Pakistan's former chief justice's daughter tells of family's plight

The Guardian
February 8, 2008

House arrest: judge's daughter tells of family's plight


· Ex-chief justice, wife and children held in Islamabad
· No school or check-ups for disabled eight-year-old

Declan Walsh in Islamabad


Pakistan's youngest political prisoner lives in a house on a hill just a few hundred metres from President Pervez Musharraf's soaring presidential palace in Islamabad. Little about him is typical. He is physically disabled, spends his days watching cartoons on TV, and is eight years old.

Bilaj Chaudhry is the son of Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Pakistan's former chief justice. Since he was fired by Musharraf three months ago, the judge, his wife and four children have been locked in their house. Barbed wire barricades block the street, armed police and intelligence agents swarm outside, and visitors are forbidden. The phones have been cut, the water supply disrupted, and an employee who delivers food is carefully searched. Even stepping on to the front lawn is forbidden.

Article continues
For Musharraf's critics, who now include several retired generals, their ordeal highlights the parlous state of the law as Pakistan hurtles towards elections on February 18. The detention is "entirely unlawful" said a report by the Lahore-based Rule of Law project yesterday.

Chaudhry has remained silent, communicating only through angry letters smuggled out to fellow lawyers. But this week his 16-year-old daughter, Palwasha, gave the Guardian a rare interview using a mobile phone. "I'm sitting upstairs and I can see the intelligence men and police from my window. There's maybe 50 of them," she said. "We can't leave."

The A-level student - nicknamed "the commander" by the judge's allies for her ability to smuggle things in and out of the house - said life inside the five-bedroom jail was difficult. A padlock hangs on the front gate and nobody can enter or leave - not even Palwasha's brother, Bilaj, who has been disabled since birth. "He needs a monthly checkup. But that is physically impossible, as you can see," she said.

The Saudi ambassador, who was allowed to visit, tried to lure her father away with the promise of a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. He politely refused.

Officials from the British Council were allowed to conduct a private exam for Palwasha's 18-year-old sister, Ifra. Palwasha herself has read and re-read the Harry Potter books, and fears she will miss her A-levels this summer. "I miss my studies and I miss my friends," she said.

The government claims the Chaudhry family is at liberty to leave. The reality is very different - police with batons and teargas drove back a crowd of supporters who tried to reach the house this week.

Despite numerous attempts, the Guardian was unable to reach a government spokesman for comment yesterday.

Dubbed "Pakistan's forgotten man" by Newsweek, Chaudhry's plight has been largely ignored by Musharraf's western allies, who are reluctant to confront him on the issue. A spokesman for the British high commission in Islamabad said it called for the release of all political detainees, but that it was "not our business to get involved in specific cases".

Lawyers say that stand is eroding popular support for the west. "The US and UK should consider one thing - they are rapidly losing their goodwill in this country," said Athar Minallah, a lawyer.

Meanwhile, Musharraf is pressing ahead with efforts to crush all lawyer-led protests. Last weekend his interim government extended the detention of three senior lawyers, also held since November, by another month.

"This is a disgrace," shouted lawyer Tariq Mahmoud, surrounded by police at his front gate in Islamabad. "What have I done? Am I the biggest terrorist in this country? I have told my children to leave. This is not a country where one can live."

The baton of resistance may be taken up by an unlikely group. On Tuesday several hundred retired generals, admirals and servicemen held a demonstration in Rawalpindi to demand the president's resignation. Musharraf dismissed them as "insignificant", telling the Financial Times: "Most of them are ones who served under me, and I kicked them out."

But the sight of army stalwarts chanting anti-Musharraf slogans on the doorstep of the powerful military establishment may presage more turmoil after the poll.

The chief justice's imprisonment has not become a major election issue, partly due to continuing restrictions on the media. But even Musharraf's aides admit his handling of Chaudhry has been wrong. "We said it was a mistake. We told Mr Musharraf as much as early as last March," said a senior aide, Mushahid Hussain.

Meanwhile the judge remains at home, reading and praying, said his daughter. "We are very proud of him," Palwasha said. "I am very conscious that in the end victory will be ours."

Backstory

Human rights groups accuse President Pervez Musharraf of waging a vendetta against Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, the chief justice he fired in November. During a recent tour of Europe Musharraf aides circulated an eight-page memo filled with accusations against the judge.

Pakistan's supreme court dismissed many of the serious charges, nepotism, fraud and abuse of office, last July. But the document also included fresh accusations, mostly in the form of anecdotes, ranging from the comic to the bizarre.

Chaudhry was guilty of "highhandedness", it said, by making civil servants wait hours to see him. He was accused of berating officials in Lahore after they provided him with an old-model Mercedes during a trip to the city. In a visit to a government lodge in the mountains, it was claimed, he stopped a guest from using his toilet.

Chaudhry was accused of an "obsession for self projection" in the media and of bullying state TV into broadcasting his appearances.

A few weeks later Chaudhry smuggled a letter from his house in which he rejected the charges. "They are flimsy and ridiculous," he wrote. "After all, a prisoner must also have his say."

Musharraf's new chief justice, Abdul Hameed Dogar, lives a few doors away. He has yet to rule on the matter.

Aitzaz Ahsan and Tariq Mehmood Arrested again ; People protest

Dawn - February 03, 2008

Aitzaz, Tariq under detention, again

by Syed Faisal Shakeel and Nasir Iqbal

LAHORE / ISLAMABAD, Feb 2: The Punjab government put president of the Supreme Court Bar Association Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan under detention for a period of 30 days on Saturday, after he was stopped from flying out to Sukkur at the Allama Iqbal International Airport, Lahore, under an order of the Sindh government, issued earlier in the day.

Also on Saturday, Justice (retd) Tariq Mehmood was put under “preventive custody” by the Islamabad administration to pre-empt what it called his plans to create unrest in the capital.

Both Mr Ahsan and Justice Mehmood have been leading the legal fraternity’s ongoing campaign against the Musharraf government. And both were set free by the authorities only in recent days — Mr Ahsan on Thursday night and Justice Mehmood on Friday evening.

Mr Ahsan spoke with media personnel, addressed lawyers and met PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif on Friday. He had been put under solitary confinement in Adiyala jail, Rawalpindi, on Nov 3 and later placed under house arrest at his Zaman Park residence in Lahore.

Talking to reporters at the airport on Saturday, Mr Ahsan said the authorities had stopped him from boarding a Sukkur-bound aircraft. He was given a restraining order.

He was of the opinion that he should not have been stopped from proceeding to Sukkur because the restraining order should have been enforced if he had actually reached Sindh.

When Mr Ahsan got to his home from the airport, he was handed over a fresh detention order under Section 5(1) of the Maintenance of Public Order, according to his associate Arshad Tarar. The MPO deals with preventive detentions and under it the government may direct any person to remain at a specific place for a specified period.

However, Mr Ahsan says neither the federal nor the provincial government can keep him under detention beyond a period of 90 days, under Article 10(4) of the Constitution. After the expiry of such a period, the government is bound to seek the formation of a review board, comprising judges of the higher judiciary, to regulate any detention.

Meanwhile, the order served on Justice Mehmood — issued under Section 3(1) of the West Pakistan Maintenance of Public Ordinance 1960 — was signed by the district magistrate of the Islamabad Capital Territory. The order cited the Special Branch’s report on “Justice Mehmood’s plans to create unrest in Islamabad”.

It claimed that he had established contacts with individuals who intended to hold public gatherings in violation of applicable laws. “Your speeches, presence or other activities may promote feeling of hatred and ill will among general public, though, and thus posing problem of maintenance of law and order,” said the notice.

The order was served on Justice Mehmood soon after he had reached his home after consulting his doctors at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences.

Assailing the government’s move, senior advocate Athar Minallah said: “Even the (earlier) 90-day detention was illegal as there were no grounds (for it). But since there is no independent judiciary, no relief can either be claimed nor fundamental rights protected.”

o o o

Daily Times - February 04, 2008

People protest against Aitzaz’s house arrest

* CCP members distribute pamphlets on Canal Road
* PGC denounced for thrashing SAC members
* People urged to participate in today’s car rally to Islamabad

Staff Report

LAHORE: Lawyers, journalists, students and other civil society activists on Sunday protested outside Supreme Court Bar Association President Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan’s house, demanding that the government should release him and other detained lawyers and restore the deposed judges.

On the call of the Concerned Citizens of Pakistan (CCP), a non-governmental organisation, the demonstrators thronged in front of Aitzaz’s house where he was detained on Saturday for another 30 days. The protestors, holding national flags, posters and black flags, shouted slogans against the government for detaining Aitzaz Ahsan, Justice (r) Tariq Mehmood and Ali Ahmed Kurd, after the completion of their 90-day detentions.

Justice (r) Nasira Javed Iqbal, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Mrs Bushra Aitzaz, Advocate Muhammad Azhar Siddique and many other renowned personalities participated in the protest.

The protestors recited the national anthem and marched towards the Canal Road. They stood alongside the road in a row, chanting slogans and waving flags. Some members of the CCP distributed pamphlets – inscribed with poetry and quotations to appreciate the deposed judges and the protesting lawyers – among the passers by. After staying there for half an hour, the protestors returned to Aitzaz’s residence and then dispersed.

Before the march, some speakers addressed the protestors and urged them to continue participating in the protests for the ‘noble cause’.

