Long march Updates: Ends. Successful before sit-in

[Patriot]

Police being beaten up and thrown in to police vans!

Another IG gives resignation!

Model Town Police let Nawaz out!

Police is packing up and giving up!

Aitezaz broke out of house arrest too!

Can we call this a full blown revolution? The Government has pretty much lost significant parts of Punjab to the revolution!

Dpty Attorney General Abdul Hai Gillani (relative of PM) resigns!!

This will only force army to send commandos and lawyers certainly can't stop throw commandos like police

 

[Awesome]

This will only force army to send commandos and lawyers certainly can't stop throw commandos like police

Army will never fire upon its own civilians! Army is still seen as the good guy in all of this. It will lose all credibility once that happens.

 

[dabong1]

Army will never fire upon its own civilians! Army is still seen as the good guy in all of this. It will lose all credibility once that happens.

Lal Masjid?

 

[Jihad]

Lal Masjid?

No, the peope who occupied Lal Masjid were destroyed, and rightfully so.
They occupied a mosque, a mosque for crying out loud, where Muslims pray in peace and dignity for Allah (swt), they occupied it and clearly had intentions of using it to harm others.
Lal Masjid issue was a disgrace and should've never happened, the Army did it's job and killed those who think that their will is the law, which is not true.

Anyways, did the Police surrender or lay down arms one way or another or did they simply get beat up by the protestors?
Someone please clear this up for me.

 

[fatman17]

Protests against Pakistani government turn violent

BABAR DOGAR, Associated Press Writer Babar Dogar, Associated Press Writer

LAHORE, Pakistan – Pakistan's opposition leader defied house arrest on Sunday to join anti-government protests that quickly descended into violence and chaos, with running battles between stone-throwing protesters and police.

The power struggle between Pakistan's president and the opposition leader Nawaz Sharif threatens to paralyze the government and, alarmingly for the U.S., distract the nuclear-armed country from its fight against Taliban militants operating along the Afghan border.

Hundreds of police surrounded the Lahore residence of Sharif, a former prime minister, before dawn on Sunday and detained him along with scores of his supporters, a party spokesman said.

Officers in the eastern Pakistani city showed party officials an order placing Sharif and his politician brother Shahbaz under house arrest for three days, spokesman Pervaiz Rasheed said.

Sharif denounced the order as illegal and later left the house in a convoy of vehicles packed with chanting, flag-waving supporters, headed for a downtown rally that had already turned violent.

Mobs accompanying the swelling convoy smashed the windows of buses parked along the route. Others torched tires, sending plumes of black smoke into the blue sky over a usually bustling boulevard littered with stones and empty tear gas shells.

"These are the decisive moments," Sharif told supporters before he climbed into his car. "I tell every Pakistani youth that this is not the time to stay home; Pakistan is calling you to come and save me."

Rao Iftikhar, a senior government official, said authorities reconsidered the restrictions on Sharif to allow him to address the rally and return home afterward.

Washington worries that the crisis will further destabilize the shaky the year-old government and prevent it from being an effective ally in the fight against insurgents in Afghanistan.

Suspected militants attacked a transport terminal in northwestern Pakistan used to supply NATO troops in Afghanistan before dawn on Sunday and torched dozens of containers and military vehicles, police said.

Lawyers and opposition party supporters had planned to gather near Lahore's main court complex before heading toward Islamabad to stage a mass sit-in front of Parliament, in defiance of a government ban.

To thwart them, authorities parked trucks across major roads on the edge of the city, and riot police took up positions outside the railway station and government buildings.

Still, several thousands flag-waving demonstrators pushed past police barricades to reach the courts.

Protesters pelted some of the hundreds of riot police ringing the area with rocks, triggering running clashes. An Associated Press reporter saw one officer led away with a head wound.

Police repeatedly fired tear gas, scattering the crowd, and beat several stragglers with batons, only for the demonstrators to return with fresh supplies of sticks and stones.

Shahbaz Sharif and a host of other protest leaders went underground to dodge their own detention orders. Iftikhar said they had been issued for the head of Pakistan's main Islamist party and cricketer star-turned-politician Imran Khan.

Television images showed police commandos wearing flak jackets and armed with assault rifles apparently searching for Shahbaz in Rawalpindi, just south of the capital.

