The Emergency Times Dec 16th, 2007 1

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The Emergency Times

Quote of the Day

“"Cowardice asks the question, "Is it safe?" Expediency asks the question, "Is it politic?"
And Vanity comes along and asks the question, "Is it popular?" But Conscience asks the
question "Is it right?" And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither
safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.”
- Martin Luther King Jr.

Lifting of emergency not enough: HRW

(Courtesy DAWN)

The US-based Human Rights Watch said Saturday that President Pervez Musharraf's end to the state of
emergency in Pakistan would not restore real constitutional rule as it “provides legal cover to laws that muzzle
the media and lawyers and gives the army a license to abuse.” Ali Dayan Hasan of HRW said in a statement:
“a genuine restoration of Pakistan's constitution would require Musharraf to return to the constitution and
judiciary that existed before November 3.” The HRW pointed to a series of decrees issued under emergency
rule, including a ban on any later challenges to the legality of the emergency and an amendment to allow the
military to try civilians. “The military is Pakistan's principal human rights abuser, yet Musharraf has changed
the law so that it can play judge, jury and executioner,” Hasan said. HRW said the United States and Britain
should speak up against the president, a key ally in the US-led “war on terror”. “Instead of playing along with
Musharraf's power-grab, they should condemn his latest ploy for legitimacy,” the group said.

Rally outside Aitzaz Ahsan’s house

Around 200 people gathered outside Aitzaz Ahsan's house on Saturday at around 7 PM in a continuation of
the vigils that have been taking place there since the announcement of his withdrawal of his candidature from
the elections. Lawyers, students and other concerned citizens shouted slogans calling for his release and
other illegally detained heroes, like Ali Ahmed Kurd, Tariq Mahmood and Muneer A Malik, as well as the
reinstatement of the judiciary. As their numbers swelled, the protestors marched in the form of a rally
towards the main road next to Zaman Park, where they formed a human chain on the sidewalk, while
contiuing the charged sloganeering.

Student Action Committee Lahore issues call for the 17th

Emergency lifted: nothing restored

We, the people, are the rightful masters of both congress and the courts - not to overthrow the constitution,
but to overthrow men who pervert the constitution. - Abraham Lincoln

Even after the emergency has been lifted, the country is still under the stranglehold of the regime. The
Student Action Committee (Lahore) will continue to fight for our country’s rights.

Without an independent and free minded judiciary, we the people will never have protection.

Without an unshackled media, we the people will never have a voice.

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
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Join the Student Action Committee (Lahore) and other civil society groups in pushing through the barriers to
freedom.

Come join us in a peaceful protest at Nasir Bagh on the 17th of December 2007 at 1 pm.

A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government. - Edward Abbey

Student Action Committee (Lahore)

Disclaimer: We are not affiliated with any political party, rather we represent the collective conscience of the
students of Pakistan. Joins Us: saclhr@hcs.harvard.edu

Declaration by Pakistan’s former ambassadors

We, as former ambassadors of Pakistan, deplore the imposition of the state of emergency and suspension of
the Constitution by General (R) Pervez Musharraf. As the Supreme Court of Pakistan declared on 3 November,
2007, these steps, which amount to the imposition of martial law, are unconstitutional and illegal. Besides
undermining the rule of law and delivering a severe blow to the independence of judiciary, they have
dangerously destabilised the country. They also have incurred international opprobrium and badly tarnished
Pakistan's image. We, therefore, demand:

. Immediate restoration of the Constitution and the judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts as
constituted before the declaration of emergency on 3 November 2007.

. Formation of neutral caretaker Cabinets at the Federal and Provincial levels and reconstitution of the
Election Commission to ensure the holding of free, fair and transparent elections to the National and
Provincial Assemblies.

· Immediate release of all persons imprisoned or detained under the emergency, including judges, lawyers,
journalists, students and others.

· Full restoration of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution and the lifting of all restrictions
imposed on the media.

· Strict adherence by the armed forces to their oath and constitutional role, in accordance with the directives
given by the Quaid-e-Azam.

· Strict application of the principle of accountability of holders of public office.

We call upon the parties and the candidates participating in the elections to make a solemn commitment to
treat the reinstatement of the judges of the superior judiciary as the top priority issue after the elections. The
nation also expects that political parties and members of future national and provincial legislatures would
adhere to recognized democratic norms in their future conduct and pay serious attention to the overcoming of
the daunting challenges facing the nation. We express our deep appreciation to the judges of the Supreme
Court and High Courts who refused to take oath under the PCO, the lawyers for leading the movement for the
restoration of the rule of law, the journalists for resisting the regime's efforts to gag the media and the human
rights activists, students and other members of civil society for lending their full support to the democratic
movement. We express our solidarity with the nation in its demand for the full restoration of democratic and
constitutional rule in the country.

Signed,

23 former ambassadors and secretaries of Pakistan

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
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What if we lose?
Haray bhee to bazi maat nahin!

Omer.G

I have a feeling that fellow students, lawyers, and many other citizens want to pose us a tough question.
Something – perhaps love for us or fear of breaking our hearts, hope for the movement or despair of ever
convincing us to quit it – keeps them from saying it loud. The question is: What if we lose?