CCP activist Hamid Zaman said the protest was necessary to create awareness among the masses to initiate a decisive movement against the ‘unconstitutional’ government. He denounced the administration of the Punjab Group of Colleges (PGC) for allegedly thrashing the members of the Students Action Committee (SAC), and the police for not registering a case against the accused.

Beena Qureshi of the CCP, addressing the protestors, urged them to maintain the momentum of the movement for the deposed judges and detained lawyers. She requested them to participate in a car rally, which would proceed to Islamabad from Aitzaz’s residence on Monday (today).

She said, from Islamabad the rally would head for Peshawar, then to Sindh, Balochistan and then back to Lahore. She said the rally was to mobilise the people to join the movement for the independence of the judiciary. “The rally will give a message of unity to the people of all four provinces,” she said and added that the CCP would continue its struggle till the restoration of all the deposed judges.

Advocate Anwar Kamal said the lawyers’ movement would be a success when the chief justice and all the deposed judges were reinstated. Shoaibuddin, a journalist, said the media was supporting the movement for the restoration of the judiciary. He said the government had made bread and butter ‘out of reach’ for the masses.

He said the revival of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was necessary for an independent judiciary and for the relief of the common people.

o o o


The Post
February 4, 2008

Rally protests Aitzaz's re-arrest

Staff Reporter

LAHORE: Scores of people staged a protest against the extension of house arrest of Aitzaz and expressed solidarity with him outside the residence of SCBA president Aitzaz Ahsan here on Sunday.

People from all walks of life participated in the protest against the extension of the house arrest of the SCBA president under MPO Article-10 for another 30 days. The protest rally was started at 3:00pm and continued for 50 minutes. Later, the participants of the rally dispersed peacefully.

The protesters marched towards The Mall led by Dr Yasmin Rahid, Dr. Khalid Javed, Venia Qureshi, Syeda Feroza Arbab, Anwar Iqbal and Azher Siddique. They raised slogans in favour of Aitzaz Ahsan and demanded the government immediately release him. Speakers also vowed to continue their protest for the restoration of deposed judges.

The protestors raised slogans and paid rich tribute to detained lawyers and judges. They termed the extension of house arrest of Aitzaz unconstitutional.

Bushra Atizaz said that MQM chief Altaf Hussain's statement regarding an oath taken by deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in 1999 baseless and incorrect.

To a query about the extension of house arrest of Aitzaz, she said that she did not know which power forced the government to take such unconstitutional action despite the fact that earlier, Attorney General of Pakistan Abdul Qayyum declared that Aitzaz had been freed.

Aitzaz Ahsan, Ali Ahmed Kurd and Tariq Mahmood released

[News reports on the release of Lawyers]


Gulf News

Pakistani opposition lawyer freed

Agencies
Published: February 01, 2008, 10:56

Lahore: A Pakistani lawyer who led opposition to President Pervez Musharraf has been released after nearly three months of detention, his wife said on Friday.

Aitzaz Ahsan, a former member of parliament, was detained under emergency powers that Musharraf invoked on November 3.

"He was released last night," Ahsan's wife, Bushra, said in Lahore. "He's very upbeat about life. He's very happy. He has gone to Lahore High Court to address the bar."

Ahsan, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association, was held at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi for nearly three weeks before being transferred to house arrest in Lahore.

Several other judges, including chief counsel Iftikhar Chaudhry, who were seen as hostile to Musharraf’s government, remain under house arrest.


o o o

International Herald Tribune

2 more lawyers released in overture to Pakistan's restive legal community

The Associated Press
Published: February 1, 2008


ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Pakistani authorities Friday released two more lawyers who had been placed under house arrest three months ago for opposition to President Pervez Musharraf in an apparent overture to the restive legal community.

Firebrand speaker Ali Ahmed Kurd and retired judge Tariq Mahmood were freed in Quetta and in Islamabad after authorities in the two cities decided not to extend their detention.

Late Thursday, authorities also freed Aitzaz Ahsan, president of Pakistan Supreme Court Bar Association, and former lead counsel for deposed Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, from house arrest.

Caretaker Information Minister Nisar Memon said the moves were aimed at creating a good atmosphere during this month's parliamentary elections.

"We want to keep the peace and order before elections and maintain a conducive environment so that people could effectively use their right to vote," Memon said.

But he said that Chaudhry and other judges would not released from house arrest.

"Their movements have been restricted for their own security — otherwise they are free men," he said. "They are issuing statements and write letters."

Many members of the legal community have been opposing Musharraf since he removed Chaudhry on March 9 and filed charges against him in the Supreme Judicial Council. The Supreme Court, however, rejected the charges and reinstated him.

That prompted Musharraf to purge the judiciary of Chaudhry and 60 other judges after he imposed a state of emergency on Nov. 3. That move came only days before the high court was to decide on the legality of Musharraf's candidacy for another five-year term.

TV is back, but is not what it was before emergency

BBC News
1 February 2008, 17:05 GMT

Pakistan's missing TV presenters

by Mazhar Zaidi
BBC Urdu service

On his recent tour of Europe, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf argued that "he is a soldier who is committed to principals of democracy".


Talat Hussein of Aaj TV
Every time I go to the studio I am wondering if this programme will go on air or not
Talat Hussein

Many involved in Pakistan's TV news programmes disagree.

By the time Mr Musharraf lifted six weeks of emergency rule last December, most of the TV news channels were back on air after a period of censorship.

But leading personalities on the programmes say they are not enjoying the freedom had before emergency rule was imposed on 3 November.

Embarrassment

The first big trouble between the increasingly influential TV news programmes and the government emerged back in March after President Musharraf made his first moves against the then Supreme Court Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhry.

The blanket wall-to-wall coverage of lawyers' protests, including the police beatings of lawyers, was a severe embarrassment to the government.

Broken glass at the offices of Geo TV
Last March riot police attacked the offices of Geo TV

In one notorious incident, riot police smashed up office equipment and fired tear gas into the buildings of the popular private TV channel, Geo News.

More dramatic still were the events of 3 November when TV screens across Pakistan went black with the introduction of the state of emergency.

President Musharraf has repeatedly defended his actions, saying that some restrictions on the media are necessary to uphold national interests.

He has also said that a section of Pakistani media has been responsible for what he calls a "negative impact" on public opinion.

Most observers believe that Pakistan's TV news is not what it was before emergency rule.

"Every channel that has come back on air has made a compromise somewhere," says Talat Hussein of Aaj News TV, whose programme was pulled many times in the recent months.

"All of us have been forced to sign on a code of conduct. I say forced because if you tell the administration of a TV channel that unless you sign on this document we will not allow you to go back on air, they would be forced to do so to save their investments," says Mr Hussein.

Anchors absent

Adnan Rehmat is the country director of Internews Pakistan, part of an international organisation supporting open media worldwide.

Hamid Mir, left
Hamid Mir (left) staged this programme outdoors to protest against censorship

He says that the government has actually specifically asked various channels to stop a number of news anchors from going on air. "Is it government's job to choose which journalists would go on air?" asks Mr Rehmat.

And the current absence from the screen of many leading news anchors is striking.

Six out of eight of the country's top TV presenters working for the three major news channels are currently on 'forced leave'.

'Like state TV'

Many also believe the news coverage of these channels has fundamentally changed.


As far as Pakistani media is concerned we are still under emergency rule
Hamid Mir

"One can clearly see that at a time when there is so much happening in the country, these channels which have come back on air now start their news bulletins with news about President Musharraf, just like the state-run PTV," observes Mr Rehmat.

Geo TV, the country's largest and perhaps most popular news channel, was the last one to be allowed to go back on air.

But the restored Geo News transmissions are without their leading news anchors.

Hamid Mir is one of them. "As far as Pakistani media is concerned we are still under emergency rule," says Mr Mir.

"All the news anchors, including myself, who are still banned from doing their programmes, are those who questioned Gen Musharraf and that is why we are still not being allowed to go on air.

"We have not been banned by the state of Pakistan but just one individual whose name is General Musharraf. If anyone believes media is free here they must be fooling themselves," Mr Mir argues.

Talat Hussein's current affairs programme has recently been allowed back on air. But he says he never knows when it will banned again. "It can happen anytime. Every time I go to the studio I am wondering if this programme will go on air or not."

'Injustice'

All this comes with general elections due on 18 February.

In a country where very few people read newspapers, many people believe that a fully free TV media could have played a vital role in ensuring the fairness of the electoral process.

"At a time when Pakistanis are supposed to make a political choice in the upcoming elections, putting such restrictions on media which... is now being forced to use complete novices in its prime time, is an injustice to both the people who consume the media and the media people who have put in hard work and investment raising the news channels," says Mr Rehmat.

Lawyers observe Iftikhar Day

[2 new reports on lawyers protests on 31 January 2008]

#1.

The Post (Lahore) - February 1, 2008

Lawyers observe Iftikhar Day

Bhagwandas put under house arrest again

The Post Reporting Team

LAHORE: Thousands of lawyers, members of civil society groups and political activists burned an effigy of President Pervez Musharraf during nationwide protests Thursday to press for the release of the country's deposed chief justice, witnesses said.