The political turmoil began last month when the Supreme Court disqualified the Sharif brothers from elected office, over convictions dating back to an earlier chapter in Pakistan's turbulent political history.

Zardari compounded the crisis by dismissing the Sharifs' administration in Punjab, Pakistan's biggest and richest province, of which Lahore is the capital.

The brothers then threw their support behind plans by lawyers to stage an indefinite sit-in in Islamabad — a move officials say would bring the government to a standstill and present a target to terrorists.

On Saturday, after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke to both Zardari and Nawaz Sharif by telephone, the government announced it would appeal the Supreme Court ruling in the coming days.

Sharif's party welcomed the move but stuck by its demand for a shake-up of the judiciary.

Zardari refuses to reinstate a group of independent-minded judges fired by Musharraf.

Many observers suspect Zardari fears the judges could challenge a pact signed by Musharraf that quashed long-standing corruption charges against him and his wife, slain former leader Benazir Bhutto.

Skeptics suspect Sharif of hoping to force early elections, from which he and Islamist parties would likely profit.

The top news headlines on current events from Yahoo! News

 

[Patriot]

Lal Masjid?

Are you trying to justify terrorist activities?

 

[All-Green]

Police being beaten up and thrown in to police vans!

Another IG gives resignation!

Model Town Police let Nawaz out!

Police is packing up and giving up!

Aitezaz broke out of house arrest too!

Can we call this a full blown revolution? The Government has pretty much lost significant parts of Punjab to the revolution!

Dpty Attorney General Abdul Hai Gillani (relative of PM) resigns!!

I sincerely hope this does not remain limited to Punjab.
It may sound anarchic on my part to say this but it is about time that our people think above province, baradri politics and see out common cause as a Nation the founders of which were men like Jinnah and Iqbal.

 

[SurvivoR]

Political crisis worsens in Pakistan; Zardari in a fix as Punjab police joined hands with opposition
Sun, 2009-03-15 21:33
By Farzana Shah- Asian Tribune correspondent in Pakistan

Nawaz defies house arrest leading mass protest

Islamabad, 15 March, (Asiantribune.com): Despite US concerns and efforts to defuse ongoing political crisis in Pakistan, the situation is getting worse as police failed to stop demonstrators in eastern city of Lahore.

Police have given up and now offering no resistance to march by protesters, has joined them. The same police officials who were seen battling with the demonstrators were seen raising slogans along with the political activist for restoration of the judiciary and against the sitting federal government.

The protesters suddenly swell to thousands from hundreds and administration has back off from offering any kind of resistance to them.

Earlier since morning protesters were battling the police in GPO and Kalma chowk (square) areas of the city where police was trying to stop them by resorting to tear gas shelling and firing rubber bullets whereas protesters have stoned two police vehicles.
After failing to stop the marching lawyers and political activists, police had put vehicles and other objects on fire in the middle of the road to block the demonstrators as blockades have already been removed by the protesters.

Owing to the worsening situation the District Coordination Officer Lahore, Sajjad Bhutta has resigned from his post.

Inspector General Police (Operations) Lahore Javed Salim has also announced resigning form his post and administration is not stopping the marchers.

There are also fears of security threat to life of Nawaz as PML sources have accused the government of withdrawing security to Nawaz Sharif.

The spokesman of PML-N Pervez Rashid said security provided to Nawaz Sharif from Punjab government has been removed. Sources said a contingent of Elite Force has also been removed.

Earlier opposition leader Nawaz Sharif defying house arrest orders by Zardari government left his house in eastern city of Lahore leading mass protest towards Islamabad on Sunday.

Government issued 3-day house arrest orders for Nawaz Sharif, Shahbaz Sharif, chief of Tehrik-e-Insaf party, former cricketer, Imran Khan, former leader of ruling Pakistan People’s Party, Aitzaz Ahsan, Son of Shahbaz Sharif, Hamza Shahbaz, leader of Islamist party Jamaat-i-Islami, Liaquat Baloch, PML-N leaders, Zulfiqar Khosa, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Saad Rafiq and other leaders.