We hope that this wouldn’t happen. Somehow the powers-that-be will quiver before the moral force of our
argument and if they don’t, whatever political government that emerges out of the elections will. Nonetheless,
let us suppose what the cynics have always believed. Suppose that no one listens to us and, as Kamila Hyat
put it, ‘in our lonely walk’, we end up no where? What if our movement fails to bring the legitimate judges
back? What if one by one, those trampled flowers wither and vanish and freedom’s tender wings remain
forever clipped in this country? What good is all the hue and cry we raised and still raise, and all the effort
that it takes, if the movement’s objects are never achieved?

If that happens - it being the worse that could possibly happen - I believe our efforts would still not have been
in vain. The great thing about a social movement is that it is never lost. We are lucky to be engaged in a
principled moral endeavor, in love’s lonely labor, which even defeat cannot render futile. As Faiz put it:

Yeh baazi ishq ki baazi hae, jo chaho lara do dar kaisa?

Gar jeet gaey to kia kehnay, haray bhee toe baazi maat nahin. - Faiz

There are gains produced by this movement that even defeat cannot wipe off. For one, the movement has left
countless individuals who participated in it, particularly students and young lawyers, fundamentally
changed. The legal profession in Pakistan has not been known for a display of integrity or honesty. When
these young protesting lawyers go back to their trade, they will hopefully take home with them some of this
principled behavior.

Students of elite institutions like LUMS and FAST have also long been known for a lack of social and political
sensitivity. If you were ask them about the state of affairs in this country the standard response would be
either of the two: “There’s nothing you can do about it”, or “I plan to settle abroad”. Today, the same youth is
preparing to inherit this country with all its struggles and all its bounties. Even if they withdraw now from the
arena of practical politics, they will take back with them a deeper concern for and engagement with the
problems that common people in this country face. I know many students who seemed destined to become
ruthlessly effective tools in the machinery of global economic imperialism – this brief brush with activism has
left them thinking. Some, if not all of them, have resolved to utilize their undisputed talents in fighting the
people’s war in whichever field of life they end up in.

Many eyes, formerly blind, have come to see the gravity of the situation around them. Inwards, those very
eyes shall soon turn. Perhaps, they will uncover some remedy to that impoverishment which globally afflicts
the human soul in this age of materialism, objectification and commodification. As resistance to the evil
outside blossoms, let each and every one of us reflect also upon the very meaning and purpose of human
existence, social life, our daily live, education and all other endeavors. In many minds, that introspection has
already begun, sharp tongues are wagging and desiccated pens like mine are pouring floods – how can the
effort then be considered futile.

Beyond the contribution it has made to the individuals involved in it, the current civil society movement has
already bequeathed a legacy to the nation at large. It has given the country an inspiring glimpse of what
politics can be, if it is done honestly and in a principled manner. Also, it has dispelled a notion that the 90’s
experience popularized; the notion that, in this country, elected government and corruption can never be

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com
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separated. By infusing into popular discourse the ideas of rule of law and strict constitutionalism, this
movement has revived the hope for bringing in rule-bound elected governments, which are effectively
restrained from corruption and authoritarianism by judicial independence and the vigilance of media and civil
society.

We are a nation that has lost its heroes, not to gradual erosion by history but to swift corrosion worked by
mysterious forces. Political leaders either lost or sold their credibility ages ago. War-heroes slip out of our
fingers once we begin to contemplate the possibility that maybe we really didn’t win all those wars and they
were sparked by the ambition and adventurism of certain power-hungry individuals. Even sportsmen have
become quite disappointing. Recently, forces bigger than our miserable bully-of-a-state have stolen the
integrity of the nuclear scientist, denying our last civilian hero.

Today, however, a whole new crop of national heroes has sprung up – lawyers, judges, activists, not one but
dozens. As I pen these words, from within the sobering darkness of their prison cells and sub-jails, the likes
of Justice Iftikhar Chaudhary and Advocate Muneer A. Malik are defining the true meaning of integrity. In
their own neighborhoods, people are finding heroes like Justice Siddiqi of Lahore, in whose defense they can
willingly sacrifice their liberties, and others in turn are willing to risk their own liberties and comforts so as to
secure their release.

Finally, this episode has shown the world a picture of Pakistan that it had never seen before – a picture so
inspiring that some Americans lawyers have actually decided to copy us. In this age of cultural imperialism
and the exercise of hegemonic soft power, this is no less than a miracle. It is the one of those miracles that
only true love for a cause can bring about – love which is incomplete without a passionate hope of success,
but remains as valuable a sentiment, even when it stays forever unrequited.

Eyewitness account of rally in Karachi

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

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com
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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.

Pictures from Rallies in Peshawar, Karachi

Disclaimer: This publication is not affiliated with or does not endorse any political party or social group. It is a humble
effort to inspire and make aware- for we together can make a difference in these troubled times.
Write to us at theemergencytimes@gmail.com. Our online version is on pakistanmartiallaw.blogspot.com