Around 3,000 attorneys in black suits chanted "Death to Musharraf" and "Death to army generals" at a rally in Lahore, during which they also burned a cloth dummy representing the president. There was a relatively thin police presence, following a suicide bombing targeting police at a lawyers' rally in Lahore on January 10 that killed more than 20 people. The protestors also staged a sit-in for about 15 minutes outside the Punjab Assembly building where they chanted anti-government slogans and demanded reinstatement of the deposed Chief Justice together with other 59 judges who did not take oath under the Provisional Constitutional Order and were forcibly removed from the benches. During the sit-in, the workers of Khaksar Tehrik Pakistan led by Allama Hameeduddin Al-Mashraqi burnt an effigy of President Pervez Musharraf amidst anti-government slogans. Thousands of lawyers, political activists, workers, and civil society members marched in Karachi to pay tribute to detained Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudhry in connection with Youm-e-Iftikhar, which was observed all over the province on Thursday.

Lawyers boycotted the court activities, and did not appear before the courts. Rallies, seminars, and general bodies meetings of the lawyers associations were held in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, Nawabshah, Khairpur, Mirpurkhas, Shikarpur, Thatta, Jaccobabad, and other districts, which were attended by a large number of lawyers, political workers, and civil society members.Lawyers rally in Karachi was taken out from the Sindh High Court, and culminated at Karachi Press Club. Chanting slogans, "Go Musharraf Go", "Judiciary be restored", "PCO judges unacceptable", and "Musharraf's show is over", the participants were carrying different banners and placards inscribed with anti-government slogans.

The rally was welcomed by Karachi Press Club office-bearers when it reached at the club. Strict security measures were taken by the administration to avert any untoward incident on the occasion.

Earlier, a general body meeting was held at the Sindh High Court, which was addressed by the chief guest, Justice Rana Bhagwandas, a former judge of the Supreme Court, and other judges who did not take oath under the PCO.

Addressing the meeting, Rana Bhagwandas said that with the restoration of "real" democracy and "constitution" in the country, all the judges of the supreme and high courts, sacked by President Pervez Musharraf would be reinstated automatically.

He said all the sacked judges, including Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry were the "Heroes" of the nation, and "we salute them".

"Keeping the ongoing lawyers' struggle which is backed by the whole nation, in view, I can say that the day is not far away when all the judges will be reinstated, and all the detained lawyers will be released", he said and added "We do not expect anything good from the incumbent judiciary, therefore lawyers should continue their struggle for restoration of the real judiciary".

Meanwhile, endorsing the call of the Sindh High Court Bar Association and Karachi Bar Association to celebrate the Iftikhar Day on January 31, 2008, activists of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan and representatives of several civil society organizations gathered outside the Karachi Press Club, with the portraits of Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, and expressed solidarity with the lawyers' movement for the freedom of justice in Pakistan. Participants chanted anti-government slogans and held banners and placards demanding restoration of deposed judges, the constitution and revival of human rights in Pakistan.

The lawyers of twin cities also observed Iftikhar Day on Thursday and boycotted the court proceedings throughout the day with partial hunger strike at District Courts of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Joining a protest rally in favour of suspended Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in the district courts compound they chanted anti-government slogans.

The lawyers also appreciated the services of former Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry for the promotion of judicial system in Pakistan and criticised government's approach on the issue. They vowed to continue their struggle till the restoration of real democracy in the country and reinstatement of suspended CJP.

Islamabad Bar Association President Haroon-ur-Rashid said, "Our protest is for justice and restoration of judiciary. In my view, our movement has been successful. We appreciate the role of suspended Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry because we still take him as Chief Justice of Pakistan who was actually suspended illegally and forcibly. We would continue our movement against the government till his restoration," he added.

Addressing the gathering former Islamabad Bar Association general secretary Syed Tayyab Khan said, "The public must play positive role in the upcoming general election scheduled. Our country is facing many crises such as judicial, inflation, power, gas and flour and also uncertain political situation. So, to save the country from dictators the civil society should join the lawyers' movement," he added.

Former Islamabad District Bar Association president Aleem Abbasi said, "President Musharraf is responsible for all kinds of crises facing our country today. We are facing internal and external pressures due to corrupt political parties and dictatorship. The government has already destroyed most of the institutions including judiciary. General election is the most important phase in the life of our country and we are hopeful the public would play positive role in this. Our struggle would continue till achievement of our targets such as restoration of judiciary and real democracy in the country."

Situation was same in District Courts of Rawalpindi and lawyers observed Iftikhar Day with grate zeal and zest and boycotted the court proceedings throughout the day. Lawyers also joined a protest rally and shouted anti-government slogans.

A further 1,000 lawyers carrying black flags staged a protest and a token hunger strike camp outside the courts in Multan. Several hundred more rallied in Peshawar.

A bomb exploded outside an anti-terrorism court in Quetta earlier Thursday, wounding three people. It was not immediately clear if it was linked to the lawyers' protests.

Former Supreme Court Judge Rana Bhagwan Das has been again put under house arrest for addressing a lawyers' protest rally on Thursday.

Talking to the BBC, his spouse said her husband was scheduled to board a flight for Islamabad at 5 pm but a police contingent, deputed outside his house, refused to grant him exit passage.

'We even had put his luggage in the car but he was not allowed to go outside', she added. She further said the police expressed their inability to defy the orders of their high-ups.

Home Secretary Arif Ahmed Khan said the former justice was not under house arrest; rather he was stopped owing to security concerns. He is allowed to move in the city, the secretary said.

It is pertinent to mention that Ifthikhar day was observed on the call of the Sindh High Court Bar Association (SHCBA), and a rally was also taken out by the lawyers for the restoration of the deposed Chief Justice Ifthikhar Chaudary.

Speaking at the occasion, Justice Rana Bhagwan Das urged the lawyers to continue their protest. He said the deposed judges would be restored and the individuals who took un-constitutional steps would plead their cases in front of those whom they deposed. In the current month, Justice Bhagwan Das was twice arrested for addressing the lawyers.

Jamaluddin Jamali from Lahore, Farah Awan and Obaid Abrar Khan from Islamabad and GN Mughal from Karachi contributed to this report.

#2.

The News - February 01, 2008

Lawyers observe ‘Iftikhar Day’ in Sindh
Resolve to continue boycott till deposed judges’ reinstatement

Friday, February 01, 2008
By our correspondents

HYDERABAD: The legal fraternity, along with political parties, on Thursday observed the ‘Iftikhar Day’ across the province for the reinstatement of the deposed chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and the restoration of the pre-November 3 judiciary by boycotting the court proceedings and taking out protest rallies.

The lawyers, along with leaders of various political parties, took out a protest rally outside the Hyderabad Press Club. The protesters wore black armbands and hoisted black flags on the bar offices.

The Hyderabad District Bar Association and the High Court Bar Association representatives, including Kazi Abdul Sattar, Aziz Sheikh, Abdul Khaliq Leghari, Sultan Sheikh, and political leaders, including Waheed Qureshi, Afzal Gujjar and others, addressed the rally.

They termed the detention of the deposed chief justice (CJ) and other superior court judges as well as Aitzaz Ahsan, illegal and unconstitutional and called for their early release.

They vowed to continue their struggle till the restoration of pre-Nov 3 democracy and judiciary and called for the independence of media and judiciary.

Thatta: The lawyers observed a strike and boycotted the court proceedings to observe the ‘Iftikhar Day’ here on Thursday.

A general body meeting of the Thatta District Bar Association (TDBA) was held. The meeting condemned the sacking and incarceration of the deposed CJ.

The meeting also condemned the assassination of Benazir Bhutto and offered Fateha for her.

Later, the lawyers took out a procession and gathered on the National Highway.

On the occasion, TDBA President Syed Muhammad Shah, General Secretary Punhoon Uqaili and others demanded the reinstatement of the deposed CJ.

Khairpur: The lawyers observed ‘Iftikhar Day’ here on Thursday by boycotting the court proceedings to protest against the continuous house arrest of the deposed CJ.

The lawyers also took out a protest rally. Participants of the rally included PPP Lawyers Forum Sukkur Division President Liaquat Ali Shar, Manzoor Hussain Larik and others.

They demanded the restoration of the judiciary and the Constitution and alleged that chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry was removed from his post unconstitutionally.

They said the restrictions upon the media and the judiciary were highly criticised by the US Congress and the European Union, but the government did not bother to restore the judiciary.

They said the government’s policies were pushing the country towards isolation.

They urged the international community to exert pressure on the government for restoring the judiciary and lifting the ban on media.

Nausheroferoze: The legal fraternity observed the ‘Yaum-e-Iftikhar’ here on Thursday.

The lawyers boycotted the courts in Nausheroferoze, Moro, Kandiaro and Bhiria City and took out a procession to protest against the unconstitutional actions taken against the deposed CJ.

The procession, led by Sardar Akbar Ujjan and Muhammad Shabbir Khanzada, started from the Judicial Complex and ended at the Nausheroferoze Press Club.

The lawyers chanted slogans for the reinstatement of justice Iftikhar Chaudhry and the restoration of the pre-Nov 3 judiciary.

Talking to newsmen, the lawyers said Iftikhar Chaudhry “is still the Chief Justice of Pakistan”. They demanded the release of justice Iftikhar and lawyers, including Aitzaz Ahsan and others.

Free and Fair Elections Network to deploy 20,000 observers for February polls

Daily Times
January 28, 2008


Civil society to deploy 20,000 observers for February polls

* Observers to monitor election process in 83 districts

KARACHI: The Free and Fair Elections Network (FAFEN), a coalition of 40 independent, non-partisan civil society organizations will appoint about 20,000 polling station observers (PSOs) for the election process in every district of Pakistan on Election Day.