Aitzaz Ahsan was arrested in Allama Iqbal Town when he was on the way to Lahore High Court but he succeeded in escaping. Police surrounded headquarter of Jamaat-i-Islami in Mansura but Qazi Hussain Ahmad has managed to reach Rawalpindi. Also Imran Khan and Shahbaz Sharif have reached Rawalpindi despite house arrest warrant.

Dozens of political workers have been arrested during raids on Sunday morning.

Earlier Police put opposition leader Nawaz Sharif under house arrest to stop him from leading anti-government protests, however he succeeded in coming out of his residence and leading the protesters.

To thwart the protesters authorities have parked trucks across major roads of Lahore and other major cities.

Government is using all tactics to stop the protesters from coordinating with each as Mobile Short Messing Service (SMS) has also been suspended in federal capital Islamabad. Sources said mobile companies have been directed to curtail the service for two days.

Zardari and Sharif are under pressure to reach a settlement from Washington and army is also lobbying for some kind of agreement to defuse the ongoing crisis in Pakistan.

The country locked in turmoil last month when the Supreme Court disqualified Sharif brothers from contesting polls resulted in removal of Shahbaz from elected office of Punjab chief minister. After that Sharifs have joined hands with the protesting lawyers for restoration of judiciary dismissed by Musharraf in November 2007.

On Saturday when Zardari under pressure from US, Pakistan army agreed to reinstate judges according to Charter of Democracy signed between slain Benzir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif and also agreed to review disqualification of Sharif a ray of hope was seen by the people but it seems Zardari is backing off.

Zardari refuses to reinstate a group of judges, including the former Supreme Court chief justice Chaudhry Iftikhar as he fears the judges could challenge the legality of his rule and a pact signed by Musharraf under NRO (National Reconciliation Ordinance) quashing all out-standing corruption charges against him and his wife, slain former leader Benazir Bhutto.

Zardari’s refusal to reinstate key judges deposed by Musharraf in 2007 have forced Nawaz Sharif to continue with the mass protest which is now turning into a forceful movement which is seen by many as a factor may lead to removal of Zardari as president.

- Asian Tribune -



Political crisis worsens in Pakistan; Zardari in a fix as Punjab police joined hands with opposition | Asian Tribune

 

[Awesome]

Lal Masjid?

I think that was a much different situation.

There were a lot of terrorists there and the civilian deaths were collateral damage. It is a risk the army took in good faith. This is clear cut, people demanding plain simple the rule of justice, these are patriotic Pakistanis who want to see a strong Pakistan.

The generals have already seen Lahore Police do a U-turn on the government and much of Punjab's other places police are with the Long March force as well. It will be catastrophic for the Army to see, god forbid, some of their CO's disobey orders. I think every man or woman of authority in Pakistan should be very careful in giving orders these days and must act in national interest not in any individuals interest.

It makes common sense too, anyone who thinks this wave can be stopped is highly mistaken. This can ONLY end with the PPP rising up against Zardari and showing him the door.

 

[Awesome]

I sincerely hope this does not remain limited to Punjab.
It may sound anarchic on my part to say this but it is about time that our people think above province, baradri politics and see out common cause as a Nation the founders of which were men like Jinnah and Iqbal.

There is no point answering lawlessness with lawlessness... The long march is at the gates of Islamabad and the singular goal should be to promote justice and if the government accepts the rule of law, then theres no need to prolong this.

 

[SurvivoR]

There is no point answering lawlessness with lawlessness... The long march is at the gates of Islamabad and the singular goal should be to promote justice and if the government accepts the rule of law, then theres no need to prolong this.

Who can tolerate an independent judiciary?
By Ardeshir Cowasjee

‘The reality is that neither Nawaz nor Zardari can tolerate free judiciary.’

Now, what with the word ‘disintegration’ being bandied about in the media, the ‘leadership’ we suffer must bear in mind the words spoken by Mohammad Ali Jinnah, who they still profess to still revere.

Over 61 years ago, he firmly told the members of his constituent assembly, three days prior to the birth of this country: ‘...you will no doubt agree with me that the first duty of a government is to maintain law and order....’
Well, it has become more than abundantly clear to the nation and to the world that this government has not the faintest clue as to what constitutes either law or order — that is not to say that any previous government was not afflicted with the same failing.


