solidarity with the civil society that has raised its voice for Freedom and Democracy in that prosperous but parched ‘Land of Five Rivers’. Bravo, Pakistan!
In this context I cannot do better than quoting the immortal words of Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan in response to the state of emergency declared in India in the seventies depriving its people of freedom and fundamental rights:
“Freedom became one of the beacon lights of my life and it has remained so ever since. Freedom with the passing of years transcended the mere freedom of my country and embraced freedom of man everywhere and from every sort of trammel - above all it meant freedom of the human personality, freedom of the mind, freedom of the spirit. This freedom has become a passion of my life and I shall not see it compromised for bread, for security, for prosperity, for the glory of the state or for anything elseâ€Â.
These thundering words of JP reverberated through out the length and breadth of the country leading to India’s second freedom.
These may be mere words. But if words are all that we have we should put our hopes in the resounding faith of Russian Rebel-Writer Alexander Solzhenetsyn: “It is infinitely difficult to begin when mere words must move a block of inert matter. But there is no other way if none of the material strength is on your side. And a shout in the mountains has been known to start an avalancheâ€Â
We are gratified to note that ‘the shout in the mountains’ has commenced in Pakistan and students may take up its reverberations. To them we would like to exhort in the manner of one of India’s great patriots and a noble son, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad: “Lift up to the skies like leaves before a stormâ€Â
Hope you will spread this message. God’s Speed.
M.G.Devasahayam
(You may hit the google search engine to know about me)
Arrey Sheikhu, you’re missing the point: The companies were owned by Tahir Jehangir, Asma’s husband. But they were financed by the IFC, which is a lending arm of the World Bank. And, in any case, when the companies were ordered to be wound up, the liquidation of their assets took care of outstanding debts.
What I’m saying has nothing to do with the Musharraf/Chaudhray/Jehangir/Emergency - I can respectfully disagree with your opinion. It’s just that mentioning the Hala companies has nothing to do with anything and just shows how weak your comprehension of the situation is.
[...] political leaders who have also been arrested. Yesterday I was house arrested for 90 days”. For the full update click here Posted in Art, India, Pakistan, Politics. Tags: artists, Asma Jahangir Arrested, former bar [...]
I admire Asma Jahangir for her brave attitude against the evils. I would like to join her in her mission. Pl let me know about my offer.
Thanks for the updates. This from WSJ:
The emergency declaration in Pakistan could make cooperation with the U.S. more difficult, by distracting the army from its antiterrorism work, said Teresita Schaffer, a South Asia expert and former ambassador to Sri Lanka. She termed Mr. Musharraf’s move “embarrassing” for the administration. “Soon after we start sounding as if the democracy message affects Pakistan, this happens,” she said.