“The political parties are complaining against the pre-poll rigging and that the district governments are not playing an impartial and neutral role in the constituencies,” said FAFEN National Coordinator Muddasir Rizvi at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club (KPC) Sunday.

“The opposition parties have accused the administration of taking sides in matters like setting up polling stations and posting of polling staff. There have also been complaints that the government machinery and resources are being used in the polling campaigns of pro-government candidates,” said Rizvi. FAFEN was established in 2006 for observing the credibility of the election process in the country said Rizvi.

20,000 observers The 20000 observers including 16400 stationary and rest of the mobile observers to monitor the election process in constituencies of 264 national assembly seats in 83 districts.“They would also monitor the post-election situation with the help of their long-term observers. They have published eight updated reports regarding post-poll monitoring of the last elections. The FAFEN observers would be neutral and impartial while monitoring the polls and they have been trained in this regard,” said Rizvi. “Meetings are being held with all the political parties to get their views about the coming elections. All the political parties have assured us of their cooperation to monitor the electoral process,” said Rizvi.

“Numerous complaints have been received regarding various types of pre-poll rigging and we have sent their reports to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and floated some 10 suggestions, including setting up of a proper mechanism to handle complaints and legal steps to get implementation rules about the polling expenses. There are complaints that the code of conduct issued by the ECP for political parties contesting the polls is being violated,” said Rizvi.

“FAFEN is being financed by the European Countries and the United States and funds generated threw membership fees of the sister organizations,” said Rizvi.

Mukhtar Javed and Mussarat Qadeem, members of FAFEN executive committee were also present.

Blogs Banned in Pakistan

Dear All,

In another desperate measure the government has banned access to blogs (particularly blogspot/wordpress) from Pakistan.

Don't worry. They can't stop us.

Sites you can use to access banned blogs:

1) www.pkblogs.com

So for instance you want to access The Emergency Times, type
http://www.pkblogs.com/pakistanmartiallaw

2) Free Online Anonymizers such as

http://www.siatec.net/proxyanonymizer/index.php

Anonymizers conceal your IP hence making tracking activity even harder.


Stay safe. Stay a step ahead.

-Admin

P.S. If you have not had chance to have a look at the draconian cyber crimes bill it is posted at:

http://www.teeth.com.pk/blog/2007/09/08/draconian-cyber-crime-law-in-pakistan/

Though it doesn't make a difference to the current regime. There are already many held without any crimes.

The Emergency Times - 34th Issue (23 December 2007)

The 34th issue of Emergency Times is now available at: pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com

PFUJ Eid Protest; Aitzaz roughed up; CJ‚s Eid Prayers

[From Beena Sarwar ]

Dec 21 - Eid-ul Azha today, but the festivities, if there were any, have been marred by the Charsadda mosque bomb blast and the horrific loss of lives. If there was any evidence of electoral politics, it was in this area - Charsadda and Mardan - where the people are highly politicised and the ANP is gearing up to trounce MMA in the elections. Meanwhile, police roughed up Aitzaz Ahsan and prevented the CJ from offering Eid prayers at the mosque (the emergency has been lifted??) - and educational institutions in Kurram Agency have been shut since Nov 16...

1. PFUJ Islamabad Eid Protest
2. Kurram Agency Students Against Taliban
3. Baloch Nationalists Threatened With Deportation, Torture
4. Civilian Vs Military Rule
5. Police Rough Up Aitzaz
6. The CJ’s Eid Prayers

PFUJ ISLAMABAD EID PROTEST: The PFUJ (www.pfuj.info) holds a daily protest camp against media restrictions and for the restoration of the judiciary 2.00-4.00 pm at the Rawalpindi-Islamabad Union of Journalists press club camp office. Today (Friday) Eidul Azha was announced as a special event to commemorate the completion of 50 days of the PFUJ’s protest movement. There were balloons and the CJ’s portrait stuck on trees. About a hundred people turned up, some dressed in their eid finery, along with their families and children, against curbs on the media and removal of the judges. Ahmed Faraz was expected to also attend, but he didn’t make it. Others read out some stirring poetry though.

KURRAM AGENCY STUDENTS AGAINST TALIBAN: As the PFUJ camp ended for the day, several charged Islamabad-based students from Kurram Agency held a demonstration, demanding that schools and colleges in their area be re-opened ˆ apparently they have been shut down since Nov 16 (the day after the lifting of the emergency). The students said that Taliban have blocked all the roads, causing great difficulties to the local people - shortages of food, petrol and diesel. The students passionately chanted anti-Taliban slogans and demanded peace in their area and for schools to be re-opened, especially for girls. Aliya Amirali, convenor of the Student Action Committee addressed the Kurram students and assured them that the SAC stood with them.

CIVILIAN vs MILITARY RULE: Here’s a comment from Dr Ghazala Kazi, posted to the CRDP list that I’d like to share: “Don’t forget that retired general Musharraf has been working for the financial interest of Pakistani military. Unless we reduce military power, we will not be able to rid Pakistan of next generations of many generals like Musharraf. Nawaz Sharif knew this and he wanted to reduce military power but he came to know who was really in charge of Pakistan pretty quickly. He made one mistake, though, he did not take the senate and people of Pakistan in confidence before his big decisions. He was also into khilafat ul muslamine. I hope he learned a lesson from his past mistakes and current popularity does not go into his head like last time. And I still believe in civilian rule no matter how bad it is because people can get rid of the bad one after 4 years.”

Remember what happened when Nawaz Sharif’s government took on the
Jang group in 1999, preventing them from opening Geo? Here’s
something I wrote about this recently ˆ ‘Media: The more things
change...’ - http://www.chowk.com/articles/13066

POLICE ROUGH UP AITZAZ: Police intercepted the car of SCBA President Aitzaz Ahsan on the motorway enroute to Islamabad early this morning, beat him up, broke his glasses, tore his shirt, and brought back to Lahore in a police bus. When he asked for a detention order or warrant, they shoved a gun in his face and said - this is your order. He suffered from bruises and developed a fever. Lawyers & activists held a vigil outside his house at 6 pm Friday; there was also a vigil at Karachi Press Club.
THE CJ’S EID PRAYERS: (From A.H. Nayyar): Activists, mainly lawyers, gathered at the entrance to the judges colony at 7:30 this morning. The police had completely blocked the way to the Chief Justice’s residence with concrete blocks and barbed wires. The protesters gathered at the police barrier which happened to be at the entrance to the ministers’ enclave also. After the police refused to let them through into the judges’ colony, the protesters arranged an Eid congregation right there on the road, and offered prayers with Khutba and all.

Interestingly, some ministers emerged from their enclave to go for prayers, and found their way blocked by the protesters’ congregation. They pleaded hard for a passage, but did not get any. Apparently there is only one access to their enclave. Serves them right. They remained deprived of the opportunity to kiss the hands (?) of their benefactor.

After the prayers, which was also attended by some policemen, the protesters remained at the barrier and chanted slogans. They then all drove to the residence of Justice® Tariq Mahmood in sector I-8, some 8 kilometers away. Tariq Mahmood was under house arrest with a heavy police presence outside his house. He came to the boundary wall and accepted flowers and greetings from his lawyer colleagues and other activists.
BALOCH NATIONALISTS THREATENED WITH DEPORTATION, TORTURE: If deported
to Pakistan, the two Baloch nationalists, Faiz Baloch and Hyrbyair Marri arrested in London on 4 December 2007 would be put at risk of torture, in violation of the British government’s obligations under the Convention against Torture (CAT), warns the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). Hyrbyair Marri’s older brother Balach Marri was killed in Naushki, Balochistan during a military operation on November 21. The two men were reportedly being sent back to Pakistan in exchange for a prisoner, Rashid Rauf, accused in plotting to blow up transatlantic aircrafts in August 2006 who escaped ten days ago.

Detailed statement and links to appeal letters at:
http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2007/2705/

Kathy Gannon: Pakistan's Middle Class Takes to Streets

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jWuZXyT5cuUyrwJKR1kzDy9Bd6EgD8THCTC00

Pakistan's Middle Class Takes to Streets

By KATHY GANNON

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AP) — Nadia Chaudhry's hands trembled in the cold night air as she held a candle at a protest against Pakistan's emergency rule, the government's firing of judges and jailing of civil rights activists.

The demonstration was a first for the 23-year-old law student, who says she's taking up a democracy torch that was dropped years ago.

"Demonstrations by people like me are not part of our society any more," she said. "Before in Pakistan during Zia's time there used to be demonstrations by people like me, students and others," Chaudhry said, referring to resistance to 1980s military dictator President Gen. Zia-ul Haq.

Pakistan's moderate, largely middle class civil society in recent years has been traumatized into silence by the country's political chaos and a succession of martial laws. Instead, protests had been dominated by angry Islamic fundamentalists ripping down placards that pictured women, burning music and video discs, and shouting slogans demanding Islamic law.

That started to change last March. Pakistan's president and military ruler, Gen. Pervez Musharraf sacked the nation's chief justice, sparking a protest by lawyers. The Supreme Court later forced Musharraf to reinstate Chaudhry, but the seeds of dissent didn't go away.

Today's demonstrations aren't driven by religious zealots, but instead "by people who talk only of rule of law and democracy," says human rights activist and columnist I.A. Rahman. "From the beginning in March with the lawyers' agitation, this acquired the distinction as a secular movement."