Another blinding failure is the absence, since the early 1950s, of a truly independent judiciary. For, if the machinery of state is to impose and to maintain law and order, there must be upright and independent-minded men or women sitting on the benches of its courts. Law and order and an independent judiciary go hand in hand and one cannot exist without the other. With what we now have both in government and in the judiciary, hope for law and order is a far cry.


The head of state has been busy appointing judges, all of his choice, to further the subservience of the judiciary to the state. He, at least, has seldom made noises about his desire to have an independent judiciary, whether by oversight or merely because he thinks it would be redundant. On the other hand, we have the Mian of Raiwind, formerly of Lahore, now trumpeting his overwhelming desire for an independent judiciary and his avowal to never surrender until he has put back on the judicial benches those judges dismissed by Musharraf when he lost what was left of his mind on Nov 3, 2007.


The reality is that neither man can tolerate an independent judiciary, as to do so would be quite contrary to their respective political natures. Such has been the case with all those in the top notch for over five decades. Nawaz Sharif’s 1997 physical assault upon the Supreme Court cannot be forgotten or forgiven, as cannot his earlier wish to imprison a sitting chief justice of Pakistan for one night so as to impress upon him who was the boss-man calling the shots. His principled and moral stand, as he terms it, has to be highly suspect.

As husband of the prime minister Asif Ali Zardari is on record as having offered a Supreme Court justice the office of chief justice of Pakistan providing he handed over an undated letter of resignation.

Now we have President Zardari trying to emulate PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto who extended the tenure of his then chief justice by pushing through the sixth and seventh constitutional amendments. Zardari has been busy attempting to find ways and means to keep on Chief Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar who is due to retire in a matter of days. It is not clear how he can do this — but it is worth a try. If Nawaz Sharif is telling the truth, Zardari offered to make a ‘deal’ with the Brothers Sharif whereby he would see that a favourable verdict was handed down in the Sharif disqualification cases if they agreed to agree to the retention of Dogar.


This government, now tripping over itself, is run by a party which never ceases to proclaim that it is a party ‘of the people’, and thus democratic. Is there not one member who can at least admit that it is neither ‘for the people’ nor has it any credentials that anywhere approach the democratic? Its very basis is highly undemocratic. It has no elected leadership. It is led by a man who was allowed to hijack the party in the name of his assassinated wife within two days of her funeral with the shameless party-people remaining supine. In the good old days of ZAB, self-professed socialist and democrat, there were many amongst us who consistently claimed that the party was more inclined towards the fascistic. This present-day PPP, since Feb 25, has proven that our claims had much foundation which has endured over the long painful years.


With the aid of a pliant judiciary, the head of state has wilfully and knowingly created chaos, disrupting the lives of millions of citizens by its greed and grabbing tactics — the object up for grabs being the government of Punjab. The party and its leader have consolidated themselves in the Senate, the National Assembly and in three provincial assemblies. It wanted a clean sweep.
To get it, they, or rather the supreme leader, used the judiciary. Evidently, the choice of Justice Dogar as Chief Justice of Pakistan to succeed the dismissed and contentious Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry was part of the insidious and completely contemptible ‘deal’ engineered by the US and agreed to by the then president, Pervez Musharraf, and Benazir Bhutto before she was removed from the scene when the ‘deal’ was transferred onto the skew-whiff shoulders of Asif Ali Zardari.


Musharraf put his trust in Benazir Bhutto and in those who then were his ‘friends,’ the Americans. His greatest mistake was to put any trust in Zardari, when asked to do so by the friendly US after the Dec 27, 2007 disastrous event. And now, perhaps, the US with its need of a stable, secure Pakistan has realised that it also made a monumental mistake in ignoring past records and the calibre of its chosen anointed successor to Benazir.
T

hat it has had a rethink is evident from the news projected on Friday, if accurate, that chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen had stated that Gen Ashfaq Kayani had informed him that he did not wish to take over the country, that his army wished to keep the situation at arm’s length and press for a political resolution.
What is now happening to this country can in no way be dignified as being compared to a Shakespearean tragedy, as has been done in certain media circles abroad. The players at play in our devastated fields cannot in any way match the calibre of characters portrayed by The Bard. The current scenario cannot even be likened to a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, light and frothy as are their characters, our players being dark and devious, adept at the art of mendacity, double-dealing and turpitude.

 

[Goodperson]

What wonders me how crooked leaders manage to garner support happens everywhere, They have no interest in future of the country. Their idiotic actions and counter actions has huge ramifications to its economy image and future investments.

Below is report in TOI about cost of current political turmoil will these political rivals be held responsible for the same ?

Pak economy losing three billion rupees daily due to political bedlam

KARACHI: The current political turmoil in Pakistan has not only raised questions about the stability of the democratic regime in the country, but
it also has severely dented its economic growth.

According to an estimate, Pakistan is losing about three billion rupees daily due to the political chaos, as the lawyers' protest march has paralysed routine business and foreign trade in most parts of the country.

If the long march and ongoing political commotion continues even after March 16, it is anticipated that the Federal Board of Revenue would lose more than 25 billion rupees worth tax revenue in the month of March, and the average target of raising 148 billion rupees as revenue in this month would become impossible to achieve.

"The perpetual disturbed domestic political conditions would definitely affect the government efforts to bring improvement in the macroeconomic indicators," The Nation quoted head of the Research wing at the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce, Dr. Ayub Mehar, as saying.

Due to the blockade of the highways and seizure of containers by the police to foil the long march ahead of the lawyers' sit-in, the goods and consignments from other parts of the country are not reaching Karachi' s port , Pakistan's financial hub.

Similarly, containers from different countries are not being transported to other cities, thus increasing the cost of transportation and freight charges, storage charges and mark-up rates on Letter of Credits (LC's).

Pak economy losing three billion rupees daily due to political bedlam-International Business-Business-The Times of India

 

[All-Green]

There is no point answering lawlessness with lawlessness... The long march is at the gates of Islamabad and the singular goal should be to promote justice and if the government accepts the rule of law, then theres no need to prolong this.

Asim, i think you may have misunderstood me.
I do not wish for all the thrashing to continue and magnify.
I simply wish that people in other provinces do not see this as a Punjabi movement for that will be the saddest thing that can happen.

Regarding this movement, even Nawaz may later cry if Judiciary becomes truly emancipated and does not tow his line. However since at this point he is supporting a good cause so people should support it and not think of Provinces, baradri etc.

To me even throwing garbage on the street is a big offense so that is why i used the term anarchy when referring to these protests.

Let us hope and pray that Pakistanis finally find a direction and common cause.
Such movements while seeming trivial sometimes define a nation and its course.

 

[AgNoStiC MuSliM]

Who can tolerate an independent judiciary?
By Ardeshir Cowasjee

‘The reality is that neither Nawaz nor Zardari can tolerate free judiciary.’

It will be interesting to see if an 'independent judiciary' lasts into a Nawaz Sharif tenure.

It would seem to me at this point that the 'lawyers movement' has transcended 'political loyalties', though it is still riding on the back of 'political personalities'.

However, if the Lawyers movement is successful twice in a row (Musharraf and Zardari) then does that not significantly change the dynamics of politics and 'people power' in Pakistan?

Will it not infuse the people with awareness about the centrality of issues such as an unfettered media and impartial judiciary, and will 'success' not infuse them with confidence that 'peoples power' does work?

 

[All-Green]

It will be interesting to see if an 'independent judiciary' lasts into a Nawaz Sharif tenure.

It would seem to me at this point that the 'lawyers movement' has transcended 'political loyalties', though it is still riding on the back of 'political personalities'.

However, if the Lawyers movement is successful twice in a row (Musharraf and Zardari) then does that not significantly change the dynamics of politics and 'people power' in Pakistan?

Will it not infuse the people with awareness about the centrality of issues such as an unfettered media and impartial judiciary, and will 'success' not infuse them with confidence that 'peoples power' does work?

You are right Aggy, our politicians are riding the proverbial tiger...and that is the best part.
Not one of the major parties has ever tolerated a non submissive judiciary but lets see what the future has in store for us.
If judiciary becomes independent then we should not care what the politicians interest are for they will themselves be checked later by the free judiciary.

This may yet be the culmination of a struggle within this nation for breaking free from this self created prison we find ourselves in.