Since March, protests have grown from the lawyers to include physicians, media personalities, university professors and students.

"We are all educated, professionals. We all suffer when there is no merit, no transparency, no rule of law," said Dr. Saddiq Abbasi of the Pakistan Medical Association. "We all had a hope that as long as there was an independent judiciary we can claim our rights."

Demonstrations escalated after Nov. 3 when Musharraf imposed emergency rule.

Army chief of staff at the time, Musharraf declared the emergency in order to sack Supreme Court judges. The court had become increasingly independent and appeared ready to rule that his election as president violated the constitution.

Musharraf has since rewritten parts of the constitution, giving his hand-picked judges the right to dismiss lawyers and installing a Supreme Court loyal to him. He has promised to lift the emergency rule and hold general elections on Jan. 8.

Almost daily protests throughout Pakistan have called for an election boycott to press for restoration of the judiciary. The largest political parties, while participating in elections, are warning of widespread vote-rigging by Musharraf.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking this week to the Women's Foreign Policy Group in Washington, said the United States has been urging Pakistan's political parties to participate in elections.

Moderates must take part "to hopefully help Pakistan move yet a step further away from extremism because this is a country that was very much — has had very deep extremist elements within it," Rice said.

But Abbasi said protesters feel betrayed that the West, which should be its natural ally, has not stood with them in their demand for rule of law in Pakistan through a restored, independent judiciary prior to the elections.

"The mullahs (religious clerics) are the ones most aligned with the regime. From day one of the MMA (an alliance of six religious parties) have been supporting Musharraf," said Abbasi.

The Islamic alliance's biggest party, Jamiat-e-Ulema Islam, was key to Musharraf's election as president. The party also has the largest number of religious schools in the northwest frontier regions, a haven for Taliban supporters. It was in these schools that many of the Afghan Taliban leadership received religious instruction.

For the last five years — a time when the Taliban grew stronger — the religious alliance was the ruling provincial government in Pakistan's North West Frontier province, on the Afghanistan border.

A former U.S. official, speaking to The Associated Press on condition he not be identified, said the Bush administration aligns with Musharraf not only because he's supported U.S. anti-terror policies but because officials don't want "to find themselves dealing with an entirely new cast of characters in Islamabad at the end of eight tough years."

Yet Dr. Ijaz Gilani, who heads Pakistan Gallup, an affiliate of Gallup International, says surveys in cities and villages shows a growing dismay among Pakistanis toward the Musharraf government.

A poll released this week by the International Republican Institute, a U.S. government-sponsored group, indicated 60 percent of Pakistanis disapprove of the job Musharraf is doing. The finding that could foretell trouble for his party in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The poll said 83 percent of Pakistanis oppose emergency rule, and most supported the ongoing demonstrations. The protests often are small, only in the dozens or hundreds, but continuous.

"Pakistan's (demonstrating) citizens admittedly are relatively small in number yet huge in impact, commitment, conviction and moral legitimacy, have occupied public space and are leading Pakistan's first-ever movement politics in the age of the information revolution," said Nasim Zehra, a security analyst and columnist.

Internet-savvy students and professors sidestepped mainstream and government-controlled news by setting up Web sites and blogs to encourage students to demonstrate. Web sites spread the word about demonstrations, urge participation, and report on students and professors arrested or charged.

Cell phone text messages announce the location of demonstrations. Each message ends with the same directive: "Pass it on".

Educated Pakistanis now "are not only conscious of their rights but are ready and willing to take to the streets to fight for them," said Ayesha Jalal, an expert on South Asia at Tufts University.

Photos and report on the People's Resistance Rally on 14 Dec in Karachi

---

[Report from Beena Sarwar]

KARACHI RALLY ˆ pix up at http://www.teeth.com.pk/blog/ (thanks Awab) - Well done, all those who worked so hard on getting together a show of strength in Karachi. It went smoothly & peacefully. The only downside was that the hired pickup with speakers leading it often went too fast (maybe pushed by the police who wanted the rally to end quickly) and that the event coincided with the Irtiqa seminar on the judiciary held at the Press Club (because of the rally date change), presided over by Minhaj Barna (who launched his book of poetry right before the Live with Talat event).

Protesters started to assemble at Regal Chowk at around 4:00 pm. Within minutes the crowd swelled up to a few hundred under the watchful eyes of a dozen or so policemen. Participants shouted slogans against Musharraf and the Emergency and called for the restoration of the judiciary and media freedom. One constable watching the spectacle of diverse flags (including several Pakistan flags) and placards amidst the din of traffic and full-throated slogans told a journalist, "In our hearts we say the same thing as you. But what we are on duty and we can‚t join you."

The diversity of the participants cut across the divisions of right- and left-wing politics, ethnicity, class, education and gender. People from various walks of life present ranged from lawyers, doctors, engineers, journalists, writers, to labourers, students, and housewives, as well as the families of the victims of enforced disappearances in Balochistan, brought to the rally by Baloch Students Organization (BSO) Azad and their dynamic chaddar-clad central executive committee member, Karima Baloch.

Several political parties participated, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Awami Tehreek, PML-N (Shazia Faizi), National Worker‚s Party (Yusuf Mastikhan and Usman Baloch), Labour Party of Pakistan (LPP, Nasir Mansoor), International Socialists, Communist Mazdoor Kissan Party(CMKP), Pukhtoonkhawa Milli Awami Party (PMAP), Jamat-e-Islami, and Shabab-e-Milli. Other groups included Islamic Lawyer Forum, Railway Workers Federation, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), Aurat Foundation, Women's Action Forum (WAF), Democratic Labour Action Committee, and the PC Workers Union.

Police officers initially refused to allow the rally participants to make their way in a procession through the crowded Saddar area to the Karachi Press Club barely a kilometer down the road, but had obviously been briefed not to use force. After some negotiations, they allowed the rally to proceed.

An interesting mix of slogans was heard as leftist and right-wing parties marched sided by side, ranging from "Asia Surkh Hai!" (Asia is Red) to religious-oriented slogans. Participants held up placards featuring images of Che Guevara, the 'non-PCO judges', and the 'disappeared'. "This is the essence of democracy," remarked a participant.

Akbar Shah, an elderly tourist guide in a shabby shalwar kurta and tennis shoes standing on the sidewalk raised his hands in appreciation as the rally turned towards the Press Club and talked aloud to himself, "Go Musharraf go, so nice, good slogans."

Enthused by the crowd, he accompanied them to the Press Club where leaders from various parties addressed the gathering from the back of a hired pick-up vehicle. They condemned the illegitimate usurpation of power by Musharraf and urged for the restoration of Judiciary which can be the corner stone for the return of democracy in Pakistan.

----


A Dawn TV News report on the Rally of December 14

After a Musharraf friendly fake poll episode; Another poll says people want Musharraf Out

[Three reports are pasted below. The first one is on a fake poll that shoed Musharraf as being popular; The following two reports are on a US based Republican Institute poll donee in Pakistan that shows people want Musharraf to quit. The IRI poll is available online at http://www.iri.org/mena/pakistan/pdfs/2007-12-12-pakistan-poll.pdf]

o o o

#1.

Daily Times
December 10, 2007

Musharraf popularity poll exposed as Internet fraud

By Khalid Hasan

WASHINGTON: A public opinion poll that suggested an increase in President Pervez Musharraf’s popularity since he stepped down as army chief and became a civilian president has one major flaw: the US-based organisation that claims to have conducted the poll does not exist.

A press release issued last week claimed that according to a survey conducted by the US-based International Public Opinion Polls (IPOP), 74 percent of those surveyed had said that Pervez Musharraf would get a boost in popularity as civilian president.

The comprehensive directory of polling and survey research organisations in the United States does not list any organisation by the name of IPOP. Other than the alleged Pakistan survey, IPOP has never conducted any other polls according to its website, information confirmed through an Internet search. The IPOP website (www.ipublicpolls.com) carries no organisational details of IPOP. The PDF version of the poll posted on the website says that IPOP is located in Boston, Massachusetts, and gives its zip code as 02106, which does not exist on the US Post Office’s website.

The press release also claimed that the survey was conducted in Pakistan’s major cities via internet and telephone. Given the relatively limited access to the internet and landline telephone service in Pakistan, the methodology cited remains suspect. The IPOP poll also came up with the finding that 55 percent of those surveyed wanted Pakistan’s political parties to take part in an election under civilian President Pervez Musharraf.

Many newspapers carried the poll received via email. However, Daily Times did not publish it.

o o o


#2.

New York Times
December 13, 2007


Most Want Musharraf to Quit, Poll Shows

By DAVID ROHDE and CARLOTTA GALL

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The first comprehensive public opinion poll conducted in Pakistan since President Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency last month has found that 67 percent of Pakistanis want him to resign immediately and that 70 percent say his government does not deserve re-election.


The poll suggests that Mr. Musharraf will have to engage in substantial vote rigging to have the government of his choice win national elections on Jan. 8.

The survey also calls into question the view in the United States of Mr. Musharraf as a leader who can effectively rule Pakistan and deliver in the campaign against terrorism. And it suggests that civil unrest could erupt if Mr. Musharraf were to win the election.

The poll was conducted by the International Republican Institute, a nonprofit group based in Washington that is affiliated with the Republican Party and promotes democracy abroad. The results were provided to The New York Times before their release on Thursday.

Pakistan’s two main opposition leaders, Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, each a former prime minister, are already accusing Mr. Musharraf of fixing the vote in advance and vowing protests if he prevails.

“If elections are rigged, we are going to need to be in a position like the people of Ukraine were, to protest those elections,” Ms. Bhutto said at a news conference last week. “A plan is under way to rig the elections, and to stop progress towards democracy.”

On Nov. 3, Mr. Musharraf declared a state of emergency, abrogated Pakistan’s Constitution, fired the Supreme Court, blacked out the independent news channels and arrested more than 5,000 of his opponents. Since then, most prisoners have been released and Mr. Musharraf has resigned from his post as army chief, but his actions have “polarized” Pakistani society, according to the poll.

Two-thirds of those surveyed “expressed anger at the current state of affairs, desired change and were anti-Musharraf,” the institute said. And one third “remained supportive of President Musharraf and were positive about the condition of the country.”

An American-backed proposal that Mr. Musharraf form a government with Ms. Bhutto also appears to be deeply unpopular. Sixty percent of Pakistanis polled opposed such a deal, which American officials had hoped would bolster support for Mr. Musharraf.

Instead, 58 percent said they would support a “Grand Opposition Alliance” among Ms. Bhutto, Mr. Sharif and other parties against Mr. Musharraf, a former general who seized power in a 1999 coup. Fifty-six percent said the army, which has intermittently ruled Pakistan since it won independence from Britain 60 years ago, should have no role in civilian government.

If Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Sharif do not form an alliance, the country appears to be headed toward a hung Parliament, according to the poll. Asked which party they would support in elections, 30 percent of those polled said they would support Ms. Bhutto’s party, 25 percent named Mr. Sharif’s and 23 percent favored Mr. Musharraf’s.

The poll was based on the responses of 3,520 randomly selected men and women from across Pakistan, according to the institute. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.69 percentage points.

“If they did unite, they would put themselves in a much stronger position,” said Robert Varsalone, the institute’s country director, referring to Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Sharif.

But the two are bitter personal rivals and, according to Pakistani political analysts, unlikely to be able to form a government together. They predicted continued political instability if no party wins the vote decisively, with Mr. Musharraf, Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Sharif all vying to cobble together governing coalitions with smaller parties.

The poll also identified several worrying trends for Mr. Musharraf’s party. Seventy percent of Pakistanis said they felt the country was headed in the wrong direction and 51 percent said their personal economic situation had worsened. And Mr. Sharif, who returned to Pakistan from exile two weeks ago, appears to be drawing center-right voters away from Mr. Musharraf, a key source of his support.

Pakistani and Western observers warn that clear signs already exist that Mr. Musharraf and his supporters are manipulating the election. They fear a repeat of nationwide elections won by Mr. Musharraf’s party in 2002.

“It was Pakistan’s most rigged election,” said Ijaz Gilani, chairman of Gallup Pakistan, an Islamabad-based polling and research firm. “Never in our history have we had so much pre-poll and post-poll rigging.”

The irregularities were numerous, according to the opposition and observers, including education requirements that knocked opposition candidates off the ballot and the severe gerrymandering of districts in favor of Mr. Musharraf’s supporters. Long before the race, Ms. Bhutto and Mr. Sharif had been forced into exile, weakening the ability of their parties to function.

As the race approached, Mr. Musharraf took over much of Mr. Sharif’s party, the Pakistan Muslim League. He also passed a requirement that all candidates have a university degree, a measure that knocked some of Ms. Bhutto’s and Mr. Sharif’s strongest candidates off the ballot.

Ikram Sehgal, a defense analyst and retired army pilot who runs a security company, said government and intelligence officials also engaged in “post-poll rigging,” pressing successful candidates from other parties to defect.

“They would say: ‘You have not paid your taxes, here are the bills. These are the corruption cases against you,’ ” he said.

This year, the country’s election commission, judiciary and local governments are all run by officials loyal to Mr. Musharraf. Analysts say the president has used the state of emergency to create an electoral playing field that favors his candidates, constraining media coverage, public rallies and the length of the campaign.

The dismissal and continued detention of Supreme Court and High Court judges “sent a very strong signal” that election results could not be appealed, according an election observer who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Instead of the standard 60-day campaign, candidates will have only three weeks after emergency rule, which is expected to end this weekend. Restrictions will remain against rallies and processions, which are only permitted in proscribed places.

And Mr. Musharraf has muzzled the country’s news media, barring live coverage of election rallies and popular political talk shows. Under a new ordinance unilaterally enacted by Mr. Musharraf under emergency rule, television journalists face up to three years in jail for broadcasting “anything which defames or brings into ridicule the head of state.”

In a letter to stations on Monday, government officials accused them of airing live telephone calls from the public that contained “baseless propaganda against Pakistan and incite people to violence.” If the practice continued, they said, station owners and journalists could be jailed.

Fears also exist that government resources are being used in favor of election candidates. The nazim, or district mayor, who controls the local government officials running polling stations, can oversee rigging, Mr. Sehgal said. Opposition parties have demanded they be replaced by neutral officials during the election campaign.

Mr. Sehgal also said law enforcement agencies could shutter polling stations where opposition candidates were expected to do well on the pretext that there were disturbances. “The police find out where they could lose a polling station and they close it early,” he said. “And they put the votes of their party in the box.”

And after ballots are cast, there are concerns about how the vote will be tallied, according to the election observer. Political party observers may be barred from election centers where results from across the constituency will be totaled. “It’s a huge deficiency,” he said.

On Wednesday, Aitzaz Ahsan, a top lawyer who has been under house arrest during the state of emergency was imposed, announced that he was pulling out of the election, in deference to the lawyers who have sought a boycott of elections until the former Supreme Court is restored.

He and other lawyers predict the vote will be rigged. Mr. Sehgal estimates that Pervez Elahi, the former chief minister of Punjab Province and the leading candidate from Mr. Musharraf’s party, can secure 100 seats in Punjab by virtue of his control of government machinery there.

Without rigging, he would only get 45 to 50 seats, he said. Mr. Gilani said his polling has shown 20 percent support for Mr. Musharraf’s party after the emergency.

o o o

#3

Musharraf is criticised in survey
President Musharraf is sworn in
Mr Musharraf insists January parliamentary polls will go ahead
An international opinion poll of Pakistanis suggests widespread public opposition to President Musharraf's re-election as president.

Most people are also critical of the imposition of the state of emergency.

The poll was carried out by the US-based International Republican Institute (IRI).

Meanwhile the president's lawyers say that he will soon lift the state of emergency, but only after ensuring that he cannot be brought before a court.

Public anger

The IRI say that their field workers interviewed more than 3,500 adults across Pakistan in what was the first broad survey of public opinion since President Musharraf declared a state of emergency on 3 November.

It suggests widespread public anger about the measures taken by him.

Protesting lawyers in Pakistan
The president has often been at loggerheads with the judiciary

More than 70% of those questioned said they did not support the President's re-election for another five year term.

Two-thirds said they wanted him to resign.

There was also strong opposition to the state of emergency itself - 70% of the people questioned said it should not have been declared.

A consistent majority - always more than 70% - opposed each of the main restrictions imposed by the state of emergency.

These include the suspension of the constitution, the ban on political rallies, the detention of the former Supreme Court judges and the curbs on the media.

Two-thirds of people surveyed said they thought the president's reason for the state of emergency was not to fight terrorism but to stop the Supreme Court from over-turning his re-election.

Important steps

The president does still command some support but from a minority of about a quarter to a third.

The BBC's Jill McGivering in Islamabad says that this snapshot of opinion is already slightly out of date.

Police in Pakistan
The president says some of his actions have been unconstitutional

The opinions were sampled in November - after the imposition of the state of emergency - but before President Musharraf took other important steps such as standing down as head of the army and confirming that elections would go ahead in January.

It was also completed before he said that would end the state of emergency on 15 December.

Conceded

In a separate development, the president has formalised arrangements made last month to alter the constitution to ensure that decisions made during his term of office will be immune from legal challenges.

The president has conceded that measures he took to purge the judiciary, imprison political opponents and restrain the media were unconstitutional.

But he argues they were necessary to prevent political chaos and give the authorities more power to act against Islamic militants.

The president is expected to ensure the immunity measures are in place before he lifts the state of emergency.

The closure of a private news channel has triggered outrage from all sections of the society

The News on Sunday
9 december 2007


Street protest
The closure of a private news channel has triggered outrage from all sections of the society

by Beena Sarwar

"General, just think, your own judges have refused to accept your actions," said Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, the well known former Supreme Court Judge. Standing atop a stage set at the end of what has been re-named 'Azadi Street' in front of the Jang/Geo office in Karachi, he was addressing a gathering of hundreds of Geo and Jang employees along with the event organizers -- members of the People's Resistance, a loose coalition of individuals and organizations opposed to the continuing martial law.

Justice (r.) Ebrahim drew the audience's attention to the joint statement signed by as many as seventeen retired judges of the Sindh High Court and made public at a press conference that afternoon, on Nov 27. The statement condemned the emergency declaration as illegal and demanded the restoration of the independent judiciary and the media.

The retired judges denounced the martial law as "entirely unconstitutional."

"A return to democracy is impossible without the restoration of all chief justices and judges to their rightful position as of Nov. 2, 2007," they declared. The statement also holds that "any election carried out under a de facto martial law shall be farcical and illegitimate."

Similar declarations were expected from retired judges of the Supreme Court as well as the High Courts of the other three provinces (the retired Supreme Court judges issued their letter on Dec 2, as reported in the papers)

Members of the People's Resistance initiated this thought-provoking street event to show solidarity with the banned television network Geo, which has now been off the air for over three weeks. The ban has caused huge revenue losses to the media company. But more importantly, it has deprived the people of Pakistan of their right to information.

The event featured brief addresses by eminent persons who are in the forefront of the movement for the restoration of democracy in Pakistan, and who recognize that the struggle for the independence of the judiciary and the media are interlinked to this issue. The addresses were interspersed by spots provided by Geo which the channel had started to run as soon as General Pervez Musharraf imposed martial law on Nov 3.

All the television channels, except for the official Pakistan Television were immediately blocked on the cable network. All except Geo have been allowed back on air in Pakistan. For over a week, Geo even disappeared from the satellite world as on Nov 16, the Dubai government under pressure from Pakistan ordered the network to stop its broadcast from its base in Media City, a free zone in the Emirates state. (The Dubai government restored Geo's satellite link on Nov 30).

Justice (r.) Ebrahim jokingly warned students in the audience that they would hear him at their own risk, as the government had banned them from participating in any debate on the crucial issue of media and judicial independence. "I have to speak about this, because it is a matter of life and death for the people of Pakistan," said the retired judge, who has also held office of the Sindh Governor. "Even under British rule we were never stopped from debate and discussion, particularly in the universities and places of learning."

He said that Article 5 of the Constitution obliged the government to restore the Constitution -- not just as of Nov 3, but since Musharraf's coup of 1999 when he overthrew an elected government and took over power. "We do not accept any amendments made after Oct 11, 1999," said Justice (r.) Ebrahim. "If the Constitution is the soul of the nation, then the judiciary is its heart. We are currently without a heart and a soul."

Justice (r.) Ebrahim refuted the government's allegation that the deposed judges had released terrorists. Talking about the judges who have taken oath under the PCO, he said, "With a judiciary like that, independence of the judiciary is in the doldrums. We stand for a democratic Pakistan, the supremacy of the Constitution and an independent judiciary and media." He added: "Anyone who is not with us, is against us."

Geo TV provided content for the event, including the bold statement set to images taking off from the famous anti-Nazi declaration about remaining silent as one by one different elements of society are victimized, ending with "Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak up." The Pakistani version starts, "First they came for the Ahmedis..."

Another powerful spot featured the hard-won rights enshrined in the Constitution that the emergency has suspended -- after alternatively outlining some of these rights, a male and female voice together enjoin the people to stand up for the Constitution and for their rights.

Arif Parvaiz, a development writer and researcher, read out Noon Meem Rashid's celebrated poem 'Aadmi se dartey ho' that resounded with the current times, and the kinds of vicious restrictions ordinary people face for speaking out against martial law.

Secretary General of Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ), Mazhar Abbas, also addressed the gathering. He had just returned from New York after accepting the Committee to Protect Journalists' International Press Freedom Award on behalf of the PFUJ. "The fight has just started," he said. "The November 3 situation was not one that we could have kept quiet about. The issue is not that of one ordinance, or one channel or FM station. This fight is about freedom. We've never demanded this freedom for ourselves, but for the people who have right to know where their taxes go."

He said that till 1986, the journalists were mostly pliant and fell in with the government's directives. "We kept silent about the situation in then East Pakistan. The Pakistan army's surrender of December 16, 1971 was mentioned in just four lines in Dawn." Abbas blamed the media's silence not on the working journalists, who always spoke out even in the most repressive times, but on the media owners, "who have been late in joining the fight for press freedom."

Drawing attention to the PFUJ's prompt response to the martial law, Mazhar Abbas pointed out that even the 'Black Laws' of PEMRA contain clauses that stipulate certain steps before any media is shut down. On Nov 3, "verbal orders were issued to close the channels, without quoting any clause of PEMRA." The procedure, he explained, was that any complaint had to be followed by a show cause notice. This then went to the Council of Complaint, "which can summon the media organization in question. The Council could then recommend in writing for the closure of the media, citing the causes for this recommendation. None of this was done in this case." The government had instituted a PCO for the media, like it has done for the judges.

"The media was being punished for March 9, when it showed Chief Justice Iftikhar A. Chaudhry's campaign," he added. "This is not a fight of the owners. This is a fight for the freedom of expression. This is our fight, and we will fight whether the owners are with us or not."

"The restored channels are not free," said Abbas. In fact, the current restrictions on the electronic media are so severe that the offending talk show host or anchor has to prove their innocence, rather than the authorities having to prove their guilt. (Reminds one of the Hudood Ordinances in which this was the case for rape survivors, who were presumed guilty until being able to prove their innocence). "The anchor is even responsible for any words coming out of his guest's mouth. This is a constant sword dangling over our heads. Today, anyone can get a telephone call from the authorities and be summoned. We are treated like criminals."

The good thing is that APNS, CPNE, PFUJ have taken a unanimous stand, demanding that the government withdraw the ordinances and restore the media to the pre-November 3 position. "We have to be the voice of the people. Simply restoring Geo will not be enough," he said. "A free media is necessary for democracy. An independent judiciary is necessary for democracy. The Pakistani media is the most vibrant in all the Islamic world, the most critical of its own government. We are all for responsible journalism. If anyone has been irresponsible, prove it."

"Under this government," he said, "uniformed men come and slap journalists covering public events, and snatch their equipment. This has happened in Quetta, Lahore, Peshawar, Islamabad and Sukkur."

People's Resistance activities this coming week in Karachi (10 Dec on)

Please note time/date of People's Resistance activities this coming week in Karachi:

MONDAY, Dec 10 - Human Rights Day being observed as a 'black day' by HRCP, PFUJ/KUJ and People's Resistance
4 pm, Karachi Press Club - wear black.

TUESDAY, Dec 11 - - 'Live with Talat' - featuring Talat Hussain, & Nusrat Javeed & Mushtaq Minhas (Bolta Pakistan)
Karachi Press Club - 2.00- 4.00 pm sharp (
Confirmed guests include Justices (r) Wajihuddin Ahmed, Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, Majida Rizvi & Rasheed Rizvi (Prez. SHCBA) and Noor Naz Agha.

FRIDAY, Dec 14 - The big rally - Join us to demand the Restoration of the Judiciary & the Media and Revoke the PCO.
4.00 pm - Meet at Regal Chowk, end at Press Club.
All organisations, parties and individuals who support these demands are welcome. Bring your friends. Register your protest.

Thank you & see you there.

In solidarity, and on behalf of People's Resistance

Sophia, Awab, Sabeen, Noman, Urooj, Yasir, Uzma, Anis, Asad, Afiya, Naeem, Beena, .... (please add your name here and pass this email on to your friends - thank you)

People's Resistance Vigil for Media Freedom - Karachi, Dec 08-07

PRESS RELEASE:

VIGIL FOR MEDIA FREEDOM, AGAINST PEMRA ORDINANCES

KARACHI, Dec 8: For the third consecutive Saturday, the People's Resistance held a vigil at the Karachi Press Club as part of the ongoing protest against restrictions on media through the Pemra Ordinance 2007, the forced ban on shows, presenters, channels and radio programmes. While some media companies have been forced to conform to restrictions and demands, others continue to resist government pressure at great cost.

FM 103 was recently restored after a month but all channels of Geo TV continue to be blocked in Pakistan and the Sindh High Court dismissed as 'non-maintanable under the PCO' Geo's petition to allow at least its non-news channels back on air. Royal TV, closed along with the other channels on Nov 3 is also yet to be restored.

The People's Resistance stands with the journalists in their ongoing struggle for media freedom against all irritants, including recent amendments in PEMRA ordinance and RPPO, and restrictions on private TV channels and on their editorial content.

Citizens were invited to express their peaceful defiance and join journalists to individually light candles symbolic of the human freedom of thought and expression in the darkness imposed by the martial law-emergency. Participants of the vigil, including children, stamped their hand-prints on a white banner, symbolic of their support and salute to the organizations, journalists, writers, and staff who are standing for freedom of expression.

Issue 26 of the Emergency Times is now available

cover page issue 26 of emergency times. Read the full text at: pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com

Teachers Action Committee formed in Lahore

At a meeting of teachers on 6th December, it was unanimously decided to form a Teachers Action Committee. With representatives from various universities, colleges and schools of Lahore including PU, LGS, NCA, BNU, LACAS, FCC and GCU, the aim of TAC is to provide a forum where teachers can unite their voices against the illegal imposition of emergency rule and the brutal oppression of the Pakistani authorities to suppress any voices calling for the rule of law and freedom. We the teachers believe that our silence is not an option in the face of state brutality. Our silence is not an option now that the judiciary has been dismissed and the constitution has been violated.

The Teachers Action Committee vehemently condemns the FIR lodged against 14 members of the Punjab University academic staff and 4 professors and 2 students of LUMS under sections 124-A, 188, 143/149, 16-MPO and 7 ATA (charge of terrorism). We stand in complete solidarity with our fellow academics and students who have been subjected to this harassment and intimidation and demand the withdrawal of all charges against them. Such repressive tactics to suppress the basic rights of Pakistani citizens are in direct violation of not only Pakistan’s constitution but also human decency. We fully support the right of all Pakistanis to freely express themselves without being subjected to such oppression.

We strongly believe that safeguarding freedom of thought and freedom of expression is a fundamental condition of our profession°©--be it in our institutions or in our country. The unfair harassment of faculty and students by institutional administrations living in fear or collusion with repressive regimes should not be aided by our silence. Our collective voice shapes future generations who will own, make or break this land on which we stand. We therefore pledge to raise our collective voice to build and protect the future of Pakistan, our institutions and our profession.


We demand

1. All faculty and students harassed (threatened with expulsion) for
exercising their constitutional right to free speech and peaceful protest be
stopped immediately. We demand that the fundamental rights of students and
faculty be protected by campus administrations and by the state.
2. September 2nd judiciary be restored immediately.
3. All political prisoners be released immediately.
4. An immediate lifting of martial law and the return of the army
permanently to the barracks.
5. Demand fair, free and transparent elections.
6. Demand the lifting of all curbs on the media.

In this and only this, is the future of our country guaranteed.

Teacher Action Committee.
tac.lahore@gmail.com

People's Resistance Meeting at Karachi Press Club on 6th Dec @ 5:00pm

Friends,

This is an open call issued by members of the People's Resistance group to all activists in Karachi to attend a meeting at the Karachi Press Club

Venue: Karachi Press Club
Date: 6th Dec 2007
Time: 5:00pm

Agenda: A number of civil society groups, laborer's, student bodies and political parties are invited to join hands to plan and issue a call for a city wide protest in the near future (13th or 14th Dec) [decision pending]. It must be remembered that People's Resistance would also like to also issue a unified stand on the present political situation during the meeting, and we anticipate a total consensus amongst the participating organizations, founding the basis of our future protests and coalition, which are as follows

1. We consider the PCO to be unconstitutional and all actions taken under this, as illegal.
2. We demand the immediate repeal of the PCO, Army Act 2007, PEMRA Ordinances 2007, and demand the restoration of the judiciary and complete freedom of the media.
3. We reject army rule - overt and covert
4. We reject the holding of elections under the Musharraf regime
5. We reject Pervez Musharraf as an illegal and illegitimate entity.

Please remember this is just a meeting, with no intention of agitation or protests, and would strongly urge all activists in Karachi to show up in numbers and be a part of this important process. Request to please help propagate this message to a wider audience

In Complete Unity for Pakistan

--
Awab Alvi
http://teeth.com.pk/blog

US activists released after being in ISI custody - Forced to Leave the Country

[Two press releases below]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, December 4
Dana Balicki 202 422 8624
In Pakistan 0308-204-2346

US Activists Arrested at Gunpoint by Pakistani Security Forces

Forced to Leave the Country

U.S. human rights activists Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry were arrested in Lahore, Pakistan at 8:30pm on Wednesday, December 4 after attending a student rally at the Lahore Press Club. Upon leaving the Club in the company of several journalists, the car they were driving in was pulled off the road. Armed policemen jumped out of cars and motorcycles and surrounded their car, guns drawn. They forced the driver and journalists out, beat passers-by who were looking at the scene, and hijacked the car with Benjamin and Barry inside. They raced recklessly through the crowded streets of Lahore, endangering the lives of those in the car and outside. They took the two activists to the Race Course Police Station. Benjamin was roughed up by a woman police officer who was given orders to take away their cell phone.

Benjamin and Barry were never charged with anything and no reason was given for their brutal arrest. After four hours, a representative of the US Embassy appeared. The activists were allowed to leave in his custody, but are being forced to leave the country on Wednesday.

"It was a terrifying experience,” says Benjamin. “I had no idea if we would get out of it dead or alive. If they do this to us, who have the protection of being US citizens, imagine what they do to their own citizens."

"It is so sad that peace activists would be treated like this,” says Barry. “We call on our government to condemn our abusive treatment and deportation. It is one more example of the dictatorial nature of Musharraf’s government and one more reason why the U.S. government should stop supporting him.”

Benjamin and Barry are members of the U.S. human rights group Global Exchange and the women's peace group CODEPINK. They arrived in Pakistan on November 25 to learn about and support Pakistani civil society. They have been meeting with lawyers, students, judges, journalists and political leaders. They also conducted a 24-hour vigil outside the home of prominent lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan, who is under house arrest. Through these activities, they have received tremendous support and appreciation from the Pakistani people, including a Letter of Thanks from the Lahore High Court Bar Association extending "heartfelt gratitude for showing solidarity with the legal community of Pakistan."

The activists leave Pakistan shaken by their treatment but inspired by the example of the Pakistani people struggling for democracy.

Benjamin and Barry will be arriving at New York’s JFK airport at 8am on Thursday and will be available for interviews.



- - - -

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DECEMBER 4, 2007
3:09 PM


CONTACT: CODEPINK
Gael Murphy 202 412 6700
Dana Balicki 202 422 8624

UPDATE: US PEACE ACTIVISTS RELEASED
Earlier Today:US Human Rights Activists Detained by Pakistani Government Today


LAHORE, PAKISTAN - December 4 -

2:12 PM (EST)UPDATE: Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry, US Human Rights activists have been released from ISI (Pakistani intelligence agencies) custody, they are safe though quite shaken up. The two have had their visas revoked and are being forcibly removed from the country on an early morning flight (in just a few hours Lahore time). They are available for comment/interview at 011 92 308 204 2346 for the next few hours.

The reason they are being given is that under emergency rule, protests are illegal, therefore Benjamin and Barry have been participating in illegal acts punishable by deportation. You can see more about the peace delegation, read Medea's blogs, view international news coverage and more at www.codepinkalert.org/pakistan

If you have trouble reaching them and are interested please call Dana Balicki at 646 723 1781 or Gael Murphy at 202 412 6700.

Thanks,
Dana Balicki
Media Coordinator
CODEPINK
2:12 PM (EST)UPDATE: Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry have been released from ISI (intelligence agencies) custody. The two have agreed to leave the country as soon as possible.


PREVIOUSLY - 1:08 PM (EST) U.S. human rights activists Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry were arrested by plain clothes police officers and are being held at Race Course Police Station in Lahore today. Benjamin and Barry were on their way from a student rally at the Lahore Press Club on Tuesday, December 4, when they were followed by police on motorcycles -as they tried to alert media they realized their phones were jammed. They returned to the Press Club to alert the media and call the US Embassy about the harassment, and made the statements below. It was as they left the Press Club the second time they were stopped outside the gates by six civilian "secret service" agents, guns drawn at the car. The driver was ordered out and the police confiscated the vehicle with Benjamin and Barry inside.

"It's a sad state of affairs when the Pakistani government—a government that is trying to portray itself to the West as democratic—tries to harass and deport U.S. human rights activists," say Benjamin. "If they do this to us, who have the protection of being US citizens, imagine what they do to their own citizens." "We will not be intimidated," says Barry. "We will continue our activities here in support of Pakistanis struggling for democracy, and we call on the Pakistani government to stop harassing us and respect our rights."

Benjamin and Barry are members of the U.S. human rights group Global Exchange and the women's peace group CODEPINK. They have been in Pakistan since November 25 on a mission to learn about and support Pakistani civil society. They have been meeting with lawyers, students, judges, journalists and political leaders. They also conducted a 24-hour vigil outside the home of prominent lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan, who is under house arrest. Through these activities, they have received tremendous support and appreciation from the Pakistani people. Today, they received a Letter of Thanks from the Lahore High Court Bar Association. The lawyer extended "heartfelt gratitude for showing solidarity with the legal community of Pakistan" and for helping to "boost the morale of the Pakistani lawyers in their just struggle for the restoration of the Constitution." They were told today they had to leave the country because their visas had expired. Both, however, have valid visas.

For more information on the delegation www.codepinkalert.org/pakistan

US Human Rights Activists Stage 24-Hour Vigil in solidarity with lawyer

We'd appreciate your help in publicizing this action.
Thanks so much,
Medea Benjamin

Press Release
Contact in Pakistan: 0308-204-2346

US Human Rights Activists Stage 24-Hour Vigil at the Home of Prominent Pakistani Lawyer, Aitziz Ahsan, Who is Under House Arrest

When: 12 noon, December 2 until 12 noon, December 3

Where: 5 Zeman Park, Lahore

Medea Benjamin and Tighe Barry, members of the U.S. human rights group Global Exchange and the women's peace group CODEPINK, came to Pakistan to learn about the political situation since emergency rule was declared on November 3. One of the people they are most anxious to meet with is prominent lawyer/politician Aitzaz Ahsan, who was jailed by the Musharraf government from November 3 to 25, when he was then placed under house arrest.

Pakistan government representatives in the US have said that the lawyers arrested under the emergency law have been released. But when the visiting human rights activists tried to meet with Aitzaz Ahsan on December 1, they discovered that his home is still designated a 'sub jail' and he remains hostage in his own home, unable to go out or to receive visitors. For that reason the U.S. activists decided to stage a vigil outside his home.

"Pervez Musharrah is telling the world that he is committed to democracy. So it is outrageous that the head of the nation¹s Supreme Court Bar Association, Aitzaz Ahsan, remains under house arrest," said Tighe Barry.

"We have come a long way to meet this man who we have heard is one of the great heroes of the struggle for democracy in Pakistan," said Medea Benjamin. "We will sit patiently in front of his door and sleep overnight in front of his door, asking his jailers to allow us in."